All Chapters of Craving Forbidden Pleasures : Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

The letter smoldered in the flames, curling to black. Emilia thought it should have felt like victory. But when she looked at Lucien’s face—damp with sweat, torn between hunger and grief—she knew they had only set the fuse.The next morning, he was quiet. Too quiet.He split wood with violent force, as if each swing might silence the echo of Raphael’s words. Emilia worked in the garden until her knees bled from stones hidden in the soil. Neither spoke of the night before, but silence had grown between them, thick as incense in an unventilated chapel.Even the intimacy that drew them together, and kept them close was also missing. Since their lovemaking that night Lucien burnt the letter, they had not made love. By the third day, she could no longer bear it.“You burned it,” she said as they ate their meager supper of broth and stale bread. “So why do you still look like a man who has lost?”Lucien’s spoon clattered against the bowl. He lifted his eyes, raw with exhaustion. “Because I

Alina Devereux had learned long ago that her life wasn’t her own. Every gesture, every word, every movement had been shaped by her father’s influence. “Composure is currency,” he used to say, pressing her chin up between his fingers when she was only fifteen. “And loyalty is everything.”She had believed him—still did, most days. But as the sleek black car hummed through the midnight city streets, glass towers rising like sentinels all around her, she found herself wishing for one thing she’d never been taught: an escape.Her hand smoothed the chocolate-brown silk clinging to her curves. The fabric was elegant, expensive, the kind of dress meant for cocktail parties where fathers paraded daughters like assets. She had chosen it herself this time, though. Chosen it for confidence, to mask the uneasy flutter in her chest.But the dress wasn’t helping. Nothing could help, not when the embossed invitation in her clutch seemed to pulse like a warning.Lucian Voss.The name alone made her p

Alina couldn’t sleep. Her mind raced with the memory of Lucian’s presence, the way he moved through the room like he owned every inch of it—and, terrifyingly, like he owned her too. The silk dress, the brush of his fingers, the dominance in his gaze—it haunted her every thought. Her father’s words echoed in her head: “Alina, trust is everything. Family first.” And yet, all she could remember was the heat behind Lucian’s dark eyes, the magnetic pull of his every command, and the thrill of a boundary crossed she didn’t know she wanted to. A soft knock at her door made her jump. “Alina,” Lucian’s voice. Low. Smooth. Dangerous. “I couldn’t wait until morning.” Her stomach fluttered, even as she swallowed hard and tried to steady her breathing. “Julian—” “No. Lucian,” he corrected, stepping into the room, the city lights outlining the hard lines of his face. “I’ve been thinking about last night… about you.” She took a step back. “We shouldn’t…” He raised a finger, quiet bu

Alina couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt this alive, this reckless, this… dangerous. The city below sparkled like a sea of stars, oblivious to the storm raging inside the penthouse above. Lucian had pulled her into a world she knew she shouldn’t inhabit, yet each moment with him felt magnetic, inevitable, and terrifyingly delicious.He leaned against the grand piano, watching her with that slow, deliberate intensity that made her pulse spike and her stomach coil with desire. Every look, every gesture, every lingering glance was a test—and she was failing spectacularly.“You’re restless,” he said, voice low, teasing, as if he could read every thought tangled in her mind.“I—” she began, but the words failed her. Every fiber of her being was attuned to him. She had tried to stay rational, to remind herself of loyalty, of family, of boundaries. But they were meaningless against the gravity of him.He moved closer, and the air seemed to thrum with heat. “You know what I want,” he

The morning sunlight was harsh against the penthouse windows, cutting across the tangled sheets and Lucian’s still-warm body. Alina stirred, eyes fluttering open to find him watching her, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.“You’re awake,” he murmured, voice husky. “Good. I hate waiting.”Alina blinked, letting herself take in the aftermath of last night. Every inch of her body still throbbed with need, still remembered the domination, the claiming, the exquisite surrender that had stolen hours of sleep and self-control. And yet… there was no regret. Only a dangerous thrill.“I… I can’t believe this,” she whispered, voice trembling with excitement and fear. “I shouldn’t… we shouldn’t…”Lucian leaned over her, pressing a kiss to her collarbone. “Stop saying that,” he ordered gently, yet with authority that made her shiver. “We crossed the line. We claimed the edge. And we’re not going back. Not now. Not ever.”Alina swallowed hard. The truth in his words set her pulse racing. She was ca