MasukI hope you enjoy the chapters as much as I enjoyed writing them.
Chapter 14 Julian POV Every time I touched her, it felt like a lawless, beautiful sin that I had no intention of repenting for. The kind of transgression that burned through my veins like the finest whiskey — smooth at first, then igniting everything in its path. I sat in the heavy leather chair of my study, the one that had belonged to my father before me, its worn edges creaking faintly under my weight as I stared blankly at the corporate merger documents spread across the massive oak desk. The rain hammered against the tall windowpanes with a furious, relentless rhythm, mirroring the dark, possessive thoughts that paced through my mind like a caged predator. The papers were a mess of legalese and financial projections — distribution clauses, asset reallocations, and non-compete agreements that could make or break Vance Dynamics. But none of it mattered. Not really. My amber eyes traced the lines without seeing them, my mind replaying the stolen momen
Chapter 13 Allison POV With Julie gone, the mansion didn’t feel like a luxury estate anymore. It felt like a hollow, gilded cage, and I was the bird trapped inside. Her side of our shared bedroom was painfully empty. The mattress was stripped bare, the closet doors left wide open, and the silence in the room was deafening. I paced the length of the hardwood floor, my bare feet making silent contact with the cold wood as I stared at the blank space where her suitcases had rested just twenty-four hours ago. Every time I closed my eyes, I was dragged straight back to the pool — to the devastating, shattered look on her face when she caught us. She had left at the crack of dawn without saying goodbye, leaving me completely alone to face the consequences of a forbidden desire I had no idea how to control. The guilt was a physical weight, pressing down on my chest until every breath felt like a struggle. I had betrayed my best friend. I had lied to
Chapter 12 Julian POV My father was sorely mistaken if he believed a mere piece of paper and a corporate merger could ever restrain me, or if he underestimated what I was prepared to tear to shreds to protect what was mine. Standing on the balcony, I watched the early morning fog roll across the estate’s sprawling lawn. Looking down, I spotted a black taxi parked at the front of the driveway. Its trunk hung open, and a man stepped into view, loading a pair of suitcases inside. Julie suddenly appeared in front of the taxi. I could tell she was angry and disappointed. She opened the door, took her seat, and didn’t glance back at the mansion. She didn’t even wait for my dad and Sarah to get back to say her goodbye. As the driver turned to leave, I looked up to see Allison staring from her bedroom window as the car drove off, heading to the main gate. I took a sip of my coffee — black, no sugar, no milk, just the way I liked it. The hot, bitter taste traced down my throat. Another pr
Chapter 11 Allison POVThe morning sun was like a joke, shining so brightly through the sheer curtains of my bedroom. I sat across-legged on the bed, staring at the floor, my fingers following the outline of my collarbone, where Julian's mouth had burned last night. I was very affected and shaken. All my logic-based walls, I had erected in months, had crumbled the moment his lips touched mine.Julie was towel drying her hair as she walked out of the bathroom. "You have been staring at that wall for 10 minutes”. She looked at me as if she was playing with me, yet curious as well. Are you sure you don't have that headache anymore? You look... flushed."I put a quick smile on my face and replied 'I'm fine' quickly with my hand at my side. All the things we're going to have to get into in our two weeks here." You said you had a list of a lot of things that we wanted to do?"Julie's eyes were immediately illuminated. Of course, your mom's new home is super nice. We're definitely looking
Allison POVThe morning sun shone through the tall windows of the grand dining room like a physical assault. It was too bright, too cheerful, not at all daunted by the sensation of my chest being hollowed out with a rusty knife. I was so focused on the fine pattern of flowers on my teacup that I didn't notice the aroma or the taste of the hot tea. I was so absorbed in the intricate design of the flower pattern on my porcelain cup that I failed to smell the hot tea or taste it, even when I shook my fingers with a tiny tremor.I was drowning. A whirl of smells overtook me in the room, a sensory overload of freshly brewed espresso, luxurious pastries, and the sad, sinister weight of reality.Fiancée.I had been tossing it around in my head all night and had been unable to sleep. I had been tossing and turning, feeling the ghost of Julian’s touch as my sheets became a mess and my skin still tingled, the feeling of having his lawless, hungry mouth pressing against my lips as if he had alrea
Chapter 9Ally POVThe rest of dinner was a blur of survival. I managed to choke down a few bites of food, nod at the appropriate times, and force out a fragile laugh whenever Hollie made a joke about high-society wedding planning. Every second felt like a drop of hot wax on my skin, I couldn't stay here any longer. "I'm going to head up, Mom," I said, already on my feet before the words fully registered with her. "The headache I had earlier is coming back.""Oh, sweetie, go rest. I'll bring you some tea later," my mother said softly, her eyes full of maternal concern that made the guilt in my stomach twist into a tight knot.I didn't wait. I practically bolted from the dining room, my heels clicking frantically against the marble floor of the grand foyer. I took the stairs two at a time, needing to get behind the safety of my bedroom door before I completely lost my mind.Fiancée.The word was a physical weight crushing my lungs. How could he? How could he look at me like that upsta







