Chapter 1

The Blackwood estate perched on the cliffs like a sleeping dragon, its stone walls soaked in the perpetual gray mist rolling off Puget Sound. Rain drummed against the tall windows in a relentless rhythm, turning the world outside into a watercolor blur of steel-blue water and distant city lights that flickered like trapped stars. Inside, the air carried the deep, masculine scent of aged leather, polished oak, and the faint bite of expensive scotch that lingered in every corner of Damien Blackwood’s private study.

I shouldn’t have been there.

Sophia’s laughter still echoed faintly from downstairs where she was finishing her packing for London, her voice light and carefree—the same voice that had called me “sister” since we were eight years old. But my bare feet had carried me up the sweeping marble staircase on their own, silk sleep shorts whispering against my thighs, thin tank top doing nothing to hide the way my nipples had tightened from the cool draft… or from the knowledge that the light in the study was still on at 1:17 a.m.

The heavy oak door clicked shut behind me with a soft finality that made my pulse spike.

Damien sat behind his massive desk like a king on his throne. Forty-five years old, but his body looked carved from discipline and power—broad shoulders straining the rolled-up sleeves of his white dress shirt, the fabric slightly damp from the humidity, clinging to the hard planes of his chest. Silver threaded through his thick black hair at the temples, catching the low glow of the desk lamp. His jaw was sharp enough to cut glass, shadowed with late-night stubble that I suddenly, desperately wanted to feel scraping against my inner thighs.

He didn’t look up at first. His fountain pen scratched across thick cream paper, the sound intimate in the quiet room. The scent of ink mixed with his cologne—sandalwood, smoked vanilla, and something darker, like the edge of a storm about to break.

I stood there, heart hammering so loudly I was sure he could hear it over the rain. Five years of stolen glances, of his thumb brushing my lip in a memory that haunted every shower, every sleepless night. Five years of telling myself I was just Sophia’s best friend. Just the girl he used to ruffle the hair of like a kid.

But I wasn’t a kid anymore. And the way his dark bourbon eyes finally lifted and locked onto mine proved he knew it.

“Ava.” His voice was low, rough velvet that dragged over my skin like a physical touch. “You should be in bed.”

The command in it sent heat pooling low in my belly. I swallowed, stepping closer despite every warning screaming in my head. The Persian rug under my feet felt plush and warm, a stark contrast to the cool marble hallway outside. “I couldn’t sleep. The storm…”

He set the pen down with deliberate slowness. Leaned back in his leather chair, the material creaking under his weight. His gaze raked over me—slow, unapologetic—tracing the curve of my breasts beneath the thin fabric, the bare expanse of my legs, the way my sleep shorts rode high on my hips. I felt stripped bare without him laying a single finger on me.

“Bullshit,” he said quietly. “You’ve never been a good liar. Not with me.”

The air thickened. Rain lashed harder against the glass, thunder rumbling in the distance like the growl building in his chest. I could smell the faint trace of his scotch on the air, imagined tasting it on his tongue.

He stood. God, he was tall—six-four of pure, controlled dominance that made the massive room feel suddenly too small. He circled the desk like a predator, each step measured, the faint creak of his dress shoes on the hardwood sending shivers up my spine. When he stopped in front of me, the heat radiating from his body wrapped around me like a cloak. Close enough that if I leaned forward even an inch, my breasts would brush his chest.

“You’ve been avoiding being alone with me for months,” he murmured. His hand lifted, not quite touching my face, hovering so near I could feel the warmth. “Why come now, little girl? When my daughter is right downstairs?”

The old nickname should have infuriated me. Instead it melted something deep inside. I tilted my head up, meeting those midnight eyes. “Because tomorrow she leaves. And I… I can’t keep pretending.”

His thumb finally made contact—rough, calloused from years of gripping steering wheels of fast cars and shaking hands that closed billion-dollar deals. It traced my lower lip exactly like it had that night on the balcony five years ago. Slow. Possessive. A claim.

My lips parted on a shaky breath. The taste of anticipation coated my tongue.

“You have no idea what you’re asking for, Ava,” he said, voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. His free hand settled on my hip, fingers digging in just enough to anchor me in place. The silk of my shorts felt too thin under his palm. “I’m not the man who gives gentle. I ruin things. I take what I want until there’s nothing left.”

Thunder cracked overhead, lighting flashing across his face and illuminating the raw hunger in his eyes. My core clenched at the promise in those words. I was terrified—bone-deep, soul-shaking terror—but the ache between my legs was stronger.

“I know,” I whispered against his thumb. “And I still want you to ruin me.”

His grip tightened. For one electric second, I thought he’d shove me onto the desk, tear the clothes from my body, and finally give us both what we’d been starving for.

Instead, the study door handle rattled.

Sophia’s sleepy, muffled voice cut through the rain: “Dad? Ava? I thought I heard voices… Everything okay in there?”

Damien froze, his thumb still pressing my lip, his body a wall of heat and restrained power against mine. His eyes bored into me—dark, feral, full of filthy promise.

He leaned in, lips brushing the shell of my ear, breath hot. “Answer her, sweetheart. Tell her you’re fine… or I’ll spread you open right here on my desk and make you scream so loud she’ll finally understand exactly what her daddy’s been dying to do to her best friend.”

My breath hitched. His fingers flexed on my hip, inching lower, teasing the edge of my shorts. The storm raged outside, but the real tempest was right here—trapped between his body and the door, seconds from shattering everything.

And I had no idea if I was brave enough… or desperate enough… to push us both over the edge.