All Chapters of Terms of the heart : Chapter 11 - Chapter 16

Jesse's fists clenched at his sides as he watched from the shadows. The kiss-he had expected a confrontation, not *that*. The knife of betrayal cut deeper than he'd imagined.Back at his car, the silence was deafening. He stared at the photo on his dashboard-him and Alina, smiling, before everything went dark. Before Damian came back.He grabbed his phone. No message. No apology. Just time passing, cold and bitter.***Inside the warehouse, Alina pulled away first. Her lips tingled, her thoughts tangled. Damian opened his mouth to speak, but she raised a hand."I need time," she whispered. "And answers. Real ones.""You'll get them," Damian promised. "Starting now."He walked to a rusted cabinet in the corner, pulling out a small, locked box. "Proof. Of everything. What they did. What they're planning."He handed it to her.Alina's hands shook as she took it. "What's inside?""Names. Places. Targets." He looked at her, eyes dark. "Including yours."Her blood ran cold.Outside, tires s

London. Midnight.The top floor of the Vale Tower was a study in excess disguised as elegance. Italian marble, antique gold fixtures, oil paintings older than the building itself-but the tech running behind the walls was newer than the next quarter's future.Damian Vale stood alone, facing a digital display of market trends, security profiles, and strategic maps that looked more military than corporate.Behind him, the room slowly filled.His inner circle was small. Hand-picked. Unshakably loyal-or easily disposed of. Tonight, only three joined him: Selene-his chief of strategy, Kaito-former MI6 and current head of operations, and Luc Renard-a French media baron with a morally flexible empire."She's harder than expected," Selene said without preamble. "Even the press can't touch her without it backfiring.""Which is why," Damian said, not turning around, "we don't attack her. Not yet."Kaito frowned. "Then what's the next step?"Damian finally faced them, his expression smooth as gla

The rain tapped quietly against the windowpane, but Alina's breath came in gasps. She sat upright in bed, drenched in cold sweat. The images wouldn't stop-Damian's voice, the kiss, Jesse's eyes full of pain, the box full of secrets. It all swirled in her dreams like smoke.She looked around the dim room, heart still pounding.The light from the study was still on.She rose slowly, wrapped in silence and guilt, and padded down the hall. Jesse sat by the window, head leaned back against the chair, eyes open, staring into the night like he was trying to see through it."You're not sleeping," she said softly.He looked at her, face unreadable. "Neither are you."Alina hesitated, then sat across from him. "Nightmares," she whispered. "Everything feels like it's falling apart."Jesse's voice was low. "It is. You just haven't accepted it yet."She blinked. "That's not fair."He turned to her, tired. "What isn't fair is loving someone who doesn't even know if she trusts you."Silence hung bet