[Matilda]I couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe.Everything blurred."Fuck!" Kaden growled above me, his weight heavy, his breath ragged. My eyes popped open. My chest seized. Then he moved.A groan tore from his throat as he rolled off my body and collapsed beside me. For a second, I couldn’t breathe. My hands trembled as they ran over my torso, my stomach, my chest—searching, frantic. No blood. No pain. Nothing.Nothing had touched me.My eyes shot to Kaden.Spider’s voice roared through the air like thunder, "Boss!"He came sprinting from the shadows, dropping to his knees beside us just as I turned to Kaden—and saw it.Blood. So much of it. Blooming red across his shirt, seeping fast, too fast. My heart flipped, and a scream curled in my throat.He had taken the bullet?"Kaden," I gasped, shaking him. "Kaden, no, no, no—please, please."He winced, his head lolling slightly, his mouth curling into the faintest smirk. "Damn," he muttered, blood touching his lips. "That fucking psychopat
[Matilda]"Are you deaf?" Kaden barked. "She asked you a question! Answer her before I kill you right here and now!"I stood frozen, a chaotic rhythm pounding through my bones. Every hair on my body stood on end as I watched Kaden slap Leo again and again."Fuck!" Leo groaned, staggering, blood seeping out from the corner of his mouth. Spider kept a tight grip on him. I wanted to scream, but the sound lodged in my throat. My lips trembled. My heart clawed up into my throat.Maybe I’d gone mad for still hoping he’d look at me and say it wasn’t true. That maybe Kaden was lying. That there had been a mistake.But when his eyes lifted to meet mine…Every last piece of hope in me shattered.I saw it.Right there in his eyes—acceptance.Kaden stepped back, folding his arms across his chest. Everyone else in the room blurred as I stared at the man I trusted more than anyone. The man I was considering spending a lifetime together."Leo." His name escaped me in a whisper. My chest seized with
[Matilda]"You think so?" Kaden chuckled, but there was no humour in that sound. "Sweetheart, stare back at the beast behind you and dare him to say otherwise!" he growled, eyes brimming red with fury.I blinked back, a dry laugh escaping my lips—sharp, bitter.There’s no other way to explain this.Kaden has finally lost it.I shifted my gaze to Leo, whose stare hadn’t moved. His eyes were darkened, unreadable. His jaw locked like steel.My throat tightened. I shook my head quickly, pushing away the stupid, wild thought crawling into my brain.I must be insane to consider asking Leo anything.Seriously?Is this how far Kaden is willing to go just to make Leo mad?"You all must be insane!" I snapped, stepping forward and taking Leo’s hand in mine. Leo looked down at our hands, his jaw twitching, but he didn’t pull away.I turned back to Kaden, who now looked at me like I’d grown two heads."You must be really stupid to think you could walk in here and say this rubbish about Leo!" I gro
[Matilda]"Just a minute buddy." Kaden's voice boomed out. He lowered his phone, his eyes still not leaving Leo. I wanted to raise anything just anything and smash it right on his face but I found myself standing still as his words rang into my ear.You'll understand soon. What the hell is he talking about?I tried to speak but his eyes shifted back to me and he shook his head. "I know...I know, just a little more second," he said to me like he could read my mind.Leo's hand left mine and he ran a finger through his hair, groaning loudly. "I'm trying my best not to do what I'll regret right now," Leo snapped. "But I think I've had enough. I don't know the little game you're playing but you need to get the fuck out of here," Leo stuttered making my heart clench.But I had no idea why my eyes were still fixed on Kaden trying to understand the expression on his face."I wouldn't leave until the gift I have for you arrives. Maybe then I'll think about leaving." The words barely left Kaden
[Kaden]My hand clenched so fucking tight as I leaned against the wall. I had walked in here just as soon as Spider informed me of what he saw and sent me a picture.The audacity of this bastard. The fucking audacity of him to set all of this up for a woman he wanted her kids dead? My head was spinning, my hand aching so badly to strangle the living daylight out of that bastard.A staff member had tried to stop me when I wanted to walk in, talking about the space already being booked. But I am a Donovan after all. Just a word from me, I'll always have my way.I had walked into this space that was meant for staff. Waiting fucking waiting.I was seconds from losing it. My back pressed against the wall, fists clenched, and every nerve in my body on edge. My ears caught every fucking word he spat out, each one driving deeper, setting fire to my chest. I couldn’t see straight—just red. Blazing, violent red. My mind wasn’t spinning anymore—it was gone. Unhinged. I was waiting… just waiting
[Matilda]My eyes peeled open and my breath hitched.My heart slammed into my ribs as I blinked again, just to be sure I wasn’t imagining it.What I walked into... was not the restaurant I expected.A place I presumed to look like one filled with chairs and tables was completely transformed. It was no longer a room for dining, but something out of a dream. The light had shifted into something soft and golden, not too bright, not too dim, just enough to catch the glimmer of glass, the gleam of gold, the warmth in every corner.There was no single table in sight, except for one far in the back, draped in deep red velvet. The room was utterly silent, and yet somehow, it felt louder than anything I’d ever walked into.Every detail demanded my breath.Dozens of floating candles hung from the high ceiling, suspended by nearly invisible wires, flickering gently as if they’d been frozen midair by magic. Down the center of the space was a long, winding trail of rose petals — not scattered care