Forbidden Desire

Isabella Monroe: 

Sophia dropped onto her bed the second we entered the room.

My eyes wandered around the space for a moment. Beautiful. Too beautiful.

Nothing like my apartment.

Mine was small, cheap, barely enough sometimes. Still, lying on a soft expensive bed after exhausting days felt good. Between university and long shifts at the restaurant, surviving alone already drained enough energy out of me.

Depending on people was never something I liked.

Warm fingers wrapped weakly around my hand.

“Don’t go anywhere,” Sophia mumbled sleepily. “Sleep next to me. I need you.”

A sigh escaped me.

“But I don’t wanna stay here. You know your mother already hates me, and honestly, I’d rather sleep in my own bed.”

Half asleep, she frowned immediately.

“Stop being stubborn. They won’t come back before tomorrow.”

God, nobody defeated me faster than Sophia.

Every single time, her stubbornness won against my pride. Maybe because no one else had ever cared about me the way she did.

Then suddenly, panic crashed into me.

“Sophia!”

Both hands grabbed her shoulders hard enough to wake her instantly.

Her eyes widened. “What the hell? You scared me.”

Words rushed out too fast.

“I’m screwed. Completely screwed.”

“What happened?”

“The research project.”

My stomach twisted just thinking about it.

“Professor Johnson wants us to interview a real psychiatrist and submit everything in three days.”

Sophia blinked slowly, still drunk and half asleep.

“And?”

“And? Sophia, I don’t know any psychiatrists.”

A tired groan escaped her.

“My dad’s literally one of the most famous psychiatrists in the country, Isabella.”

The second she said it, my chest tightened.

Her father.

No.

“I don’t wanna bother him.”

A finger pointed straight at me.

“Don’t start arguing. Dad’ll help you.”

Silence filled the room for a moment.

Maybe she was right.

Getting information from someone like Sebastian Hawthorne would make my project better than everyone else’s combined.

Still, something about seeing him again after all these years made me uncomfortable.

No answer came out of me after that. Just silence while I slipped under the blanket beside her.

Hours passed.

The mansion stayed quiet. Too quiet.

Then the nightmare came again.

Fire. Smoke. A burning house collapsing around me.

My body jerked awake suddenly, skin covered in sweat while my chest rose too fast against the darkness.

God. Not again.

That nightmare had followed me since childhood.

The blanket fell away while my feet carried me downstairs automatically toward the kitchen. I knew this house too well.

Cold water rushed down my throat straight from the bottle, desperate gulps one after another like I was trying to drown the memories themselves.

Then footsteps echoed behind me.

Slow. Heavy. Getting closer.

Every muscle in my body locked instantly.

Before I could even turn around, a large body stopped behind mine completely.

Big hands wrapped around my arms. Strong. Cold.

My heart slammed hard against my ribs.

“Sophia…”

His voice came rough and low, heavy with alcohol.

“What are you doing awake this late?”

Sebastian Hawthorne.

The smell hit me first. Whiskey. Cigarettes. And something warm that felt dangerously masculine.

My head spun a little when he leaned closer.

“Dad told you to keep water beside your bed,” he murmured near my ear. “One day you’re gonna fall down those stairs half asleep.”

Then his lips touched my cheek.

Soft. Gentle. An innocent kiss meant for his daughter.

But something inside me snapped apart anyway.

The warmth of his hands. His voice. The way his chest pressed faintly against my back.

I wanted more.

That was the sickest part.

Even while knowing he thought I was Sophia.

“You’re shaking,” he murmured softly. “Relax, sweetheart.”

Sweetheart.

My breathing completely lost rhythm.

A second later, he stepped back.

Finally, air returned to my lungs again.

“I don’t know how your hair got this long overnight,” he added lazily while walking away. “Fake extensions probably. Take them out. Short hair suits you more.”

Then he disappeared down the hallway.

For a few seconds, my body stayed frozen in place.

Sebastian Hawthorne.

The man I respected more than anyone. The man who once saved my entire life.

So why did one innocent kiss make me feel something this wrong?

My feet finally moved again. Fast.

The bedroom door slammed shut behind me while my heartbeat nearly broke through my chest.

Sophia stirred sleepily under the blanket.

“Did you find the water?”

A hard swallow burned my throat.

“I found your father.”

Her eyes opened immediately.

“What?”

“He was drunk.”

The room suddenly felt too hot. Too small.

Sophia pushed herself up slowly.

“What happened?”

The words barely came out.

“He touched me… kissed me…”

My breathing turned uneven again.

“And the worst part is… I didn’t want him to stop.”