009

9

SERAPHINA. 

The lie I had told Tracy weighed heavily on my chest all through the afternoon. Declaring myself single felt like a dangerous invitation, a flame that would only attract more heat. But I didn't have time to dwell on it. 

The thick manila folder was still sitting on my desk, demanding my full attention. I needed to copy the marketing data and get it organized before the end of the day.

I grabbed the thick folder, stepped away from my cubicle, and walked toward the small, private copy room at the far end of the hallway. 

It was a secluded space, tucked behind a heavy door where the loud noise of the main office couldn't reach. The room was quiet, filled only with the low, steady hum of the large copy machine.

I set the files down and started scanning the pages, my hands still slightly damp from nervousness.

The heavy door clicked behind me. I didn't think much of it, assuming another colleague needed to use the machine. 

But when the lock slid into place with a sharp and loud click, a cold chill ran straight down my spine.

I turned around quickly. Lewis, the company manager, was standing there.

He had a strange, entitled look on his face, his eyes gleaming with a dark kind of confidence. Lewis was a middle-aged man who always acted like he owned the place, but today, his presence felt completely wrong. 

He loosened his silk tie slightly, stepping away from the door and moving deep into my personal space.

"Lewis," I said, my voice tight as I instinctively took a step back, my spine hitting the hard edge of the copy machine. 

"What are you doing? I need to finish these copies for the new bosses."

Lewis let out a low, disgusting chuckle. He didn't look at the files. His greedy eyes traveled slowly down my body, lingering on my flushed face and the tight fit of my shirt. 

"Forget about the bosses for a minute, Seraphina. I’ve been watching you for a very long time. You can’t fool an experienced man like me."

"I don't know what you are talking about," I snapped, clenching my fists. 

"Open the door. I need to get back to my desk."

"Oh, come on," Lewis sneered, stepping even closer until I could smell his stale coffee breath.

“I see the way you walk around this office. I see the look in your eyes. You want to be fucked!” 

My heart jumped into my throat. The reminder of my loneliness and Victor's brutal rejection made me wince, but the entitlement in Lewis's voice made me sick to my stomach.

"You must be mad!" I thundered, my voice shaking with rising panic. 

"Get away from me, Lewis! I am telling you no!"

"Don't play hard to get with me, Seraphina," Lewis whispered, a cruel smirk spreading across his face. 

He reached out, his large, sweaty hand suddenly grabbing my waist with force. 

"I have been good to you in this department. I think it is time I get a little taste of what you’ve been hiding under that pretty coat."

"No! Let go of me!" I screamed, using all my strength to push his heavy chest away.

But Lewis was much bigger than me. He didn't care about my protests. In his mind, I was just a defenseless worker he could easily overpower. 

My rejection seemed to make him angry. His grip tightened, bruising my skin as he pinned my upper body against the glass of the copy machine. The filesare scattered everywhere,

"Stop fighting it," Lewis growled, his face twisting into something monstrous. He shoved his knee between my thighs, trying to force my legs apart while his hands scrambled to rip at the buttons of my blouse.

"Get off me! Help! Somebody help me!" I shrieked, tears of pure terror finally spilling over my eyelids. 

I thrashed wildly, scratching at his face, but he slammed his weight against me, cutting off my breath. I felt entirely helpless, trapped in a dark corner with an aggressive monster, my pride and safety being stripped away.

*BANG!*

The heavy wooden door didn't just open, it shattered off its hinges. The frame cracked with a sound like a lightning strike, pieces of wood flying across the small room.

Lewis jumped back in pure shock, his grip releasing me instantly. I slid down the side of the copy machine, gasping for air, my chest heaving as I looked toward the ruined doorway.

The three Knox brothers stood there. The transformation was terrifying. The arrogant, playful billionaires who loved to tease me had completely vanished. 

In their place stood three violent-looking predators. Their broad shoulders filled the entire doorway, their faces masked in a dark, murderous rage that made the air in the room turn ice-cold.

