Semua Bab HIS TO RUIN: Bab 11 - Bab 20

SELENE.Three days passed in a blur of confusing emotions, stolen glances, and the constant awareness that my life had irrevocably changed. Three days since the kisses we shared. Three days since the night he fucked me so hard, I uttered words I couldn't believe would come out of my mouth.Damien had spent most of those days on calls, disappearing into his office for hours at a time. I told myself I preferred it that way — the space, the distance, the illusion of control returning to me.But the truth was more humiliating: I noticed every hour he wasn’t around. I felt every shift in the air when he walked back into a room.On the fourth evening, he finally emerged from his office holding a black envelope embossed with gold. His eyes landed on me curled on the edge of the sofa, scrolling through my phone more out of habit than purpose.“Selene,” he said.I looked up even before my name fully left his mouth. “Yeah? Need something?”“We’re attending a gala.” He held out the envelope. “To

SELENE.Uh, what the fuck was going on?I felt Damien’s hand clamp around my waist the moment we stepped away from Marcus. His touch wasn’t gentle; it wasn’t even possessive in the seductive way I had come to know. It felt like a warning — one directed at the world, at Marcus, maybe even at me.A few seconds ago, the air where all three of us stood suddenly turned chilly because of the intense aura oozing out of both of them.Damien didn’t speak as he guided me through the last stretch of the ballroom. Elegant laughter and clinking glasses filled the air behind us, but the atmosphere around Damien had dropped to freezing. People moved out of his path without needing to be told.When we reached the exit, the cool night air slapped my skin, grounding me for the first time since Marcus had lifted my hand. That look… that look he gave me. It lingered inside my chest like a bruise.He looked eerily familiar and I just couldn't place my hands on it. Maybe he was a client of mine? Or maybe n

SELENE.I spent the rest of the night trying to convince myself that Marcus Hale’s stare meant nothing.It didn’t work.Every time I closed my eyes, I saw that look — like he knew me, like he had seen me somewhere I couldn’t remember. And the worst part? It didn’t feel like the stare of a stranger. It felt like a memory trying to claw its way out of the dark.I began to wonder if I was cursed by the very existence of Marcus Hale.And I couldn't cuss while laying beside a sleeping Damien or else he would have gone all the way with me and I wasn't exactly in the mood to banter words with him either.Right now, I was a mess.By morning, my nerves were a tangled mess. Worse than what I had gone to bed with.I slipped out of Damien’s room to clear my head. The penthouse was quiet — too quiet — and the silence only amplified the storm inside me. I paced near the floor-to-ceiling windows, the city glittering below, mocking my confusion.“Who the hell are you, Marcus Hale?” I whispered to mys

SELENE.I didn’t breathe properly until the penthouse doors closed behind me. The gala had ended hours ago, but Marcus’s stare still clung to the inside of my skull. That strange, knowing glint. That smile that felt like a fingerprint pressed against my past.“Selene,” Damien called softly behind me as we stepped into the bedroom. “You’ve been quiet all night.”“I’m fine,” I said automatically, tugging my heels off.“No, you’re not.” He moved closer. “Talk to me.”I swallowed. I couldn’t—not yet, not while my thoughts were still a tangled storm. “I just… need a little space.”“Space?” His brows pulled tight. “From me?”“Not from you—just… from everything.” I drew a shaky breath. “I’d like to stay at my apartment for a few days.”He stared at me, confusion slipping into concern. “Why? Did something happen at the gala?”“No.”Yes. God, yes.I forced a smile. “I just want to reset. Clear my head.”He didn’t look convinced. “Selene, if someone upset you—”“No one upset me.”“Then tell me

SELENE.“Wow." Was all that went through my mind as we stepped into the restaurant.The restaurant smelled like polished wood, candle wax, and rich wine. A soft violin played in the corner, curling around the tables like it knew the secrets being whispered. I tried to relax, but every nerve in my body felt alive, keyed up. Marcus’s message still clung to my thoughts like smoke, and the memory of his stare at the gala didn’t help.Like he was watching my every move.“You’ve barely touched your water,” Damien said, leaning across the table, his voice soft, smooth, but with that underlying edge that always made me shiver. “Everything okay?”I forced a smile. “Yeah. Just… tired.”A lie. My chest tightened, and I kept my gaze fixed on the candle between us, as if it could shield me from everything.“Tired doesn’t explain the tension in your shoulders,” he said, his thumb brushing over mine, a touch light but possessive. “Or the way your foot won’t stop tapping.”I snorted softly, trying to