All Chapters of RUTHLESS TEMPTATION : Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

The days dragged on like a cruel punishment.Every morning, Jace woke with the same knot in his chest, the same replay of that night flashing like a broken reel in his mind. He could not shake the image of Elias’s face when he had realized it had been him in bed. Could not forget the shame that burned when he remembered his drunken confessions laid bare.Worse than the words, though, was the memory of Elias’s body. The feel of his mouth... his hands, the roughness that had left Jace aching for days. He hated himself for wanting to relive it, even as guilt ate away at him.So he stayed away.For nearly a week, Jace had avoided Crane Corp, claiming sickness as an excuse and avoided Aiden’s calls and Elias’s looming presence. But the silence only amplified everything. The more he hid, the louder the thoughts became, circling like vultures in his skull.Eventually, he caved. Work, at least, could drown the noise.That morning, Jace stepped into Crane Corp, his chest tight but his head hel

Jace adjusted his shirt quickly, his fingers fumbling over the buttons. His body still ached faintly, the soreness a reminder of what had just happened in Elias’s office. He tried to push it out of his head the taste of Elias’s lips, the feel of his hands and the heat of his body, but it lingered, carved into his senses. If anyone looked too closely, they might see the flush on his face and the dazed glaze in his eyes. He could almost still hear Elias whispering against his ear, low and ragged. By the time Jace made it back to his cubicle, he was desperate for the illusion of normalcy. He wanted to bury himself in the glow of his computer screen and let the hours pass until he could go home. But the illusion shattered the moment he spotted a figure waiting near his desk. Aiden. Jace froze mid-step, his heart stuttering painfully in his chest. He had hoped, prayed even, that Aiden would finally give up after the unanswered calls and ignored texts. But there he was leaning against th

The ride from the restaurant was quiet, but not in the heavy, awkward way Jace expected. It was quiet in a way that seemed charged, as if Elias was holding something close to his chest, waiting for the right time to reveal it. Jace glanced at him in the dim interior of the car, trying to read the faint smirk on Elias’s lips. He could not help himself. “You are not dropping me off at home?” Elias turned to him with a gleam in his eyes. “No. Tonight, I have a surprise for you.” Jace’s stomach flipped. He told himself it was just curiosity, but the truth was, he wanted...no he needed to know what Elias Crane could possibly surprise him with. When the car pulled into the mansion driveway, Jace’s heart picked up. He followed Elias inside, up the long stairwell, and into the bedroom that always smelled faintly of cedar and Elias’s cologne. That’s when he saw it. The chair in the middle of the room... The desk... And spread across the polished surface were handcuffs, leather whips, a b

“What do you mean he’s missing?” Jace’s voice cracked, thin and frantic. On the other end of the line, the nurse’s tone trembled. “S-Sir, we went in to check his vitals and give him his medication for the day, but when we arrived… he was not here.” Jace gripped his phone so tightly it hurt. His heart slammed against his ribs. “What do you mean he was not there? He can not walk on his own he can’t— ” “We checked the surveillance footage,” the nurse rushed out. “We thought maybe he tried to take a stroll since he had not done that in a while, but… he is nowhere. We can not see him on any of the cameras.” Jace’s knees nearly gave way. His breath came in short and sharp bursts as his skin prickled cold. “What?” His voice was a whisper, more like the rasp of someone whose chest was caving in. Elias, who had been standing across the room, instantly crossed to him. “Jace? ... What is it?... You are shaking.” Jace swallowed, but his throat was raw. “The hospital just called. They said…

Aiden’s mouth trembled open. For a heartbeat everything in the room, the hanging bulb, the concrete floor, the metallic tang in the air reduced to a single sound he was about to make. “Y… yes,” the confession came, ragged and small. “I did.” Silence slammed into Jace like a physical blow. His chest constricted until his breaths came in short, raw pulls. It felt as if the room had narrowed to nothing but the space between him and Aiden a space now filled with the metallic taste of betrayal. He could see Aiden’s face, his features damp with shame, lips pressed thin, eyes fixed stubbornly to the floor. The man who had once promised him tenderness, who had whispered safety and held his face in both palms, the one who had made him feel, like he was someone worth loving now could not meet his gaze. “W...what…” Jace’s voice scraped out, barely more than a strangled sound. “Aiden.... you.... you did what... How.... why...” Aiden flinched as if struck. His hands trembled. Victor’s laugh b