LOGINJulian.
“Whiskey guy?!” She shrieked in that sultry voice of hers. The same voice that had almost made me rethink the idea of kissing her earlier in the club when she had asked me to. She stared at me in shock. Her drunk brain probably trying to process how she ended up in my car. “What are you doing in my car?” I tilted my head,observing her through my rear view mirror. She blinked,disoriented,then gasped like she realized the gravity of her mistake. “No No no no no. You can’t be my driver. That’s illegal. You’re not allowed to be hot and drive.” I arched a brow,resting my palm on the steering wheel. “You’re not allowed to hijack a stranger’s car.” She bit her lip as she glanced down at her phone,her cognac colored eyes widening slightly. “Oh no. I got into the wrong car.” She groaned as she looked up at me. Her lips were plump and red,complete with a perfectly shaped cupid's bow. As I watched her nibble on her lip,the insane urge to kiss her consumed me again and instantly my dick hardened in response. Who was this girl? And could she actually be following me? She was beautiful,I couldn’t deny that. She had the kind of body that could bring a man to his knees. Full perky breasts,a slim waist and the most perfect pair of legs I’d seen in a while. I had noticed her the moment she stumbled onto the dance floor,half wild,half wrecked. She had moved like someone who wanted to forget something or someone. Then she had flirted with me at the bar and it had taken all of my will power not to hoist her onto the bar and kiss those lips of hers,effectively ruining her for anyone else. “Do you make it a habit of stumbling into different rideshare without checking the plates?” “Only when emotionally devastated.” She deadpanned. “And you didn’t lock the door, so… that’s on you.” She paused as though she suddenly remembered something.“Oh my God,I guess this is why my mother used to pray so much. To protect me from something like this.” I couldn’t help it,I laughed. Low. Rough and deep. “So I’m the devil your mother warned you about?” “It may seem like it.” She eyed me skeptically. I sighed. “You should get out and find your driver.” She met my gaze in the mirror,and in that moment I could see the mischief in her eyes. “Or…you could take me somewhere.” I knew what she was asking. But I didn’t want to entertain it…Not yet. “Why don’t I take you home? What’s your address?” She stiffened at the word Home. “Yeah no thanks. My ex fiancé and my ex-best friend are currently defiling on those bedsheets. I’d rather die.” Jesus. Typical case of a woman being cheated on. ”People betray. That’s what they do. I learned that a long time ago.” I responded. I looked at her again,really looked this time. Beneath the makeup,the sass and the bad decisions,I could see the broken woman,the hurt woman,the angry woman. “How long were you with him?” I asked before I could stop myself. “Six years,” she muttered,then sat back and folded her arms like the question itself cracked something open. “Six years,and he still cheated on me with someone who used to borrow my dresses.” “That’s cold.” She looked away but not before I saw the first tear slip down.“It hurts. It hurts so much. I sacrificed a lot for Liam. Most especially my dreams. And he just… threw it all away.” “You know what.” I begin “There’s a hotel two blocks away. Let’s get you a room for the night and tomorrow when you feel better you can figure out the next step.Is that cool?” She nodded as she wiped her eyes subtly. I didn’t know why I offered. Hell I didn’t know why I even cared. But I felt this sudden urge to protect her. To get my hands on Liam and snap him into two. Just as I made to drive, she spoke up. “Wait!,” she shrieked,then leaned forward,her arms braced between the seats. “Can I sit up front? I usually get carsick at the back.” I cocked a brow. I didn’t believe her for a second. But I nodded anyway. She immediately climbed over like she’s done it a hundred times,pulling the seatbelt across her chest with a soft click. The scent of her perfume hit me and I became all too aware of how close she was. Too close. Too warm.. Too her. “So,” she said, turning towards me,her eyes glassy. “What’s your name?” “Julian.” “Julian,” she repeated,like she was tasting it. “You sound like a man who ruins lives.” “I’ve been known to.” She tilted her head,as she bit her lip. “Are you gonna ruin mine?” My cock hardened in response. “You don’t know what you’re asking for.” She studied me for a beat,then said “I do.I want to sleep with you.” Everything inside me stilled. “That’s the tequila talking.” “No,” she said. “The tequila helped me say it. But the part that wants you? That’s been screaming since I saw you.” Fuck. This girl had no idea what she was poking at. “You don’t want to sleep with me.” “I do,” she insisted, her voice low and breathy. “And I’m not asking for forever. I want tonight. A moment to forget the hurt. Something that reminds me I’m not broken.” “I don’t do pity fucks Kitten. If you sleep with me,it’s going to be because you want to remember every inch of me, not to forget some ex.” She swallowed as her eyes darted quickly to the tent that had now formed in my pants. The air in the car thickened ,as the sexual tension and weight of unspoken things settled between us. I should have said no. I should have driven her to the hotel,handed her a key and walked away. But when I looked at her lips—bruised from her teeth,parted and waiting. I forgot how to be good. Just as I moved to shift the car into drive. My hand brushed against her thigh.ZOE’S POV The most dangerous thing about Julian Hart was that he didn’t have to touch me to make me feel him everywhere. He was simply driving and that was enough to leave me hot and bothered. One hand rested on the steering wheel, the other occasionally shifting gears as we moved through Manhattan’s evening traffic. The lights from passing cars swept across his face, catching the sharp line of his jaw, the straight bridge of his nose, and the faint stubble I had spent the better part of dinner trying not to stare at. Trying, and failing. God, I had missed him. My gaze dropped to his fingers wrapped around the steering wheel, and a memory flashed through my mind. Of those same hands holding me down while his mouth and body drove me out of my mind. I swallowed. It had been more than a week since we had been intimate and although I enjoyed dinner, being close to him just made the ache much worse. I tore my gaze from him and looked out the window and my reflection stare
