جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 20

Lydia's POV The cold metal of the cufflink bit into my palm. I stared down, my flashlight beam shaking violently against the gold. D.V. The letters were engraved in a sharp, mocking calligraphy. My chest tightened, suffocating me. The damp, gasoline-choked air of the warehouse suddenly turned to ice. Four years ago. A gilded study. My father’s heavy hand slammed onto the mahogany desk. “You will marry him, Lydia. Damian Vance owns this city’s shipping ports. If you refuse, he will bankrupt us by morning.” Damian. The man who tracked my steps, bought my favorite flowers before I even knew I liked them, and whispered promises of lock and key in my ear. The man I had barely escaped by being forced to marry Julian instead. "Lydia." Zane’s hand clamped onto my shoulder, his grip grounding me. His dark eyes searched my face. "What is it? Whose initials are those?" "Damian Vance," I whispered, the nam

Lydia's POVThe air inside the basement smelled of stagnant water, concrete dust, and old boiler rust.I kept my back pressed against the cold brick wall, my fingers locked around the checkered grip of the tactical pistol. Above us, the faint, rhythmic vibration of footsteps pacing the floorboards of the main house sent a jolt of pure adrenaline straight to my chest."We’re under the kitchen," Cassian whispered. He knelt in the dark, the green glow of his handheld thermal tablet casting sharp, devilish shadows across his hard jaw and tattooed neck. He tapped the screen with a gloved finger. "The house is rigged with standard motion sensors, but they bypassed the basement storm cellar. Amateur hour.""And the boy?" Zane’s voice was barely a breath, a low vibration in the dark. He stood by the rusted iron door leading up to the servants’ stairs, his massive frame completely blocking the faint light leaking through the cracks."Third floor. East

Lydia's POVThe copper stench of fresh blood filled the blue-lit room, mixing with the sharp scent of ozone from my fired weapon. On the floor, Damian dragged his body backward, leaving a thick, dark smear across the cream carpet. His fingers clawed at the floorboards, his breathing ragged and wet. His silver-rimmed glasses clung crookedly to one ear, splattered with red. "You think... you’ve won?" Damian choked out, a grotesque, bloody laugh bubbling past his lips. He clutched his shattered thigh, his knuckles stark white. "You stupid, arrogant bitch. My global syndicate... they will dismantle your little shipping empire before sunrise. L.V. Global will burn. I will make sure of it. I’ll choke your ports... I'll ruin you..." Leo’s crying softened into hiccuping gasps against my neck, his little shoulders trembling. A cold, heavy stillness settled over me. The maternal panic was gone, replaced by a

Lydia's POV The heavy silk of my robe pooled around me. I stood completely bare in the center of my massive, dark office, the floor-to-ceiling glass windows framing the flashing neon skyline of the city behind me. The rain outside clawed at the glass, but inside, the air was thick, suffocating, and charged with a dangerous, raw heat.Zane, Kian, and Cassian stood frozen in the shadows. Their chests rose and fell in ragged, heavy rhythms. Their dark eyes burned, fixed entirely on my body, tracking the curve of my waist, the flush of my skin, and the hard peaks of my breasts under the cold neon light."Step forward," I commanded. The word left my lips like an executive order. No trembling. No hesitation.They moved in perfect, predatory unison, their massive, broad-shouldered frames closing the distance until I was surrounded by a wall of towering muscle, expensive cedarwood cologne, and the faint, metallic scent of rain.I turned, my

Lydia's POVThe soft, golden rays of dawn filtered through the floor-to-ceiling glass of my office, warm and blinding against my eyelids.I shifted, a quiet gasp slipping past my lips as a deep, beautiful ache radiated from my thighs and core. My skin felt highly sensitive, tingled by the phantom heat of the wild, uninhibited storm that had consumed us on the desk hours ago.I was tangled in a heavy grey cashmere throw on the wide leather couch. To my left, Kian lay on his side, his long, muscular arm draped heavily over my waist, his face unusually soft in sleep. On my right, Cassian’s chest rose and fell in a slow, deep rhythm, his tattooed arm tucked under my head as a pillow. At the foot of the couch, Zane sat with his back against the cushions, his long legs stretched out, his head tilted back in a light sleep, his hand still loosely holding my ankle.The three kings of the city. Ruthless, lethal, and feared by everyone wh