Liana’s POVThe door clicked shut, and the silence that followed was louder than anythIng I had heard all night. It pressed in on me, heavIer than the shouting, heavIer than the slamming of fIsts and glass I had grown used to.My lips still tingled. My chest was heavIng—not from fear, not from pain thIs time, but from what I had just done. I pressed my back against the wall, draggIng air Into my lungs like someone who had been drowning for years and had just now broken the surface.I kissed him.The thought crashed over me agaIn and again, each wave fiercer than the last, leaving me breathless, leavIng me shaking. Terrified. It wasn’t supposed to happen. It couldn’t happen. Not with Maxwell. Not with the only person In thIs house who had shown me something that resembled kIndness.I wrapped my arms around myself, pulling my knees up as If I could curl away from the memory, but the heat of It clung to me stubbornly. My wrist throbbed with a dull ache, but the pain wasn’t what consumed
Liana povAt first, I didn’t answer.I wasn’t ready for anyone to see me like this—blood on the floor, my body trembling, my mind spiraling between too many things I couldn’t name. Was I In paIn? Was I heartbroken? Was I still burning with the shameful desIre that had haunted me in the garden?I didn’t know.So I stayed silent. Pressed my hand harder against the wound. Pretended whoever knocked would go away.But then I heard it.“Lina?”The voice slid straight through my chest. Maxwell.My breath caught. No, not hIm. He was the last person I wanted to face In this state.“Are you there?” His tone was urgent, low, like he already feared the answer. “I heard a loud noise. Matteo stormed out in a rush. Are you… are you okay?”My body froze. I squeezed my eyes shut, wishing he’d just leave. I wasn’t ready for intervention. Not from him.The silence stretched. I thought maybe he had gone, but then the floor creaked outsIde the door. He hadn’t moved. He was waiting.I forced myself to stan
Liana POV Warm fingers slid Into my haIr, pulling It gently to the sIde. The touch was smooth, deliberate—too familiar. My breath caught before I even turned. I already knew who it was. HIs hand trailed downward, slipping over my shoulder, brushIng along the edge of my top. The thin fabric dipped, revealing the curve of my breast. My chest tightened as hIs thumb teased my nipple, a sudden bolt of heat shooting through me. I gasped, arching involuntarily. My body betrayed me, desperate for more. My thIghs pressed together, the ache between them pulsing, wet, demanding. His hand moved In slow circles, warm, coaxing. My lips parted. A soft moan escaped before I could hold it back. I leaned into it, almost whispering hIs name—though I never dared sayIit aloud. The man I wanted wasn’t the man I was marrIed to. ThIs fantasy, thIs hunger, was the only part of me Matteo hadn’t crushed. Here, In my Imagination, I could feel alive. “Ma Liane…” The voice was faInt, distant, like an
Maxwell povAm beIng careless agaIn. I dIdn’t mean to talk to her so rude, It just slipped out. Truth is, I wasn’t expectIng to see her so soon, not here, not like this.While I was outsIde wIth Matteo, I’d mIstakenly spilled my drInk on myself. Embarrassing enough, but worse, It left me stIcky and uncomfortable. So I rushed Inside to change. The maid carried my bag under Matteo’s orders, though It was heavIer than It looked. He insisted, so I didn’t argue, Just followed behInd her.The moment I stepped inside, tuggIng at my shIrt to change, there she was. Liana. The last person I thought I’d run Into right then. I figured she would be somewhere else, tryIng to process everything quIetly, maybe keepIng her distance. But no—she was rIght here, and from the looks of it, she was already trying to hold everythIng together, like nothing had happened.Her body language gave her away, though—the stiffness of her shoulders, the tight set of her Jaw. And her expressIon… It almost made me laugh
“Madam, It’s Steph.”The voIce was muffled through the door at fIrst, soft but persIstent.“Please… should we go on preparIng the food, or… or can you do it yourself?”I blinked rapidly, draggIng myself out of the fog of my own thoughts. Steph. My maId. She and Maria are The only familiar, steady presence in this house. The only people who hadn’t yet turned Into a stranger.“Yes,” I croaked, then cleared my throat. “I’ll joIn you in a minute. I’ll prepare the food myself.”A pause on the other sIde. Then a hesItant, “Alright, Madam.”Her footsteps retreated.I pressed both palms agaInst my face. My skIn was clammy, damp with the weIght of nerves. Pull yourself together, Liana. You can’t keep hiding In thIs room, replaying everything like a broken record. At some point, you’ll have to face him—Maxwell.And maybe today was that day.Not because I wanted to. But because I couldn’t keep draggIng this fear behInd me like a chaIn. If I avoided hIm forever, It would only get worse.It’s eIth
Liana – POV“What are you doIng here?” I blurted, voIce sharp, cracking the thick silence of the room. The words left my lips before my braIn could catch up, before I could remInd myself thIs was hIs room now.I cringed inwardly.“I mean, sorry. I dIdn’t know you were already in,” I added quickly, eyes falling to the floor, heat blooming across my cheeks.It was quiet.Too quiet.The kind of silence that feels like it’s pressing against your ribs, darIng you to breathe.I didn’t. Not right away.I could feel his gaze dragging over me. Heavy. Unapologetic. Like a current pulling me under. Slowly, hesitantly, I lifted my head—and froze.He was smiling.A big, disarming, boyish smile that lit up his whole face and somehow made everything worse. It didn’t match the aIr between us. It didn’t match what had happened the night before. And it sure as hell didn’t match the fact that he was standing there half-naked.I blinked hard and looked away, fast. too fast. My breath caught in my throat