LOGINELARAThat evening, as we're doing final preparations to leave for the safe house, my mother calls me.I almost don't answer. But something makes me pick up."Mom.""Elara, sweetheart, we need to talk." She sounds tired and defeated. "About Elena.""There's nothing to talk about...""She's in trouble. Real trouble. The police called us today. Said they're preparing to arrest her for fraud and conspiracy." My mom's voice breaks. "They said she could go to prison for decades.""She committed crimes, Mom . Serious crimes. She should go to prison.""But she's your sister. Our daughter. We can't just abandon her.""She abandoned herself when she chose to destroy people for sport." I'm so tired of this conversation. "Mom, she orchestrated a murder plot. She hacked into federal databases. She framed Damien for securities fraud. These aren't mistakes. This is who she is.""She's sick, Elara. She needs help, not prison.""Then she should have gotten help before she committed felonies." My voic
DAMIENMarcus Reid sits across from me in the empty building, looking like a man who's just been handed a life preserver."Elena's calling me." He holds up his phone, showing the three missed calls. "She never calls three times in a row. She's freaking out.""Because she knows you've been compromised." I lean back against a concrete pillar. "The question is, what are you going to tell her when you call back?""What do you want me to tell her?""The truth. That you're scared. That the SEC is closing in and that you want out." I meet his eyes. "But not that you've met with me or that you're cooperating. You play it straight, like a nervous partner who's getting cold feet.""She'll know something's wrong.""Let her. Paranoid Elena makes mistakes. Comfortable Elena is dangerous." I check my watch. "Call her back. Put it on speaker. Let's hear what she says."Marcus dials with shaking hands. Elena answers on the first ring."Where the fuck have you been?" She didn't bother with greeting. T
DAMIENBy next morning, I recieve Hayes texts at 6 AM.Hayes: Marcus Reid has been acquired. He's at the foundation site. Though he is confused but he is cooperative. How do you want to handle this?Me: Give me thirty minutes. I'll meet you there.I slip out of bed without waking Elara, dress up quickly, and leave a note on the pillow: Meeting with Marcus. Back soon. Stay inside. -DThe foundation building looks skeletal in the early morning light, bare concrete and steel beams, frozen mid-construction.Marcus Reid is sitting on a plastic crate in the center of the empty first floor, flanked by two of Hayes's security team, looking so terrified."Mr. Reid." I approach him slowly, in a non-threatening manner. "Thank you for agreeing to meet.""I didn't agree to anything. Your people grabbed me off the street...""My people offered you a ride to discuss a business opportunity. You accepted." I sit on a crate across from him. "But you're right. This isn't voluntary. So let's be honest wi
ELARAI kiss him then, pouring all my gratitude, fear and desperate hope into it.Damien meets me with the same raw intensity that II felt his mouth is slow and deliberate, like he’s memorizing the shape of my mouth all over again. There is no rush or frantic act of tearing at our clothes. Just this deep, searching kiss that tastes like relief and everything we’ve been too afraid to say out loud until now.His hands slide under my shirt, as he glides his warm palms up my ribs, his thumbs brushes the undersides of my breasts. He breaks the kiss only long enough to pull the fabric over my head, then returns immediately, his lips trail down my jaw, throat, and the sensitive spot just below my ear that makes my breath hitch. I tilt my head back, offering more skin to him.He lays me down gently onto the rumpled sheets that still smell faintly of last night’s sweat and sex and he settles above me, he braced his weight on his forearms so he doesn’t crush me. His eyes never leave mine.“I lov
DAMIENWe spend the next two days in the penthouse, finalizing our travels.Movers come and go, packing our belongings into storage and the penthouse slowly empties. By the second evening, the space looks sterile, unlived-in.Like we were never here.Elara stands at the window, looking out at the city skyline one last time. "It feels strange. Leaving like this.""It's temporary." I come up behind her, wrap my arms around her waist. "Three months maximum. Then we come back and reclaim everything.""If the plan works.""It will work. Elena thinks she's won and that makes her careless." I rest my chin on her shoulder. "And while she's celebrating, we will be building a case that destroys her."My second phone that I had encrypted buzzes with message from Hayes.Hayes: There's a development sir. Marcus Reed made contact with Elena two hours ago. We have the footage and audio. You need to see this.I show Elara the message."Already?" She turns in my arms. "We've barely been dark for forty
ELARAThe morning light filters through the half-drawn curtains, painting golden stripes across the tangled sheets and our bare skin. I wake first, to find myself sprawled on my stomach, with one leg hooked over Damien’s thigh, his arm is draped across my lower back like he’s still claiming me even in sleep. My body feels deliciously used: my thighs are sticky, my core is tender, and faint bruises bloom on my hips where his fingers dug in last night. Every small shift reminds me of him, how deep he went, and how many times he made me come until my voice cracked.I turn my head and he’s watching me already, his eyes are half-lidded, dark with that quiet hunger that never really leaves him.“Morning,” I murmur, my voice still rough from screaming his name.He doesn’t answer with words. Instead his hand slides down my spine, slowly and deliberately, until his palm cups one ass cheek and squeezes. The possessive grip sends a fresh pulse of heat between my legs.“You’re sore?” he ask, his
ELARAThe Tanaka estate is in the hills outside Tokyo, and, like everything I have noticed about the Tanakas, the sprawling compound structure is a blend of traditional Japanese architecture with modern luxury. The stone paths wind through meticulously maintained gardens, and the koi ponds reflect
ELARAThe boardroom on the 78th floor is quiet except for the low hum of voices and the occasional click of a pen. The boardroom is occupied by some of the executives needed for the Tanaka project. Mark from marketing, Priya from finance, two senior VPs, and the legal team lead. With the Tanaka mer
ELARAThree days after Damien returns from Singapore, we're having breakfast on the penthouse terrace when his phone rings.He glances at the screen and frowns. "It's Yuki."My stomach tightens, but I keep my voice level. "You should answer it. The merger still needs to happen."He hesitates, then
ELARAThe glass desk is still cool against my palms, my thighs still slick and trembling, with Damien’s release leaking slowly down my inner thighs in warm, dirty trails. My blouse hangs open, my bra is shoved down, and my breasts are flushed and marked from his mouth. The city keeps moving far bel







