登入EVE'S POV The new lockdown turned the penthouse into a tomb of waiting. Every door sealed with biometric locks that clicked shut with a heavy finality. Every window reinforced with thick glass that made the world outside feel like a distant painting. Guards rotated in silent shifts, their presence a constant reminder that Sophia had been spotted again... standing on the street below, staring up at our windows like she owned them. The city outside felt farther away than ever, reduced to a glittering backdrop on the monitors that flickered in the corner of every room. Lily, eleven months old, fussed in my arms as I rocked her in the nursery. She was sensitive to the heavy tension in the air, her little hands clutching my shirt as she whimpered softly. I held her close, breathing in her sweet baby scent, my other hand resting on my stomach where the twins were growing. The joy of the pregnancy was still raw and fragile, tangled with terror that refused to let go. Every flutter inside
EVE'S POV The late afternoon light poured through the reinforced windows of the penthouse, casting long golden beams across the living room floor. Lily, at eleven months old, was in full explorer mode... crawling with surprising speed between the coffee table and the couch, her chubby hands slapping the rug as she babbled a constant stream of half-words and delighted squeals. She had discovered the joy of pulling herself up on furniture, and every successful stand earned a triumphant grin that made my heart ache with love. I sat cross-legged on the floor, one hand resting protectively on my stomach where the twins were growing. The pregnancy was still early, but the nausea and exhaustion were constant companions now. Joy and terror lived side by side inside me these days... joy for the new lives, terror for the world they would enter. Damon walked in from his office, loosening his tie, his face softening the moment he saw us. He dropped down beside me on the rug and immediately pu
EVE'S POV My phone vibrated in my hand as I stood on the terrace, the city stretching out below like a glittering, indifferent sea. The evening breeze carried the faint scent of rain that hadn’t quite arrived yet, cool against my skin. I almost ignored the unknown number. Unknown numbers had become nothing but threats or spam since Lily’s kidnapping. But something... a cold instinct twisting low in my gut... made me answer. “Hello?” A pause. Then his voice, slightly distorted but unmistakable, smooth and possessive, sliding through the line like oil. “Eve.” Alex. My blood turned to ice. I gripped the railing tighter, knuckles going white, heart slamming against my ribs so hard I could feel it in my throat. “How did you get this number?” A soft, obsessive laugh came through, the kind that used to make my skin crawl even before I knew what he was capable of. “I have my ways. Even in here. Prison walls can’t keep me from you, my love. I needed to hear your voice. I’ve been thinki
EVE'S POV The penthouse felt like a gilded cage. Two weeks after the pregnancy confirmation, the walls that had once been our sanctuary now pressed in from every side. Extreme security had become the new normal... biometric locks on every door, armed operators rotating in shifts like silent ghosts, armored SUVs for even the shortest trips, and constant monitoring feeds that beeped softly in the background day and night. Lily, now eleven months old, was thriving despite it all, crawling at full speed and babbling “ma-ma” and “da-da” with pure joy. But I was suffocating. Damon’s overprotectiveness had intensified to a breaking point. It started subtly after the confirmation. He insisted on attending every prenatal appointment with a full security detail. He limited my time in the office to two hours maximum. He added extra guards to the rooftop garden and required pre-approval for any movement outside the penthouse. Last night, when I mentioned wanting to take Lily for a short walk
EVE'S POV The morning of the hospital appointment felt like walking a tightrope stretched between hope and terror. I stood in front of the mirror in our bedroom, hands trembling as I buttoned my blouse over my still-flat stomach. It had been two days since those three pregnancy tests showed two pink lines each. Twins. The word still sent shockwaves through me... pure, overwhelming joy mixed with a deep, bone-chilling fear that refused to loosen its grip. Lily was eleven months old now, crawling everywhere with fierce determination and babbling constant “ma-ma” and “da-da.” She was the bright light in our lives, the reason we had fought so hard through Sophia and Alex’s darkness. And now we were bringing two more little souls into this world... a world where Sophia was still out there somewhere, where Alex’s lawyers were fighting hard for his bail, where extreme security had turned our home into a fortress. Damon came up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist and resting his c
EVE'S POV The bathroom felt smaller than usual that afternoon, the walls closing in just a little too tight. I sat on the closed toilet lid, staring at the three pregnancy tests lined up on the marble counter like tiny judges waiting to drop their verdict. My hands trembled so badly I had to clasp them together in my lap, knuckles white, just to keep them still. The soft afternoon light filtered through the frosted window, casting hazy patterns on the tiles, but it did nothing to chase away the cold dread and wild, fragile hope twisting around in my chest. It had been months since we got Lily back. Months of slow healing, of turning our home into a fortress with all those extreme security protocols, of learning to breathe again while Sophia stayed a ghost somewhere out there and Alex fought like hell for bail from prison. Lily was eleven months old now... crawling into everything, pulling herself up on furniture with those chubby little hands, babbling “ma-ma” and “da-da” with such
I noticed the pattern during the week.Sophia's morning sickness only happened when Damon was home.Not during the long afternoons when it was just the two of us in the apartment. Not when Jessica came over and we sat in the kitchen talking for hours. Not on the mornings Damon had early meetings an
I woke up to Damon watching me."Happy birthday," he said softly. Right, today I turned twenty-five. I'd forgotten somehow, lost track of days in the mess our life had become."Thanks," I said."I have something planned for tonight, dinner at eight. Just us.""Where?""Here, I
Three days.It had been three days of this new arrangement and I was losing my mind.Not in a bad way. In a "I can't stop thinking about him" way. In a "every time he looks at me I remember exactly what he looks like naked" way.We'd fallen into this routine. Work during the day. Pretend to be norm
The words came out before I could stop them.Everyone stopped eating and looked at me."I just mean..." I could feel my face getting hot again. "She's not here. Maybe we could talk about something else."My mother's smile went tight and thin. "Of course, darling. We're just making conversation.""I







