All Chapters of Forbidden: His Father's Desire: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

SANDRA'S POVI know exactly how prisoners feel.The thought arrives the moment I step into the ballroom and immediately makes me feel guilty because nobody dragged me here, nobody locked any doors, and nobody forced me into the expensive dress hanging perfectly against my body, yet as congratulations begin following me from every direction, I can't shake the feeling that I'm attending an event built around somebody else's life.Not mine.The ballroom glows beneath crystal chandeliers while waiters move through the crowd carrying champagne and photographers capture every smile they can find, and judging by the expressions around me, tonight is supposed to be beautiful.Austin certainly thinks so.His hand settles against my lower back before we've even crossed the room, and the smile he gives me is so proud, so confident, so certain that for a second I wonder if he's looking at a version of me that doesn't actually exist."There she is," he says while pulling me closer for another phot

KELVIN'S POVMarcus Webb doesn't strike me as the type of man who enjoys golf.The realization arrives halfway through lunch while he stands beside a putting green overlooking one of the most expensive country clubs in Los Angeles, smiling politely at investors and executives while pretending this gathering is about networking instead of information.Men like Marcus don't attend events.They study them.They study people.And today he's studying me. I know it before he says a single word.The lunch itself is harmless enough on the surface as investors discuss acquisitions, market projections, and expansion plans while waiters move between tables carrying drinks and perfectly arranged meals, yet every time I glance in Marcus's direction, I find him watching conversations instead of participating in them.The same way predators don't chase immediately, they wait."Clayton Global's acquisition numbers are impressive."Marcus appears beside me so quietly I almost don't hear him approach.

KELVIN'S POVI should have canceled, and the thought follows me through the entire drive as one reason after another lines up in my head because I should have called, should have texted, and should have done something sensible for once, yet despite knowing better, I'm still on my way to another mistake. The café is quiet for a Saturday afternoon, tucked between a bookstore and a flower shop in a part of the city where nobody pays attention to anyone else. Soft music drifts through hidden speakers while people sit with laptops and coffee cups, completely absorbed in their own lives.Sandra is already there.She's sitting beside the window with a cup of coffee she hasn't touched, and the second she notices me walking toward her, something in my chest loosens.I slide into the seat across from her.For a few seconds neither of us speaks.The silence feels familiar now. Like we're both carrying things we haven't figured out how to say."You look tired."Sandra's voice is soft, concerned.

KELVIN'S POVFor a second, I genuinely forget how to breathe.The words hang between us while neither of us moves, and I just stand there staring at Sandra because I've imagined hearing those words a hundred different times and somehow none of those versions prepared me for the reality.Not because I didn't know.God knows I knew.Every conversation, every look. Every moment neither of us wanted to end.I've known for a long time but hearing it aloud changes everything because feelings can be ignored.Confessions can't.The line we've spent months trying not to cross no longer exists and neither does the illusion that we're still pretending.Sandra's eyes are shining with tears.Her breathing is uneven.She's terrified, so am I.The difference is that she just found the courage to say it.I haven't.For several seconds, neither of us speaks.The silence isn't awkward, it's overwhelming because there are moments that divide your life into before and after.This is one of them.Sandra s

KELVIN'S POVThe first sign that Marcus Webb has stopped treating this like business arrives on a Tuesday morning.His assistant calls before eight."Mr. Webb would like another copy of the report."I glance up from my laptop.Another copy.The third copy this week.My stomach tightens immediately because normal people don't reread investigator reports three times.Obsessed people do.The call ends.Outside my office window, Los Angeles stretches endlessly beneath a clear blue sky while employees move through Clayton Global headquarters and meetings fill calendars across multiple departments.Everything looks normal from the outside, with employees moving through the building and meetings filling calendars across the company, but nothing feels normal anymore because Marcus isn't investigating now—he's hunting. And hunters don't stop when they're curious; they stop when they finally catch something, or someone. Across the city, Marcus sits alone inside his office surrounded by files