Losing Control

Chapter Six: Losing Control

SERA’S POV

I shouldn’t be here.

Every step I take inside the dimly lit lounge feels like a mistake.

Yet, I came anyway.

Raven’s text had been circling in my mind all day, sinking into my skin like an unshakable whisper. You can pretend all you want, but your body doesn’t lie.

I told myself I wasn’t coming. I told myself last night was a lapse in judgment, a moment of weakness, a mistake. But the moment I received that message, something inside me caved. Now, here I am, standing in the middle of a luxurious, low-lit lounge, searching the crowd for the one person I should be running from.

And then, I see her.

Raven.

She sits at the bar, legs crossed, one arm draped casually over the back of the chair, as if she owns the entire room. A dark drink swirls in her hand, and when our eyes lock, a knowing smirk curves her lips.

My heart slams against my ribs.

She doesn’t wave me over. She doesn’t have to. Her eyes are a silent invitation, a challenge.

I force myself to walk, heels clicking against the marble floor. Each step feels heavier than the last, but I push forward, seating myself beside her, gripping my purse in my lap.

She doesn’t speak at first. She only watches me, her smirk deepening, as if she’s already won some unspoken battle.

I break the silence first. “We need to talk.”

She raises an eyebrow, amused. “Do we?”

“Last night—” I exhale sharply. “It shouldn’t have happened.”

She tilts her glass toward me, swirling the liquid inside. “And yet, it did.”

I clench my jaw. “It won’t happen again.”

She hums thoughtfully, setting her drink down before turning toward me fully. “Is that so?”

I steel myself, refusing to let my body betray me this time. “I’m not into women.”

The words leave my mouth, stiff and unnatural.

Raven leans in slightly, voice dropping into a low, teasing murmur. “Then why are you here?”

I open my mouth to argue, but she moves too fast.

Before I can react, she’s up, grasping my wrist, tugging me toward a darkened hallway near the back of the lounge. My breath hitches, but I don’t stop her. My body betrays me, just like she said it would.

Suddenly, my back hits the cool brick wall.

Raven presses into me, caging me between her body and the rough surface. My pulse skyrockets. I should push her away, but her scent—clean, musky, intoxicating—floods my senses.

She raises a hand, fingers tracing the curve of my jaw before sliding down to my throat.

“Tell me to stop.”

It’s a challenge. A dare.

I should. I should shove her away, storm out, pretend none of this ever happened.

But I don’t.

Because I can’t.

Her lips ghost over mine, teasing, waiting.

Then I break.

I crash into her, kissing her with a desperation I don’t understand. She meets me with equal hunger, her hands sliding down my waist, gripping my hips. A low, pleased hum vibrates from her chest as she presses her thigh between mine, sending a sharp, unbearable need rushing through me.

I grip her shoulders, anchoring myself as she devours me—hot, rough, unrelenting.

Her fingers skim beneath my dress, gripping my thigh, dragging me closer until there’s no space left between us. I gasp against her mouth, a sound that only encourages her further.

I don’t know who I am in this moment, but I don’t care.

For the first time in years, I feel alive.

---

ETHAN’S POV

The whiskey burns on the way down, but it’s not enough.

Nothing ever is.

Celeste stormed out earlier, screaming at me. I barely remember what set her off—something about me being distracted, about how I’ll never love her, about how I only keep her around to feed my ego.

She’s not wrong.

But that doesn’t mean she gets to walk away from me.

I stumble through the front door of my house, my vision hazy but sharp enough to notice the one thing that pisses me off the most—silence.

Where the fuck is my wife?

I blink, swaying slightly before making my way upstairs. My head is a mess, a tangled knot of irritation and liquor. By the time I push open the bedroom door, Sera is already inside, back turned as she slips out of her dress.

The sight of her bare skin stirs something dark and possessive in me.

Mine.

She’s always been mine.

She doesn’t even flinch when I step closer.

“Where were you?” My voice slurs slightly, but I don’t care.

She hesitates, just barely. “Out.”

“Out where?”

Silence.

My irritation grows, coiling tightly in my chest.

I take another step forward, reaching for her wrist. “Answer me.”

She stiffens under my touch. “Let go, Ethan.”

There’s something in her voice I don’t like. A steeliness. A defiance.

I don’t let go.

Instead, I spin her to face me. She refuses to meet my eyes, and it pisses me off more than anything.

“You think you can just do whatever you want?” My grip tightens slightly. “You’re my wife.”

Still, she won’t look at me.

That’s when I smell it.

Something faint, lingering on her skin. Not perfume—something else. Something unfamiliar.

Someone else.

A fresh wave of anger surges through me. I yank her closer, crashing my mouth against hers. She resists, her hands pushing at my chest, but I don’t care.

She’s mine.

She’s always been mine.

I force her onto the bed, pinning her beneath me. My mind is clouded with rage, with jealousy, with need. My hands are rough as they drag over her body, staking my claim.

I don’t notice when the name slips from my lips.

“Celeste…”

The moment I say it, she goes completely still.

A cold realization cuts through the drunken haze.

Sera doesn’t fight me anymore.

She doesn’t move at all.

And for the first time, a sickening dread settles deep in my chest.

I might have just lost her for good.