ログインDamien didn't ask. He just took my wrist and pulled me toward the bathroom like I was already his to move. Inside the bathroom was quite big, everything about it screamed money.
“Strip,” he said, leaning against the counter, arms crossed.
I lifted my chin, trying to look like I wasn't shaking. “You first.”
He laughed like I'd told a bad joke. “Cute. But I'm not the one getting paid tonight, sweetheart.”
I swallowed the embarrassment and pulled the black dress off. Standing there in just my plain underwear felt worse than being naked. He stepped forward, slowly pulling down my panties and unhooking my bra.
“You didn’t shave,” he observed.
I shrugged, forcing nonchalance. “Didn't think I needed to, profile said sixties, figured he wouldn't notice.”
He raised a brow. “Disappointed?”
“You're not sixty,” I shot back. “You're… what, forty?”
“Thirty nine,” he corrected, voice dry. “Ancient by your standards, I'm sure.”
I rolled my eyes, trying to act like my heart wasn't hammering. “You still look better than most guys my age.”
He smirked. “Flattering me won't make this go faster.”
He turned on the shower and grabbed a small leather kit from the counter that contained razor, cream, and fresh towel.
“Sit,” he said, pointing to the ledge beside the sink.
He knelt in front of me and pushed my knees apart with zero hesitation. “Open.”
I hesitated, closing my legs tightly. He raised an eyebrow. “You want the money or not?”
I opened my legs, hating how exposed I felt. He spread the cream over my mound, slow circles that made me bite my lip. Every pass of his thumb brushed too close to my clit.
“Didn't expect to be doing arts and crafts tonight,” I muttered, trying to sound sarcastic.
“Neither did I,” he replied without looking up. “But here we are. You're making it interesting,”
He tilted my hips needing better access to shave the hair off, fingers grazing my clit. I sucked in a breath every time.
“You're jumpy,” he noted.
“I'm fine,” I lied, voice tight.
“Sure you are.” He blew air over the bare skin when he finished. I jerked so hard my back hit the mirror.
He chuckled. “Sensitive little thing.”
“Stop talking,” I snapped.
“Make me,” he smirked.
He stripped his clothes, no hesitation, no shame. His body was carved muscle, thick thighs, and a cock already half hard, I tried not to stare but I failed.
He opened the shower door, stepped in, then held out a hand. “Get in.”
I walked in, he pulled me under the spray, turning me so my back was against his chest. His hands were sliding over my shoulders to my breast, my stomach, when he reached between my legs, I moaned.
He pressed himself against my ass, very hard now. “You’re wet,” he murmured in my ear. “Not just from the water.”
“Shut up,” I whispered, but my hips rocked back anyway.
He turned me around, lifted one of my legs over his hip, and slid two fingers inside me without warning. I gasped. He pumped slowly, thumb circling my clit. Then he froze, his fingers stilled, brows furrowed.
“You're tight,” he said, almost to himself. “Too tight.”
I bit my lip, suddenly ashamed. “Yeah… about that…”
He pulled his fingers out, looked at the faint smear of blood-tinged wetness. His eyes snapped to mine. “You're a virgin.”
I nodded once, looking anywhere but at him.
He exhaled through his nose, jaw tight. “You put virgin on your profile?”
“No,” I said quickly. “I just… didn't think it mattered. Old man, one night. Figured he wouldn't care.”
Damien stared at me for a long second. Something flickered in his expression, surprise, maybe irritation, maybe something darker. “I was planning on fucking you hard,” he said flatly. “Rough. The way I usually do.”
My stomach dropped. “And now?”
He stepped closer, water streaming down his chest. “Now I'm thinking about how much it's going to hurt you if I do that. You're nineteen, barely legal and tiny.”
I tried to look tough. “I can handle it.”
He laughed. “Brave girl.”
He shut off the water, grabbed a towel, wrapped it around me like I was breakable. Then he scooped me up and carried me back to the bedroom.
