LOGINCressida recovers first. “Careful,” she says, stepping forward just enough to make it clear she’s inserting herself into this now. “That sounded a lot like jealousy.” I glance at her, then back at Arabella. “If that’s what you heard,” I say. Arabella doesn’t react immediately. She’s still watchin
The bell gives a soft chime. “What’s going on here? Is someone who can’t afford anything in here causing trouble?” The voice is familiar. I turn before I can stop myself. Arabella walked in with a pretty and elegant woman a half step behind her. The shift in the room was immediate. The assistant
The first thing I notice when I walk into Maison Elara is how quickly I get assessed. It is the kind of place that didn’t need to announce its prices because if you had to ask, the answer was already no. The two assistants near the entrance looked up when I came in. It’s subtle, if you’re not us
Sebastian The lawyer was still talking. I knew this because his mouth was moving and sound was coming out of it and his assistant was taking notes in the corner. I heard approximately none of it. She signed them. That was the part I kept coming back to. Her lawyer had said it before Mace even
Morning came in whether I wanted it to or not. I woke up still in yesterday’s clothes. The papers were on the bed beside me, slightly crumpled from where I’d fallen asleep on top of them. My face felt swollen. I knew without looking. I did what needed doing in the mirror…cold water, concealer, en
“What is it?” “Nothing.” I folded the papers back in. “Just legal paperwork.” “Let me see—“ She reached for it but I moved it before she could touch it. Her brows pulled together. “Why are you being weird?” “I need to make a call.” I tucked the envelope under my arm and turned toward the gro
"Give her to me."His voice came down from somewhere above the scene, cold enough to lower the temperature of the alley.Kai looked up. Clocked who it was. His expression shifted immediately and he drew Dahlia a half-step back, putting himself between her and Sebastian. "What do you think you're doi
I looked at them for a long moment, this unapologetic pair who'd walked out of the gilded world and built something loud and messy and entirely their own. Three years ago I'd been on the inside of that world, polished to a shine, and I hadn't even noticed I was disappearing."River." His voice dippe
"Dahlia!" they announced in unison. "We are not worthy!""Dahlia," Silver Crop added, with great solemnity. "You are the coolest woman we have ever encountered in our lives."Silence.Then Sienna made a noise like a teakettle.Kai, who had just taken a sip of his drink, performed an impressive near-
Sebastian doesn’t release my wrist. His grip isn’t painful but it’s firm enough that I can feel each finger pressed into my skin. “This is between me and my wife.” “Ex-wife,” I correct him immediately and I’m surprised my voice comes out steady despite the wine making my head spin. I try to pull my







