I woke up in an absurdly good mood.Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I had definitively proven my theory last night. Namely, Misha’s instant activation was not a myth, served for me only. All it took was one strategically sheer nightgown, a bed, and about three seconds before he was ready to break several laws of physics.Jesse would’ve been in shock if she’d been here to witness it. And Sadie would've been insufferably smug, most likely calling it an easy win over the lying warlord. I was still grinning about it as I padded into the dining hall, the smell of coffee and warm bread already making the day feel civilized.Vincent was at the head of the table, looking like a mafia patriarch straight out of a glossy magazine. That he was. Navy suit, silver hair perfect, and the faintest smile tugging at his mouth when he saw me. For a man who had technically only been my biological father for a matter of weeks, he’d mastered the art of
By the time I heard the low hum of the black Ferrari pull into the driveway, the clock had just passed midnight. Vincent’s mansion was quiet, all staff were gone for the night, lights dimmed in the halls.I’d been lying in bed for the last forty minutes, flipping through a magazine I wasn’t reading, and very intentionally wearing the most impractical nightgown I owned. Sheer, short, and the kind of thing that was useless for warmth but excellent for… experiments.Jesse’s words had been replaying in my head all evening.Just me.His body responds only to mine.I wasn’t about to admit she’d gotten in my head. But I was curious. And I wanted to see it for myself. Maybe.The bedroom door clicked open.Misha stepped inside, dark suit still sharp despite the late hour, hair mussed just enough to hint at how long his day had been. He was loosening his tie, eyes half-lidded, and then he saw me.He stopped still.
“Then it’s just you.”The words echoed long after Jesse had said them.“What do you mean… just me?”Jesse leaned forward like she was sharing a state secret. Her tone dropped, thoughtful, almost reverent in a way I hadn’t expected. “I mean he didn’t respond to anyone for years. No touches. No flashes of skin. No meds. Nothing. And now you’re telling me he was hard before you even touched him? That’s not physical. That’s… biological destiny or some shit.”I stared at her. “Biological—Jesse, come on.”“I’m serious,” she said, folding her arms. “It’s like he was in stasis until you showed up. Frozen in time. Frigid. You’re like… Misha’s keycard or something.”“Please don’t phrase it like that.”Jesse only smirked. “I mean it, Lorraine. For years, I thought he was broken. Emotionally. Physically. Like something inside him had permanently shut off. And maybe it had. Until you.” She paused, watching me a second longer, then ad
“So if it wasn’t the cooking or the money,” Jesse asked me with genuine curiosity brimming in her eyes, “Then what made you say yes? You’re still so young, Lorraine. And you married a man like Misha…”“…A man like Misha?” I asked carefully.Jesse’s expression didn’t change much when she pointedly continued, “You know what I mean. Brilliant. Dangerous. Handsome. Rich. And, well… impotent.”“Impotent?” The word landed between us like a dropped glass. I stared at Jesse, blinking once, twice, three times just to be sure that I must’ve misheard her.“Wha—what do you…” I frowned, brows knitting as confusion took place, “...What do you mean by that?”Jesse was completely unaffected by the verbal bomb she’d just dropped on me. She lifted her brows, saying matter-of-factly, “It means exactly what it sounds like, sweetheart. He couldn’t get it up. No hardness, no reaction, no erection, no matter what I did to him.”“I—Iknow what…
“Why the fake name?”Jesse tilted her head.“At the gala,” I added. “You introduced yourself as Isadora Vale. Misha said your name's Jesse Morgan.”She looked at me for a moment, then gave a small shrug. “Force of habit. I hadn’t used my real name in public in a long time. When I went off the grid after the last op, I needed to disappear. Isadora Vale was easier to hide behind.”“But Jesse Morgan is your real name.”She nodded. “It always was. I just stopped using it when it stopped feeling safe. Though, you can call me Jesse. I don't mind.”I hesitated, then asked the question that had been brewing since I saw her face-to-face. “How long were you and Misha… together?”A beat passed before Jesse answered. “Three years. Most of it was during active deployments. You know how it is, long stretches of silence broken by chaos and adrenaline. It wasn’t always easy to separate what was real from what was convenient.”“
I sat in the backseat, legs crossed at the ankle, fingers digging into the strap of my handbag like it might anchor me to something stable. Technically, it wasn't mine because Vincent bought it for me. But, after the roller coaster of my life a few months back that included exposing a bad family drama, rushed marriage, and brand new identity… I didn't really have my own things anymore. It was either Misha bought it or Vincent did. I dreaded thinking which one was the worst. Wade Brent didn’t say a word, but his eyes kept flicking toward the rearview mirror like I might spontaneously combust or dive out of the moving car. It would’ve been funny if it didn’t make me feel so, what could I say, monitored.“I’m not mad,” I said, voice flat.Wade cleared his throat. “Right.”“I’m not.”“Noted.”God, he sounded like a clipboard.The real reason I wasn’t talking wasn’t Misha or Silas or the ever-present fear of finding my husband in another blood-slicked torture room with dripping water and