Chapter 9 - Not Today Darling

Sienna leaned closer to the mirror, brushing another layer of mascara onto her thick lashes, then leaned back to inspect herself. “Perfect as always.” She whispers.

Her reflection in the mirror was effortlessly poised. Brunette waves cascading over her shoulders. Her light brown eyes caught the soft morning light.

There was always a natural elegance to her, from the delicate slope of her nose to the subtle pink in her cheeks, highlighting her high cheekbones and the caramel hue of her skin.

“Chloe is so nervous about this meeting.” She said, her voice laced with the slightest bit of concern as she reached for her lip gloss.

Ryan watched her from the bed, shirtless, his expression vague. His gaze trailed over the elegant curve of her back, the way she moved with practised grace.

Sienna was beautiful, poised, everything a man like him would want. But as she spoke, all he could think about was how different she was from her sister.

“How’s she holding up?” He asked, keeping his voice neutral.

Sienna smiled, tossing the gloss onto the dresser. “Some nights she comes home exhausted and tells Dad she can’t do it. Other times she acts like she has everything under control. Back and forth. Back and forth, it’s honestly entertaining.” She turned facing him. “Makes her look a little unstable, don’t you think?”

Ryan let out a deep breath, forcing a chuckle, but his mind was elsewhere. He knew Chloe wasn’t unstable - far from it.

She was sharp, focused, too damn perceptive for his liking, but he loved her anyway.

And that was the problem if Chloe had been more like Sienna, more desperate and inviting. Willing to cling to any attention thrown her way, things would’ve been easier.

But Chloe wasn’t easy, she questioned everything. Saw through deception even before it left a person’s mouth.

She wouldn’t have fallen for his ways.

Sienna, on the other hand, was the overlooked one, the one who felt second to her sister.

The one who wanted to prove she was just as important just as worthy and Ryan knew how to work with that.

So he picked her, he hated that he hurt Chloe but he needed to do what was best for him in the long run and that meant doing her sister.

Before he could dwell on that thought, Sienna stepped toward him, her robe parting just enough to tease the curve of her thighs.

She let out a shy smirk. “What?”

Ryan shook his head, before he could speak, she slipped onto his lap, let legs on either side of him. Her perfume was rich, floral, enticing, wrapped around him as she pressed a teasing kiss to his cheeks.

“You,” she murmured. Her fingers tracing the muscles on his bare chest, “have been acting weird lately.”

Ryan exhaled as she rolled her hips, a slow, teasing motion that sent a spark of heat through him. He let his hands drift down, fingers skimming the bare skin of her thighs before slipping beneath the silk of her robe.

His touch was light at first, barely there, his fingertips trailing along the sensitive skin at the apex of her thighs, teasing, circling—but never quite giving her what she craved. Sienna let out a slow exhale, her lashes fluttering as he deepened his touch, tracing slow, deliberate strokes over the damp heat between her legs.

She shuddered, her grip on his shoulders tightening. “Ryan…”

Her voice was breathless, filled with an urgency that bordered on desperation. She rocked into his hand, seeking more, but he took his time, dragging out the moment with deliberate precision.

His fingers found the place aching for his touch, teasingly brushing against her before slipping inside her warmth. Sienna gasped, her body arching as he began to move, his fingers curling and pressing in all the right ways to elicit soft cries from her lips.

His other hand skimmed up her back, tugging her closer as his lips grazed the hollow of her throat, open-mouthed kisses sending shivers down her spine. Her breath hitched, a soft, involuntary sound escaping her as he pressed deeper, his strokes becoming more purposeful.

“Please,” she whispered, her desperation palpable as she rocked against his hand, urging him on. He responded by quickening his pace, fingers thrusting inside her with a steady rhythm, each movement drawing her closer to the edge.

Sienna felt the world fade away, consumed by the pleasure building within her, every touch igniting a fire that threatened to consume them both. Ryan’s lips never left her skin, trailing kisses that made her feel cherished and desired, each stroke of his fingers pushing her closer to bliss.

The tension built between them, her body warm and pliant against him.

And then—

“Did you talk to your father?”

The unexpected question sliced through her haze of desire pulling her back. Sienna froze.

A long silence lingered between them before she pulled back, disbelief flashing in her golden eyes.

“Are you fucking serious?”

Ryan smirked, but there was no real amusement in it.

Sienna exhaled sharply, pushing off his lap. “You know how to ruin a moment, don’t you?”

He didn’t respond as she adjusted her robe, irritation rolling off her in waves.

“Relax,” he said finally. “I told you—it’s important.”

Sienna scoffed. “And I told you, I’m working on it. My father doesn’t make decisions overnight.” She shot him a look. “Honestly, sometimes I wonder why you care so much.”

Ryan knew she was right, it wasn’t that easy getting a listening ear from James Bennett, not to talk of a seat in his boardroom.

But he needed this. He needed something.

Ryan watched as Sienna stormed back to her chair, frustration evident in the sharp movements of her body. He expected her to keep sulking, to throw another irritated remark his way, but instead, she untied the knot of her silk robe and let it slide from her shoulders.

His gaze swept over her naked body, taking in the smooth curves, and the soft lines of her frame. She was stunning—effortlessly seductive, fully aware of the power she held over men.

And yet, as she lounged back, stretching lazily, almost daring him to come to her, Ryan felt nothing.

He wanted to. He should have. But his mind was elsewhere.

And this is why Sienna was the easier choice.

Chloe would have seen right through him.

Would have called him out on his bullshit before he even had the chance to spin the web.

But Sienna?

Sienna was desperate for attention, for validation, for something to set her apart from her sister.

And Ryan knew exactly how to twist that to his advantage.

She thought he wanted her, and maybe for a time he had….he did. He didn’t know. He was conflicted like that.

But what he did know was that he wanted power. Something substantial.

He needed protection.

Damien Cross. The name had been a weight on his chest for years, a ghost that never stopped haunting him. And now, the past was beginning to unravel, thread by thread.

Damien was getting closer, and Ryan had no intention of being the same powerless boy who ran away three years ago.

Sienna let out a small sigh, running a hand through her hair as she eyed him expectantly. He knew what she wanted—to finish what they started, to pull him back into the distraction of her body.

But Ryan wasn’t in the mood for distractions.

Not when the man he feared most was closer than ever.