He laid me on the sheets, climbed over me, caged me with his arms. “Last chance to run,” he said, voice low.
“I need the money,” I whispered.
He studied my face, then he kissed me, slow and deep like he was tasting something he hadn’t expected to like.
When he pulled back, he spread my legs again. Putting his fingers gently now, stretching me, curling inside, finding that spot that made my back arch.
“You're soaking,” he muttered. “Virgin or not, your pussy wants this.”
I moaned, couldn't help it.
He lined himself up, his tip nudging my entrance. “Eyes on me.”
“Tell me if it's too much.” He pushed in slow, the stretch burned. I dug my nails into his shoulders.
He stopped halfway, letting me adjust. “Breathe.”
I did, the pain eased into pressure. He went deeper, inch by inch, until he was completely inside me.
“Fuck,” he groaned. “So tight.”
He started moving, slowly at first, then faster, harder. Every thrust dragged against places that made me dizzy. I wrapped my legs around him, meeting his rhythm even though it still hurt a little.
He fucked me like he was claiming something, deep, possessive, but careful enough.
“Come for me,” he whispered in my ears, moving faster and hitting spots that made me go crazy.
“Damien,” I cried out his name as I came without meaning to.
“That's it,” he growled, moving even faster than before, so fast I thought I might pass out.
“Fuck,” he growled low, pulsing inside me as he filled me with his cum.
We stayed like that, breathing hard. After a long minute he pulled out slowly, watching his cum drip from me with dark satisfaction.
“One night,” he said again, almost like a reminder.
But the way he looked at me said something else entirely.
The days after the coffee meeting blurred into a strange rhythm of avoidance and quiet longing. I stayed at Sofia’s, burying myself in textbooks and pretending the ache in my chest was just exam stress. Sofia, bless her, tried to keep things light with terrible reality TV marathons and burnt toast attempts she called “gourmet breakfast.” But even she could see I was struggling.“You know,” she said one afternoon while we were on the couch, “for someone who asked for space, you check your phone like it owes you money.”I sighed and set the device down. “Habit.”“Uh-huh.” She raised an eyebrow. “And the fact that Damien hasn’t blown up your phone with messages or flowers is driving you crazier than if he had.”She wasn’t wrong. The silence from him felt… intentional. Respectful. Which only made me miss him more.Then the first gesture arrived.It was a small package delivered to Sofia’s door, a plain brown box with my name on it. Inside were three books, the latest releases in corporate
Damien was not a man who liked loose ends. He had spent the last forty-eight hours turning over every rock Reyes could find, chasing shadows, and piecing together the alliance between Lila and Alex. The proof was damning. Timestamps, burner accounts, meeting locations. They had planned the photos, the timing, even the library incident like a carefully orchestrated play. But something still felt off. Alex had been cut loose too cleanly. Lila didn’t strike him as the type to burn a useful tool without having another one lined up.He needed answers. Direct ones.So he went to the source.Alex Thorne’s apartment was in a sleek high-rise not far from campus, the kind of place that screamed “trying too hard to look successful.” Damien didn’t bother with pleasantries. He had security bypass the doorman and rode the elevator up alone, jaw tight, hands clenched at his sides. When Alex opened the door, the surprise on his face lasted only a second before shifting into that smug, calculated smir
Lila was not about to give up easily or a woman who accepted failure gracefully. She paced the living room like a caged predator. The crystal glass she had thrown earlier still lay in shards near the wall, a glittering reminder of her rage. Three weeks of careful planning. Three weeks of manipulating Alex like the eager little puppet he was. And for what? Elena had walked away, yes, but Damien was already trying to crawl back to her. Pathetic.Alex had failed her. Spectacularly.She picked up her phone and sent him one final message:Lila: We’re done. Don’t contact me again. You’re useless.Then she blocked him.No loose ends. No sentimental attachments. Lila had learned long ago that men were tools, useful until they weren’t. Alex had become a liability the moment his obsession with Elena clouded his judgment. She needed someone colder. Someone with a personal grudge. Someone who already hated Damien enough to enjoy watching him burn.Marcus Hale.The thought brought a slow, dangerou
