I opened my eyes just as someone laid me carefully onto a bed. The mattress dipped under my weight, and for a second, I thought I was still dreaming. But the scent… that unmistakable scent. My chest tightened. My place? The familiar shadows on the walls, the feel of the sheets, the faint ticking of the clock. Everything was exactly where it should be, and still… none of it felt real. The heat kept rising and falling through my body like a wild tide, consuming everything in its path. It wasn't normal warmth. It was intense. Burning. Almost painful. It made my back arch, my fingers curl, a breathless gasp slipping from my lips without permission. I heard voices. I couldn't see them, but they were there, floating above me. "With the injection we gave her, the effects of the drug should wear off." Drug. The word hit me too late, like everything else. I wanted to ask, to understand, but my throat barely worked. I heard the door close, and the sound left me alone with my unev

I stood in front of that office, my hands clenched, my heart pounding like it was trying to break out of my chest. Outside, the world blurred. I couldn't hear my own footsteps or the low hum of people passing by. Nothing existed except that door, that threshold that felt like a line between my reality and the edge of everything I feared. That's when the new assistant appeared. Tall, elegant, wearing a soft, practiced smile that looked almost too perfect. "You can go in. Mr. Sterling is expecting you," she said, her voice gentle but sharp enough to cut through the air. My body reacted before I could stop it. A tremor ran through me. And it wasn't just fear. It was something deeper, something heavier. Anxiety. Desperation. It made me feel small. Invisible. I took a breath, trying to gather courage I didn't have, and stepped inside. The office had never felt so massive. The walls seemed farther away, the ceiling higher, like it was about to swallow me whole. I walked slowl

Adrian Sterling slid a ruby-and-gold ring onto my finger, slow and deliberate, almost ceremonial. The gem caught the light in my apartment like a silent warning, heavy and impossible to ignore. The cold metal touched my skin, and a knot formed instantly in my throat. I stepped back sharply, pressing my hand to my chest as I tried to pull it off once, then twice. My movements grew frantic. It didn't budge. It was like it had locked itself onto me. I looked at him, stunned, my heart racing out of control. "What… why?" I managed. "Why me? You can have any woman you want, Adrian Sterling. So… why me?" He watched me in silence for a few seconds, like he was weighing my words. Then he laughed sharply, and mockingly. It was a laugh that stripped me bare. "Do you think I love you?" he said, still smiling. "Do you really think you're that important, Vanessa? That after all these years working for me, you somehow made me fall for you? That I'm obsessed with you, chasing you lik

Adrian Sterling's POV I opened my eyes slowly, like the world itself was weighing down on my eyelids. My whole body ached. Not sharp pain. Something deeper and heavier. The kind that settles in when something inside you breaks before the skin ever does. The sterile scent told me everything I needed to know. Hospital. Then the memory hit, fast and brutal. The penthouse. That night. Claudia. I was an idiot. I saw her face again, twisted, unhinged, madness burning in her eyes. The flash of the knife coming too fast. I remembered the impact and heat, like the air inside my chest had caught fire. It wasn't the pain that stuck with me. It was the shock. The realization that I'd let my guard down. Unforgivable. Damn it. Claudia didn't beat me. I beat myself. I let her in. I ignored the warning signs. I thought I had everything under control. I always made that mistake. A doctor came in, checked my vitals, looked at me with the detached calm of someone who'd

Vanessa's POV "I have to go to my sister… I can't…" I didn't even finish the sentence. His gaze locked onto me like a blade. He didn't raise his voice. He didn't need to. Adrian Sterling never needed to. Those dark eyes were enough. Watchful. Calculating. Like they could take you apart piece by piece without ever touching you. "You're going to leave me alone while I'm injured?" he asked calmly, and it sent a chill down my spine. "You're full of contradictions, Vanessa. Besides… I need you. I think you owe me." The air caught in my throat. I couldn't say no. I searched for an excuse, something logical, something that wouldn't sound weak… but nothing came. My mind went blank, like he'd flipped a switch inside me. Or maybe it was always like this when it came to Adrian Sterling. I nodded. Didn't say a word. He got up carefully and went into the bathroom. I heard the water run, the rustle of clothes, slow, measured movements. Minutes later, he came out dresse