LOGINAdrian’s touch was soft whereas Roth’s was brutal, he's patient, whereas Roth was merciless. Every brush of his fingertips only reminded her of what she was missing. The hunger gnawed inside her, feral and ugly, and she bit down on Adrian’s lip just to feel the taste of blood, something raw, something closer to what she craved.Adrian hissed softly, then smiled against her mouth, misunderstanding her action. “Fiery tonight, aren’t you?”Fiery? If only he knew she was drowning.Elena’s nails dug into his shoulders as she straddled him harder, grinding down, desperate for friction, desperate for the madness to stop clawing her apart. But no matter how fast she moved, no matter how sweetly Adrian kissed her, she couldn’t get Roth’s face out of her head.She saw him everywhere, behind her eyelids, in the shadows of the room, in the phantom ache still lodged deep inside her body. His cruel smirk, his commanding eyes, the way he had stared at her while fucking another woman.The sound of Ce
Their gazes collided, invisible lightning sparking across the room.Elena’s knees threatened to buckle. Her heart banged against her ribs, screaming for her to flee, but she was rooted, every nerve ablaze as Roth held her in his stare.And then, deliberately, Roth fucked Celeste harder. The squelching sound of her pussy, and their skin contact echo through the roomElena’s breath hitched, her hand flying to her mouth as if she could silence the moan or cry tearing from her throat. Roth smirked, dark and cruel, the corners of his mouth curling upward as if her agony was the sweetest wine he had ever tasted.“Louder,” he growled at Celeste, slamming his cock into her with vicious force.Celeste obeyed, crying out his name, oblivious to the silent war burning across the room.Elena’s eyes blurred with tears she refused to shed. The air felt thick, suffocating and each thrust punching through her chest. She wanted to hate him, wanted to loathe him with every fiber of her being. But her bo
Roth stood alone on the balcony overlooking the Dimitri estate, a cigarette burning slowly between his fingers. The smoke drifted into the cool night air as he took one slow drag after another, hoping it would quiet the anger simmering beneath his skin. It didn't. His chest still felt tight, but it wasn't because of Celeste. It had never been because of her. He caught his reflection in the glass doors behind him. A faint smear of her red lipstick still marked the edge of his jaw, and her expensive perfume clung stubbornly to his shirt. The scent made him frown. It wasn't the fragrance he wanted lingering on him. Every time he closed his eyes, all he could think about was Elena. Her perfume was softer, lighter, almost impossible to notice unless she stood close, yet somehow it had followed him everywhere since the night they met. He should have wiped Celeste's lipstick away the moment she'd kissed him, but he hadn't. He'd left it exactly where it was because he wanted Elena to see
By the time the engagement party finally came to an end, Elena felt like she had survived a battle instead of a celebration. The moment she climbed into the car, she let out a quiet breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding all night. Every nerve in her body felt stretched to its limit, and the smile she had worn for hours had left her cheeks aching. She couldn't remember the last time pretending had been this exhausting.The drive home passed in silence. Adrian seemed tired after spending the entire evening entertaining guests, while Elena was grateful he wasn't asking questions she didn't have the strength to answer. She rested her head against the window and watched the city lights blur past, hoping the distance between herself and the ballroom would somehow quiet the storm inside her. It didn't.When they finally stepped inside the apartment, Elena stopped just beyond the front door and slowly looked around. It was the same home she had walked out of only a few hours earlier,
The ballroom faded into a blur around Elena. The soft sound of violins drifted through the air. Couples glided across the polished dance floor, smiling as though they didn't have a single worry in the world. Laughter echoed from every corner of the room, champagne flowed freely, and guests continued celebrating her engagement as if it were the happiest night of her life.Elena smiled whenever someone looked her way. She thanked people for their congratulations. She accepted hugs. She posed for photographs. No one noticed that she was barely holding herself together.Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Roth with Celeste. She saw the way he'd held her, the way she'd looked at him, the ease between them that spoke of a past Elena knew nothing about. The memory refused to leave her alone, replaying over and over until her chest felt too tight to breathe.Adrian slipped an arm around her waist and leaned closer, saying something about the speech his best man was preparing. Elena barel
Elena walked back into the ballroom, feeling as though every step weighed a hundred pounds. Around her, the engagement party carried on without a care.Champagne glasses clinked together, music drifted through the room, and guests laughed as they celebrated the future she was supposed to be looking forward to. In everyone else's eyes, tonight marked the beginning of her life with Adrian.So why did it hurt so much knowing Roth was somewhere in this room with another woman?She blinked quickly, refusing to let the tears gather in her eyes fall. Not tonight. She had promised herself she wouldn't let him ruin her engagement party, yet here she was, barely holding herself together because of a man she had no right to want.God, she hated him. She hated the hold he seemed to have over her. She hated that seeing him with Celeste felt like someone had reached into her chest and squeezed her heart until she could barely breathe. Most of all, she hated herself for caring.Straightening her sho







