INICIAR SESIÓNVladimir drove me to the beach, the car’s engine humming softly as it traced the winding road through the remote coastline. The beach here was so isolated and untouched that few people ever passed by, making it feel like a secret world just for us. We stepped onto the soft sand, cool beneath our feet as the sun began its slow descent toward the western horizon. The orange sunlight spilled across the sea’s surface, mingling with the gentle waves, creating a shimmering dance like a thin veil of gold gauze fluttering in the breeze.We walked side by side in silence, the only sounds the rhythmic crashing of the waves and the faint whisper of the sea breeze. Our footsteps left parallel imprints on the soft sand as we strolled slowly, like a real couple enjoying a quiet moment together. Suddenly, without warning, Vladimir slid his arm around my waist from behind, pulling me gently to a stop. The warmth of his touch was immediate and intimate.He turned toward me, his green eyes locking onto
"What's wrong with you?" I stood by the door and stared at her, my voice steady but my eyes sharp with disbelief. The room felt smaller somehow, charged with an invisible tension that made the air thick and hard to breathe. "I believe this is my office!" I said firmly, making sure my words echoed just enough to remind her whose space this truly was."I know!" Tessa said, slowly lowering her heels with exaggerated grace. The sharp click of her red stilettos on the polished floor slowed until they stopped altogether. She stood up straight, almost statuesque, and faced me, her posture haughty and defiant as ever."What do you want to do in my office?" I asked, leaning casually against the doorframe but feeling my pulse quicken with every second. The sharp scent of her expensive perfume mingled with the sterile office air, making me even more aware of the silent battle unfolding between us.Tessa didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she began pacing slowly on the thick carpet, her red heel
I parked my car in an open-air parking lot in front of the Hartford family company. It was a 70-story office tower that loomed over the city like a steel giant, its mirrored glass windows gleaming under the morning sun. The building stood as a monument to wealth and ambition, humming with silent power. The Hartford family was involved in a wide range of businesses, legitimate ones showcased in headlines and boardrooms, and gray ones whispered about behind closed doors. There are hundreds of people working in the building. People come in and out every day, dressed in expensive suits and polished shoes, their expressions fixed in neutral masks. Everyone has their own desk, their own space, their own importance.Except me.When Tessa first introduced me to Liam, he showed me around his company. We walked those polished marble floors together, his hand on the small of my back as he led me through corridors lined with glass offices and bustling departments. On the surface, he wanted me to
"Calm down, Liam!" I said, my voice shaking slightly, trying to inject some reason into his boiling fury. "Maybe it's just a regular fight, like when you guys get drunk and throw punches at each other over poker or football! You're too nervous!""Brinna, you have no idea how awful that Vladimir is. He's a total bastard! He's the one who played the tricks!" said Liam, getting all worked up, his fists clenched so tight his knuckles turned white. "I'm going to take my gun and kill him right now!""All right! Go ahead!" I snapped back, crossing my arms with a smirk that masked my stormy heart. He knew how dangerous Vladimir is but here he was fooling himself. "I'll order you a coffin the moment you go out! I promise there's no whiskey on the rocks in your coffin!"But there will be Tessa's dead body!Of course, I didn’t say that out loud. But I would make it happen. Like an advanced predator, a seasoned hunter doesn't rush the kill. They stalk their prey, toy with it, unnerve it, wear it
"Belong to you as a mistress, starting from now?", I asked with my eyes wide open.Vladimir’s expression didn’t change. If anything, it sharpened. "Yes," he said calmly, like it was the most reasonable demand in the world. "Your body, your loyalty, your silence. All mine."I swallowed hard, trying to steady the shaking in my limbs. "That wasn’t part of the deal.""It is now," he replied smoothly. "You came to me desperate. Desperation has a price.""And yes you came here knowing what kind of man I am. Don’t act surprised now that I’m not playing the gentleman.”I stood slowly, my chair scraping softly against the marble. “And if I say no?”, I murmured softly.He took a step closer. “Then you walk out of here alone. Straight back into Liam Hartford’s gilded cage. You’ll marry a man who will destroy you from the inside out while your best friend whispers poison in his ear. You came to me for a reason, sweetheart. Don’t pretend you still believe in rescue.”The silence between us stretch
The city’s heart was colder than I remembered, its streets still wore the same names, but the warmth I once clung to had long since faded into shadows.I was longer the girl with stars in her eyes. No longer the fool who thought love would save her.Now I walked with a ghost inside me and I needed to stop something.I kept my hood up as the car drove , the faint hum of the engine and the soft buzz of the GPS filling the quiet air. The city passed in slow motion outside the window, the glowing streetlights casting fractured reflections on the glass. I wasn’t sure how much time I had before they realized I was gone, but I wouldn’t be caught off guard again. Not this time."We’re almost there." The uber driver spoke. I nodded, my throat tightI was going to him.VLADIMIR REYNOLDSThe man my husband-to-be feared most. Well kmown mafia boss, ruthless, cunning and impossibly wealthy. He ran his empire from behind velvet curtains and whispered scandals. Where my fiancé relied on charm and le
I trudged down the thin corridors of my high school earlier than usual, back arched and shoulders sunken.Although I was getting more and more fed up with this week, yesterday with the hung over was my tipping point. I was slipping from the thin balance beam, and I was probably going to plummet to
"By the way, I am going to start studying with you", Her next words made me to freeze.“What? Why are you shocked?” she asked, innocently, blinking but I still stared at her like she’d just confessed to a crime. “You’re… going to study with me?”“Yes,” she said brightly, swinging her legs off the
I had always been cursed with killer hangovers. The first time I had gotten drunk, which was my freshman year of high school, I had really overdone it. Without ever having a drink before, I drank way too much too quickly and ended up blackout drunk within an hour. The hangover I suffered the next d
“What the hell was that, Corbett?” I snarled, my voice low and venomous. “Huh? Did I hit a nerve? Was I annoying you? Answer me.”The blonde brute animalistically growled at me. Hudson said a round of swears before trying to push us apart. "Shut the Hell up, Carter!" So I was back to a last name ba