LOGINAudrey's POV
For a moment after I said those words, he looked genuinely surprised, and honestly, so was I. I had always been reserved when it came to sex. But deep down, there had always been wild dirty fantasies that I had buried so deeply I almost convinced myself it didn’t exist until now. I lifted my chin despite the way my heart was racing. “Cat got your tongue? I thought you were running your mouth a second ago.” A slow smirk spread across his lips, the kind that made my stomach tighten in a way I didn’t understand. I’m intrigued. It's rare to meet a woman who knows exactly what she wants these days.” His gaze moved over me deliberately and when his eyes returned to mine, there was something darker in them. “Though,” he continued, shaking his head slightly, “you don’t look like you can handle me. Most women can’t.” I let out a short breath that sounded more like a laugh. “You men are all the same,” I said, gripping my bag a little tighter as I spoke. “You tear a woman down just to feel bigger about yourselves. I know what you’re doing, and I won’t beg you. Even if I’m not what men usually want, I won’t beg to be fucked.” For a second, I almost didn’t recognize myself. Was this what Matteo had turned me into, or was this who I had always been, waiting for the right moment to stop holding back? He stepped closer then, close enough that I could feel the warmth of his body. “We’re not talking about the same thing,” he said quietly, his voice lowering just enough to make my pulse shift. “If anything, I think you’re sexy as hell.” My breath caught. “But what I mean is,” he continued, holding my gaze in a way that made it impossible to look away, “You wouldn’t be able to handle my high libido and my….12 inches dick” My eyes widened. They dropped straight to the front of his trousers again, then flew back to his face. Heat rushed straight down between my legs, making me clench. I knew this was the second most stupid thing I’d ever done in my life having sex with Matteo on prom night being the first. But I was soaked. If that loser could fuck Kylie in our living room like I was nothing, then I could have this too. I could have anyone I found attractive. I took a deep breath and locked eyes with him. “You’re the one who can’t handle me. Because you’ll be begging to catch your breath by the time I have you locked inside me.” His smile turned predatory. “So you’ll actually let a complete stranger fuck you?” I smirked, surprising even myself. “I’m a grown woman. I have free will.” “You’re challenging me?” He checked his watch. “We still have twenty-five minutes. Let’s make the most of it.” For a split second my brain screamed that this was wrong. I was technically still married but all those thoughts died the moment he pulled me against his chest and kissed me. Fuck. The kiss was hungry and deep. His tongue slid against mine like he already owned me, and my legs began to shake. If a man could kiss like this, how would the actual sex feel? He broke the kiss, breathing hard, and spun me around so fast my palms slapped against the cool metal wall of the elevator. He yanked my dress up over my wide hips, exposing my ass and the soaked lace between my thighs. His big hand came down hard on my ass with a loud smack. “Just how I like it,” he growled, voice rough. “Round and soft.” He spanked me again, harder. I whimpered, dripping down my thighs now, shameless. Then his fingers slipped between my legs from behind. He found my swollen clit and started slow, teasing circles that made my knees buckle. “Oh fuck…” I moaned, pushing back against his hand. He chuckled darkly. “Already so wet for a man you just met.” He pressed two fingers inside me, curling them just right while his thumb kept working my clit. “That loser must not know what he’s missing.” I gasped at the mention of Matteo. “Don’t… don’t talk about him.” “Why not?” He added a third finger, stretching me. “He clearly doesn’t fuck you the way you need. Look at you dripping all over my hand like you’ve been starving for years.” He pulled his fingers out and I heard the rustle of my black bag. Before I could protest, he pressed the pink vibrator against my clit and turned it on. The sudden buzz made me cry out. He slid the toy through my slick folds, teasing my entrance while his other hand reached around to pinch my nipple through my dress. “Fuck..please…” The words slipped out before I could stop them. He leaned in, lips brushing my ear. “Who’s begging now?” I was shaking, hips rocking against the vibrator. He slid it inside me slowly, letting the vibrations work deep while he rubbed my clit with his thumb. The pleasure was too much. “I can’t… I’m going to…” He pulled the toy out right as I was about to come. I whined, desperate. “No… put it back. Please.” He laughed softly. “Say it again.” I was past caring. “Please… I need it.” He pressed the thick head of his cock against my entrance instead, rubbing it up and down my soaked folds without pushing in. “You sure you can handle all of me, princess?” I was losing my mind. “Yes…just fuck me already!” He groaned at my words and finally thrust in one powerful stroke that stretched me so wide I screamed. “Fuck, you’re tight,” he growled, gripping my wide hips as he started to move with deep thrusts that made my whole body jolt. “So wet… so fucking greedy for it.” “Yes… yes… right there!” I gasped, pushing back to meet every slam. “Harder don’t stop!” He fucked me exactly like I asked, hips snapping against my ass, the wet sound of skin on skin echoing in the elevator. One hand reached around to rub my clit in tight circles while the other kept spanking me lightly with every thrust. I came hard, clenching around his thick length, moaning loud enough for the entire hotel to hear. My legs shook so badly I would have collapsed if he wasn’t holding me up. I was still breathless, chest heaving, when I turned around on shaky legs. He was watching me with dark, satisfied eyes, his cock still rock-hard and glistening with my juices. “You were good,” I panted, voice hoarse, “but you can be better. Let me return the favor. Room 205.” I straightened my dress just as the elevator dinged and the doors opened. My legs felt like jelly as I stepped out. Just as the doors started to close behind me, I heard his low, amused voice. “Of course, Audrey. I’ll be there.”Logan's POV The order rippled across every radio channel."Charlie Team, maintain visual, no contact, no confrontation,” I ordered."Understood," came the immediate reply."If the man with the backpack is only carrying equipment, then he's expendable,” I said, turning to John."You think he's a courier,” John said, as he frowned."I think he's the lowest person in the chain,” I replied."And the higher-ups?" John asked."They won't expose themselves unless they believe the route is secure,” I muttered."The jammer just went offline,” Kimmie said, looking up from her laptop.Every head snapped toward her immediately."What?" I muttered and she refreshed the screen."The interference stopped six seconds ago,” she said and I stared at the monitor."They're moving,” I muttered."Or they've finished what they came to do," John said.Neither possibility was encouraging. The technician monitoring the ground sensors spoke again."Movement,” the technician said."Where?" I asked."The western
