LOGINPOPPYI turned off my phone and sat on the floor, breathing deeply. I tried to follow all the instructions Doctor Fabian had given me. I needed this to work. I still felt embarrassed after telling Grey what I'd seen during my first session. I didn't want him to think I was making that up, or that I was so desperate to stay by his side that I told myself that maybe I could be the Princess he was looking for…God, that truly sounded pathetic. I seriously hoped he hadn't thought that I'd told him that because I'd sought his attention. A weak groan slipped through my mouth. Now all I could think about was Grey's reaction. So much for relaxing…My head turned to my phone lying on the bed, and I began to debate whether to turn it back on and try calling him. My hand slowly began to reach for it when the knock on the door sounded. I jerked to my feet and cleared my throat. “Come in.”The door opened, and Abigail slowly walked inside. “I heard you agreed to see me,” she muttered, lowering her
“You were right about Foster's recordings,” I told Poppy over the phone as I was about to leave my hotel room in Philadelphia.“I'm glad that Cory found something useful.” I could hear the smile in her voice.I chuckled. “This might finally get us a decent lead.”A few beats of silence came. “I'm… sorry about your meeting with Amelia. I know that you were hoping to find your Princess…”I drew a deep breath. “It's not that important right now. We need to find Valentino's niece. This should be our priority.”Another pause sounded. “You're right…”I rubbed the spot between my brows, trying to soothe the tension. “And how's your therapy? Did the second session work?”“No…” She sighed. “I couldn't relax. After what happened the last time, I was blocked. Doctor Fabian showed me a few exercises I should do before today's session. I hope it'll help.”“Don't push yourself too hard. Perhaps you need more time,” I said.She turned silent again for a moment. “Grey… During the first session…” She
I kept my eyes on hers. I smiled at her. I leaned toward her. She laughed, then added that sexy breathiness into her tone. Her fingers idly traced her cleavage, guiding my gaze there. Finally, she visibly relaxed, trusting she'd accomplished her mission. She talked about her life, her work, her neighbors, and I let her talk. I wanted her to tell me more.She tried; I had to give her that, but it had taken her exactly five minutes to lower her guard. Now she was slowly dropping her act without even realizing it. Why? Because she thought she had already won me over. Someone should have warned her that I wasn't someone she could easily charm. Her pretty little tricks didn't work on me. Then again, it had been those tricks that had told me she was not the one I'd been looking for. So why was I still sitting here and listening to her? The answer was simple: even if she was fake, that picture was real. Someone had given it to her, and I had to know who.I dragged my tongue over the seam of
GREY“Doctor Fabian said that you were pretty shaken after the first session. Did you remember something?”Over the phone, I heard Poppy sigh. “Well… I thought I did, but…”“But?” I urged.“We analyzed the session together, and I'm no longer sure if what I saw was truly my past.” A tremor laced her voice. “During the session, I saw a certain scene, but I couldn't recall anything else. I couldn't even recall specific details. Everything was too blurry…”I could sense that something was off, that it was about something far more important than just blurry details. I wished I could have wrapped my arms around her instead of talking on the phone. I wanted to let her know that she could tell me anything. Unfortunately, that would need to wait.“But if it's not your past, then what is it?”“Something I may have partially wanted to be true,” she muttered. “Doctor Fabian said that it's rare, but I might have just taken a story I heard and applied it as my own memory."I paced around my hotel r
Two days had passed since we had returned to New York. I wished I could have said that the mansion was just like before, but that would have been a lie. The air felt different, and not only because of eliminating the spies. Of course, that had caused a lot of disturbance. Those who were thought to be loyal turned out to be traitors, and now most of them were dead. Only Abigail had been spared, but I surely didn't envy her current situation. She was under house arrest, and her every move was monitored.Destroying Ardian's assets and turning him into a wanted man should have felt like victory, but it didn't, not when Ardian was still on the run. Surely, Gaspare Valentino was helping him, and the fact that everything around Valentino had recently turned oddly quiet made us all restless.I was sitting on the bed, watching Grey pack his weapons into a briefcase. “How long will you stay in Philadelphia?” Even asking that question spread tension throughout my body.He closed the briefcase an
POPPYI woke up tangled in Grey's body. My mind was a bigger mess than my hair, and my hair resembled a bird's nest. My cheek was splayed on Grey's firm body. His one hand was on my ass and the other on my waist. My one thigh was between his, and my other leg rested on his hip. There was nothing comfortable about that position, but somehow, I couldn't help but smile.I had probably lost my mind. I hadn't heard from Grey the words I'd craved the most, but what he'd said was enough for me to fall even deeper. I knew how reckless it was, but I didn't care. And that probably should have been the proof of my insanity.The morning light fully exposed the nasty cut on Grey's shoulder, and I instantly jerked up, frowning at the wound. “I didn't allow you to move, Sunshine.” His sleepy voice was still filled with authority and unreasonably seductive.I waited for him to open his eyes and confidently met his gaze. “Your wound needs to be treated.”His eyes dropped to my breasts, and a smirk app
Tension pooled throughout my body within a second. A knot formed in my throat, and all I did was stare at the man who had reminded me of Ardian in the worst way. Heat rushed to my neck and face, making me brutally realize that he hadn't been wrong, not entirely. Grey had bought me for five million,
I was standing in front of the body-length mirror, staring at my reflection. When Abigail had brought that gown for me, I'd hesitated, wondering if I should wear it. My old habits had kicked in, forcing me to look for anything that had made me look more… angelic. Ardian had always made me dress in b
POPPY“So, who's this Rinaldi?” I asked a few hours later as Abigail and I were drinking coffee in the orangery.Grey and Lanzo were busy handling company issues, while Abigail had decided to tell me more about the Maledetti's enemies. According to her, the Rinaldi family had always been hell-bent
GREYThe sun mercilessly assaulted my eyes, falling through the crack between the curtains. I would love to ignore it and keep my arms around Poppy's naked body a little longer, but unfortunately, it was past ten, which meant that I had already wasted too much time sleeping.Carefully, I slid my ar







