LOGIN***DANTE***She sat there quietly beside me, her face half-lit by the dim streetlights flashing past the window. For a long time, she didn’t speak, only stared out as if the darkness outside could swallow the thoughts running wild in her head.Then suddenly, she turned to me. Her voice was low, calm—but I could hear the hesitation beneath it.“I don’t know who ordered my kidnap,” she said, her tone a little too even. “It… it sounded like a woman, but I couldn’t tell who it was.”My eyes stayed on her for a moment too long.A woman?That was the best she could come up with?I studied her face—the way her gaze flickered just slightly, how her hands fidgeted with the fabric of her gown. It wasn’t that she was lying outright, no. But she was hiding something.And I knew it.The woman didn’t realize how easily I could read her. Every little twitch, every breath—she was like an open book, even when she tried to close herself off.She looked like she wanted me to believe her.But I didn’t.
***IRENE POV ***The tension between them was unbearable, thick, and almost suffocating.Lucas’s fists were still gripping the wheels of his chair, his jaw clenched tight, while Dante stood like an immovable shadow before him, his entire body humming with restrained fury.Two men. One cold as ice, the other wounded but proud.And me… caught between them, unable to speak.“Lucas—” I started softly, wanting to at least defuse the heat before it boiled over.But before I could say another word, Dante turned on his heel, his grip tightening around me. Without a backward glance at Lucas, he began walking out of the building.I swallowed hard as he carried me out of that place.The night air outside hit my skin immediately, cool and crisp, carrying the faint scent of rain and smoke. My mind was still spinning from everything that had happened—the kidnapping, Amira’s cruel words, the knife, the chaos, the gunfire. It all felt like a nightmare that refused to end.Behind us, I could still h
IRENE. ****The blade was a breath away from my neck.I could feel its cold edge grazing my skin—smell the metal, hear the man’s heavy breathing above me. My heart pounded so fast it felt like it would burst.And then—A scream tore through the air.It was raw. Violent. Bone-deep.Before I could even comprehend what was happening, the man holding the knife jerked violently, his body stiffening—then collapsing right in front of me.I froze.Blood gushed from his chest, splattering onto my legs, my hands, the floor. The knife clattered away.“What… what?” I whispered shakily, staring at his lifeless body. “What just happened?”The metallic scent of blood hit my nose, sharp and nauseating. I looked up, still trembling—and that was when the sound began.Gunshots.Loud, echoing bursts that filled the entire building. Shouts followed. Heavy footsteps. Chaos.My breath hitched. My body trembled violently as I looked toward the entrance. The door burst open—And there he was.Lucas.He was r
***IRENE ***Cold.That was the first thing I felt before consciousness even returned—an icy sting that ripped through my skin, sharp enough to make me gasp.A bucket of water.It splashed down over me, soaking my hair, my clothes, my skin. I coughed, sputtering as droplets trickled into my mouth. My eyes blinked open and then everything hit me at once. The ropes. The smell of smoke. The dampness of the floor.I was tied to a wooden chair in the middle of a dimly lit room. My wrists ached, my legs were bound together, and my body trembled with both cold and fear.Panic rose like fire in my chest. My eyes darted around wildly, and the memory came crashing back—the car, the man, the hit to my head—I’d been kidnapped.My breath hitched.Three men stood in front of me, all broad-shouldered and covered in tattoos. The air smelled like cigarettes and engine oil. They were smoking lazily, leaning against the walls as if this was all some kind of game.One of them grinned with yellowed te
***IRENE ***The day dragged on longer than usual.The office felt too quiet without Dante’s heavy, commanding presence. His absence left a strange emptiness that even the constant chatter of the employees couldn’t fill.I sat behind my desk, pretending to be focused on some documents, but my eyes kept drifting toward his office door—still closed, still dark.He hadn’t shown up since morning.I bit my lip and sighed, slumping slightly in my chair. “Is he… avoiding me?” I muttered under my breath.After everything that happened—the kiss, the tension, the night we’d spent at the dining room—it wouldn’t be surprising if he was. Still, something about that thought stung more than I wanted to admit.I told myself not to care. But the truth was, I did.Even Seraphina hadn’t shown up today. Which, if I was being honest, was a small blessing. I wasn’t in the mood for her fake smiles or her constant attempts to get under my skin.I glanced at the clock on the wall—just past six.The sky outs
***Irene ***The faint morning light leaked through the windows, gently brushing across my face. I groaned softly, the heaviness in my body dragging me down as I blinked myself awake.It took me a few seconds to realize where I was.The ceiling wasn’t familiar. Neither were the silk sheets tangled around my legs. And then it came back in pieces—the drive here, the argument, the kiss that had left my heart pounding like it was about to burst out of my chest.I turned my head slowly to the side.The other half of the bed was perfectly smooth, untouched. Not even a dent.He hadn’t slept here.For some reason, that realization hit harder than I expected.It shouldn’t have mattered—he was Dante Blackwaters, the Alpha King, not a man who stayed. And yet, that empty space beside me stirred a quiet ache in my chest.I sat up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes, then sighed and pushed the blanket away. My head still buzzed faintly with everything that happened last night. The warmth of his mouth







