LOGINSERENAWhen Mr. Winchester invited me to golf, my first instinct was to say no, because golf felt like one of those things you only did if you were born rich or had enough free time on your hands. But he framed it as a networking opportunity, and then he added, “No pressure, Serena. You can just ride along and talk,” which made it sound less intimidating and more like a long business lunch.So I agreed.The course was massive, and there were so many people everywhere. Everything was green and painfully neat, with staff moving around quietly and smiling at everyone politely. Mr. Winchester greeted me with an easy smile, already dressed in a polo shirt that probably cost more than my monthly grocery bill, and introduced me to the small group of men he was playing with.“Gentlemen, this is Serena Hale,” he said, resting a hand lightly on my back in a way that felt professional but familiar. “She’s the one I told you about. Sharpest mind I’ve met in a long time.”That made my stomach tigh
UNKNOWN POVI'd been sitting there longer than I meant to.The engine was off, the street was quiet, and the building across the road glowed softly like it always did at this hour. I knew the pattern now. I knew when the lights came on, which windows stayed dark, and which ones flickered. I knew which security guard worked nights and which one pretended not to notice familiar faces.And right on cue, Serena Hale appeared exactly when I expected her to.She moved differently than she used to. She was slower now, and far more careful. One hand instinctively drifted to her stomach as she stepped inside, like she was protecting something precious without even thinking about it. The sight of her still did something to me, something low and restless that I refused to name out loud.She was beautiful in a way that made people stupid, and dangerous in a way that made them forget their place.But the fucking baby ruined the symmetry of it all.I watched the elevator lights climb up slowly, cou
ADRIANBy the time Rafael walked into my penthouse with Congressman Baxter behind him, I already had a glass of water in my hand that I kept forgetting to drink. I had been pacing the living room aimlessly, replaying too many conversations in my head at once, and I only stopped when the elevator doors opened.“Jesus,” Rafael said as soon as he walked in. “You look like shit.”“Fuck you,” I said. “Sit down.”“Let’s get straight to it,” Baxter said as he removed his jacket and draped it over the back of a chair. “Your brother is making noise.”Rafael closed the door behind them and looked at me. “Aiden’s move with Walters is worse than we thought.”I frowned and said, “Define worse.”Baxter sat down slowly, folding his hands together. “He’s not just backing him financially. He’s funneling support through two PACs that don’t trace back cleanly, and he’s promised access.”My jaw tightened as I said, “Access to what?”“To data,” Baxter said calmly. “To Knight infrastructure. To analytics,
RAFAELLunch was my idea, and I told myself it was because Serena looked tired the last time I saw her, because she had been through too much lately, because anyone would want to check on a friend after break-ins and fear and too many men trying to control her life.All of that was true.Still, I noticed the way she hesitated before sitting down across from me, the way her hand rested on her belly like it belonged there now, like it was instinctive, and the way her eyes kept moving around the restaurant even after we had ordered. She smiled when she saw me watching her do it, like she was embarrassed to be caught being careful.“I’m sorry,” she said quietly. “I don’t think I’m very good company right now.”“You don’t have to perform,” I told her calmly. “You can be yourself. I’ll handle the rest.”That made her laugh softly, and some of the tension left her shoulders, which felt like a small victory even though I told myself not to think of it like that.She stirred her drink slowly a
ADRIANI was already halfway through my workout when the call came through, sweat dripping down my spine as I pushed through another set that was doing nothing to quiet my head, because no matter how hard I trained lately, the noise inside me refused to shut up."Mr. Knight," the doorman said carefully over the intercom, and I could hear hesitation in his voice, which immediately put me on edge. "Serena Hale is in the lobby and she's asking to see you."My first instinct was to say no, because I was not ready to see her, not after the way I had woken up on her hallway floor and remembered everything in brutal fragments that still made my stomach twist. I closed my eyes briefly, dragged a towel over my face, and told myself I would send her away politely and be done with it."I'll be down," I said instead, already knowing I was lying to myself.I grabbed a hoodie and headed for the elevator, my chest tightening with every floor that passed, and when the doors finally opened, I saw her
SERENAGoing back to my apartment felt wrong in a way I could not explain, like my body remembered something my mind was trying very hard to downplay, and I stayed close to Lola as we stepped inside, both of us quiet and alert as if the walls themselves were listening."Okay," Lola said softly, closing the door behind us and locking it immediately. "Let's do this properly."I nodded, even though my chest felt tight, and we started moving slowly from room to room, checking corners, windows, closets, and anything that looked even slightly out of place. The couch was still shifted at an odd angle, one of the drawers in my console table was halfway open, and a lamp had been knocked onto its side like someone had brushed past it carelessly."There's no broken lock," Lola muttered, crouching by the door. "And I can’t see any sign of forced entry.""I know," I said quietly. "That's what scares me."We checked the windows next, and found every latch intact, every pane unbroken, and when we re







