Claimed

The penthouse felt smaller tonight.

The city lights outside the floor-to-ceiling windows glimmered like distant stars, but inside, the air was heavy, suffocating, alive with tension. I could feel Adrian before I even saw him. That presence—the predator, the king—looming behind every shadow.

I was in the living room, pretending to read, pretending the tremor in my fingers wasn’t there, pretending my pulse wasn’t racing. My breath hitched every time he moved. He didn’t need to speak; his mere presence commanded the room.

“You’re tense,” he said suddenly, stepping closer. The sound of his voice was velvet over steel, smooth, sharp, dangerous.

“I’m… fine,” I whispered, my voice betraying me.

He didn’t believe me. He never did. Adrian had a way of seeing through everything—pretenses, walls, defenses. And tonight, he wasn’t letting me hide.

“I don’t think so,” he said, stopping a foot away. Close enough that I could feel his heat, smell the faint, intoxicating scent of him. “Your hands are shaking. Your pulse is racing. You can’t lie to me.”

I tried to pull back, but the sofa pressed into my back, leaving me nowhere to retreat.

“You belong here,” he said, low, possessive. “And I will make sure you know it.”

The possessiveness in his tone made my chest tighten in a way I hated. Every fiber of my body reacted before my mind could intervene. I wanted to push him away, scream, run… and yet, my legs refused to move.

Adrian reached out, brushing a stray lock of hair from my face. His touch was deliberate, controlled, claiming. A shiver ran through me. I hated it. I hated that I felt it. I hated him for making me feel it.

“You’re mine,” he whispered, his lips so close I could feel his breath against my skin. “No one else touches you. No one else looks at you like I do. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” I breathed, barely audible.

“Good.” His hand lingered near my cheek, thumb brushing my skin. “Because I don’t tolerate defiance. And I don’t forgive easily. You test me, Victoria… and you’ll regret it.”

The words should have frightened me. They did. But there was something else—something dark and forbidden—that made my body betray me. My stomach twisted. My pulse raced. My lips parted involuntarily.

“I… I’m not—” I started.

“You are,” he interrupted, his gaze locking on mine with a predatory intensity. “Fragile. Defiant. Tempting. And completely mine. You’ll learn to obey—or you’ll learn to beg. And either way…” He leaned closer, lips nearly brushing my ear, low, dangerous, intimate. “…you’ll want it.”

My breath hitched. Heat pooled where it shouldn’t. I tried to shrink away. Tried to close the distance, but he blocked every step. His hand landed lightly—but firmly—on my waist, pressing me back into the sofa.

I swallowed hard, heart hammering in my chest. My mind screamed to resist, to fight, to leave—but my body betrayed me, trembling, responding, betraying my own defiance.

“You’re trembling,” he said, his voice velvet and steel, whispering against my skin. “From fear, yes… but also something else. Desire. I can feel it. I will use it. And you will learn…” His lips brushed the shell of my ear. “…that you belong to me, completely.”

I closed my eyes. Tried to calm my racing thoughts. Tried to convince myself I was imagining it.

“You’re thinking about me,” he continued, hand gliding lower, possessive, claiming. “And I don’t like it when you lie. You’re mine, Victoria. Every thought, every breath, every heartbeat… mine.”

I shivered violently, trying to push back, but he didn’t let me go. He didn’t need to touch me fully—his presence, his possessiveness, the dark edge of his voice, was enough to make me weak, to make me ache in ways I didn’t want to admit.

“I… I won’t…” I stammered.

He smirked faintly, almost cruelly, leaning in closer. “You will. Sooner than you think. And when you do… you’ll hate me for it. And yet…” His eyes darkened, hungry. “…you’ll crave me. You’re already craving me. Admit it.”

I couldn’t. I wouldn’t. But the heat pooling inside me said otherwise. My pulse betrayed every protest. My chest rose and fell too quickly. My lips parted, unbidden, as if they knew truths my mind refused to accept.

Adrian’s smirk widened slightly. “Good. That’s a start.” He straightened, releasing me—but the air between us still vibrated, heavy with possession, lust, and control. “Tonight is just the beginning. You’ll sleep alone—but don’t think it makes you safe. I will find ways to remind you… every hour, every day, who you belong to.”

I sank onto the sofa, trembling. Heart hammering. Mind reeling. Body betraying every instinct to flee.

And somewhere deep down, I knew…

I was trapped.

Completely.

Irrevocably.

And Adrian Vale…

Adrian Vale had just claimed me.