All Chapters of MINE TO BULLY : Chapter 51 - Chapter 60

Helen’s POVThe neon sign of the twenty-four-hour diner buzzed with a low, agonizing hum outside the rain-streaked window, casting a sickly pink-and-yellow glow across the cracked red vinyl of our booth. It was past three in the morning. The air inside smelled of stale grease, burnt decaf coffee, and decades of midnight secrets traded by people who had nowhere else left to hide.I sat with my back pressed firmly against the corner of the booth, keeping my eyes fixed on the heavy glass door every time a car drove past on the wet asphalt outside. My trench coat was still damp from the dash across the alleyway, but I hadn't bothered to take it off.Across the formica table sat Lena, her dark hair pulled back into a messy bun, her fingers wrapped tightly around a chipped ceramic mug filled with black coffee. She looked tired, her eyes ringed with dark shadows from forty-eight hours of dodging corporate surveillance and frozen bank accounts, but there was an unmistakable spark of cold triu

The heavy oak doors of the ballroom slammed shut behind us, cutting off the suffocating swell of gasps, shattering crystal, and flashing camera strobes, but the ringing in my ears did not stop.Federal marshals swarmed the dais. The elite of Manhattan watched a multi-billion-dollar dynasty implode in real time, and Arthur Eros stood frozen in front of a federal indictment. It was everything we planned for, everything we bled and schemed to achieve over the last forty-eight hours.So why did my blood boil straight through my veins?I bypassed the main corridor leading toward the coat check and took a sharp right down a quiet, marble-lined hallway flanked by polished brass sconces and empty velvet ropes. The private restroom for the grand ballroom was tucked away near the service corridor, silent, cool, and completely deserted.I shoved the heavy mahogany door open, stepping inside, and let out a rough, ragged breath that felt more like a growl.The room was vast, trimmed in Carrara mar

Sunlight cut across the sheets before I even opened my eyes. I reached across the bed out of habit, expecting warmth, and found only cold fabric where Jace should have been. He was already up, standing near the window with a mug in his hand, staring out at the skyline like it owed him an explanation. Morning, I said, sitting up. He glanced over, gave a short nod, and went back to the view. That’s it. A nod. I pulled the sheet around my waist and swung my legs off the bed, watching him carefully. Something had shifted overnight, some invisible switch flipped while I slept. You’re quiet, I said. Just tired. You weren’t tired an hour ago. He didn’t answer that. Just took a sip from his mug and kept his eyes fixed outside. I got up and crossed the room, pulling on the shirt draped over the chair, watching him from the corner of my eye the entire time. He hadn’t moved an inch. Did I do something, I asked. Say something in my sleep that scared you off. No. Then help me understan

I didn’t plan it. My body moved before my brain caught up, fist twisting into his jacket, pulling him down until his mouth crashed against mine.He tasted like the coffee he’d been nursing all afternoon while ignoring my texts, bitter and familiar in a way that made my chest ache even as fury still burned through every nerve in my body.For half a second he went completely still, like he couldn’t believe what was happening.Then he kissed back.Hard.His hands gripped my hips and shoved me against the mirrored wall of the elevator, cold glass biting through my shirt, and I let out a sound I’d deny making later. This wasn’t gentle. This wasn’t the soft, aching reunion from weeks ago in that hotel room. This was punishment, five years of silence and abandonment poured into one desperate collision of mouths and hands and teeth.I bit down on his lower lip, not softly.He made a low noise against me, somewhere between pain and want, and yanked me closer instead of pulling away.You’re imp

The newspaper hit my desk at seven in the morning, dropped there by an assistant who clearly had no idea what she was handing me.The business section photo showed a grainy, timestamped shot of me and Jace at the hotel bar weeks earlier, his hand fisted in my jacket, my mouth on his, the headline beneath it screaming something about scandal and secret relationships derailing a business empire.I read it twice before my hands started shaking.My assistant lingered in the doorway, clearly waiting for instructions I had no idea how to give.Mr Monroe, should I cancel the morning meetings.Cancel everything until further notice.Should I prepare a statement for the press.Not yet, I said, though I had no idea what I actually wanted to happen next. Just give me an hour.She nodded and slipped out, leaving me alone with the paper and the growing sense that the ground beneath my entire company had just shifted without warning.Helen called before I even finished the second read.You’ve seen