LOGINDominicHearing her say it like that, raw and demanding and desperate, it destroys what little control I have left.I grab her hips with both hands, fingers digging into her flesh hard enough to leave bruises. Pull her into me as I thrust.Harder. Faster. Deeper.Exactly how she asked for it.She meets me stroke for stroke, rolling her hips to take me deeper, crying out every time I hit that spot inside her. The sounds she’s making are obscene. Loud moans and gasps and my name falling from her lips over and over.“Yes,” she pants. “Like that. God, exactly like that. Don’t stop.”I lean down, capture her mouth in a bruising kiss. Swallow her moans. She kisses me back just as fiercely, teeth and tongue and desperate need.She bites my lip hard enough that I taste copper.I pull back, look down at her. Hair spread wild across the pillow. Lips swollen and red from kissing. Cheeks flushed. Eyes so dark they’re almost black.She’s never looked more beautiful.“Mine,” I growl. Can
Dominic We kissed like we’re both starving and the only thing that can fill the emptiness is each other. Like days of separation have built up inside us and now it’s all pouring out in this kiss, in the way our bodies press together, in the desperate sounds she’s making against my mouth. We stumble toward the bed. I’m trying to slow down, trying to remember she’s pregnant, trying to be careful. But she’s pulling at my shirt with shaking hands, yanking the fabric up and over my head like she can’t get it off fast enough. Her nails scrape down my chest and I hiss at the sharp pleasure of it. “Seraphina.” I catch her wrists, hold them still. “We should talk. About the baby. About what happens next.” “Later.” She twists free of my grip, goes straight for my belt with single-minded determination. “Right now I don’t want to talk. I just need you.” “I don’t want to hurt you.” My voice comes out rougher than I intend. “Or the baby.” “You won’t.” She gets my belt open, pops the butt
DominicThe flight to Boston is the longest six hours of my life.I sit in first class surrounded by business travelers and families, all of them living normal lives. Going home. Going to meetings. Going somewhere that matters.I’m going to the woman I love who might not want to see me.My phone is in my hand the entire flight. Screen on. Checking every few minutes.The message I sent her before boarding still sits there, delivered but not read.I’m coming home to you, baby.She hasn’t opened it. Hasn’t responded. Maybe she turned her phone off. Maybe she blocked my number. Maybe she saw it and decided I don’t deserve a response.I stare out the window at clouds and sky and nothing.Six weeks pregnant. She’s been carrying my child for six weeks and I didn’t know. She’s been pregnant this whole time.The seatbelt sign dings. We’re descending into Boston.I turn my phone off airplane mode. Watch it search for a signal.No new messages.My chest tightens.Maybe coming here was a mistake.
Dominic“So?” Candice walks in without waiting for an invitation. Dressed in a black suit. Hair perfect. Ready to fly to New York and start her war against Adrian. “What’s your answer?”I hand her the check and she stares at it. Then at me.“You’re refusing.”“Yes.”“You’re refusing five million dollars.”“I’m refusing to help you destroy Adrian. Find someone else.”She doesn’t take the check. Just looks at me like I’ve lost my mind.“You realize Volkov will come for you.”“I know.”“You realize you’ll have nothing. No money. No protection. No future.”“I know that too.”“Then why?” She’s not angry yet. Just genuinely confused. “Why would you throw this away?”“Because I can’t do it. I can’t aid in the destruction of another man just so you can get revenge on your ex.”Now the anger starts. I see it flash in her eyes.“This isn’t about revenge.”“Yes, it is. This is about Adrian leaving you. About him getting fifteen million in the settlement. About you not being able to let go.”“He
Seraphina(Hospital Visit - Earlier That Day)The clinic is in a strip mall between a dry cleaner and a coffee shop.Not exactly where I imagined finding out if my life was about to change forever, but here we are.Kael pulls into the parking lot and cuts the engine.“You sure you don’t want me to come in with you?” he asks.“I’m sure.” I unbuckle my seatbelt but don’t move to open the door. “This is something I need to do alone.”“Okay. I’ll be right here. Text me when you’re done.”I nod. Force myself to open the door. Step out into the cold Boston morning.The waiting room is small. Clean. Generic medical posters on the walls about nutrition and exercise and preventive care. A woman with a toddler sits in the corner. The kid is playing with blocks, completely oblivious to the anxiety radiating from everyone else in the room.I check in at the desk. Fill out paperwork. Try to keep my hands from shaking as I write my name, address, and insurance information.Emergency contact: I hesi
Dominic “You think you know me,” she continues. “Because we dated ten years ago. Because I was sweet and understanding and let you break my heart when you chose your career over me.” She picks up her fork. Cuts into her food like we’re having a normal conversation. “I’m not that girl anymore. I’m the woman who destroyed a man who tried to use me. And I’ll do the same to you if you cross me.”“You want me to be your weapon.”“I want you to be my partner. Equal stakes. Equal rewards.” She takes a bite. Chews. Swallows. “But if you take my money and run, you’ll wish you’d stayed in debt to Volkov. Because he would have just killed you quickly. I’ll make sure you live to regret it.”The worst part is I believe her.“How did you call off Volkov’s men yesterday?” I ask. “How did you even know I owed him?”“I’ve known about your debt for weeks. Since before I contacted you.”“How?”She sets down her fork. Meets my eyes. Smiles slightly like she’s been waiting for me to ask this ques
SeraphinaThe drive to the hospital is quiet for the first twenty minutes. Elena sits in the passenger seat, staring out the window, and I’m grateful for the silence. Playing the attentive sister is exhausting, especially when every fiber of my being would rather be anywhere else.I had plans tod
SeraphinaWe move from the fireplace to the sofa, then to the kitchen counter where he lifts me up and kisses me breathless, then back to the windows overlooking the lake. Each surface a new discovery, each touch more urgent than the last.But then he pulls back, his forehead resting against mine
SeraphinaThe text comes while I’m watching Elena move around the kitchen, making tea with that new determined energy that’s been radiating from her since the hospital.‘Meet me. Send you the address. Put that sweet ass in something sexy. One hour.’Heat floods through me instantly, pooling low in
SERAPHINAHe releases my wrists and ankles with quick efficiency, and I nearly collapse without the restraints holding me up. But he catches me, turning me to face him, and the look in his eyes makes my breath stop.Raw. Desperate. Dark with need that matches my own.“Bend over the bench,” he or







