ログインALISTAIR'S POV: I feel a knot form in my stomach. I know where this is going. I have seen this look before, in her eyes, in the way she is looking at me now. It is the same look she had when we were teenagers, when we were rivals, when she made it clear that she wanted more than just competition. I want to leave. I want to get away from her. But I cannot be rude. She is a business associate, a peer, a former rival who has achieved incredible success. "Mira," I say carefully. "It is good to see you. But I am actually here for work. I do not have much time." She ignores my excuse. She steps closer, the smell of her expensive floral perfume filling the small space between us. "I was hoping we could catch up. I have so much to tell you." "I am sure you do. But I really need to—" "Dinner," she says. "Tonight. Let us have dinner." I shake my head. "I cannot. I have other plans." "What plans?" "Personal plans." She looks at me. Her eyes narrow, just slightly. "Are you see
ALISTAIR'S POV:The morning after the anniversary party, I am in Elara's room before the sun is fully up.The gray light of dawn is just beginning to leak around the edges of the heavy window curtains. The entire house downstairs is dead silent for once, completely exhausted from the long night of music, toasts, and dancing.She is still in bed, her dark hair spread across the pillow, her green eyes heavy with sleep. She looks soft and warm and beautiful, and I want nothing more than to crawl back under the covers and stay there with her forever.I stand by the edge of the mattress for a long moment, watching the slow, rhythmic rise and fall of her chest. My heart feels almost uncomfortably full. After all the years of distance, having her right here within my reach still feels like a dream I am terrified of waking up from.But I cannot stay. I have to go.I lean down and kiss her forehead. Her skin is warm and soft under my lips."Alistair," she murmurs, her voice thick with s
ALISTAIR'S POV: The anniversary celebration was approaching, and with it, the whole family. All the guests. All the eyes watching. I lay in bed with Elara, her head on my chest, her hand resting over my heart. The room was dark and quiet, the only light coming from the moon through the curtains. I could feel her breathing, slow and steady, her body warm against mine. My fingers rhythmically traced soft circles on her upper arm. Outside, the night wind pushed gently against the glass of the window, but inside the bedroom, the air felt warm, safe, and heavy with a quiet kind of honesty. "The anniversary is tomorrow," she said softly. Her voice was quiet, hesitant. "Everyone is going to be here. All the guests. All the family." I stroked her hair. "I know. I have been thinking about it all day." "We cannot keep this secret forever, Alistair. Tomorrow, with everyone watching, I do not know how I am going to pretend I do not want to kiss you every second." I was quiet for a
ELARA'S POV:The next few days were perfect.I had never been happier in my entire life. I woke up every morning with a smile on my face, my body still tingling from the night before, my heart full of a love I had been hiding for years. I would stretch out in bed, feeling the warmth of the sun on my skin, and I would think about him. About the way he looked at me. About the way he touched me. About the way he whispered my name in the dark.Every morning felt like waking up inside a world that had completely reset itself. The heavy shadow of the past seven years was just gone, replaced by this quiet, buzzing warmth that stayed in my chest from sunrise until the late hours of the night.Alistair and I moved through Ashcroft Manor like two planets orbiting the same sun. We were always drawn to each other, always finding excuses to be in the same room, to brush against each other, to steal glances across crowded spaces. We would meet in the hallway and his fingers would graze mine. W
ELARA'S POV:He pushes in slowly. The stretch burns in a way that is almost too much and not enough at the same time. I dig my nails into his shoulders and bite down on my lower lip to keep from making noise. He stops when he is fully inside, breathing hard against my neck."Okay?" His voice is strained."Yes," I manage. "Just... give me a second."He stays still. His forehead rests against mine. I can feel him throbbing inside me. After a few breaths the burn fades into something fuller, deeper. I shift my hips a little and we both inhale sharply."Move," I whisper.He does. Slow at first, careful strokes that make my toes curl. Every time he sinks back in I have to press my mouth against his shoulder to muffle the sounds trying to escape. His breathing is ragged in my ear. One of his hands finds mine and laces our fingers together against the pillow.We find a rhythm. His hips roll deeper. Mine lift to meet him. The wet sound of our bodies moving together feels obscenely loud. Somew
ALISTAIR'S POV: She pushes at my chest until I roll onto my back. Her hands are clumsy with nerves as she unbuttons my shirt and shoves it off. Then she works on my pants. When she finally gets them down and my cock springs free, she just stares for a second. "Wow," she breathes. I almost laugh. Almost. Then she wraps her hand around me and the laugh dies. Her grip is warm and uncertain. She strokes once, twice, watching my face like she is waiting for instructions. "Like that," I manage. "Just... a little tighter." She tightens her fist and strokes again. My hips jerk. She looks proud of herself. Then she leans down and takes the head of my cock into her mouth. Heat. Wet. Soft. My vision blanks out for a second. She sucks carefully, tongue swirling, taking me deeper by small degrees. One of her hands stays wrapped around the base. The other rests on my stomach. I dig my fingers into the sheets and bite down on my own lip hard enough to hurt. Every wet sound her mouth makes is t
Celestine Valancourt stood in the bathroom of her penthouse apartment, her bare feet cold against the imported marble floor, staring at a little plastic stick that had just completely and utterly rearranged her entire universe. There were two little pink lines staring back at her. Two little lines
KIER'S POV:I pour myself a drink and I sit in the dark and I wait for her to come back.She always comes back.But she does not come back.A week passes. Then another. The penthouse stays empty. My calls go straight to voicemail. My texts go unanswered. I send messages through her email, through s
Kier Thornwell looked like he belonged on a magazine cover even when he was just standing in an elevator. Thirty eight years old. Strong jaw and sharp cheekbones. Eyes so dark brown they looked black. A mouth that rarely smiled, but when it did, women forgot their own names. Six foot two. Carried h
The forgotten anniversaries. There had been three of those. Three times she had dressed up nice and made dinner and waited and waited and waited until finally getting a text that said "working late sorry" with no exclamation points, no emojis, no nothing.The cruel comments. Those were worse."You







