All Chapters of MARRIED TO MY EX-FATHER IN LAW.: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Lola is in the kitchen with Hannah when it happens.They're making tea, laughing about something stupid, when two of Ocean's men walk in. She recognizes them from security, Marco and Tony. Mid-level guys who usually work the perimeter.They don't see her at first. She's partially hidden by the open pantry door, reaching for honey."...can't believe he actually married her," Tony is saying. "His son's leftovers. That's desperate even for...""Careful," Marco warns. "Boss might hear you.""Boss isn't here. And come on, you're thinking it too. She's damaged goods. Divorced. Used up. What's he thinking, bringing trash like that into his house?"The honey jar slips from Lola's fingers.It doesn't break. Just hits the counter with a loud thunk.Both men turn. See her standing there.Tony's face goes pale. "Oh shit...""Out," Hannah says, her voice hard as steel. "Get the fuck out of this kitchen right now."But Lola can't move. Can't breathe. The words echo in her head.Damaged goods. Used

I stand in my bedroom for a full minute after Lola runs out.Just stand there. In a towel. Dripping water onto the floor. Trying to process what just happened.She walked in on me. Saw me half-naked. Saw the scars I usually keep hidden.And the way she looked at me before she fled...Fuck.I know that look. I've seen it enough times in my life to recognize it.Desire.Lola looked at me with desire.Not gratitude. Not fear. Not pity for the scarred criminal who saved her.Want.Raw. Unmistakable. Want.And my body responded. Instantly. Which is why I grabbed a shirt so fast. Why I let her run instead of stopping her.Because if she'd stayed one more second, if she'd kept looking at me like that...I don't know what I would have done."Fuck," I say out loud. To my empty bedroom. To nobody.This is bad. This is so fucking bad.I get dressed. Try to calm down. Try to think rationally.She's twenty-three. Traumatized. Healing. Living in my house because she has nowhere else to go. The powe

I can't stop hearing her laugh.It's been two days since that night in my study. Two days since she almost stayed. Since I almost kissed her. Since everything nearly fell apart.And all I can think about is the way she laughed.Not the polite laugh she uses during dinner sometimes. The real one. The one that came out when I made some stupid joke about one of my captains getting chased by a cat. The sound filled my entire study. Made her eyes crinkle. Made her throw her head back.Made her look free.I'm sitting in a meeting with Vincent Romano and I can't focus because I'm remembering the way Lola laughed in my study at three in the morning."Ocean? Your thoughts?"Vincent is looking at me expectantly. So is everyone else around the table.Fuck. What were we talking about?"I agree with Daniel's assessment," I say, hoping Daniel said something relevant.Daniel shoots me a look that says we'll talk about this later.The meeting drags on. Territory agreements. Profit sharing. Things tha

The meeting takes place in the back room of Dmitri's club. Three AM. The time when honest people are asleep and deals get made in shadows.Ethan arrives with a folder of documents. Blueprints. Schedules. Financial records. Everything stolen from his father's office over the past two weeks.Dmitri is already there, drinking vodka. Marco Romano sits next to him, looking nervous. The kid is twenty-five, eager to prove himself, stupid enough to think this will end well."You're late," Dmitri says."I'm careful." Ethan sets the folder on the table. "Everything you asked for. Ocean's shipment schedules for the next month. Security rotations. Client lists. Financial vulnerabilities."Dmitri opens the folder. Studies the contents. His expression doesn't change but Ethan sees the glint of satisfaction in his eyes."This is good. Very detailed.""I told you I had access to everything.""The question is whether it's accurate. Or whether you're setting us up." Dmitri's eyes are cold. Calculating.

I'm making a mistake.The thought screams through my head even as I'm kissing her back, even as my hands are buried in her hair and she's making those soft desperate sounds against my mouth and every single part of me is telling me to never let go.But I have to let go. Because this is wrong.I pull away. Force myself to step back even though it feels like ripping my own heart out of my chest."Lola, stop."She's breathing hard, looking at me with those big eyes, her lips swollen from my kiss. God, she's so beautiful it actually hurts to look at her."Why?" Her voice is so small. So hurt."Because this isn't real." The words taste like ash in my mouth but I make myself say them anyway."What are you talking about?""What you're feeling right now. It's not real." I put more distance between us because I need space to think clearly and I can't think when she's close enough to touch. "You're confusing gratitude with attraction. You're mixing up feeling safe with being in love.""I'm not