Daniel POVThe night felt heavier than usual.I stood in front of the mirror, straightening the cuffs of my jacket, hating every second of this.Fake smiles.Fake stories.Fake love.The thoughts lingered deeply in my head.And the worst part?I was volunteering for it.For her.For Vanessa.I gritted my teeth and ran a hand through my hair. The dark navy suit clung too tightly to my frame, like it knew this whole thing was a goddamn lie.The media crew was already on stage in the studio, setting up lights, microphones, banners with the movie’s logo plastered across them.I glanced at my watch.Any minute now.Wendy had insisted on doing the interview in their studio, all glamorous and public.Because God forbid she missed an opportunity to flaunt her “perfect life” to the world.I heard her heels clicking down the hall backstage before I saw her.Wendy swept into the room, a vision of strategic perfection—silver gown clinging to her like a second skin, lips painted a bold red, her b
Daniel POVThe door slammed behind me, rattling in its frame. Silence swallowed the penthouse, the only sound my heavy breathing, still ragged from the argument. I dropped Wendy off at her apartment, I couldn’t stand her presence anywhere near me.I tore off the tailored jacket, flinging it across the back of the nearest chair. It slid off and hit the floor, but I didn’t care. I ripped at the buttons of my shirt next, needing to get free of the fabric, of the night, of everything Wendy Hawthorne had just dragged me into.I stalked across the room, ignoring the glittering skyline outside the windows. New York pulsed beyond the glass like a living thing, but I was numb to it. Numb and raw and furious.How the hell had it come to this?A fake engagement. A fake wedding date. August 10th, she had said. She’d even smiled, that sickly sweet, picture-perfect smile for the cameras, clinging to me like a trophy she didn’t deserve.The taste of the lie still burned in my mouth.I collapsed onto
Vanessa’s POVMay 1stA new month. Four more months to go before my fate with Edward would be decided.Four more months before the contract that bound us together — and quietly unraveled everything inside me — would end.Nine more days before Liam’s birthday.I sat on the edge of my bed, staring blankly at my phone. The soft morning light filtered through the large windows of the mansion, painting everything in pale gold. Spring was in full bloom outside, but inside me, a quiet storm raged.I was supposed to be excited. Planning a birthday party for my son should’ve filled me with happiness and energy. It was his first real celebration since we moved here, and for the first time, I had the chance to give him something magical.But the question gnawed at me: Should it be big, or intimate and simple?Did Liam need balloons, crowds, clowns, and photographers? Or did he just need a backyard, a cake, and the people who loved him?I pulled my knees up to my chest, thinking about it.An ima
Edward POVI hadn’t left the penthouse in days.The world outside kept spinning. Meetings, board calls, messages piling up — but I was stuck. Drowning.The theft at the company had gutted a chunk of our reserve accounts. Tens of millions wired out before anyone noticed. No trace of the thief yet. Kaz was still out there, lurking like a phantom in the dark.And then… the attack at Liam’s school.Still a goddamn blur.The footage was too grainy, too fast. No clear shot of who orchestrated it, but I knew, deep down, Kaz’s stink was all over it.I ran a hand through my hair and stared at the pile of contracts and financial reports scattered across my desk. My tie was loose around my neck, sleeves rolled up, head pounding.I didn’t go back to the mansion. I couldn’t face Vanessa. Couldn’t face Mandi, Liam… the life I promised to protect but was failing miserably to.And her.Vanessa.God, her name haunted every breath I took.I missed her. I missed her laugh, the way she looked at me when
Vanessa POVThe city lights moved past me like a blur through the tinted windows of my car, but my mind was stuck. Somewhere between Edward’s mouth on mine and the rough whisper of his voice still echoing in my ear.“You’re my peace."I hadn’t said anything back. I Couldn’t.Not because I didn’t feel something. I did. God, I did.But because when a man like Edward says something like that, it demands more than a casual response. It demanded the kind of answer that changed everything.I pressed my fingers to my lips, still swollen from his kiss, as the car eased past the bridge. Donovan drove with soft r&b music filling the environment, giving me space, as always. I was grateful for it. My body guard Harris, sat beside him to accompany me too.Because right now, I was shaking inside.The feel of Edward’s hot body on mine… the way his fingers moved with both hunger and reverence… how his lips had claimed my skin like he was afraid I’d vanish if he didn’t taste me deep enough.It hadn’t
Edward POVI watched the city lights blur past me, sights of light and shadow mixed together as the car sped through Manhattan. Every time I blinked, I saw Vanessa, pressed against my desk, flushed and breathless, the taste of her still on my lips. The ache she left behind hadn’t dulled. But I’d buried it beneath a harder truth:Someone had stolen from me.Not just from my company—but from the people I trusted, the people I protected. And now Jonathan said they had the bastard.The blacked-out SUV pulled up outside an old shipping warehouse by the Hudson. Abandoned on paper—but the NYPD and Jonathan had taken it over tonight like it was a war front.A uniformed officer met me at the door and nodded, radio clipped to his shoulder. “Mr. Silver, right this way.”I followed him down a narrow hallway that reeked of mildew and metal. Every footstep echoed, hollow and sharp. At the end, two detectives flanked Jonathan, who stood outside a room with one-way glass. His usual calm demeanor was
