I curled my fingers in his belt and held his gaze as I opened the buckle. The clink was the sound of my last wall crumbling. Gripping his zipper, I pulled it slowly down, terrified and aroused. Then I paused. Asher bent low, his mouth brushing my ear. “ You are playing with fire.”Forcing down my nerves, I turned my face, bringing my own lips to his ear. I kissed his ear and then trailed my tongue over the rim. He exhaled and pulled back so he could look at my face, and the look in his eyes, almost made my knees buckle. For a second, I had him. But Asher wouldn’t be Asher if he didn’t know how to take his power back.He grabbed his pants and pulled them down together with his boxers. His erection sprang free, and Asher braced himself against the wall with his hands on either side of my head. I stared down at him and sank back against the wall. He was long and thick and impossibly hard. I tore my gaze away, only to be hit with Asher’s penetrating stare.My cheeks blazed with heat, and
My voice surprised even me—how flat and cold it was.“I already made my decision,” I said, leaving no room for an argument.A flicker of pain crossed his face, but it quickly turned into anger.“I knew you’d do something like this. That’s why I told my father to call the Don.” I continued, “He agreed,” I swallowed,“As of this morning, there’s a new arrangement—an offer to marry the Russian princess. It’ll end the bloodshed. It’ll save lives. It’s what people like my father want. And maybe... maybe you want it too.”“You should take it,” I said. “Marry her. It’s a good deal.”He stared at me like he didn’t recognize me.“Fuck the Russians,” he snapped. “Fuck the deals. I don’t care about any of it. I care about you. You’re all I want. You’ve always been it for me, Ariella.”I didn’t move.“I should’ve married you the moment you turned eighteen,” he said, voice breaking. “The second I saw you at that wedding reception, I knew. And that night in the garden... when it was just us... I kn
I got to my bedroom, slammed the door shut, and threw my bag onto the floor. Then I climbed into bed, pulling the blanket over me, hoping it could somehow shut everything out. My mind raced with everything that had happened—what I’d done, what I couldn’t undo.Then the door creaked open.I looked up and saw my mom walk in. I stared at her.“What do you want?”“Watch your tone,” she said sharply, closing the door behind her. She walked to the edge of the bed and sat down.Silence stretched between us before she finally spoke.“The Don gave specific instructions to be called once you got home.”I didn’t say anything.“Your father called him,” she continued. “Told him what you said, that you broke up with Asher. The Don said he’d speak to Asher himself and get back to us. So now… we wait.”She paused, and when I still didn’t speak, she added in a low voice, “I really hope you’re not lying, Ariella. Because you do know what’s at stake, right?”I sat up slowly, fury bubbling in my chest.“
I went to the bathroom, closed the door behind me, turned on the tap—and started crying.Silently, as the water rushed into the sink, I let the tears fall. I had to. I needed to get it all out in here, alone, because I couldn’t let Asher see me like this. If he saw me break, he’d know. He’d know I didn’t want this. He’d know something was wrong. And I couldn’t let that happen.Right now, my job—the only job I had left—was to make him hate me. Because that’s the only way he’d walk away.If he hated me, he wouldn’t fight for me. He wouldn’t try to stay. He wouldn’t ask questions.So I looked at myself in the mirror, washed my face, and whispered, 'This is for our baby.'Lives were at stake. That’s what this felt like. That’s what I was telling myself.One day, maybe this wouldn’t hurt as much.Maybe.I left the bathroom and saw the bags were gone. My jeans and shoes were neatly placed on the bed, and my handbag lay beside them. I got dressed, reapplied my makeup in the mirror, and gave
Anger flashed across Asher’s face, fiercer than I have ever seen. This was real fury and for the first time, it was directed at me. “You’ve lived a sheltered life, Ariella. You have no idea what I would do if you broke your word. I’ve had hardened men say no, and in the end, they gave up all their secrets... So why don't you stop whatever this is and tell me what's really going on”“Then do what you have to do,” I snapped. “Cut off my toes and feed them to me. Beat me, burn me, cut me...”At my reaction, he laughed again, but there was no joy in it. It was hollow, disbelieving. He ran a hand down his face, exhaling hard.“Are you serious?” he asked, breathless. “We just spent the whole day together… we just had sex.”He paced for a second, rubbing his face again. “Okay, can you explain to me what the hell is going on right now? Because I don’t see it, at all.”His eyes locked on mine, and I saw it, the confusion, the pain, the disbelief slowly turning darker.“What’s going on,” I for