Logan's POVBy noon, every member of the surveillance team was in position.The abandoned psychiatric hospital looked exactly like the photographs had suggested, forgotten by the world.Nature had reclaimed most of it, vines climbed cracked brick walls, broken windows stared back like empty eyes.The iron gates had collapsed years ago, leaving only rusted hinges swaying in the breeze.From a distance, it looked lifeless. That was precisely what bothered me.Places that were truly abandoned didn't consume fuel every night. They didn't receive armored vehicles and they certainly didn't attract Victor Hale."Status,” I said as I lowered the binoculars.The command crackled through my earpiece."Team Alpha in position.""Bravo in position.""Charlie covering the eastern access road."I looked toward the tree line. John stood a few feet away, studying the property through his own binoculars.Neither of us had spoken much during the drive. There wasn't much left to say.The truth was somewh
Logan's POVSleep had become a luxury.Not because I couldn't close my eyes, but because every time I did, another piece of the puzzle shifted.Victor Hale wasn't running anymore, he was retreating. There was a difference.A man who ran wanted to survive, a man who retreated already knew where he was going. That made him far more dangerous.The conference room at Lowill Group headquarters was quiet when I walked in just after six in the morning.John was already there, standing beside the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking downtown Los Angeles. Without turning around, he spoke."Did Audrey sleep?" John asked and I nodded."Eventually,” I said."And you?" he asked and I smiled faintly."I watched her,” I replied.He turned to face me, studying me for a long moment."You love her,” he said.It wasn't a question. Months ago, I would have denied it. The contract, the revenge, that had been the plan.Now… There wasn't a contract in the world strong enough to explain what Audrey had becom
Matteo's POVPeople always assumed power came from money. They were wrong, money bought influence.Power came from information; information ruined reputations; information started wars; information buried men long before they reached a grave.I stared at the city through the floor-to-ceiling windows of my office, a glass of whiskey untouched in my hand.Los Angeles glittered beneath the night sky. Ordinarily, I enjoyed this view, but tonight, it looked like a battlefield.My phone buzzed and there was one message. “The Hargroves searched Margaret Doyle's apartment.”That was too late. I just deleted the message immediately. Someone else had already cleaned the apartment before the Hargroves arrived.That wasn't my work, it wasn't Victor's either, which meant someone else was still protecting the truth.That thought unsettled me. I hated unknown players.A knock sounded at my office door."Come in,” I said and Grant, my head of corporate security, stepped inside."They're moving faster
Audrey's POVThe photograph lay on the conference table like a live grenade.Matteo and Victor Halenstanding less than three feet apart.Not by accident, not in passing.They were obviously talking. Logan was the first to break the silence."When was this taken?" Logan asked.Kimmie slid another document across the polished table."Eight days ago,” Kimmie replied and John's expression darkened."Location?" John asked."A private marina in Long Beach,” she replied and I frowned."A marina?" I asked and Kimmie nodded."The meeting lasted eleven minutes,” Kimmie said.Only eleven. Eleven minutes had somehow connected my past and present in ways I never imagined."This one,” Logan said, as he picked up another photograph."Victor arrived first,” Kimmie said, as she leaned closer."And Matteo?" Logan asked."Came six minutes later,” she replied and John folded his arms."They are working on something” John muttered.No one disagreed. The evidence spoke for itself, a meeting like that di
Audrey's POV"They found him alive."For a moment, I forgot how to breathe. The words hung in the air between Logan and me, refusing to make sense.Victor Hale was alive. My knees felt weak as I slowly sat down. Across from me, Logan remained standing, his phone still in his hand."Where?" I finally managed and his jaw tightened."They aren't sure yet,” Logan replied and I stared at him."What do you mean they aren't sure?" I asked."They tracked a recent financial transaction,” he replied and my stomach twisted."A bank account?"I asked and Logan nodded."One that shouldn't exist,” he said.That sounded ominous."Apparently Victor Hale has spent the last fifteen years pretending to be someone else,” I muttered.Of course, he had. Nothing about this situation could ever be simple."So he changed his name?"I asked, as I rubbed my forehead."Several times,” Logan replied.That somehow made everything worse, because innocent people didn't spend decades hiding behind fake identities.Only
Audrey's POVThe drive home was quiet. It was not awkward, not angry…Just quiet.The kind of silence that settles between two people after their entire world has shifted.I sat in the passenger seat staring out the window while Los Angeles glowed beneath the night sky.The city looked the same, the
Audrey's POVI didn't remember leaving the dining room. One moment I was sitting there staring at John and Elena.The next, I was standing on a balcony overlooking the city lightsCold air moved against my skin and I welcomed it. I would welcome anything that helped me think, anything that helped m
Audrey's POVThe world stopped. I stared at John, then at Elena, then at Logan. Nobody moved, nobody spoke.The words continued echoing inside my head. “We believe you're our daughter.”It was ridiculous. It felt impossible and insane. And yet… Nobody in this room looked like they were joking.Elen
Audrey’s POVThe entire day felt strange. No matter how hard I tried to focus on work, my thoughts kept circling back to the same thing.It kept circling back to the dinner I was going to have with John Hargrove, the thing about the DNA results, the Important news, and all.None of it made sense, a







