Cassian’s POVDe Cruz’s screams clawed at the air, but I let them linger. Let the blood spread, thick and slick across the floor. His leg twitched as he pressed both hands uselessly against the wound, his whimpers rattling through the silence.I leaned back in my chair, calm, collected, breathing in the iron tang of blood like it was incense. The stench of fear was always sweeter.“Lucas,” I said quietly, my tone calm but edged with authority that brooked no refusal. “Strip him of anything sharp or stupid enough to give him courage. We wouldn’t want our guest to get reckless and… end it early, would we?” A faint pause, deliberate, before I added, “Seal the room. No one comes in. No one goes out.”“Yes, boss.” Lucas bent, scooping up the pistol, then slid it across the table out of reach.I rolled my chair forward, slow, deliberate, letting the faint squeal of rubber on tile grind into De Cruz’s ears. His eyes darted to me, wide, feral, like a rat with its back broken.“You were always
Cassian’s POVDe Cruz’s breath stuttered, a sick little laugh bubbling out of his throat like he was trying to convince himself it meant nothing.“Empty threats,” he croaked, though his voice shook. His eyes flicked to the screen but darted back just as quick. “You won’t do it, Morelli. Not them. You’ll kill me, sure. Burn me, gut me, feed me to your dogs. But kids?” His smile cracked, but he forced it wider. “That’s beneath even you.”I rolled my chair forward slowly, the wheels cutting across the silence like a blade. Each inch closer dragged his arrogance thinner, stretched until it frayed.“You think so?” My voice was quiet, but it slithered into his bones. “You think you know the limits of what I’ll do, rat? Let me enlighten you.”I leaned in, my words venom.“I will have your wife watch as we strip the skin off your bones while she screams into her gag. Then I’ll cut the ropes on your children and tell them to run…but only after my men pour gasoline behind them. Do you know what
Cassian’s POV“Drag her out of here, or lock her somewhere,” I snapped, my voice razor-sharp. “You might as well knock her unconscious. I don’t care which. Just get her out of my sight”Lucas shifted, ready to obey, but Reina twisted in his grip like a storm barely contained.“No...wait!” she cried, shoving back, hair falling loose around her flushed face. Her voice wavered, but her resolve didn’t. “Cassian, I’m a nurse. This is what I do. You can’t ask me to just sit still while someone bleeds out in front of me. I can’t help it!”Her hands trembled, knotted napkins pressed against the bastard’s stump, blood seeping fast between her fingers. She looked up at me, those wide eyes blazing, pleading but stubborn. “Let me fix the cut before he bleeds out. Please.”“And what makes you think I don’t want him to bleed out?” I bit out, my voice like a blade drawn slow, cold fury simmering beneath every word. My hands twitched with the violent urge to smash something...anything...just to silen
Cassian’s POV“Now, listen to me, Reina…”My voice came out like gravel, low and unyielding. Her wide eyes locked on mine, every bit as defiant as they were vulnerable. I leaned forward, my gaze holding hers in the dim glow of the car’s cabin.“You stay by my side tonight. No matter what happens, no matter what you hear, you do not move. You do not engage. This isn’t a game. It’s not a date. It’s dangerous. People might end up…” I paused, tasting the weight of the word on my tongue, “…dying.”Her lips parted, shock flickering across her face. “Dying?” Her voice cracked. “Why the hell did you bring me here then, Cassian? And here I was thinking this was our official first date.”Despite the storm raging inside me, a dark chuckle broke free from my throat. Her innocence, her audacity…it both excited and thrilled me.“I’d rather have you where I can see you,” I murmured, my voice edged with steel. “If you were back at the villa, alone? Anyone could slip past my men. Anyone could hurt you
Reina’s POVFew fucks and a spanking later, the steam of the shower had washed away the sweat of our chaos, and now we were dressing.A lunch date.That’s right…Cassian Morelli and I, heading to a lunch date. If that wasn’t insane enough, I realized this was probably our official first date.I’d woken up this morning determined to give him the cold shoulder, to play detached, to remind myself that my place here was temporary. Determined to leave after this trip. That was the plan…until I saw the police. Until I stepped in. Until his confession.And God, that confession…It cracked something open inside me, warmed a part of me I thought I had buried. He lost his daughter in the dark game of this world. His grief wasn’t weakness. It was the scar he carried, and the fear of losing again was the only thing that kept him sharp.And before you judge me, don’t. I know I always say I’ll leave, but the truth is…I’m too far gone. Head over heels in love with Cassian Morelli. That should terrif
Cassian’s POV“I’m just scared, Reina.”The admission clawed out of me, heavy as lead.Her eyes widened, her voice softer. “Scared of what?”“Of you becoming my weakness.” The words cracked something inside me. “I’ve lost too many people that way. If my enemies know you’re my weakness… you’ll die. And I can’t…fuck, I can’t lose you too, Reina.”A tear betrayed me, sliding down my cheek. I hated it. I wanted to kill it before it exposed me.“I don’t know how it began, and I don’t know how it’ll end. But one thing I’m certain of…I can’t lose you. I need you desperately. So if you could just…”Her lips crashed against mine before I could finish, stealing the words straight from my mouth.Tears mingled. Heat and desperation melted into something that felt like absolution.Her lips were fire against mine, and when she pulled away, I thought I’d lost her again…until that small smile tugged her mouth.“So you need me?” she whispered, climbing over me, straddling me, her hands tangled in my h