LOGIN******************Ashers Pov**************************“What’s that?”Kai’s voice was low, his eyes locked on the folded check still clutched in my fingers. My hands went rigid, cold as ice. The paper suddenly felt like it was burning me. Should I tell him? Matheo’s face flashed in my mind — that calculated smile, the casual wink. Do I even owe Kai an explanation? I wasn’t sure. But fear still coiled tight in my stomach at the thought of his reaction.I swallowed hard, the lump in my throat threatening to choke me.“I—”GAAW!!!The gunshot cracked through the air like thunder. Birds exploded from the trees in a chaotic frenzy of flapping wings and panicked cries. People screamed. Cars slammed on brakes. My heart stopped. My breath stalled completely.The bullet had been aimed directly at Kai.He moved like lightning, dodging at the last second as the shot slammed into a nearby tree, bark exploding outward in a violent spray. His eyes narrowed, scanning the direction the shot had come
The door had barely clicked shut behind Asher when Luka sauntered in like he still had every right to be here.I saw red instantly.“I see you’ve gotten yourself a new pet,” Luka purred, his eyes flicking toward the door Asher had just disappeared through. “He’s quite a pretty one, I must say. When does he bore you?”My jaw ticked so hard I thought it might crack. The memory of Asher on his knees for me just minutes ago — the way he had looked at me with those wounded eyes — burned behind my eyelids.“What the fuck are you doing here, Luka?”“Oh, me?” He smiled that same maddening smile and began circling me slowly, like a predator who knew he was safe. His fingers brushed my chest, trailing down my arm in a way that used to set me on fire. Now it only made my skin crawl. “Just an old friend paying you a visit. Swear you didn’t miss me, Kai?”I stayed stiff, every muscle locked tight, boiling with rage I could barely contain.“We were perfect together,” Luka whispered, leaning in clos
I had barely taken three steps into the hallway when the voice stopped me cold.“Hey babe… missed me?”The words wrapped around my chest like a hand squeezing too tight. I knew that voice. I had heard it once before — that same mocking, honeyed tone on the sidewalk weeks ago. The blonde. Kai’s ex. The one Kai had dismissed so easily. “Don’t worry about him. He’s nothing.”Funny how those words kept echoing.I froze mid-step, one hand still lightly touching the doorframe. My lips felt swollen. My knees ached from the hardwood. I could still taste Kai on my tongue, thick and bitter-sweet. The warmth of what I had just done for him was still flushing my cheeks, but it curdled fast under the weight of that casual endearment.Hey babe.Not to me. Never to me.I turned my head slowly. There he was — Luka — leaning against the wall like he owned the hallway, long blonde hair loose over one shoulder, that pitying smile playing on his lips. His eyes dragged over me, taking in the snowman shirt
The death of Jobes Baker had detonated across every platform by sunrise. International news outlets ran it as the lead story. Blogs, podcasts, cable channels, and social media feeds all circled the same damning detail: Baker had last been seen entering the Voss-owned headquarters in New York. The very building where I had sat across from him in my office only days earlier.The timing was surgical. Someone inside the family—or close enough to pull strings—had orchestrated this perfectly. My name wasn’t printed in bold yet, but the implication hung over every broadcast like a blade. Voss heir questioned in connection with suspicious death. They didn’t need proof. They only needed the narrative to sell.By mid-morning the street below the penthouse had become a media siege. Dozens of reporters, camera crews, and photographers pressed against the barriers, microphones raised like weapons. They shouted questions at every shadow that passed a window, desperate to be the first to capture a r
******************KAI'S POV***************************The news arrived while I was still punishing the heavy bag in the gym, sweat stinging my eyes. Mr. Jobes Baker was dead. Natural causes, the lawyer’s email stated. Heart failure. Fifty-four years old.I let the bag swing back and slammed my fist into it one final time, knuckles splitting against the leather. We both knew what natural causes meant in our world. Baker had pushed too deep into the blood mines contracts, the offshore shells, the quiet rivers of money that kept the Voss empire breathing. I had warned him myself. Clearly someone else had grown tired of warnings.By evening the city lights glittered coldly beneath the cliffs as I stepped into the Villa. The grand dining hall smelled of roasted lamb, aged wine, and butter. Glasses clinked. Voices rose in easy laughter. And there, at the center of it all, stood Matheo, lifting his drink toward the doorway the moment I appeared.“To Kai,” Matheo announced, his voice smooth
I stood frozen on the sidewalk long after the red Mini Cooper disappeared down the road, white exhaust still lingering in the cold air. Replacement. New installment. Enjoy the thrill while it lasts. The stranger’s mocking words kept echoing in my head like a bad song I couldn’t turn off. Who the hell was he? How did he know about me? And why did the thought of being “replaceable” sting so much?My phone was still ringing.Kai.I answered before I could overthink it.“Hello?”There was a short pause on the other end.“You sound off,” Kai said immediately, voice low and sharp. “What happened?”I hesitated, gripping the phone tighter. The stranger’s pitying smile flashed in my mind again.“Nothing. Just… ran into someone weird outside Othello’s place,” I muttered.“Someone weird,” Kai repeated. His tone shifted — darker, more dangerous. “Who?”“I don’t know. Some blonde guy with long hair. He said I was his ‘replacement’ and that I should enjoy the thrill while it lasts. He seemed to kno
Kai's Pov:The jewelries were made in the States, but the gold came in large compressed blocks from Africa. It was almost a third of the price we’d pay from local mining sites or China. The cost of excavation was practically zero. Poor, hungry people didn’t kno
When he said dinner would be brought to me, the last person I expected to see standing at my door with a tray was Kai Voss.I stood there wide-eyed — ten percent surprised, ninety percent aggressively aroused. “Oh… You.” I exhaled nervously. “Is that— food. Yeah. I’ll just— sorry— I mean, thank you
He carried me to his bedroom. Just like he always did — one swift motion and my feet were swept off the ground, dangling uselessly in the air as I lay across his broad shoulder. I didn’t protest. He would always have his way. It made no sense to push against it every single time when I already knew
It made sense not to leave tonight. I won’t say I wasn’t hesitant — it was too deep into the night to wander out there anyway. But tomorrow… tomorrow I would leave. I looked up at him. He was still blocking the exit, one hand resting on the door, holding it shut. I had practically gotten out of hous