Vanessa POVIt was 4:03 a.m. when I heard the front door open.I hadn’t slept.Not after that text. Not after the way my body still burned from Edward’s touch in his office, the way he whispered filth and reverence in the same breath. My mind kept replaying every second of it, his fingers inside me, his mouth against my skin, the ache he left behind when he walked away.Now he was here.I heard the muffled voices. Donovan checking in, Edward’s low reply, and then the soft thud of his shoes moving through the house like he belonged to it.To me.I sat up in bed, my heartbeat thudding in my chest, every nerve on edge. The short silk night dress I wore clung to my skin, too thin, too teasing. My thighs pressed together instinctively, still sensitive, still wanting.The bedroom door creaked open.And there he was.Edward stepped into the moonlit room like something out of a fever dream, his shirt rumpled, his sleeves rolled to the elbows, his hair tousled like he’d run his hands through i
Edward POV Vanessa lay beside me, her breath still warm against my chest, her thigh draped possessively over mine. Her skin glowed in the faint light spilling through the sheer curtains, and my fingers moved slowly along the curve of her spine like I was drawing a memory I didn’t want to fade.I couldn’t stop looking at her.Every little rise and fall of her chest, every blink of those sleepy eyes as they tried to stay open, it was all undoing me. She looked like she belonged here, tangled in my sheets, flushed from our night, marked by my mouth and my hands. And for the first time in what felt like years, something inside me had gone quiet.That noise, that ache I carried around from the pressure, the secrets, the war zone my life had become, it was gone.All because of her.She stretched slightly, a lazy, sensual arch of her back that brought her even closer to me. Her fingers traced circles on my abs, and then she looked up at me with a crooked smile. “You’re staring.”“Can you b
Edward POV Vanessa lay beside me, her breath still warm against my chest, her thigh draped possessively over mine. Her skin glowed in the faint light spilling through the sheer curtains, and my fingers moved slowly along the curve of her spine like I was drawing a memory I didn’t want to fade.I couldn’t stop looking at her.Every little rise and fall of her chest, every blink of those sleepy eyes as they tried to stay open, it was all undoing me. She looked like she belonged here, tangled in my sheets, flushed from our night, marked by my mouth and my hands. And for the first time in what felt like years, something inside me had gone quiet.That noise, that ache I carried around from the pressure, the secrets, the war zone my life had become, it was gone.All because of her.She stretched slightly, a lazy, sensual arch of her back that brought her even closer to me. Her fingers traced circles on my abs, and then she looked up at me with a crooked smile. “You’re staring.”“Can you b
Vanessa POVIt was 4:03 a.m. when I heard the front door open.I hadn’t slept.Not after that text. Not after the way my body still burned from Edward’s touch in his office, the way he whispered filth and reverence in the same breath. My mind kept replaying every second of it, his fingers inside me, his mouth against my skin, the ache he left behind when he walked away.Now he was here.I heard the muffled voices. Donovan checking in, Edward’s low reply, and then the soft thud of his shoes moving through the house like he belonged to it.To me.I sat up in bed, my heartbeat thudding in my chest, every nerve on edge. The short silk night dress I wore clung to my skin, too thin, too teasing. My thighs pressed together instinctively, still sensitive, still wanting.The bedroom door creaked open.And there he was.Edward stepped into the moonlit room like something out of a fever dream, his shirt rumpled, his sleeves rolled to the elbows, his hair tousled like he’d run his hands through i
Edward POVI watched the city lights blur past me, sights of light and shadow mixed together as the car sped through Manhattan. Every time I blinked, I saw Vanessa, pressed against my desk, flushed and breathless, the taste of her still on my lips. The ache she left behind hadn’t dulled. But I’d buried it beneath a harder truth:Someone had stolen from me.Not just from my company—but from the people I trusted, the people I protected. And now Jonathan said they had the bastard.The blacked-out SUV pulled up outside an old shipping warehouse by the Hudson. Abandoned on paper—but the NYPD and Jonathan had taken it over tonight like it was a war front.A uniformed officer met me at the door and nodded, radio clipped to his shoulder. “Mr. Silver, right this way.”I followed him down a narrow hallway that reeked of mildew and metal. Every footstep echoed, hollow and sharp. At the end, two detectives flanked Jonathan, who stood outside a room with one-way glass. His usual calm demeanor was
