MasukArielle “What are you doing here?” He asked. I ignored him. What was he doing in the bags section? Did he come with Amber? Oh God. This was bad. I turned quickly, walking away like I hadn’t heard him. But the footsteps behind me followed, steady, and persistent. My mind refused to admit the truth. Emris was following me. Before I could get back to Darius, a hand grabbed mine and yanked me into a corner. My breath caught. His palm covered my mouth instantly. “Shh.”My heart slammed against my chest. My thoughts scattered in every direction. Why was I even here? Why was he here? And why was Amber here, too? I didn’t like the combo. Slowly, he removed his hand. I tried to step away immediately, but he caught my wrist again. “Would you relax?” He muttered. “Let go of me.” His eyes shifted past me, toward where I’d been heading. Darius. “I’m letting go,” he said quietly. “You don’t need to run. I just want to talk.”I stayed still, breathing unevenly. “What are you doing
Arielle I’d barely spent a week in his house. And yet, everything already felt too deep. Too planned. What could this possibly be about? What had my mother done this time? My chest tightened as I leaned closer to the door, trying to catch every word. “Your father buried this years ago,” Lisa said. “Why bring it up now?” “Mother,” Darius replied, controlled. “I have work to do–“ I didn’t hear the rest. I tiptoed downstairs quickly, forcing my face into something normal. By the time I reached the living room, I was already seated. Legs crossed, posture straight, like I had been there all along. When Lisa appeared, I stood immediately, smiling. “Oh…you’re leaving already?” “Yes, my darling,” she said warmly. “I’m sorry, we’ll talk another time.” “Aww,” I said, feigning disappointment. “I just told Ryan to prepare something for you before you leave.” The lie slipped out easily. She touched my shoulder gently. “Next time.” I held the smile until she walked o
Arielle Could this be it? Could this be the only way to beat Darius? Through his mother. The last time at the office, he had tried to avoid her. I thought it meant fear. Weakness. Something I could use. Now…I wasn’t so sure. “There’s my son,” her voice rang through the house as she walked in like she owned every inch of it. Darius’s hand slipped away from mine instantly as if I’d burned him. I froze. She rushed forward and pulled him into a hug. I waited for tension or resistance. I waited for something. Turns out he was a mama’s boy. “Hey, mother,” he said calmly. Calmly. I stood by the stairs, watching. The staff had gone still again, like statues trained not to react. “Joel stopped me at the door,” she said, laughing lightly. “Imagine that. He wouldn’t let me in.”Darius chuckled along as he glanced at Joel behind her. Somehow, Joel understood him and walked outside. “How are you?” Darius asked. “I’m fine. And you?”“I’m living.”Darius chuckled again. Her eyes drif
Arielle “You belong to me,” he said coldly. His words hit harder than they should’ve. My mind spiraled. I shut my eyes, trying to block out the coldness, the heat of his breath–Then suddenly, he stepped back. I blinked. Darius dropped to one knee and reached for my leg. Without a word, he slipped off my heels. My breath caught…Okay. I wiped my tears quickly, watching him. He looked up at me for a few seconds. I held his gaze, blank, unsure what this version of him meant. “You don’t have to pretend you care,” I said quietly. “It’s just the two of us.”No response. He simply took my ankle again and began to massage it. I winced. Then the pressure increased. Pain shot up my leg. What was he even doing?“Okay. That’s enough,” I pulled my leg away sharply. He looked at me strangely, then he smiled. My brows furrowed. “What are you smiling for?”“Nothing.”And just like that, he stood and walked out. I stared after him. That smile…wasn’t normal. I reached for my phone. Almost
Arielle Oh fuck. Shit. Damn. I blinked at the screen, disappointment sinking through me like cold water. “What home is he talking about?” Emris asked. I couldn’t answer. My mind was still trying to process the worst possible text arriving at the worst possible moment. “Darius,” he said again, slower this time. “As in Rothwell Darius?” My throat tightened. I should’ve taken my phone with me to the restroom. “The same guy, powerful enough to get his hands on your project? Your files? Your work?” My head snapped toward him. How did he know about that? “What do you mean?” His expression hardened. “I made my findings, and I heard he was always coming there.” Oh dear. I sat down slowly, as if the chair might collapse beneath me. “It’s not what you think,” I said weakly. “Things just got…messed up.” “What got messed up?” He asked. “What does he want from you exactly?” That was the same question I’d been asking myself for weeks. Darius could have anyone. Anyth
Arielle Emris kept glancing into the rearview mirror, his eyes narrowing as he tried to figure out which car had been tailing us. “Hold on,” he muttered. Without warning, he took a sharp turn and looped back into another lane. A second later, he spotted it. The same car Nathan had been driving. Emris let out a low breath. “I think it’s your boyfriend.” I turned sharply. “What?” He smirked. “Guess he doesn’t want to let you go.” I ignored the teasing and looked through the back window. Damn it. It really was Nathan. What was he thinking? Maybe he hadn’t believed me when I said I’d speak to Darius. Or maybe he’d already called Joel, and Joel had told him to follow me. “Can you lose him?” I asked. Emris glanced at me once. “You two fighting?” “Oh my God, stop with the boyfriend fantasy,” I snapped. “Just lose him.” He studied my face for a second, then nodded. “Okay.” Traffic was thick enough to help us. Cars poured through every lane, horns blaring, an
Arielle “Arielle, I can’t let you do this,” Tiffany said firmly. “You’re not accepting that son of a bitch’s deal just because he’s forcing you to.”Tessa clearly didn’t want me to either. She handed the letter back to me slowly. “I have no choice," I said quietly. Tiffany hesitated, still not c
Arielle Darius's eyes stayed on me, unblinking, as if he was waiting for something to fall from my lips. The silence between us stretched, thick and heavy, broken by only the hum of the engine and the faint rush of the wind against the windows. I folded my hands in my lap, staring s
Arielle “Who’s Emris?” He asked suddenly, eyes fixed on the road. I glanced at him. “What?” “I heard Tessa mention some guy named Emris,” he said, gripping the steering wheel. “Care to tell me who that is?” “No. Why?” “No?” “Let me worry about that.”
Arielle Tiffany turned back and went silent. “It’s me,” I tapped my chest. “Arielle”. “Oh”. She uttered flatly. “Yeah,” I sighed. “Tiffany, I swear I’m ready to tell you anything you want to know. I’m never hiding anything from–“ “Let’s not talk about that here.” She







