LOGINThe encrypted phone on the mahogany desk didn't just ring; it pulsed with a low, rhythmic vibration that felt like a heartbeat. The hexadecimal code on the screen was a shifting mosaic of defiance. Julianās hand hovered over the device, his knuckles white."If you answer that," Julian said, his voice dropping to that dangerous, velvet register, "the game moves from the shadows into the light. Are you ready for 'The Architect' to know your face?"I pulled his oversized shirt tighter around me, the scent of him grounding me against the sudden chill of the room. "They already know my face, Julian. They just don't know my teeth."I reached out and swiped the screen. I didn't say hello. I waited.The silence on the other end lasted for five agonizing seconds. Then, a voice filtered throughādistorted, synthesized, and eerily calm. It wasn't the voice of a villain in a movie; it sounded like a recording of a recording, stripped of all human inflection."The daughter of Elias Vance has a penc
The private elevator didnāt just move; it lunged. The sensation of rising at high velocity mirrored the frantic thrum of my pulse. We were barely five floors up when Julianās restraint finally snapped. He didnāt wait for the doors to open. He shoved me against the mirrored wall of the lift, the cool glass a sharp contrast to the furnace of his body."You were magnificent in there," he growled, his voice vibrating deep in his chest. "Iāve never seen a boardroom look so terrified of a woman in a power suit.""I learned from the best," I gasped, my hands tangling in his hair, pulling him closer. The sleek ponytail Iād spent twenty minutes perfecting was already coming undone under the onslaught of his fingers.He didn't reply with words. His mouth crashed against mine, a desperate, devouring kiss that tasted of victory and dark intent. This wasn't the tentative exploration of the server farm; this was a collision. Julianās hands were everywhereāmapping the curve of my waist, the swell of
The light in Julianās penthouse was different at six in the morning. It wasn't the soft, forgiving glow of dusk; it was a sharp, clinical gold that cut across the rumpled charcoal sheets of his oversized bed.I woke up to the sensation of heat. Julian was behind me, a solid wall of muscle and intent, his arm draped possessively over my waist. The events of the server farm felt like a fever dreamāthe rain, the adrenaline, the desperate, bruising hunger of our bodies finally colliding. My skin felt sensitized, humming with the memory of his touch.I tried to shift, but his grip tightened, pulling me back against the hard planes of his chest."Running away already, Elara?" His voice was a low, gravelly rasp, thick with sleep and something far more predatory. He pressed a lingering, searing kiss to the space between my shoulder blades."I have a board meeting at ten," I managed to say, though my resolve was melting faster than ice in a furnace. "And if Iām late to my first day as the undi
The light in Julianās penthouse was different at six in the morning. It wasn't the soft, forgiving glow of dusk; it was a sharp, clinical gold that cut across the rumpled charcoal sheets of his oversized bed.I woke up to the sensation of heat. Julian was behind me, a solid wall of muscle and intent, his arm draped possessively over my waist. The events of the server farm felt like a fever dreamāthe rain, the adrenaline, the desperate, bruising hunger of our bodies finally colliding. My skin felt sensitized, humming with the memory of his touch.I tried to shift, but his grip tightened, pulling me back against the hard planes of his chest."Running away already, Elara?" His voice was a low, gravelly rasp, thick with sleep and something far more predatory. He pressed a lingering, searing kiss to the space between my shoulder blades."I have a board meeting at ten," I managed to say, though my resolve was melting faster than ice in a furnace. "And if Iām late to my first day as the undi
The sleek, matte-black Audi RS7 tore through the London rain like a silent bullet. Inside, the atmosphere was a volatile mix of high-stakes adrenaline and the lingering, suffocating heat of what had just been interrupted in the penthouse. Julian drove with a focused, surgical aggression, his knuckles white on the leather steering wheel.I sat in the passenger seat, my laptop open on my knees, the blue light of the screen reflecting in my eyes. My fingers flew across the mechanical keyboard, navigating the layers of encryption that shielded the heart of Blue Iris."Three minutes out," Julian said, his voice a low growl. He glanced at me, his gaze lingering on my lipsāstill swollen from his kissābefore returning to the road. "Tell me the failsafe is holding.""Silasās team is efficient, Iāll give them that," I muttered, watching a red bar crawl across my monitor. "Theyāve breached the physical perimeter of the Southwark facility. Theyāre using a thermal lance on the server room door. Th
Chapter 22: The Logic BombThe sleek, matte-black Audi RS7 tore through the London rain like a silent bullet. Inside, the atmosphere was a volatile mix of high-stakes adrenaline and the lingering, suffocating heat of what had just been interrupted in the penthouse. Julian drove with a focused, surgical aggression, his knuckles white on the leather steering wheel.I sat in the passenger seat, my laptop open on my knees, the blue light of the screen reflecting in my eyes. My fingers flew across the mechanical keyboard, navigating the layers of encryption that shielded the heart of Blue Iris."Three minutes out," Julian said, his voice a low growl. He glanced at me, his gaze lingering on my lipsāstill swollen from his kissābefore returning to the road. "Tell me the failsafe is holding.""Silasās team is efficient, Iāll give them that," I muttered, watching a red bar crawl across my monitor. "Theyāve breached the physical perimeter of the Southwark facility. Theyāre using a thermal lance






