Ava's POV The sheets were cold where Lorenzo should have been.I woke up feeling as though my bones were made of lead, a lingering exhaustion pulling at my eyelids. For a moment, I simply lay there, the silence of the master suite pressing in on me. Then, the memories of a few hours ago rushed back—the heat, the bruising grip of his hand on my shoulder, the sharp sting of his teeth against my neck.I had expected pain. I had expected him to take what he wanted with the same cold brutality he used to dismantle my brother's authority. But he hadn’t. “I won’t hurt you,” he had whispered, his voice a dark caress that vibrated through my soul. “I only want to pleasure you.”It was a terrifying thought. I realized, with a jolt of genuine fear, that I actually believed him. Despite the ruthlessness he projected to the world, he had held back with me. He was breaking my walls, not with force, but with a restraint that was far more dangerous. I brushed the thought away, telling myself I didn
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