The Offer

Denise barely slept that night.

Liam Dawson’s voice haunted her mind until morning.

You will belong only to me.

The words should have terrified her enough to throw the business card away the second she got home.

Instead, she kept staring at it.

Again and again.

The black card rested on the small broken table beside her mattress while rain tapped softly against the tiny apartment window.

Her apartment looked worse in daylight.

Peeling paint.

Broken ceiling fan.

Cold darkness from unpaid electricity.

Her younger brother, Mason, slept quietly on the mattress beside hers, his breathing uneven from the asthma that had worsened over the past month.

Denise looked away quickly.

That alone answered the question she kept asking herself.

She needed money.

Desperately.

A knock suddenly echoed through the apartment.

Hard.

Aggressive.

Denise froze.

Then came the landlord’s voice.

“You have until tonight, Denise!”

Her chest tightened.

“I’m trying—”

“I’m done listening to excuses. Pay the rent or get out!”

Footsteps stomped away.

Silence returned.

Denise closed her eyes slowly.

Maybe Liam Dawson was dangerous.

But poverty was dangerous too.

And poverty had already been ruining her life for years.

—

At exactly nine in the morning, a black luxury car stopped outside her building.

Every neighbor immediately started staring through windows.

Denise stepped outside carefully, wearing her cleanest jeans and a simple long-sleeved shirt.

The driver opened the back door respectfully.

“Miss Wells.”

She hesitated only a second before getting inside.

The leather seats smelled expensive.

Everything about the car screamed wealth so extreme it almost felt unreal.

As the city passed outside the window, Denise grew more nervous by the minute.

Why her?

Someone like Liam Dawson could have literally any woman he wanted.

Models.

Actresses.

Socialites.

So why had he looked at her like that?

As if he had already decided something.

The car finally slowed before massive iron gates.

Denise stared upward in shock.

The estate looked less like a house and more like a palace hidden behind dark trees and stone walls.

The gates opened slowly.

Her stomach twisted.

Too late to back out now.

—

Inside, the mansion was even more overwhelming.

Tall ceilings.

Black marble floors.

Massive crystal chandeliers.

Everything looked cold.

Perfect.

Untouchable.

A woman dressed in black approached politely.

“Mr. Dawson is waiting upstairs.”

Denise nodded nervously.

As she followed the woman through the mansion, she noticed something strange.

Men.

Large men dressed in black suits stood around different parts of the estate like guards.

And every single one lowered their heads respectfully when Liam’s name was mentioned.

Fear crawled slowly beneath her skin.

Who exactly was this man?

The woman stopped outside double doors.

Then opened them.

Denise stepped inside carefully.

And immediately found him watching her.

Liam sat behind a dark desk near the massive windows overlooking the city.

His sleeves were rolled slightly upward, exposing strong tattooed forearms.

He looked devastatingly handsome today.

Dangerously handsome.

His gray eyes dragged slowly over her body the second she entered.

That same possessive intensity returned instantly.

“Sit,” he said calmly.

Denise obeyed before realizing she hated how naturally she listened to him.

Liam leaned back in his chair.

For several long seconds, he simply watched her.

Like he was studying prey.

“You’re nervous,” he said.

“I think I have a reason to be.”

A faint smirk touched his lips.

Good Lord.

Even his smile felt dangerous.

“You need money,” Liam continued. “Your rent is overdue. Your brother’s medication hasn’t been purchased in two weeks. You lost your job three months ago.”

Denise’s face drained of color.

“How do you know all that?”

“I told you already.” His gaze sharpened. “I know a lot about people.”

No.

This wasn’t normal.

A normal man didn’t investigate someone overnight.

A normal man didn’t look at her like this.

Denise stood abruptly.

“I think I should leave.”

Liam’s expression darkened instantly.

The temperature in the room itself seemed to shift.

“Sit down, Denise.”

Her heartbeat skipped.

The command in his voice wasn’t human.

It was something deeper.

Something primal.

And somehow…

Her body obeyed before her mind could resist.

A strange silence filled the room afterward.

Liam noticed it too.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

Then he stood.

The sight of him towering over her sent nervous heat through her stomach.

He walked slowly around the desk until he stood directly in front of her.

Too close.

Way too close.

Denise could smell him again—that dark masculine scent mixed with something wild she couldn’t explain.

“You’re afraid of me,” he said quietly.

“Yes.”

His jaw tightened strangely.

“Good.”

Denise stared at him in disbelief.

Liam reached into his pocket and placed a thick envelope on the desk beside her.

She frowned before opening it slightly.

Money.

Stacks of it.

Her breath caught.

“There’s more if you agree to my terms,” Liam said.

“What terms?”

His eyes locked onto hers.

“You will live here.”

Denise swallowed hard.

“You’ll have your own room, unlimited access to anything in this house, clothes, money, security, whatever you need.”

“This sounds insane.”

“It’s simple.”

“No,” she snapped softly. “It’s not.”

Liam stepped even closer.

Close enough that her knees nearly touched his.

“You will stay here,” he said calmly, “and no other man will touch you.”

Heat rushed unexpectedly through Denise’s chest.

“What?”

“No dating.”

His expression remained cold.

“No flirting.”

Denise’s pulse quickened.

“No relationships.”

“You can’t control my life.”

Liam’s eyes darkened instantly.

“I can.”

The words hit her harder than they should have.

She looked away first.

Big mistake.

Because Liam suddenly grabbed her chin gently and forced her to look back at him.

The touch sent electricity through her body.

“Look at me when I’m speaking to you.”

Denise’s breathing became uneven.

Why did his voice affect her like this?

“You don’t own me,” she whispered.

Something dangerous flashed across his face.

“Not yet.”

Her stomach tightened.

The air between them suddenly felt too hot.

Too heavy.

Too intimate.

Liam’s thumb brushed lightly against her jaw before he slowly released her.

“Why me?” Denise asked shakily.

For the first time since meeting him…

Liam hesitated.

It lasted barely a second.

But she noticed.

Then his expression hardened again.

“Because I said so.”

Denise almost laughed from frustration.

“That’s not an answer.”

“It’s the only one you’re getting.”

Silence.

Her eyes drifted toward the envelope of money again.

Enough to save Mason.

Enough to survive.

Enough to finally breathe.

Liam watched her carefully.

He already knew she was considering it.

“You can leave anytime,” he said.

But something about the way he said it felt like a lie.

Denise looked back at him slowly.

“And if I meet another man?”

The atmosphere changed instantly.

Liam became completely still.

Terrifyingly still.

His gray eyes seemed darker now somehow.

Then he smiled slightly.

Coldly.

“That won’t happen.”

A chill ran through her spine.

Before she could answer—

A beautiful blonde woman suddenly walked into the office without knocking.

She wore a tight red dress and immediately smiled when she saw Liam.

“There you are,” she purred.

Then she walked directly toward him and kissed him.

Denise froze.

Liam didn’t stop her.

His eyes remained on Denise the entire time.

Watching her reaction.

The blonde finally noticed Denise sitting there.

“Oh,” she said casually. “I didn’t know you had company.”

Liam still looked only at Denise.

Then slowly…

deliberately…

he wrapped an arm around the blonde woman’s waist.

Possessively.

A strange sharp pain twisted through Denise’s chest.

And Liam noticed that too.