All Chapters of TABOO (A DEAL WITH THE SHADOW ALPHA): Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

29 Chapters

CHAPTER ONE (DINNER)

ADDISONThe polished marble floor of my parents' dining room felt like ice under my feet. I pushed a piece of meat around my fancy plate, the quiet so thick you could hear the clock ticking in the hallway. I had to tell them, and I had to do it now. There was never a good time, but with the whole family here for Sunday dinner, it felt like now or never.I put my fork down. The sound was too loud and I knew with the next words I was about to cause a massive explosion, but I was hear to bare it that live in torture with that bastard. "Mom, Dad... I broke up with Feign."The clinking of silverware stopped dead, I swallowed down, not just the food but my fear of what their reaction would be. I swayed my legs beneath the table anxiously, thinking of what mom might say next. My mother's head snapped up. Her eyes, the same color as mine but always so much colder, turned narrow. "You broke up with Feign?" she asked, her voice too calm. Mom’s voice was always calm; she never raised her voice,

Last Updated : 2025-10-22

CHAPTER TWO (SEVEN DAYS)

ADDISON Back in the Castino building, the city lights twinkled far below my floor-to-ceiling windows, but they felt like a million miles away. I was trapped in a thorn filled cage of my own, with a week to find a golden key.I curled up on my massive white sofa, pulling out my phone. Devin had, true to his word, sent a text with a few names and numbers. No pleasantries, just a list. My life currently was solely reliant on this list.The first name was Matthew Rhys. I typed it into the search bar. A picture of a guy in a hoodie popped up, standing in front of a flashy office with a neon sign. A tech bro. His company had done well, sure, but a quick scroll through a business profile showed his net worth was… modest. Modest for our world, anyway. He was still climbing. My mother would eat him alive. She’d take one look at his casual clothes and call him “unserious.” I sighed. “Not influential enough,” I muttered to the empty room, swiping his picture away. Next.The second name made my

Last Updated : 2025-10-22

CHAPTER THREE (THE DEAL)

ADDISONFour days.The number was a drumbeat in my head, a constant, panicked rhythm counting down my doom. Five days since the suffocating dinner, and I had precisely forty-eight hours left to produce a human shield wealthier and more powerful than Feign Paxton.My “research” had been a spectacular failure. The list from Devin was a graveyard of maybes and no-chances. The tech bro, the London-based heir, the notoriously rude old money… all dead ends. The only viable, terrifying option was Bane Killian, the womanizer. My brother had, in a last-ditch effort, actually set up a date with him for tomorrow night. The thought made my skin crawl.Which is why I was currently lurking around the Castino’s lobby like a total creep for the fifth day in a row. My target: Axel Rex. I’d spent hours perched on a plush velvet bench, pretending to read a magazine while my eyes were glued to the private elevator bank that led to the penthouses. I’d seen no one who even remotely matched his description.

Last Updated : 2025-10-22

CHAPTER FOUR (THE APPERANCE)

ADDISONTwo days left. The deal I’d made in that stalled elevator felt less like a rescue and more like a dream I’d stupidly believed. Maybe he’d been oxygen-deprived and just agreed to get me to stop talking. Maybe I had been too open to him, I mean what kind of girl tells a man she just met almost everything about herself. Maybe Axel Rex had already forgotten I existed.I was staring into the hopeless abyss of my coffee cup when the intercom buzzed, sharp and insistent. My heart jumped. I walked over, my bare feet cold on the floor. “Yes?”“Package for you, Ms. Amber. From Mr. Rex’s office.”The world tilted. I managed to mutter a “thank you,” and leaned against the wall, my legs suddenly weak.A moment later, my doorman was placing a long, elegant white box in my hands. It was heavy. I carried it to my dining table like it might explode, my fingers trembling as I lifted the lid.Inside, nestled in tissue paper as black as midnight, were flowers. But not just any flowers. They were

Last Updated : 2025-10-22

CHAPTER FIVE (BRANDED)

ADDISONThe silence in the back of the town car was a living thing. It was thick and heavy, pressing in on me from all sides, it was suffocating. Outside, the city lights blurred into streaks of gold and white, but inside, it felt like we were frozen in time. I could still feel the heat of his hand on my back, a brand that hadn’t faded. I could still see the pure, cold fury on Axel’s face when he’d looked at Feign. It was murderous in all forms. I had to say something. The quiet was going to make me scream.“Thank you,” I started, my voice sounding too loud. “For what you did back there with Feign. You really didn’t have to… I mean, the threat was a little…”“It wasn’t a threat,” he said, his voice a low rumble. He wasn’t even looking at me, his profile a sharp, dark cut-out against the window. “It was a fact. I would have done what I said and so much more Addison, I’m not your typical gentleman.”A shiver went down my spine. It was the way he said it. So sure. So final. Like he was

