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CHAPTER SEVENTY TWO

Author: Vee Philip
last update publish date: 2026-04-12 15:09:18

Ping didn’t speak immediately.

For the first time since he started telling the story, the silence between him and Jungwoo wasn’t just heavy, it felt personal. Like he had reached a part of the past that even he didn’t revisit lightly.

His fingers rested against the arm of the chair, unmoving, his gaze distant for a brief moment before he finally exhaled.

“…There was one person,” he said, voice quieter now, stripped of that earlier firmness, “who still tried to reach him.”

Jungwoo didn’t interru
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  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER NINETY

    By the time they stepped out of the bathroom, the moment had already begun to fold in on itself—not erased, not forgotten, just quietly set aside like something fragile neither of them was ready to examine too closely. It lingered in the air, in the warmth that hadn’t fully faded, but neither of them reached for it. Not yet.Ragnar moved first, like he always did.A towel rested loosely over his shoulders as he crossed the room, his posture already shifting back into something more familiar, something controlled. Every movement was precise, deliberate, as if he were reassembling himself piece by piece. By the time he reached his clothes, the transformation was nearly complete. Button by button, the softness from earlier disappeared beneath that usual composure, that distance he wore so effortlessly it might as well have been part of him.Anyone walking in at that moment would’ve seen nothing unusual.Just Ragnar. Untouchable. Unreadable.Like always.Lance noticed.Of course he did.H

  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER EIGHTY NINE

    Morning didn’t rush them.It unfolded slowly, sunlight slipping through the curtains in soft streaks, warming the room just enough to make everything feel quieter, heavier in that peaceful kind of way. The sheets were still tangled, the air still carrying the faint trace of the night before, something unspoken, something that lingered.Ragnar was the first to shift.Not abruptly. Not carelessly.Just a small movement at first, his arm sliding free, his body turning slightly as he sat up at the edge of the bed. There was a moment where he just stayed there, back straight, shoulders set, like he was gathering himself again.Control returning.It always did.Lance watched him from the bed, half-awake, one arm still stretched across the empty space Ragnar had left behind. His eyes were heavy, but the second he focused on Ragnar—He didn’t look away.Didn’t even try to hide it.Ragnar stood, reaching for his clothes with that same quiet precision. Every movement was measured, familiar, lik

  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER EIGHTY EIGHT

    The morning came quietly, soft light slipping through the curtains and spilling across the room in a warm, muted glow. Nothing outside had changed but inside, everything had shifted into something softer, slower, almost unfamiliar.Lance was awake first.Not fully alert, not rushing into the day, just there. Still. Present. One arm wrapped securely around Ragnar from behind, holding him close beneath the sheets like he wasn’t in any hurry to let go.There was no tension in it.No hesitation.Just warmth.His hand moved slowly over Ragnar’s side, not wandering, not careless, grounding touches, like he was checking that this was real without needing to say it out loud.Ragnar stirred faintly at the contact. Not pulling away. Not resisting. Just a small shift, the kind that comes with waking up and realizing you’re not alone.Lance leaned in closer, his breath brushing against Ragnar’s shoulder before his lips followed, soft, unhurried, careful.“…Hey,” he murmured.His voice was deeper

  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER EIGHTY SEVEN

    The bedroom was quiet, except for the sound of their heavy breathing. Lance had Ragnar backed up against the mattress, his hands sliding firmly under Ragnar’s shirt. Usually, Lance was the one making jokes to break the tension, but his face was dead serious now. He pushed Ragnar back, and Ragnar let himself fall onto the bed, his heart thudding against his ribs.Lance didn't waste a second. He crawled over him, pinning Ragnar down with his weight. He looked down at him, his eyes dark and focused."Ragnar," Lance said, his voice sounding rough. "Please. I’m not kidding. I want this so bad."Ragnar looked up at him, a bit stunned. He was used to the icy distance he kept between himself and everyone else, but Lance was melting right through it. Lance leaned down, his face inches from Ragnar’s, his breath hot against his skin."Please," Lance begged again. He grabbed Ragnar’s hands, locking their fingers together and pressing them into the pillows. "Let me. I want to put it in. I’ve been

  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER EIGHTY SIX

    Lance didn’t knock.He hadn’t in weeks.At this point, it wasn’t even a question it was just something he did. The door opened like it always did, quiet but unannounced, like he belonged there.“Ragnar—”He stopped mid-step.Ragnar stood with his back turned, just pulling a shirt over his head when Lance walked in but not fast enough.For a second, Lance just stared.Because he hadn’t seen that before.A scar.Long. Faded, but unmistakable. It stretched across Ragnar’s back, cutting through the smoothness of his skin in a way that didn’t match the rest of him at all. It wasn’t small either. It wasn’t something you could miss once you saw it.And for someone like Ragnar, Someone so controlled, so put together, so… perfectly composed, It stood out.Lance’s expression shifted, surprise flickering across his face before he could hide it.Ragnar noticed immediately.Of course he did.His movements stilled for just a second before he finished pulling the shirt on anyway, slower now, more

  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER EIGHTY FIVE

    The shift between them didn’t happen all at once.It wasn’t loud or obvious, nothing that could be pointed at and named in a single moment. There was no clear beginning, no exact point where things changed. If anything, it was the kind of thing you only noticed after it had already settled in, quietly, steadily, until it became impossible to ignore.Over the next few weeks, it grew.From the outside, Ragnar was exactly the same. His routine never faltered. He still woke early, still moved through his days with that same precision and control, the same cold efficiency that defined everything he did. Orders were given without hesitation, decisions made without doubt, and his presence remained as sharp and intimidating as ever.To anyone else, nothing had changed.But Lance noticed.Of course he did.Because the difference wasn’t in what Ragnar did, it was in what he allowed.At first, it was something so small it could’ve been dismissed.Lance stopped knocking.The first time it happene

  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER FIFTY SIX

    By evening, the mansion had settled into a strange new rhythm.Dinner had been loud, Porto talking too much, Mar asking unnecessary questions, Ylva watching Jungwoo like she was studying him, and Ping Lee and Ragnar speaking occasionally in low, controlled tones like everything else in the room did

  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER FIFTY FIVE

    The cars arrived late in the morning.Everyone was already outside in the front courtyard, Porto leaning against the railing, Mar sitting on the hood of a car, Ylva standing with her arms crossed, Lance slightly behind everyone, and Ragnar at the front, calm and still as always.The black car stopp

  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER FIFTY

    The next day…Ylva arrived in the afternoon without warning. The hospital room door swung open and she walked in like she owned the place, her presence loud, confident, alive in a way that immediately filled the quiet room.“Lance!” she called the moment she saw him.Before he could even sit up pro

  • COLLATERAL DESIRE    CHAPTER FORTY FIVE

    Lance’s hands were shaking as he finally got the ropes off Ragnar’s wrists. The fibers were tight and rough, and his fingers were slippery with dried and fresh blood, but he managed to loosen the knots enough to pull Ragnar’s hands free.“Come on… come on…” Lance muttered under his breath, moving q

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