Adrian moved first. 

He didn't say a word. He stepped into the room like a giant shadow, his large fist launching forward with terrifying speed.

CRACK!

Adrian’s knuckles slammed directly into Lewis’s jaw. The force of the blow was so brutal that the manager was lifted off his feet, his body crashing hard into the wall before he slumped onto the floor, blood instantly spraying from his mouth.

"You miserable piece of trash," Julian hissed, his dark eyes burning with a wild fire. The star tattoo beneath his left eye looked menacing in the harsh light. 

Julian didn't hesitate; he lunged forward, grabbing Lewis by his collar and dragging him up, only to drive a heavy punch straight into his stomach.

Lewis groaned, vomiting blood onto his own smart suit, but the brothers weren't done.

Sebastian stepped in, his expression completely calm but his actions ruthless. He grabbed Lewis's arm and twisted it behind his back with a sickening pop, pinning the groaning manager against the floor with his heavy boot pressed firmly onto his neck.

"Please... please stop," Lewis whimpered, his face pressed into the scattered marketing papers, his arrogance completely broken into terror. 

"I didn't know... I didn't know she was yours!"

"You disgusting dog," Adrian growled, his deep voice vibrating through the floorboards. 

He stepped closer, his silver teeth bared in a dangerous snarl as he looked down at the bleeding man. "But you touched something that is under our protection. You thought you could use your petty power to force a woman in our building?"

"You are fired, Lewis," Sebastian said smoothly, his voice deadly quiet as he applied more pressure with his boot, making the manager scream in agony. 

"You are completely stripped of your position, your stock, and your dignity. And you will never work in this corporate world again."

The entire office floor had gone completely silent. Dozens of workers were gathered in the hallway, staring through the shattered doorway with wide, terrified eyes. Tracy was among them, her hands pressed over her mouth in horror.

Julian pulled a phone from his pocket, his gaze never leaving Lewis’s pathetic figure. 

"Get the police up here right now," he commanded into the receiver. "We have a rapist in our executive suite. Have them bring handcuffs."

Within minutes, two police officers rushed into the building. 

They took one look at the terrifying expressions on the Knox brothers' faces and didn't ask a single question. They dragged Lewis up from the pool of his own blood, slapping heavy metal handcuffs around his wrists before marching him past the whispering crowd of employees.

The danger was over, but my body wouldn't stop shaking. I sat on the floor, clutching my torn blouse together, my breath coming in ragged gasps as the shock settled into my bones.

The brothers turned their attention back to me. The murderous rage instantly melted from their eyes, replaced by a deep, frantic worry.

Adrian dropped to his knees in front of me, his massive hands reaching out. For the first time, his touch wasn't teasing or full of lust, it was incredibly gentle. 

He wrapped his large suit jacket around my shivering shoulders, pulling the warm fabric tight around me.

"Are you okay, Seraphina?" Adrian whispered, his voice thick with a strange, heavy emotion. 

"Did he hurt you anywhere else?"

"I'm... I'm fine," I choked out, my voice cracking as I buried my face in his jacket. It smelled of his expensive woodsy cologne, and for some reason, it made me feel safer than I had in years.

Julian knelt beside him, his fingers lightly brushing a stray hair away from my tear-stained cheek. 

"We’ve got you, secretary," he murmured, his playful edge completely gone. 

"No one is ever going to touch you like that again. We will burn this whole city down before we let anyone hurt you."

Sebastian stood over us, his dark eyes scanning my face with a raw, protective hunger that sent a different kind of shiver down my spine. They had saved me. 

They had risked their corporate reputation and used brutal violence to keep me safe. My body, despite the terror of the attack, began to throb with a deep, undeniable craving for the three giants holding me. I was playing hard to get, but as Adrian’s arms tightened around me, I realized

I was kidding myself. I wanted them, all three of them. 

How could I ever resist them?!