BLURB:She works for me. Lives under my roof.But somehow, I’m the one losing control.Every time I assert power, Thea throws it back in my face—with fire in her eyes and no fear in her spine.She doesn’t know who I am. What I’m capable of. Where I spend my nights.I break women. Command them.They beg to please me.But Thea? She fucking defies me.And she thinks I don’t see through her.The secrets she hides like armor.The past she pretends never happened.But I know.And if she keeps testing me, I’ll use every piece of it.To own her.To ruin her.To make her mine.She’s not supposed to tempt me.She’s not supposed to survive me.But if she keeps playing with fire...She’s going to learn exactly what it means to burn.•°•Chapter 1TheaLife is so unfair. I blink back tears as my fingers flex around the steering wheel of my old car.I know that's a silly thing to think and a stupid way to feel but given the last couple of weeks and what I've been dealing with at this point, all I ca
SandraI can't help but be incredibly proud of how strong Rico has been.When I first learned about his plan to give his mother's home up for charity and to just get rid of all of her things, I was a bit skeptical and worried that this was the opportunity he needed to heal, given that he told me the truth about the gift that she'd sent him after her death and the heartbreaking letter she’d written for him.Instead of just getting rid of everything like he'd originally planned, he'd asked me to help him empty her home, pack up her things, and decide what to do with everything. Entering the house had been painful for him, and I could tell that memories haunted him around every corner. At that point, I almost told him to just go ahead and stick to his original plan of just giving everything up. But he'd stuck it out. He'd wanted to keep going. He wanted to sort through every personal knickknack and talk about every memory.I'm glad he did. I learned more about him than I ever could have
SandraAt the end of the day, when everything is said and done, I don't blame him for any of the things he did, and it sounds like he's completely forgiven me for what I've done.In all honesty, it feels like we're both lucky in this situation because I am absolutely, completely, totally, wholly head over heels in love with Rico.I don't know exactly when it happened, and if somebody held a gun to my head and told me to pinpoint the exact moment, I wouldn't be able to answer that question. I know he has his bad qualities and there are certain business practices he does that I am not too fond of, but he’s been good to me, discounting his anger when he discovered I betrayed him.But given that, his anger led to a sharp, pointed conversation. I can’t even criticize him on that point. Somehow we've managed to handle all of our disputes like adults. Like human beings, we’re perfectly imperfect. We make mistakes, we mess up, we apologize, we have conversations. Then we decide if everything
Rico *Sure. Where do you want to meet? My place?* I honestly don't care where we meet up, I just want the opportunity to clear the air between us.*Your place! See you then.*With that, I sit back and wait.Less than ten minutes pass before she knocks at my door and I get up to go let her in. She gives me that soft smile and I find myself feeling a flash of hope that maybe things aren’t broken beyond repair.“I hear you're talking to our favorite journalist friend.”She arches an eyebrow at me, a smile toying with the corners of her lips. “Oh yeah? Who told you that?”“You did.” As we settle back into our comfortable banter routine, I find myself relaxing quite a bit. Instead of walking into the living room to sit on the couches, we wander into the dining room and sit at the table. “Would you like something to drink? A beer? Something harder? Water, anything?”She shakes her head, her eyes sparkling. “Honestly, I'm just wondering why I'm here. Am I about to get fired?”The fact that
Rico“I'm convinced that with diet and lifestyle changes, he has an incredibly good outcome based on what I’ve seen.” The specialist's voice is calm and reassuring, and I'm a bit relieved at the news.“Thank you so much for your time and consideration.” As we say our goodbyes and hang up the phone, I can't help but be relaxed. While things might have gone poorly between Sandra and me in our last meeting, I am still glad to know that her father is well on the road to recovery and will mend just fine with time and a bit of work.Sandra, Ethel and Dalton will no doubt appreciate the information too, as well as the continued specialist visits I’ve set up for ongoing care of Dalton. I don’t mind paying out of pocket for their peace of mind.I sit back in my seat, thinking about how much my life has changed in such a short period of time.My phone rings again and I'm quick to answer it. “Are you sitting down?” Blake clearly doesn't even have the time for pleasantries and hellos, he just div
Sandra As I say the words, I realize they're not the whole truth, and I decide I need to come completely clean. “Okay, that's a lie. I've been talking to my mom about you too, trying to get some perspective and some thoughts on how I can fix things and make things better between us and not make a mistake like this again. Because you matter to me, Rico. You're important to me.”“You matter to me too, and you're important. I'm sorry for doubting you.” There's still a troubled look deep in his eyes, and I can't help but wonder if he trusts me for real, or if he's just saying this to be kind.My phone chimes and I pull it out of my pocket, wondering who could possibly be reaching out to me right now. I see I have a voicemail and I hold up one finger. Rico nods and I dial my voicemail to listen to the message. I don't recognize the number of the caller, and I don't remember hearing my phone ring.The second voicemail picks up, I hear a familiar voice. “Hi Sandra, it's Lindsay, with The Re