All Chapters of Owned by the Cold CEO: His Fragile Acquisition: Chapter 31 - Chapter 37

The penthouse dining table is a slab of cold, expensive obsidian, reflecting the dim glow of the city lights outside. Rhea stares at the screen of her phone, the light stinging her eyes.Credit Alert: $500,000.00 Ref: Since you didn’t use the black card, here’s your reward for staying obedient. Punishment for leaving would be pricelessIt isn't a reward. It’s a weight. Every dollar is another link in the chain, another layer of debt she can never hope to climb out of. Five hours ago, Dominic had brought her after work, he deliberately didn’t want to leave her at work with Julian, so he left her to the silent, watchful care of Sarah before traveling for a meeting. The sound of the biometric lock engaging behind them had sounded like a gavel hitting a sounding block. Life sentence.A plate of gourmet dinner sits untouched before her. The smell of the seared sea bass, once appetizing, now turns her stomach into a knot of acid. The scent is cloying, oily, and suddenly unbearable.Rhea

The silence in the penthouse is the kind that rings in the ears, a heavy, airless vacuum. Dominic sits at the head of the dining table, his shadow stretching long and jagged across the floor. Before Rhea, a plate of untouched saffron risotto is growing cold, the aroma cloying and nauseating."Eat, Fragile," he says. It isn't a command this time; it’s a low, weary thread of sound. "I’m losing my patience with this hunger strike."Rhea doesn't answer. She can’t. Every muscle in her body is coiled tight, trying to fight the dull, rhythmic throbbing in her pelvis. She feels lightheaded, her vision blurring at the edges as a cold sweat washes over her."I... I can't," she whispers, her voice a ghost of itself. "I need to lie down."She pushes her chair back, the legs screaming against the marble. She stands up, her movements slow and shaky, her hand gripping the edge of the table for support. She thinks she’s made it. She thinks she can reach the sanctuary of her room before the world co

Dominic kicks the bedroom doors shut, the heavy thud sealing them into a world where the only light comes from the cold, silver moon bleeding through the floor-to-ceiling windows. He drops Rhea onto the center of the massive bed, but before she can crawl away, he is over her, his weight a crushing, inescapable anchor.He reaches for the silk tie at his neck and rips it off, his eyes never leaving hers. "Look at me, Rhea," he commands, his voice a low, vibrating hum of suppressed violence. "Look at the man you tried to cheat."He strips her clothes away with a clinical, terrifying efficiency, leaving her shivering and exposed on the charcoal sheets. He begins to touch her, not with the gentleness of a lover, but with the thoroughness of an owner inspecting his most precious, broken property.His hands roam everywhere. He traces the line of her collarbone, his fingers digging into the soft skin of her shoulders. He descends, his mouth finding her breast, sucking and biting the sen

The penthouse has become a place of silent, high-tech rituals. Rhea sits at the breakfast bar, a bowl of specialized, nutrient-dense porridge cooling in front of her. Sarah stands by the window, a human statue whose only job is to ensure every spoonful is swallowed.Rhea’s laptop sits open, one of the two devices Dominic has allowed her to keep, though she knows every keystroke is logged. A notification pings. It’s a private message from Tessa via the company’s internal server.Tessa: Rhea? I’m so sorry to hear about your health. I knew something was wrong with you, just didn’t know you were dealing with health issues.Tessa: The office feels like a tomb without you and Julian. He has quit too and I could not get to him.Rhea’s fingers hover over the keys. Her heart hammers. Rhea: I’m recovering, Tessa. I should be back in the office by Monday. Mr. Ashcroft is just being... cautious.There is a long pause. The "typing" bubble flickers for nearly a minute before the reply appears.