Three days had turned into four, then five. The flowers had stopped coming after the third day. I kept my phone on do not disturb most of the time, but I still checked it obsessively. Sofia noticed, of course. She noticed everything.“You’re doing that thing again,” she said on the morning of day six, pointing her spoon at me over breakfast. “The sad phone stare. It’s becoming your signature look.”I set the phone down. “I’m not staring sadly. I’m… strategically monitoring.”“Uh-huh.” She took a bite of cereal. “And how’s that strategy working out for you?”I groaned and dropped my head onto the table. “Terribly. He texted again last night. Another coffee date to talk things out.’ I haven’t replied yet.”Sofia raised an eyebrow. “And why haven’t you?”“Because every time I think about seeing him, my stomach does this weird flip thing. Half excitement, half terror. It’s exhausting.”She pushed the cereal box toward me. “Eat. Then reply. You can’t hide in my apartment forever. My couch
Three days. Three entire days. That was how long I had managed to avoid Damien.Not that he wasn't trying.The first morning after his text, flowers arrived at Sofia's apartment. A ridiculous amount of flowers.Sofia had opened the door, stared at the massive arrangement, then immediately yelled:"OH MY GOD. HE'S DECLARING WAR WITH BOTANICAL WEAPONS."The delivery guy nearly dropped the vase laughing.I rolled my eyes.Sofia took approximately seventeen selfies with the flowers before finally handing me the card.I miss you.Just three words.Somehow that made it worse.Because it sounded exactly like Damien.Not the angry version.Not the jealous version.The version I loved.The version I was trying very hard not to think about.Unfortunately, my brain was being deeply uncooperative.Everywhere I looked, something reminded me of him. It was becoming a problem, a very annoying problem.Sofia was enjoying every second of it."You know," she said on the third day while we were sitting
I had barely slept, tossing and turning on the lumpy couch while replaying the fight with Damien on loop. The way his face had twisted when he saw Alex’s hand on my wrist. The coldness in his voice when he accused me of hiding things. Every memory stung like salt in an open wound.Sofia was already up, humming off-key in the kitchen while making coffee. The smell of burnt toast and her signature strong brew pulled me off the couch. I shuffled in, still wearing the oversized t-shirt she’d lent me, my hair a mess and my eyes puffy.“Morning, runaway bride,” she said cheerfully, sliding a mug toward me. “Or should I say, almost-bride-who-said-no-on-a-rooftop? Either way, you look like hell.”I managed a weak laugh. “Thanks. Exactly what I needed to hear.”She grinned, but her eyes were soft with concern. “Eat something. Then we dig. My tech friend got back to me at 3 a.m. apparently he lives on Red Bull and spite. He found something.”My heart jumped. I took a sip of coffee, burning my t
I barely slept, I checked my phone for the hundredth time. Nothing from Damien. Just Sofia’s last text from two hours earlier, “Still awake if you need me. Door locked?”I typed back “Yes” with shaking fingers and finally went to sleep.When I woke up in the morning my eyes felt swollen. I dragged
The flight to Chicago felt like the longest four hours of my life. I sat by the window, forehead pressed against the glass, watching the clouds drift by below. My phone was clutched in my hand like a lifeline, screen dark, no new notifications. I had tried calling Damien three times already, once b
The morning after Lila left felt like the first real breath of fresh air in over a week.I woke up slowly, still wrapped in Damien’s arms, my cheek pressed against his chest. The penthouse was quiet in that expensive, peaceful way, no extra footsteps in the hallway, no polite “good morning” from a
The final evening of Lila’s trial week felt like the last page of a book I wasn’t sure I wanted to finish. We sat around the dining table for what would be our last dinner together. The staff had prepared a simple but elegant meal, roasted chicken, vegetables, fresh bread, and a bottle of wine that







