Liam gripped Olivia’s waist more firmly, steady and possessive.“And before you ask me another question, jealous wife...” His voice dropped lower, deep enough to send chills down her spine. “She’s not traveling with me anymore.” He tilted his head, staring at her with that burning coldness that belonged only to him. “And one more thing: I never slept with her in this penthouse, not in my mother’s mansion, and not at the company. On the jet, yes.” He admitted it without hesitation, without blinking. “You’re smart, so you already know we can’t erase the past. But we can bury it under something better. The jet still exists. What happened there does too.”His thumb tilted her chin upward.“So let’s focus on what actually matters...” His voice dragged low and lethal. “Creating new memories. Better ones. Yours. Ours. Ones powerful enough to swallow every other memory whole.”His green eyes burned.“I want this marriage to work, baby. I really do,” he murmured, stroking the back of her neck.

Laura’s eyes shimmered with tears, her voice trembling.“I don’t know...” she murmured. “And because of that, it’s better if I leave now before things get even worse.”She tried to stand immediately, but Edgar grabbed her by the waist and pulled her back firmly—not aggressively, just with a silent kind of desperation.She landed in his lap, and before she could protest, his other hand cupped her face.“I missed you so much, blondie...” His voice came out low, rough, heavy with suffering. “For the first few years, I hated you. And that hatred drove me. It made me study. It made me achieve things.” He took a deep breath. “Then life finally gave me good things... but even so, I couldn’t get you out of my head.”Laura swallowed hard.“But I never left your head?” she teased weakly.Her eyes trembled. Edgar gave a humorless smile.“Not for a single day,” he confessed.He inhaled slowly.“Sometimes, between shifts... I dreamed about us. In my room. You teasing me until I lost my mind. Me tr

And before Edgar could answer, Laura sank down onto him hard—deep, intense—stealing the air from his lungs. Edgar cupped her face between his hands and kissed her in a way that had nothing to do with control anymore. It was hunger. Desperation. Pure surrender.He groaned against her mouth and suddenly opened his eyes, locking them onto hers with such intensity that Laura froze for half a second.She tried to stay in control, but his gaze...His gaze unraveled her.“Edgar...” she murmured, tense, startled by the sudden shift.He slowly lifted his torso, forcing Laura to lean back slightly, and gripped the back of her neck firmly. It wasn’t aggressive.It was... inevitable.“You’re my Laura...” he said, voice low and burning hot. “...my gorgeous girl, my love. I’m crazy about you. I love you.”A shiver ran down Laura’s spine.Edgar pulled her closer, their faces nearly pressed together, his nose brushing hers in a slow, dangerous gesture.“Get on all fours, blondie,” he murmured, his de

The penthouse door opened with Alex practically holding Ísis’s weight against his own body. She was limp and unsteady, a dragged-out sigh slipping past her lips as she rested her forehead against his shoulder.“Let’s sit down on the couch...” he murmured, adjusting his arm around her waist.Duck lifted his head.Ísis’s eyes widened instantly.“Oh my God!” she blurted, clutching Alex’s shirt tighter. “What is that?! A tiger?! A bear?!”Duck walked toward her calmly, sniffing the air with curious interest.Alex bent slightly, chuckling under his breath as he stroked the dog’s massive head.“Hey, buddy,” he said, scratching behind Duck’s ears. “This is Ísis.”Duck brought his snout close to her and sniffed deeply. Ísis wrinkled her nose.“Alex... I feel sick... really sick...” she mumbled, voice slurred, eyes unfocused as she tried to concentrate.She didn’t even finish the sentence. Alex had only enough time to lift his head in delayed reflex before he felt the warm shock of vomit hitti

Duck jumped onto the bed immediately, sniffed Ísis, circled once, and lay down at the foot of the bed as if he had officially accepted the role of guardian of the night.Alex blinked a few times, trying to figure out whether he had really heard that or if he was still trapped in that hazy state between sleep and dreams.Ísis was sitting up, her chest rising and falling quickly, as though she had just run an emotional marathon inside her own mind. Tears still slid silently down her face, tracing uneven paths across her cheeks.“Ísis...” he murmured, slowly pushing himself upright. “What happened?”She took a deep breath, but it broke into shaky sobs.“I... I dreamed about him,” she confessed, lost. “I heard his voice... I could smell him... he was here...”The pain was so tangible Alex felt his stomach tighten.He picked his phone up off the floor and moved closer carefully.“Come here...” he said, holding out his hand.Ísis took it.Alex sat on the edge of the bed, and she instinctive