ログインNico felt it before I even realized how obvious it had become. We were in the living room that evening. Nothing special. Matteo and I had been trading another quiet look across the kitchen island earlier, the kind that carried the weight of another file left on my nightstand and the silent alliance we were building. Nothing romantic, just understanding. Shared purpose. But the bond didn’t care about intentions. It carried the new closeness between us like a signal. Nico was on the couch with his laptop when it hit him. I felt the exact moment through the connection... his cool presence sharpening suddenly, turning colder, then flaring hot with something raw and complicated. Jealousy. Not the clean, controlled kind he usually kept locked down. This was messy, immediate. The kind that comes when you think someone is taking what’s yours. He closed the laptop slowly. Too slowly, his gray eyes lifted and locked on me where I sat curled up with a book I wasn’t reading. Then they slid t
It started small. Two days after Irina left, I found a plain white envelope on my nightstand. No name, no note. Just a USB drive inside. I knew it was from Matteo the second I saw it. The bond carried a quiet warmth when I picked it up, like he was somewhere in the penthouse watching to see what I’d do. I locked myself in the bathroom, plugged it in, and opened the files. Nothing huge. Nothing that would get him killed if someone found it. Just small pieces, a port manifest from seven years ago with my father’s old company name listed as the receiver. A payment note with Elias Vale’s initials next to a transfer that matched the one I’d already found. A single line from an old email chain: “Thompson becoming difficult. D says handle it quietly.” I sat on the cold tile floor and stared at the screen until my eyes burned. Matteo had been watching this empire with the same eyes I had for much longer. He didn’t say anything when I came out of the bathroom. Just gave me a small nod ac
Irina arrived like she owned the afternoon. The elevator chimed mid-afternoon, and I heard Maria’s surprised greeting from the kitchen. I was on the couch with a book I wasn’t reading, legs tucked under me, when Irina stepped into the living room. Charcoal coat draped over one arm, dark hair swept up, that same razor-sharp elegance she carried everywhere. She looked like she could cut glass with a smile. “Aurora,” she said, voice smooth as good whiskey. “I was in the area, thought I’d drop by.” I set the book down slowly. “You don’t strike me as the type who just drops by.” Her smile curved. “Smart girl. I don’t. But some conversations deserve to happen in private.” Maria hovered near the doorway, uncertain. I gave her a small nod. “We’re fine, Maria. Thanks.” The older woman disappeared into the kitchen without another word. Smart as always. Irina dropped her coat over the back of an armchair and settled onto the couch across from me like she belonged there. She crossed her le
Matteo found me in the library the next afternoon. I was curled up in the big leather chair by the window, pretending to read the same page for the third time. The sun was coming in low and golden, catching dust in the air. My mind was still replaying the way Nico had gone completely still in that meeting room, the flush on his neck, the way Carlo had narrowed his eyes like he could smell something off but couldn’t name it. The door clicked shut behind Matteo. I looked up. He stood there for a second, hands in his pockets, just watching me. Not angry, not even annoyed. Just... assessing. Like I was a new map he was trying to read. “You did something yesterday,” he said quietly. No hello. Straight to it. I closed the book and set it on the small table beside me. “Yeah, I did.” He crossed the room slowly and dropped into the chair across from me. The same one he’d sat in when we talked about the bond before. He leaned forward, elbows on his knees, dark eyes steady on my face. “Du
I waited until the meeting was already underway. The conference room had that one-way glass wall on the east side. From the hallway you could see straight in, but they couldn’t see out. Perfect. I stood just far enough back that I blended with the shadows, arms crossed, heart beating steady but fast. Nico sat at the head of the long table, Carlo across from him, two other guys I didn’t recognize taking notes. Papers spread out, coffee cups half empty, normal business shit on the surface. I’d been practicing the bond for days now,small pushes. Little teases. But today I wanted to see how far I could really go,how much control I actually had. Nico looked calm from the outside. Crisp shirt, sleeves rolled once, that focused expression he wore when money or power was on the line. But I felt him through the bond... cool, sharp, completely in control. Exactly where I needed him. I closed my eyes for half a second, steadying myself. Then I sent it. Not a brush, not a flicker but a fu
The fight started over nothing and everything at the same time. It was late. The penthouse lights were dimmed low, the kind of quiet that usually felt comfortable now. I was in the kitchen pouring a glass of water I didn’t really want when Nico walked in from his office. His shoulders were tight, the way they got when something from work was still chewing on him. He came up behind me, hands sliding around my waist like they belonged there. They did, most nights. But tonight his touch felt too heavy and too sure. “You’ve been off since Jake left,” he said, voice low against my ear. “Talk to me.” I tensed. Just a little. Enough that he felt it through the bond. “I’m fine, just tired.” He didn’t let go. If anything, his grip tightened. “You keep saying that. But I feel you pulling back, every day a little more.” I set the glass down harder than I meant to. Water sloshed over the rim. “Maybe I need space sometimes, Nico. Not everything has to be about you knowing exactly what’s in m
Jake arrived on Friday afternoon with a backpack slung over one shoulder and the same wary look in his eyes that Dad used to get when something didn’t add up. He was fourteen now, taller than I remembered, gangly in that way teenagers get right before they fill out. When he stepped out of the eleva
I waited until the penthouse went dark. Nico had been especially possessive all evening... pulling me into his lap during a movie, hand between my thighs under the blanket while Matteo pretended not to notice. The weekend at the lodge had changed the temperature between all three of us, and Nico
Nico didn’t ask if I wanted to go. He just said pack for two nights and be ready by nine. Matteo was already loading the SUV when I came down...duffel bags, a cooler, no security detail for once. Just the three of us. The property was two hours outside the city, tucked into the hills where the tr
Nico told me about the dinner the night before, casual as if he were mentioning the weather. “Inner circle, just a small group having dinner at the Marino. Wear something that makes them remember you.” I spent the next day preparing the way I used to prepare for a tough hack... quiet, focused,







