All Chapters of RUTHLESS TEMPTATION : Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

The days blurred into a restless haze, each one clawing at Jace with a weight he couldn’t shake. Elias’s apologies arrived like clockwork—texts, calls, unexpected visits all filled with remorse, and then there was Aiden. He spoke of love with reckless certainty, as if what burned between them was already carved into stone. His messages, his voice, his presence all were laced with the kind of devotion Jace hadn’t felt in years. Jace couldn’t breathe beneath the pull of it all. He told himself to shut them out, remember the plan... the mission... the years of pain that had brought him here. He was supposed to be playing Elias, supposed to be weaving his way into the Crane family’s veins like poison until they bled out. That was the goal. And yet… Elias’s desperation scraped at something raw inside him. Aiden’s declarations wrapped around him like a dangerous warmth. Jace felt himself splintering, guilt festering like an open wound he couldn’t stitch closed. He hated them for breakin

The morning sun filtered through the tall windows of Elias’s apartment, but he barely felt it. The light pressed against his eyelids, too sharp and too demanding. He rolled onto his back and let out a heavy breath. Every muscle in his body weighed down as though he had been carrying boulders in his sleep. Work waited—emails, contracts, endless meetings—but the thought of stepping into Crane Corp today felt impossible. He wasn’t sick. Just tired. Bone... deep... tired. So he stayed in bed. He stared up at the ceiling, tracing the sharp lines of the moulding above him, and tried not to think about Jace. But his mind betrayed him the way it always did lately, dragging him back into memory... into sweat, heat, and tangled sheets. The man that only his name alone was enough to make Elias’s chest ache. It had started as a fling, and then it moved to a spark he had pretended to ignore. Then it became a pull he could not escape. He had not meant for it to happen, but the more time he

The fluorescent lights above the supermarket buzzed faintly, their glare spilling down over rows of neatly stacked boxes and bags. Jace’s hand trembled as he reached for a carton of milk. He stared at it too long, as if the white plastic held answers, as if focusing on something so ordinary might drown out the storm that was tearing him apart inside. Elias knew. The thought made his chest clench until he could hardly breathe. Elias had known all along. His fingers tightened around the handle of the shopping cart. It squeaked as he pushed it forward, the sound loud, unbearable, grating against the silence of his panic. How long had Elias known? Since the beginning? Since that first night in the bar? Or when Jace had spilled a drink on him like a nobody? And worse... what else did he know? Jace’s pulse hammered. Did Elias know about the nights with Aiden? He gritted his teeth and shoved a box of cereal into the cart. He did not even glance at the price. His hands moved o

The secrecy was what made it even hotter. Over time, Jace and Aiden slipped into a rhythm of stolen touches and hidden moments, their affair tucked carefully between the hours of normal life. Every date was disguised, every kiss stolen where no one could see, every time they fell into bed together cloaked in silence. It wasn’t just the secrecy that tied Jace to Aiden it was how sweet it felt. The way Aiden looked at him as if he were the only man alive. The way he touched him with care, like he was precious. It was different from Elias, terrifyingly so. With Elias, Jace burned. With Aiden, he melted. But still, he could not let go of either. His mind went the night him and aiden went camping, the air smelled of pine and smoke. Aiden had insisted they needed to “get away from the city,” and Jace had gone along, knowing it would be little more than a quiet night under the stars. The stillness of the woods pressed in, amplifying every sound. Jace’s laugh when Aiden kissed his neck.

Jace shifted uncomfortably in his chair, biting down on the inside of his cheek. His cock strained painfully against his trousers, the dark fabric already marked by a wet patch of precum. Heat rushed to his face. If anyone noticed he was done for. Shit. He grabbed the nearest file and angled it over his lap, rising carefully from his seat. His movements were stiff and calculated, every step an effort not to reveal himself. He kept his gaze fixed straight ahead, ignoring the curious glances of coworkers, praying no one would stop him, no one would see. By the time he reached the restroom, his heart was pounding hard enough that it drowned out his thoughts. He released a shaky breath when he realized the space was empty. Thank Goddness. He turned on the faucet, checking for water. The rush of it filled the silence, grounding him. Relief pooled through him as he unbuckled his trousers and tugged them down just enough to reach the damp stain. He began scrubbing at it with hurried, ner