Author Chris 의 작품

Talia POV Alexei grips a handful of my hair and hauls me up to my tiptoes then he kisses me, his other hand cupping my ass and his cock like a steel bar between us.“You’re mine, Talia. You belong to me forever, and I will take care of you. There’s nothing you can say or do that will make me let you go.”The certainty in his voice sends a shiver through me and there is something intense about the way he says it, as if he has already made up his mind and nothing in the world could change it.Before I can respond, he leans closer and takes my earlobe gently between his teeth, giving it a teasing bite.A sudden rush of sensation runs through me, sending electricity through my body and making me draw in a shaky breath.For a moment, I simply stay there, caught between his words and the warmth of his touch, my heart beating faster than I want it to.“I’m tired.” I push against him but trying to move him is like trying to move a brick wall.“You need to come.”“Let go.”“No.” He tugs my h

Talia POV After coming back from the park, I was completely exhausted. My legs ached and my body felt heavy, all I wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep.Instead, we ordered room service and the food was surprisingly good, and for a while, everything was peaceful.Ethan sat happily in his little spot, eating and making a complete mess of himself while I watched him with a tired smile. By the time we finished, I was convinced he had to be just as exhausted as I was but I was very wrong.The moment we cleared the plates, Ethan's energy seemed to come rushing back. He started running around the room, jumping from one place to another like he had somehow discovered a second wind. "Ethan, slow down," I called, barely having the strength to move from my spot.He ignored me completely then he wandered into the bathroom and that was the beginning of the end.A few minutes later, I found him fascinated by the bathtub, and once he discovered the bubbles, there was absolutely no convincing

Alexei POV I texted Viktor from my other line and gave him strict instructions that nobody was to step outside the house unless it was absolutely necessary.Every doctor’s appointment for Noah was to be put on hold until further notice and I didn't care who complained or what excuse they had because right now, keeping my entire family alive mattered more than anything else then I called Tristan, who had a habit of thinking a fast car could solve almost any problem. “Stay indoors,” I told him.There was a brief silence on the other end before he tried to argue. “Alexei…”“I’m not asking.”My voice came out harder than I intended, but I didn't have the patience to argue not now when Matteo was involved.Fighting Matteo who is one of the oldest and most powerful capos in the United States, wasn't something any of us could take lightly.The man had survived too much, controlled too many people, and had enough influence to make things difficult for anyone who stood in his way and now he k

Alexei POV“Where are we?” Talia stirs from her thoughts as we pull into the garage.“It’s a friend of Damon,” I tell her. “We’re going to trade vehicles again. I’ll grab Ethan now.”She gets out of the car without a protest, resigned to the fact that this is our life for now but I meant what I said. It won’t always be that way and I hope she can come to believe that at some point.Damon does the talking, and within twenty minutes, we have two different rigs to get back on the road but before we leave Los Angeles, there’s just one more thing I need to do.We load up, and Damon follows us to another service station just off the interstate.“Stay here,” I tell Talia. “I’ll be right outside, okay?”She nods, and I meet Damon behind the SUV, pulling out the burner phone I took off Lucas guys. Damon eyes collide with mine in quiet contemplation.“I haven’t trusted anyone in a long time, Alexei.”“I know.”“Truth be told, I’m so goddamned paranoid, I’m still not even sure I can trust you bu

Viktor POVSomething had changed with Aria but I couldn't put my finger on exactly when it started, but over the past few days, I had noticed enough small things to know I wasn't imagining it.Aria was quieter than usual and there was a strange distance in the way she moved around me.She hadn't done anything wrong, but I knew her well enough now to recognize when she was keeping something to herself.Normally, I would have given her space. Aria needed it sometimes, especially when life became overwhelming but this wasn't just one bad day, it had been days and while I was busy trying to track Dante, I had also been staying inside with Ivan to make sure nothing happened to the family.Every member of the Kozlov family was already on edge, and the uncertainty surrounding Dante had made everything worse then Sergei casually mentioned that Aria had gone to a gynecologist appointment and had left Noah with him, that stopped me because she hadn't mentioned the appointment to me.I waited fo

Alexei POV Talia swipes away a few silent tears that have leaked from the edges of her eyes and shakes her head as she tries to process everything.It’s a lot and more than she ever expected to hear, I can see the questions racing through her mind as she tries to fit all the pieces together.The truth about her mother and the possibility that the man she has spent her entire life knowing only as a name could actually be her father but I know now that it was the right thing to do.She deserves to know her truth even if knowing it hurts her more than living without it ever could.“When I saw the name Michael on the drive, I never even looked twice. I just assumed it was someone else.”Her voice is quiet, almost distant, as though she's replaying the moment in her head.“I think Matteo coded her that way in his own contacts,” Damon explains. “That way, if any of Dante's men saw it, they wouldn’t think anything of it either. He didn’t want to take the chance of their connection getting b