AsherAs I looked down at Ariella asleep in my arms, her body soft and warm against mine, exhausted after the way I had taken her, fully and desperately, I couldn’t help the smile that tugged at the corners of my lips.Just to think... I could’ve died. I could’ve lost her. And I would have never known what it felt like to have her this close, to hold her like this, to be inside her, to feel her so deeply it felt like our hearts beat the same.I wasn’t going to let myself be in that position again, ever. Not if it meant I’d never see her like this again.Still, I had to admit something I hadn’t been able to shake. She’d changed.I don’t know if it happened in a single day, or if it had been gradually happening and I was too late to notice. But now that I did… it was impossible to unsee it.There were moments when her eyes looked clouded like there was sadness behind her smile. Sometimes, hesitation through her words, a quiet pull-back in the way she kissed me, touched me. Sometimes, i
Asher brought his tip to my opening and pushed in a bit. I clenched at the intrusion, even as my body begged for more. Watching me, Asher licked his thumb and pressed it down on my clit, beginning to draw small circles as he began to thrust into me with shallow, gentle thrusts.Round and round his finger swirled, tugging at that knot inside my core. My gaze dipped lower to where his cock sank into my pussy. He was halfway in by now and pushed deeper with every new thrust until finally, he filled me completely. Without thinking, I grabbed his firm ass, feeling it flex with every thrust. The feel of it and the sight of this primal act, of Asher’s pelvis pressing up to mine, his hips parting me for him, his abs tensing, and the harsh lust on his gorgeous face blasted my knot to shreds. I cried out as pleasure radiated through me with a force that had me clench so tightly that Asher exhaled sharply from my pussy’s grip on him. He slammed harder into me as I sunk my nails into his backsi
He should have. This felt amazing. He lowered himself between my legs, and I opened them for his strong body without hesitation, loving the feel of his powerful, warm body on top of me. He cupped both of my breasts with his hands, squeezed lightly, never taking his eyes off me—nor did I take mine off him. The sight of this man touching me turned into a mess of need.Kneading my breasts gently, he lavished my nipples with attention, kisses, licks, and sucks until I was panting. Without thinking, I wrapped my legs around him and pushed my centre against his stomach, needing friction. My wetness coated the firm muscles and caused Asher to groan low in his throat. His eyes flashed with triumph and hunger. His mouth worked my breasts with even more fervour until I was close to losing my mind with the need for release. I kept rubbing myself against Asher's abs almost desperately, but it wasn’t enough—not nearly enough. I needed more but wasn’t sure how to say it.I made a small impatient s
I tiptoed towards him, hoping to catch him by surprise and hug him from behind. But he wasn’t on alert. He didn’t resist. He didn’t even flinch. It was as though he had expected me all along. I slipped my arms around him and rested my head against his back, swaying him gently. I could feel his smile as he tilted his head slightly to touch my forehead.Then he turned around slowly, taking my arms in his hands, and bringing them to his lips. He kissed them softly, then kissed my forehead, and finally wrapped me into his embrace, holding me against his chest.“I know you're upset the day is over,” he said, his voice warm and soft above me, “but this is just one of the many days we’re going to be spending together. Because once I marry you, you won’t have to ask for anybody’s permission. You’ll be mine, and I’ll be yours—in every sense of the word. And we’ll get to have this time, just the two of us, every day.”He tipped my head up gently so I could look into his eyes, so he could see my