Vanessa POVThe city lights moved past me like a blur through the tinted windows of my car, but my mind was stuck. Somewhere between Edward’s mouth on mine and the rough whisper of his voice still echoing in my ear.“You’re my peace."I hadn’t said anything back. I Couldn’t.Not because I didn’t feel something. I did. God, I did.But because when a man like Edward says something like that, it demands more than a casual response. It demanded the kind of answer that changed everything.I pressed my fingers to my lips, still swollen from his kiss, as the car eased past the bridge. Donovan drove with soft r&b music filling the environment, giving me space, as always. I was grateful for it. My body guard Harris, sat beside him to accompany me too.Because right now, I was shaking inside.The feel of Edward’s hot body on mine… the way his fingers moved with both hunger and reverence… how his lips had claimed my skin like he was afraid I’d vanish if he didn’t taste me deep enough.It hadn’t
Edward POVI hadn’t left the penthouse in days.The world outside kept spinning. Meetings, board calls, messages piling up — but I was stuck. Drowning.The theft at the company had gutted a chunk of our reserve accounts. Tens of millions wired out before anyone noticed. No trace of the thief yet. Kaz was still out there, lurking like a phantom in the dark.And then… the attack at Liam’s school.Still a goddamn blur.The footage was too grainy, too fast. No clear shot of who orchestrated it, but I knew, deep down, Kaz’s stink was all over it.I ran a hand through my hair and stared at the pile of contracts and financial reports scattered across my desk. My tie was loose around my neck, sleeves rolled up, head pounding.I didn’t go back to the mansion. I couldn’t face Vanessa. Couldn’t face Mandi, Liam… the life I promised to protect but was failing miserably to.And her.Vanessa.God, her name haunted every breath I took.I missed her. I missed her laugh, the way she looked at me when
Vanessa’s POVMay 1stA new month. Four more months to go before my fate with Edward would be decided.Four more months before the contract that bound us together — and quietly unraveled everything inside me — would end.Nine more days before Liam’s birthday.I sat on the edge of my bed, staring blankly at my phone. The soft morning light filtered through the large windows of the mansion, painting everything in pale gold. Spring was in full bloom outside, but inside me, a quiet storm raged.I was supposed to be excited. Planning a birthday party for my son should’ve filled me with happiness and energy. It was his first real celebration since we moved here, and for the first time, I had the chance to give him something magical.But the question gnawed at me: Should it be big, or intimate and simple?Did Liam need balloons, crowds, clowns, and photographers? Or did he just need a backyard, a cake, and the people who loved him?I pulled my knees up to my chest, thinking about it.An ima
Daniel POVThe door slammed behind me, rattling in its frame. Silence swallowed the penthouse, the only sound my heavy breathing, still ragged from the argument. I dropped Wendy off at her apartment, I couldn’t stand her presence anywhere near me.I tore off the tailored jacket, flinging it across the back of the nearest chair. It slid off and hit the floor, but I didn’t care. I ripped at the buttons of my shirt next, needing to get free of the fabric, of the night, of everything Wendy Hawthorne had just dragged me into.I stalked across the room, ignoring the glittering skyline outside the windows. New York pulsed beyond the glass like a living thing, but I was numb to it. Numb and raw and furious.How the hell had it come to this?A fake engagement. A fake wedding date. August 10th, she had said. She’d even smiled, that sickly sweet, picture-perfect smile for the cameras, clinging to me like a trophy she didn’t deserve.The taste of the lie still burned in my mouth.I collapsed onto
Daniel POVThe night felt heavier than usual.I stood in front of the mirror, straightening the cuffs of my jacket, hating every second of this.Fake smiles.Fake stories.Fake love.The thoughts lingered deeply in my head.And the worst part?I was volunteering for it.For her.For Vanessa.I gritted my teeth and ran a hand through my hair. The dark navy suit clung too tightly to my frame, like it knew this whole thing was a goddamn lie.The media crew was already on stage in the studio, setting up lights, microphones, banners with the movie’s logo plastered across them.I glanced at my watch.Any minute now.Wendy had insisted on doing the interview in their studio, all glamorous and public.Because God forbid she missed an opportunity to flaunt her “perfect life” to the world.I heard her heels clicking down the hall backstage before I saw her.Wendy swept into the room, a vision of strategic perfection—silver gown clinging to her like a second skin, lips painted a bold red, her b
Vanessa POVEven at night time, I couldn’t sleep. My eyes remained wide open.With the distant hum of the lively New York city and the occasional thuds from running up through staircases, it felt like the walls themselves were holding their breath. I lay in my king-sized bed, staring at the ceiling, the silk sheets tangled around my legs.Sleep wouldn’t come. It had been this way for days.I turned over and reached for my phone on the nightstand, half-hoping to find a message from Edward. Anything. Even a simple “Are you okay?” would have been enough.But my screen was empty.Nothing.Biting my lip, I opened my messages anyway and typed:You up?I hovered my thumb over the send button. Then, at the last second, I deleted the text.No.I wasn’t going to chase him.Not tonight. He was under pressure, a theft in his company, the weight of protecting Liam and I. It was a lot to handle.I could easily go to his room to check if he’s there but that could escalate things. But No.I rolled on