Serena POV “I’m so sorry.” What else could I say to that?His eyes fell to the ground and now I understood his inherent melancholy. There always seemed to be something on his mind, a shadow clouding the brightness of his eyes. “How long has it been?”“About Four year.”That seemed like enough time for Victor to move on…especially if the man wife had.“This is why I don’t like to talk.” He lifted his gaze and looked at me. “You don’t see me the same.”“That’s not true,” I whispered. “I just…feel for you.” I didn’t judge him for his mistake because it wasn’t intentional and it clearly ate at him every single day because he cared. If he didn’t care, he wouldn’t have that dead look in his eyes.A knock sounded on the door and Adrian got to his feet to let the chef in.Just as he walked away, a message popped up on his phone.Talk to me, It was from someone named Aurora.I shouldn’t have looked because it was an invasion of privacy, but it was instinct. A bright light came on, and my eyes

Serena POVAfter I finished my shift, I showered and got ready to see Adrian. I’d been thinking about that kiss all day.I was so angry with him, but he quickly changed my feelings with his charm, his smile and those soft lips, that man could talk me out of anything because he was so suave.My hair was curled, and my makeup was perfect but then I got a disappointing text from him. I have to cancel tonight and I’ll see you tomorrow.The clipped tone of his message told me he was in a bad mood, so something must have happened after he’d left my apartment. The more I got to know him, the more I recognized his brooding tantrums. "Are you home?""Why?"Just answer the question. "Yes."I grabbed my purse and walked out the door, his housekeeper let me inside,and I took the long trek to the top floor where his bedroom was located.A bottle of scotch was in my hand because I noticed he drank it when he was in my house. I reached his bedroom door and tapped my knuckles against the wood.After

Adrian POV Serena eyes lingered on my injury even though she couldn’t see it. “You’re talking about the Blacktop, right?”Maybe I should give her more credit. “You know him?”“Not personally but Ethan my friend has mentioned him.”Maybe I didn’t need to censor my life at all with other people, I pretended the company was my only source of income because there was no point in sharing the whole truth but I wanted Serena to know…for reasons I couldn’t explain.She moved into me and lifted my shirt again. “Maybe we should go to the ER…”“Don’t be ridiculous.” I shoved the shirt down.“I’ve been through worse.” Like being tortured by multiple men Victor ensured that but he didn't know I went a step more in the business and a simple punch to the stomach wasn’t a big deal.“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” She righted herself again, a look of concern in her eyes.“A little.” Her wrath seemed to disappear, so it felt like we were back to normal. A slight smile formed on my lips. “Ca

Adrian POVHaving those fuckers come after me was the last thing I expected and it wasn’tuntil I woke up the next morning that I realized what I’d forgotten about Serena.Once Ivan had punched me in the stomach, all thoughts of her ceased and I’d dropped off my grandfather at his house and got to work.I saw her missed call and text message. My dick appointment hasn’t been rescheduled, right?Ah, fuck.I put the phone to my ear and called her as I walked into the bathroom. I listened to it ring as I stared at myself in the mirror, seeing the discoloration on my stomach where Ivan had slammed his fist but I got no answer."I had a crazy night last night, talk to me."There was no response."Did I just fuck this up again?"I skipped the office and went straight to her apartment. I knew she didn’t work until lunchtime and Noah should be in school, so she had to be home. I knocked loudly but I got no response.I knocked again. “Serena, please.”I slammed my fist into the wood. “Want to wa

Adrian POV My grandfather opened his program and squinted his eyes. When he couldn’t read a single word, he fished his glasses out of his jacket pocket. “They make the writing on these things so damn small…” The glasses were placed on his nose, and he could decipher the page. “Liana is in nearly the entire production.”My sister was quite talented, not that I would ever tell her that. “That means this will suck.”“Adrian.” He continued to scold me like a child because he seemed to lose track of reality sometimes.I was in my thirties, but sometimes he thought I was still a dumb teenager, sneaking girls into the house. “I’m teasing, Father.”He shut the program and gripped it in both hands, as if he intended to put it on the fridge when he got home.My parents had been gone fifteen years, and Victor had been alone ever since. I offered to let him live with me, but he refused. Liana offered the same thing but he was just too proud yet age claimed his body more with every year.He could

Serena POVI didn't even know what I was doing anymore with Adrian.For three days, we had been fucking inside his house, constantly circling around each other and pretending we weren't standing on the edge of something neither of us was brave enough to name.We had slept together more than once and yet, somehow, I had managed to keep the most important parts of my life completely separate from himI still hadn't introduced him to Noah and I hadn't told him the truth about why I'd changed my name, either.Every time the conversation came close to that subject, I found a reason to steer it somewhere else because part of me was afraid of what he'd think another part of me was afraid that if I told him everything, he would feel obligated to choose a side and I didn't want his pity.I didn't want him fighting a battle that wasn't his but most importantly, I didn't want his grandfather anywhere near my son.Adrian was more handsome than I remembered maybe it was because I'd spent years try