Last Updated : 2025-11-17

CHAPTER SIX (MUSE)

ADDISONMy mother was calling.I stood there for a second, just staring at my phone like it might bite me. Then I forced myself to take a long, slow breath, trying to steady my nerves. I reached out and swiped to answer, bringing the phone up to my ear. "Hi, Mom," I said, trying to keep my voice steady and casual."Addison." Her voice came through sharp and clear, that businesslike tone she always used. But there was something else there too, something I couldn't quite put my finger on at first. It sounded almost like... satisfaction? Like she was pleased about something. That made me even more nervous.I braced myself, waiting for what I knew had to be coming. The lecture. The disappointed speech about how I'd been reckless at the gala, how I should have been more careful, how I'd put myself and the family reputation at risk. I could practically hear it already in my head."What a catch," she said instead, and I swear I almost fumbled my phone right onto the floor. My fingers went nu

Last Updated : 2025-11-21

CHAPTER SEVEN (JERK!)

CHAPTER SEVENADDISONIt had been three freaking days already since not just me but even my brain had gone radio silent, I just couldn’t come up with any ideas at all. I used to have a thousand ideas packed and locked in my brain but now nothing, I looked down to see the heaps of crumpled papers that littered the floor. It was everywhere any way I would fix that later but now I had to keep thinking. I wanted to design a male suit, but it would be something different from my other designs, typically I had always designed female clothes but this time around for some weird reason I wanted to, and my resolve was strong. I wanted something new, that would strike my customers and fans, something that would leave people speechless before the year runs out. I was already running late, normally by this time I would have dropped a new design and new clothing but time had flown so fast, it was no November and I had to finish this design as soon as possible, I couldn't afford to break my streak.

Last Updated : 2025-11-29

CHAPTER EIGHT (why not me?)

ADDISON POVYou don’t have to do that. I’ll clean it myself.”Again, he didn’t answer. He just plugged in the vacuum and turned it on. He moved with a quiet, efficient grace, rolling the vacuum over my rug. I watched, mesmerized, as he rolled his sleeves up a little higher, revealing the corded muscles in his forearms. God, he looked good, so fucking good. Since when did I even start cussing in my thoughts, what was Axel doing to me, I hardly ever had attraction to people, well this kind of attraction. My doctor had even said it was because I probably had a lower libido than other people, but Axel with every move he took was proving that theory wrong. I swallowed hard.Feeling useless, I moved to take the vacuum back. “Really, Axel, I can—”“Go and sit down, Addison,” he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.And like an idiot, I listened. I hopped up onto the kitchen countertop, swinging my legs like a child, and just watched him clean my apartment.“How do you even know how t

Last Updated : 2025-11-30

CHAPTER NINE (DANGEROUS ATTRACTION)

ADDISON POVMy brain short-circuited for a minute. I just stared at him, his hand still hot on mine. “Wait, what? You would do that?” I finally managed to sputter. “But… you know you’d have to take your shirt off and all that. I really don’t want to stress you out. I can just call Phillip to do it. You have to work, and your company probably needs you to…”The words tumbled out in a nervous rush. The idea of Axel Rex, shirtless, in my studio, while I tried to draw him was both thrilling and utterly terrifying.“You won’t be calling anyone at all,” he said, his voice firm, his eyes locked on mine. “Not Phillip. Not anyone else. I will do it.” He let go of my hand, the intense heat fading. “I have free time. And if my company can’t survive a few hours without me, then I haven’t done a good job as CEO. So, let’s get started. Where do you want me?”He was serious. I just swallowed, my mouth suddenly dry. “Uh… okay. Uhm, let me take you to my studio.”I led him further into my apartment, t

Last Updated : 2025-11-30

CHAPTER TEN (FOCUS)

ADDISON POVMy breath hitched. The question hung in the air between us, thick and heavy. Do you want to touch them?I couldn’t speak. My mind was screaming a dozen different things, but my body seemed to have a mind of its own. I gave a slow, small nod.He didn’t smile, but his intense gaze softened just a fraction. He lifted his hand, palm up, signalling I come closer. I stepped closer, the space between us shrinking until I could feel the incredible warmth radiating from his skin. My heart was hammering so hard I was sure he could hear it. I raised my own trembling hand and gently placed my fingertips on the serpent tattoo coiled around his wrist.His skin was hot, just like before, but this time it wasn't a shock. It was a deep, thrumming warmth that seeped into my fingers, comforting and exciting all at once."Calm down, Addison," he whispered, his voice so low and close it felt like a physical touch, sending a shiver trickling down my spine. I bit my lip, trying to hold in whatev

Last Updated : 2025-11-30

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