JULIAN By the time we arrived at the restaurant, the city had begun to glitter beneath the evening sky, the streets alive with headlights and the glow of towering buildings. I handed the keys of my Porsche Panamera to the valet and walked around to Zoe’s side of the car. She accepted my offered hand as she stepped out and her gaze lifted toward the hotel. “Julian.” I knew that tone. It was the ‘this is too much tone.’ “What?” I smiled in amusement. She looked at the entrance, then back at me.“Please tell me you haven’t booked the entire restaurant.” I laughed because that was exactly what I had done but I wasn't going to tell her that. I decided to settle for a half-truth.“Not the entire restaurant.” She narrowed her eyes. “That pause before you answered was suspicious.” “I booked a private dining room.” A smile tugged at her lips and my heart skipped at how beautiful she looked. “Of course you did. Why am I not surprised?” “Would you have preferred to eat in t
JULIAN’S POV The smile wouldn't leave my face as I stared at my message thread with Zoe. She just agreed to have dinner with me. I scrolled through my phone and immediately called the manager at The Modern, one of Manhattan’s most exclusive restaurants.“I need a private dining room for two tonight. Seven PM.” There was a brief pause.“Of course, Mr. Hart. Would you prefer the chef’s tasting menu or the à la carte experience?” “À la carte. And I want the room completely private.” “Certainly, sir.” “No other guests. I don’t want anyone walking in unless I authorize it.” “Understood. Would you like us to arrange anything special?” I thought about it for a second. “No. Just make sure everything is perfect.” When I ended the call, I leaned back in my chair and s
JULIAN’S POV I’d spent most of the weekend dealing with the mess surrounding my campaign, trying to contain the damage before it spread any further. But no matter how many calls I made or how many meetings I scheduled, my mind kept returning to Zoe. I’d called, texted, and even considered driving to her apartment before reminding myself that she’d explicitly asked for space. It was the only reason I hadn’t gone. I wasn’t proud of how often I’d checked my phone over the weekend, either. Patrick was navigating the Monday morning Manhattan traffic when my phone rang. It was Raymond. I answered immediately.“Tell me you have something.” “Good morning to you too, Mr. Hart.” “Raymond.” He chuckled. “I’ve got something you should see. Check your email.” I pulled my laptop closer and opened the email application on my phone. A new message sat at the top of my inbox, containing several attachments.“What am I looking at?” “Richard Forrester. Yesterday evening. He met with a w
ZOE’S POV I knew what I had done was a coward's way out but I really hadn’t been thinking when I called Maureen on Sunday night and requested to take three days off my yearly leave. So here I was on a Tuesday morning walking down the shopping aisle, absentmindedly adding items to my shopping cart. The weekend had gone by in a blur, with me being tucked in bed and occasionally responding to messages and video calls from the messy Express group chat. Lani and Ella were worried about me so they had constantly kept checking in. Julian had called at least two dozen times in the last seventy-two hours but I hadn't picked up. I still needed time; I wasn't ready to be sucked in by his intoxicating presence just yet. At least, that was what I kept telling myself. But apparently, Julian Hart had decided that if I wouldn’t answer his calls, he would simply find other ways to get my attention. It started on Saturday. A dozen bouquets of white roses had arrived at my apartment with
JULIAN’S POV It took alot of willpower not to smash everything on my desk after Zoe ended the call. The moment Peter, the head of my PR team, had told me there was another issue whilst turning his laptop screen towards me, with images of Zoe and me plastered all over it, I knew things were deeper than I thought. I stood near the conference room window dialing Zoe’s number again but it went straight to voicemail. Either she had turned off her phone or she had redirected my calls. “What do we do about the articles and images sir?” Sarah the head of my legal team, asked. “The public is asking questions. How do they trust the integrity of a candidate who is having an affair with an employee?” I turned to face the room, my features schooled into impassivity. “Issue a statement making it clear that Hart Holdings takes the privacy of its employees seriously. These allegations are baseless, and we will not allow fabricated narratives to dictate how this company operates. I wa
Zoe’s POV I stared at him, waiting for him to laugh — to tell me he was joking. But Julian didn’t move. He just leaned back against the seat, watching me with those dark, unflinching eyes that stripped away every last layer of composure I had left. “Don’t look so alarmed,” he m
JULIAN’S POVI watched as Zoe scrambled out of my office like she’d just seen a ghost.Seeing her flustered always amused me. The way she tried so damn hard to keep her composure, to act like my presence didn’t affect her, when her eyes and body said otherwise—it was addictive. Nothing turned me on
JULIAN’S POV “Cassandra, that doesn’t work.” I pinched the bridge of my nose, leaning back in my chair. “No, listen to me—if Burke wants a meeting, fine, but tell him I’m not interested in getting into politics myself. Not now, not this year. I already told him this.” Cassandra’s calm clipped
LIAM’S POV You know that feeling when you’ve messed up so bad you can’t even tell which way’s up? Like every move you make could save you… Or blow everything to hell? Yeah. That’s where I was. Madison was already waiting when I walked into the restaurant ,her back was to the window, her hair







