LOGIN"What do you want?" I asked, my voice dropping into a cold register."Arabella, you're my wife," Ethan barked. "Can't I call you unless I have a specific reason?"The spacious living room was deathly quiet, and Ethan's voice was loud and clear enough to bleed through the receiver. Instinctively, I pulled the phone from my ear and cast an uneasy glance at Damian, who was already standing close by, his dark brows pulled tight in a frown."If there's nothing else, I'm hanging up," I said, my thumb hovering over the red disconnect button."Arabella, you've got a lot of nerve lately. You'd better get your ass back home right now while I'm still asking nicely.""Why should I come back?" I let out a dry, humorless laugh, cutting straight to the chase.After those carefully planted photos of us kissing in the hospital parking lot had hit the media, Ethan must've expected me to seek a confrontation with him. Since days had passed with absolute silence from my end, he must have reached the en
The next morning. I didn't remember when I finally drifted off to sleep. But when I peeled my eyes open, the digital clock on the nightstand read 8:30 AM.Running on the assumption that Damian would have long since left for the office, I took my time. I brushed my teeth, took a long, hot shower, and dressed in my clothes from the day before, ready to make my escape back to the penthouse.It wasn't until I stepped down the grand staircase an hour later that the memory hit me. My gaze inadvertently swept across the living room sofa, and a fierce, searing heat rushed straight to my cheeks.*How on earth could I have been so clumsy?* I chided myself inwardly, mentally banging my head against the nearest wall.And as if that agonizing humiliation of *touching him* wasn't enough, the memory of the kitchen—and *that* kiss—flooded uninvited back into my brain."Miss Morgan, you're awake."I blinked, snapping out of my daze to find Hannah standing near the foyer with a warm smile."Good morn
Damian's POVTime completely dissolved the moment our lips locked. In that space, there was only her. The heat of her body pressing against mine was the only thing my senses registered.My fingers tangled into the soft strands at the nape of her neck, anchoring her in place, while my other hand gripped her waist, molding her tightly against me. I kissed her with a hunger that had been building for years, my tongue sweeping past her lips to claim her. The sweet, intoxicating taste of her made me dizzy with a raw, primal desire.Her hands, which had initially braced against my chest in self-defense, shifted. Her fingers drifted over my shirt, tracing the contours of my chest and abs before rising to grip my shoulders. She began to meet my rhythm, mimicking my movements and returning the kiss with an eager yet clumsy passion that short-circuited my mind.Every slide of her hands left a trail of fire across my skin, snapping the very last thread of my restraint.The tempo shifted natu
Author's POVDamian stared down at Arabella’s wide, horrified eyes, caught somewhere between wanting to laugh out loud and groaning in sheer frustration.Did she have any idea what she was doing to him? *Fuck.* How he wished he could just throw caution to the wind, pin her beneath him right there on the sofa, and take whatever his body was screaming for.Instead, he forced himself to swallow the sudden ache, taking a slow, controlled breath. He needed to handle this carefully so she didn't crawl out of her skin with embarrassment.Before he could even voice a reassuring word, Arabella snapped out of her paralyzed state. She violently jerked her hand back as if she had just touched a red-hot iron.The heat rushing to her cheeks put every shade of crimson to shame."I... I am so sorry," she stammered, her voice trembling with intense panic. "I didn't mean to do that! Did I hurt you?"Despite the uncomfortable tension coiling in his lower body, a genuine smile tugged at the corner of Da
ARABELLA'S POV I picked up my phone and tapped the screen to check the time. **11:30 PM**. It had been over an hour since I retreated to the suite, took a warm shower, and dragged myself back into bed.Yet, sleep felt like a distant, impossible dream.For a fleeting second, I contemplated calling Tessa. But I quickly dismissed the thought. Her phone wouldn't be with her, and even if it were, waking her up felt cruel.Thirty more minutes bled away in a relentless cycle of tossing and turning until I felt like I was at the absolute end of my rope. My thoughts wouldn't stop racing, and my skin felt too tight. No matter how many times I changed positions, sleep remained frustratingly out of reachI needed air.Maybe a quiet, aimless walk through the mansion would clear my head.Slipping out from under the covers, I picked up the silk robe Hannah had left out for me earlier and draped it loosely over my sleepwear.Hannah had delivered a striking two-piece nightwear, something I knew had
Arabella’s POV I don't know how long I stayed buried in Damian’s embrace.The only thing I knew was that he didn't complain. He just stood there quietly, holding me close and letting me fall apart in a way I never had before.I didn't want to admit it to myself, but I felt safe in his arms. Still, a quiet voice in the back of my mind whispered that I shouldn't keep taking advantage of his kindness. So, even though every fiber of my being screamed to stay nestled against him forever, I gently pulled myself away."I... I should go," I rasped, my throat tight."You don't have to leave, Arabella. Just spend the night here," he urged, his tone unusually gentle.I stared up at him, the mere thought of sleeping under the same roof with Damian sending a wild flurry of nervous imagination through my system. I was terrified of what my own vulnerable heart might do."My fever's broken," I argued weakly, as if that was the only reasonable defense."It's too late in the night, and the doctor ex







