All Chapters of Bound by his Curse: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

35 Chapters

Chapter One: The return of his curse

Nathaniel's POVI have always believed control was everything. Control over money, people and my own body.Well, that belief shattered in the middle of the board meeting. The pain hit without warning, sharp and violent like something waking in my chest, crawling it's way out. My fingers dug into the edge of the conference table for support as I tried to keep myself steady. Words distorted into a muffled hum while my vision became blurred. My lungs forgot how to work.I had felt this before but it was years ago.Lifetimes ago.“Mr. Crowe?” someone asked, panic evident in their voice.I straightened slowly, forcing my breathing to steady. I couldn't show weakness here as weakness was unacceptable in my dictionary.“I’m fine,” I said coldly.The lie slid easily off my tongue despite the fire tearing through my vein."That will be all for today. You may leave.""But Mr Crowe, we are yet....""I believe I made myself perfectly clear."The board members exchanged uneasy glances as I ended

Chapter Two: A Life on the Brink

Iris' POVIf there was one thing my life had taught me, it was how to survive with very little.Little money, little sleep and little hope.I stared at the eviction notice taped to my apartment door. My chest felt so tight as I read the bold red letters for the fifth time.FINAL NOTICE.Seven days.Seven days to come up with the money I didn’t have. I peeled the paper off the door and crumpled it in my fist, forcing myself not to cry. Crying didn’t pay the rent. Crying didn’t keep the lights on and it definitely didn’t help my mother breathe easier in her hospital bed. I dropped my bag on the couch and kicked off my shoes, exhaustion was finally kicking in. Then my phone buzzed almost immediately.Unknown Number.I let it ring as I had a bad feeling about the call then it stopped. A second later, a text came through."Are you home safe?"I frowned at the screen."Who is this?" I typed back.Three dots appeared, disappeared then nothing.Great. Just what I needed, another problem

Chapter Three: The first encounter

Nathaniel's POVI didn’t want to knock but I did.Knocking implied courtesy and permission which I didn't need.I stood outside Iris Moore’s apartment door for exactly three minutes before she opened it herself. The moment our eyes meet, something inside my chest snapped.A familiar feeling of longing and pain. A feeling of relief enough to expand my lungs fully for the first time in days. Enough that my spine straightens, my pulse steadies, my body recognizes what it had been starving for.Her.She was smaller up close. Dressed in an oversized sweater that slipped off one shoulder, revealing her pale skin that made my fingers itch to touch. Her hair was loose in the most beautiful way.Human.And yet… not.Her eyes widen just enough to reveal how scared and curious she was. And something else she couldn't understand yet but felt all the same.Good.“Iris Moore,” I said calmly.She tightened her grip on the door. “Who are you?”Her voice wasn't weak instead it was defensive. A woman w

Chapter Four: The offer

Iris' POVI didn’t sleep. Well it wasn't like I could. I laid on my bed staring at the ceiling, replaying his voice over and over in my head.'You belong to me.'The words shouldn’t have affected me the way they did. They shouldn’t have curled low in my stomach or sent a shiver down my spine every time I remembered the way he looked at me in a calm and certain way, like my refusal was nothing more than a cover of how much I wanted him."Arghh!!!"I turned onto my side and punched my pillow.Arrogant. That was what he was. Arrogant, dangerous, and completely out of his mind.And yet…My chest tightened because part of me knew he hadn’t been bluffing.My phone buzzed on the nightstand."Sighs, not again.." I murmured staring at the phone. I let it buzz until it stopped. Then, almost immediately, it rang again. This time I had to grab it. “What do you want?” I snapped the second I answered.“You didn’t sleep,” Nathaniel’s voice said calmly.I sat up. “Are you watching me?”“No,” he rep

Chapter Five: Crossing the Line.

Nathaniel's POVI had imagined a lot of things about the moment Iris finally agreed.Relief. Satisfaction. Everything settling back into place.What I hadn’t expected was the way my chest tightened the second the word left her mouth.Yes.It was pain actually neither was it fear. It was more like the air had shifted, something ancient had been waiting for such response to finally lift it's head.I went very still.Iris stood a few feet away from me, arms wrapped tightly around herself, chin raised like she was daring the world to strike first. She looked furious and terrified.i recognized that look.“Sit down,” I said quietly.She frowned. “Why?”The lights overhead flickered once.Just once.Her eyes darted upward as she called my name. “Nathaniel?”I slowly crossed the room, I didn’t want to rush her. Didn’t want to startle her. I reached for her arm and pulled her away gently.“Stay there,” I said as I eased her into the couch.Her jaw clenched. “You’re starting to sound like you

