MasukI lowered my gaze to my notes. "The subsidiary formation," Edmund said. "Legal wants thirty minutes before the end of the week." "Thursday morning," I said. "I'll need to be included," Alicia said. She turned toward Edmund. "Thursday morning works." "Both of you," Edmund said. Harlan looked at
Edward’s POV The term sheet was in my inbox at seven forty-three. Edmund had forwarded it with a single line. As expected. Your call on timing. I read it at my desk before anyone else arrived. Four pages. Precise. Volkov's committee had come back with exactly what the projection had asked for, th
Alicia's POV His arm was across my waist when I woke. The room was grey with early light, the city outside still quiet, the type of quiet that belongs to the hour before a place fully commits to its day. I lay still for a moment. The weight of his arm. The warmth of the room. The dress lying acros
Her hands moved from my shoulders to my face, her palms cupping my jaw, her thumbs stroking my cheeks. It was a gesture of such unexpected tenderness it nearly undid me. Her eyes, dark and dazed, locked onto mine. In them, I saw not the woman I had wronged, but the woman I was with, in this moment,
Her hand anchored hard against the back of my head, fingers tangling in my hair, holding me exactly where she needed me. For a moment, I wasn't the man who had failed her. I was just a man giving her pleasure. She said my name once, twice, the third time broken completely, and her whole body arched
Edward's POV Her mouth was on mine when I got the door open. I walked her backward into the room, the city lights filtering through the window in thin strips that barely illuminated the space. Her hands were already at my collar, working open the buttons of my shirt with an urgency that sent a jol
My hands clenched at my sides. Lucy saw it. Smiled again. "I'm not trying to hurt you, Edward. I'm trying to help you see reality." She stopped in front of me, close enough that I could smell her perfume. French. “She’s launching soon." I didn’t react. “Victor mentioned it after the conference,”
Edward's POV The treadmill hummed beneath my feet. Mile six. The gym sat unused, just as it should. Just me and the mirrors lining the walls. Equipment gleaming. Temperature-controlled. Everything precisely maintained. My lungs burned. Cloth soaked through. I kept my eyes forward, watching nothi
Another reporter. "Can you be more specific about Monday's dinner?" "Key stakeholders were present. Board members. Investors. Ms. Perez—Edward's wife—offered a perspective on cultural work that clarified our approach considerably." The energy in the room sharpened. Alert. A woman in the front ro
And all I could think about was the petition sitting on my nightstand at home. "Sir?" I looked up. Leo was watching me. Waiting. "The press conference," I said. "Tell Victor's team Mrs. Valentine won't be available." Leo's expression didn't change. But his pause was longer than usual. "May I







