Chapter 81

"Bolt the door," he said.I didn't argue. I walked back and twisted the lock until it clicked into place, the sound settling tension in the room.When I turned around, he was already on his feet.He crossed toward me slowly, deliberate in every step, and backed me up until my hands found the wall behind me and had nowhere left to go. The gap between us disappeared completely. I felt the warmth of him before any contact was made — that heat that radiated off him when he was focused, when his whole attention had narrowed me to a single spot.His hand found the door handle beside my head. Twisted it open. He pushed us both through into the bathroom, the door falling shut behind us.Then he bent me over the counter.His hand grazed my ass slowly, and I felt the heat of it — unhurried, assessing, like he was deciding exactly how he wanted to do this."I told you to stay away from Mike." His voice was low. Controlled. His fingers pressed into the flesh. "Why didn't you listen?"I opened my

Chapter 82

I straightened my skirt with shaking hands, tugging the hem down like it could somehow put me back together. The fabric felt wrong. Too tight. Like it remembered everything my skin still couldn’t forget. I arranged my shirt next. Fingers fumbling with the buttons. One, two, three. I missed a hole and had to start over. My breath hitched. Then I walked out the door. My knees were still very unsteady. It was like my legs had forgotten how to hold me. Like my bones had turned to jelly. I made it three steps before I collapsed into the chair immediately. My desk chair. It spun a little from the impact, and I gripped the armrests to stop the world from tilting. I brought my two hands to palm my face, letting out a shaky breath. It came out broken. Wet. My palms were cold against my cheeks, and I pressed hard, like I could push the last half hour back inside me. Like I could erase it. "Aurélie, what are you turning into?" I whispered into my hands. Then I laughed. It was a horr

Chapter 83

We got the conference room. I settled in the seat beside him. The air was thick. You could feel it pressing against your skin. Everyone seemed agitated, like something big was coming. Something that could either make us or break us. All the secretaries were on edge. Vanessa kept clicking her pen—click click click—until the woman next to her shot her a look. Marcus had sweat beading at his temple even though the AC was blasting. His knuckles were white around his tablet. But for some reason, I seemed like the only one who was relaxed. After what happened in his office, after the way my body still hummed and ached for him. This felt different. The urge to lean in and ask someone what the hell was going on kicked in, but I pushed it down as fast as it came to me. I wasn’t supposed to ask. I was supposed to know. I was his secretary. I was supposed to be two steps ahead. Everyone had finally settled, and the room went silent. The kind of silence that hurts your ears. Mr. Reynor stoo

Chapter 84

My hand shot to the strap of my bag the moment I reached my desk. The leather was warm, worn soft from months of me gripping it too tight whenever Donovan walked into a room. I didn’t think about it. I just did it.I picked up my phone and checked that I had everything in place. His schedule was mostly empty now that the auction drew closer. Just mostly packed with meetings I had no business accompanying him to. Board calls with people whose names I didn’t know. Perfect.When I took my phone and bag, I hit Addison a flash as I headed for the elevator. My thumb moved faster than my conscience.“Hi, Addie,” I said when she picked up. My voice sounded too bright, like if I sounded normal, it would lessen my chances of getting caught.“Hi,” she said back. Just that and already I heard it. The edge. She was still mad. She had every right to be.“Are you home?”“Yeah, why?”“Well, I’m coming over to you right now.”“Okay? But aren’t you at work?”“I am. And I’m still coming. Byeeeee, love y

Chapter 85

But I couldn’t answer. I was too busy shaking. Reliving that one moment where the trigger was almost pulled at me. My ears were ringing with the memory of that click.“I’m sorry,” I said as I cried. The word felt useless. Pathetic.“What the hell are you sorry for? You did nothing wrong. Tess.”“Get it away from me. Please.” I begged as my voice remained small and weak. I couldn’t look at the counter. I couldn’t look at her hands.“Okay, c’mon. Let’s go to the living room.”She gave me a tissue to dry my face as she sat quietly beside me. She didn’t push. She didn’t ask. She just sat there, her knee touching mine, until my breathing slowed down enough that I didn’t feel like I was drowning.When I’d gathered myself, I sobbed. “I’m sorry, it’s just…” My voice was half sob, half laughter.“Who the hell did that to you?”I scoffed, the sound wet and ugly. “Who could it possibly be?”“I can’t believe this. Rand again? How could he do that to you?”“I don’t know. I thought I was going to d

Chapter 86

As we approached the parking lot of the tower, I saw him.Mr. Reynor stood in front of the SUV, hands clenched into fists at his sides, his eyes blazing in the dim light of the parking lot. Anger was carved into his face, sharp and ugly.He wasn’t the usual calm, composed, and organized person I knew him to be. He wasn’t still like a lifeless sculpture, calculating and cold. He was vibrating with it, trying to control his fury as he struggled to stay calm.Mike parked right beside the SUV, and the moment his shoes touched the ground, Donovan moved.Fast.Donovan lunged towards him, his fist crashing painfully into Mike’s nose. The sound was wet, ugly. Blood streamed down one nostril immediately as Mike staggered back, his hands flying up to his face to try and stop it.“No! Wait!” I screamed from the other side of the seat, my door flying open before I even began moving. I rounded the car to stop him, my heart in my throat.But two huge men dressed in black caught me before I could re