Chapter 2

The Morning After

Alexandra Wolfe had built an empire out of discipline, logic, and control.

None of those things could explain why she woke up tasting Dominic Moretti on her lips.

She jerked upright in bed, breath sharp, heart racing — and then memory crashed down all at once.

The elevator.

 The kiss.

 His penthouse.

 Her surrender.

“No,” she whispered into the empty room.

But she was already home. Back in her Tribeca condo. Safe. Alone. Exactly where she had wanted to be three years ago when she signed the divorce papers.

So why did it feel like she’d lost something instead of escaping it?

Last night's gown clung to her skin. One strap hung loose, mascara smudged under her eyes. She looked like someone who had broken her own rules and couldn’t stand the evidence.

Alex slid out of bed and stripped the dress off her body. She didn’t fold it. Didn’t hang it. She shoved it deep into the back of her closet like it was dangerous.

Like it might drag her back.

She went straight to the shower and turned the water as hot as it would go.

Steam filled the glass stall. The heat stung her skin, but she stayed under it, arms wrapped around herself, eyes shut.

One night.

 It meant nothing.

 It changes nothing.

Her hands were shaking.

She braced them against the tile wall until the tremor eased. When she finally forced herself to look down, faint marks bloomed along her shoulder — proof she had not imagined how desperately she’d clung to him.

Her throat tightened.

For a second, memory betrayed her.

Dominic bringing her coffee every morning without fail. Dominic tucking a blanket around her when she fell asleep on the couch. Dominic pressing a kiss to her forehead before every meeting like she was fragile glass.

Devotion.

Protection.

Love that slowly turned into walls closing in.

She scrubbed harder, like she could erase both versions of him at once.

When she stepped out, the condo felt too quiet.

Her work phone lit up with a message from Maya.

Did you make it home safe? Whole city’s talking about the blackout.

Alex typed back immediately.

Home. Fine. See you Monday.

Another message waited beneath it. Unknown number.

You left your earring. I’ll have it returned.

Her breath caught.

She had deleted his contact years ago.

Her body still knew the number by heart.

"She locked the screen without replying. Silence was safer. Work was safer. 

By nine a.m., she was inside WolfeTech headquarters—the only place where problems had answers instead of consequences.”

Glass walls. Clean lines. Controlled climate. A world where problems had data and solutions.

She dropped her bag on her desk and pulled up the cardiac detection algorithm. Heart rhythm prediction curves filled the monitor. Patterns she understood. Variables she could control.

Her office phone rang.

The caller ID made her spine go rigid.

Eleanor Moretti.

Alex let it ring twice, then answered. “Mrs. Moretti.”

“Alexandra, darling. I heard you left the gala early. I hope you’re feeling well?”

Every word is polite. Every word is a blade.

“I’m fine, thank you.”

“I was worried when I saw you and Dominic leave together.”

Alex’s fingers tightened around the receiver. “We didn’t leave together.”

A soft laugh. “Oh? Perhaps I was mistaken. Security cameras can be unreliable.”

A warning wrapped in politeness.

“Was there something you needed?” Alex asked.

“Only to remind you that my son has been through enough heartbreak. I would hate to see him hurt again.”

Heat flared in Alex’s chest. “Last night was a mistake that won’t be repeated.”

“Be careful with mistakes,” Eleanor said gently. “They have a habit of becoming permanent.”

The line went dead.

Alex stared at her reflection in the dark computer screen.

That blackout hadn’t been random.

Someone had wanted them trapped.

But why?

Across the city, Dominic hadn’t slept.

He stood in his office overlooking Central Park, jacket discarded, tie loose.

"Marcus leaned in the doorway, coffee in hand. 'You look like hell.'”

“Good morning to you too.”

“She left, didn’t she?”

“Yes.”

“Smart woman.”

Dominic shot him a look sharp enough to cut glass.

Marcus raised his hands. “What’s the plan?”

“There isn’t one.”

“Liar.”

Dominic hesitated. “Find out who handled electrical maintenance at the Metropolitan Club last night.”

Marcus went still. “You think the blackout was arranged?”

“My mother knew I was with Alexandra. She shouldn’t have.”

Marcus nodded slowly. “I’ll dig.”

After he left, Dominic opened a secured report on his desk.

Phase Three cardiac trials: mortality risk remains high.

He closed his eyes.

They were running out of time.

Back at WolfeTech, Alex stood from her desk and the room tilted.

She grabbed the edge of the table until the dizziness passed.

“Low blood sugar,” she muttered.

Maya appeared in the doorway. “You’re still here? It’s Saturday.”

“I’m fine.”

“You look pale. When did you last eat?”

Alex couldn’t remember.

Maya ordered food and made her sit. Halfway through, nausea hit hard and sudden. Alex rushed to the bathroom, gripping the sink as dry heaves wracked her body.

“Stress,” she told her reflection. “Just stress.”

But a small voice whispered something else.

She pushed it away.

By evening, exhaustion dragged at her bones as she reached her apartment.

A small package waited by her door.

Inside lay her missing diamond earring.

And a note.

You forgot this. Among other things. – D

Her fingers trembled.

Before she could think, her phone rang. Unknown number.

“Hello?”

A man’s voice, distorted. “Alexandra Wolfe?”

“Yes.”

“You have enemies bigger than you realize. Watch your company.”

The call ended.

Her pulse pounded.

Without thinking, she dialed Dominic.

He answered immediately. “Alexandra.”

“Someone just threatened me.”

Thirty minutes later, Dominic stood in her living room with Marcus and a security consultant.

Alex repeated the call word for word.

“Any business conflicts?” Marcus asked.

“Julian Thorne tried to buy WolfeTech last month,” she said. “I refused.”

Dominic and Marcus exchanged a look.

Security recommendations followed. Alarms. Guards.

“I’m not living in fear,” Alex said.

“Then live in caution,” Dominic snapped. “Let someone help you for once.”

“Like you helped me by controlling my entire life?”

Silence.

Marcus cleared his throat and left with the consultant.

“I was trying to protect you,” Dominic said quietly.

“By suffocating me.”

“By keeping you alive!” His voice broke. “Do you know what it’s like loving someone who might just… stop breathing one day?”

She froze.

“The genetic heart condition,” he said. “The one our mothers died from. The one you refuse to get tested for.”

“That’s fear,” she whispered.

“It’s love too,” he said hoarsely. “And I never learned how to separate them.”

Her chest ached.

“You should go,” she said.

He nodded, moving to the door. “If you need me… call.”

“Dominic.”

He looked back.

“Thank you. For coming.”

Something flickered in his eyes.

Hope.

Or heartbreak.

When the door shut, Alex sl

id down against it, shaking.

Her hand drifted to her abdomen without her realizing.

And for the first time, fear wasn’t just about her.