Chapter Six: Too Close to Leave

Chapter Six: Too Close to LeaveIris Moore’s POVI should have left.That was the first clear thought in my head when morning came. I should have grabbed my bag, walked out of that penthouse, and never looked back. Instead, I was still there.Worse, I was sitting on the edge of Nathaniel Crowe’s bed, staring at my hands like they didn’t belong to me anymore.Something felt wrong.I pressed my palm against my chest, right over my heart. The strange pressure from last night hadn’t disappeared. If anything, it had settled deep.“Nope,” I muttered. “Absolutely not.”I wasn’t doing this, whatever this was.I grabbed my jacket from the chair and headed straight for the door. I didn’t bother knocking when I stepped out into the hallway. The place was quiet, too quiet. Everything about his penthouse felt controlled which was creepy.The elevator was just ahead. My freedom, fresh air and normal life was right ahead of me. I pressed the button and waited.Nothing.I pressed it again, harder thi

Chapter Seven: It Works Both Ways

Chapter Seven: It Works Both WaysIris Moore’s POVHe didn’t answer immediately.Just for a second, just a second, he hesitated. Then he stepped past me and walked back into the penthouse.“Come inside,” he said but I didn’t move.“Iris.”There it was again.That tone.It wasn't loud nor harsh but it was definitely impossible to ignore. I clenched my fists… then followed him. He stopped near the window, the city stretching out behind him.“Stay there,” he said.I rolled my eyes. “You really like giving orders.”“And you really like ignoring them,” he replied.“Maybe because you haven’t earned that right.”His jaw tightened slightly.“Stand there,” he repeated.I hesitated… then stayed where I was.I didn’t even know why I stayed.Maybe because I needed answers.Maybe because part of me already knew he was right.He then moved farther away from me.One step.Two.Three.At first, nothing happened until that same pull returned. It was stronger this time. I inhaled sharply, my body tensin

Chapter Eight: Control slipping

Chapter Eight : Control SlippingNathaniel Crowe’s POVI had built my life on control.Every decision is calculated. Every outcome anticipated. That was how I survived.That was how I stayed ahead.So why did it feel like i was losing it? I stood in my penthouse, watching Iris Moore walk away from me like I wasn’t there. She moved toward the window, arms folded, shoulders tense, like she needed distance. Like I was the problem. I exhaled slowly, forcing my hands to relax at my sides.This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.The contract had been simple.Contain her. Protect her. Keep her close enough for the curse to stabilize.Nothing more.Nothing complicated and definitely nothing… like this.“I can feel you staring,” she said without turning.“Then stop giving me a reason to.”She let out a quiet, disbelieving laugh. “You really don’t hear yourself, do you?”“I hear everything,” I replied.And now that was the problem. i could hear the change in her breathing, could feel the shift

Chapter Nine: Mrs. Crowe

Chapter Nine: Mrs. CroweIris Moore’s POVThe bed was too soft. That was the first thing I noticed when I woke up.Not uncomfortable, just… wrong.My body didn’t sink into it the way it should have. It didn’t creak, didn’t protest, didn’t remind me I was lying on something real. It just held me there, like I didn’t weigh anything at all.I stared up at the ceiling for a moment, disoriented.Everything was too quiet. Back home, mornings weren’t like this. There were always sounds: cars outside, neighbours arguing, something breaking, something needing attention.But here?There was literally nothing.I pushed myself up slowly, my eyes scanning the room. It was… massive and clean in a way that didn’t look like someone lived in it. I swung my legs over the side of the bed, my feet touching the polished floor.I exhaled, running a hand through my hair.“This isn’t real,” I muttered under my breath.It couldn’t be.Yesterday I was worrying about overdue bills and eviction notices. Now, I w

Chapter Ten: The first Shift

Chapter Ten: The First ShiftNathaniel Crowe’s POVControl had always been my thing.In every room, every deal, I stayed ahead. I saw things before they happened. Nothing caught me off guard.Tonight should have been the same, but it wasn’t. Something felt… off.I noticed it the second we walked into the hall. It was not an obvious or loud warning. It was just a quiet shift, as the air had changed, and I was the only one who picked up on it. My hand rested on Iris’s back as we moved through the crowd, a silent instruction she had not argued against this time. Whether that was awareness or instinct, I wasn’t sure. The pull I felt was stronger than before; it was more reactive.My jaw tightened. This wasn’t just proximity anymore; it was something else and i didn’t like that.Everything looked normal, way too normal and i didnt trust normal. Not anymore.“Relax,” Iris muttered beside me. “You’re doing that thing again.”“What thing?”“That intense staring thing. It’s weird.”“I’m not st

1 2 3 4

SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP