Mirabella's pov I was a limp mess on the table, my body trembling with the aftermath of my orgasms. I should not be craving Jayden's touch or thrust, especially after everything he had put me through, but here I was, feeling disappointed when his phone buzzed. I felt a pang of panic shoot through me at the sound—a memory of our first night together when a similar call had pulled him away, leaving me unsatisfied and aching for more. If the call was important, he might leave me hanging. But then my stomach fluttered with relief and a little happiness when he ignored the call and turned his attention back to me. "You slut," he smirked and slapped me tenderly on my cheek. It sent a shiver down my spine, heightening my already intense arousal. I bit my lip, trying to suppress the moan that threatened to escape. "Now that you've cum for me, let's make it my turn." His voice was low and seductive, dripping with authority. His eyes were still gleaming with hunger. Without say
Mirabella's povTo be honest, I had never felt this kind of thrill before—not in all my life. The pleasure still clung to me, so deep that even the steady flow of water from the shower could not rinse it away. Even though I was utterly exhausted, if he walked in here demanding another round, I would give in without a second thought.“If only he had made love to me like a real gentleman and treated me like someone he cared for," I murmured, memories of his touch, each gentle stroke and deep thrust, playing through my mind. "Then I wouldn’t regret asking him to help me escape the club."The only thing that spoilt what could have been a perfect memory was him calling me a slut. And maybe the way I betrayed myself, letting him see how much I enjoyed it.But if he had not treated me like some kind of slave, none of that would bother me now.A sudden jolt of electricity shot through me when I heard a knock at the door."Who is that?" I asked after I had turned off the shower."It’s me," c
Jayden's povThe cool night air whipped past as I drove, but it did nothing to shake the deep satisfaction and thrill still pulsing through me from the sex with Mirabella.No one had ever made me feel like this—not even the countless women I had slept with before. It was insane, honestly, making me wonder if I would ever be able to touch another woman again, which had been happening ever since that first night with her back at the club.Arriving at the club, I went straight to my usual spot in the VIP section, where Caesar was already waiting.After calling me several times without an answer, he had sent a text, letting me know he was already here. Caesar was already seated, his sharp eyes scanning the crowd. The moment he set his eyes on me, his face twisted into a scowl. His eyes shifted to the wall clock, then back to me as I took the seat across from him.He smirked. "Late again, Jay. A real businessman wouldn’t keep people waiting."I glanced at him, chuckling. "That’s funny.
Mirabella's povI was not sure how Lucy did it, but she had sent a message to me, letting me know Caesar had figured out a way to tamper with the tracker inside me. She asked me to meet her at the mall where we had first met so she could fill me in on the details since Jayden was home.Thrilled by the idea of freedom so close, I rushed to my closet to grab my favourite dress.The dress was a black, backless corset with a few straps crossing behind, showing off my cleavage and ending just above my knees. It was one of the dresses Jayden had bought me.“Damn, I look so hot,” I whispered to myself, biting my lip and wiggling my hips as I admired my reflection on the mirror—how it hugged my body.I was just about to open the front door when Jayden's voice cut through the room."And where the hell do you think you are going, slut?" he demanded.His tone was so casual, yet every word felt like a threat. "Shit!" I muttered under my breath as I froze, panic jolting my chest.I hadn’t heard h
Mirabella's povCaesar was the last person I would have considered to have met here, even though he and Lucy now lived like a couple. "Yeah, I didn’t want Lucy to come. When you told her Jay was home, I realised it might be risky to meet with her, and it turns out I was right," he explained."I believe you saw them when you ignored my instruction and turned."My eyes widened in surprise. "So, you knew? How did you—"He cut me off. "We don't have much time, Mirabella. Another reason I came here is to warn you. You are in more danger than you realise."I frowned, confused. "What do you mean? Lucy told me you found a way to manipulate the tracker, so—""Yeah, I did," he interrupted, his voice urgent, "but there’s more you need to know."He then showed me a video on his phone of Jayden entering a gadget store and leaving with a man who looked like an employee, carrying some equipment."Why are you showing me this?" I looked at him, puzzled."Did you know there are CCTV cameras in some pa
Jayden's povI was in the library, working on a painting, waiting for updates from my guys who were tailing Bella. Suddenly, Eunice knocked on the door.“There’s a woman here to see you, sir,” she announced.“A woman?” I raised an eyebrow, surprised. No one had ever showed up here uninvited, and others who had showed up by my invitation did came here for business, which happened only on rare occasions, which I could count.“Yes, her name is Ariana,” she said.“Ariana?” I chuckled in disbelief—this visit was unexpected. For the past seven years I had been living here, she had turned down every invitation I had sent her way.“If you want me to visit, you know what you have to do,” she had told me countless times until I eventually stopped asking.I had built my reputation as a powerful and successful man over the last ten years, starting from nothing but a private investigator by using whatever leverage I had over the city’s most influential people to climb the ranks.Since then, tho
Mirabella's povI was just a few feet from the entrance when the door burst open, and a woman stormed out, her face twisted with anger. I froze, taken aback—Eunice had told me Jayden never brought women here, so seeing her was a shock. Her tight dress clung to her figure, leaving little doubt that she had had sex with Jayden.So, not only had he broken his rule of keeping hookups away from home, but he had done it without a second thought about me—even if there was technically nothing serious between us.The woman scoffed when she noticed me, slowing her pace as she closed the distance between us, her gaze sharp and condescending."And who the hell are you?" She chortled.I furrowed my brows. "I should be the one asking you that. Who are you?"She chuckled. "So you are one of those he sleeps around with. Wonderful!"With that, she took her leave. Still curious, I called after her before she got too far. "Who are you?"She did not even look back, just tossed over her shoulder. "Why
Mirabella's povAt last, I had gotten a taste of freedom, and it was intoxicating. Even though it was just a glimpse, it felt like stolen chocolate melting on my tongue—a thrill I owed entirely to Caesar. Thanks to him, I could now sneak out at night, hit up hidden clubs, hang out with Lucy, and take back the pieces of my youth that Jayden had almost stolen from me. But it was not total freedom—not yet. I still had to be careful, always making sure I was back before Jayden noticed anything. Eunice had been a lifesaver, helping me cover my tracks and keep things under control.However, I could not let my guard down just yet.Also, Caesar’s help was my lifeline; his ability to manipulate the CCTV cameras in our house made my secret escapades possible. The CCTV cameras that were secretly planted in the mansion were all I needed to confirm that Jayden was obsessed over me because why would he need to track my every movement?I sat at the dining table in Caesar and Lucy's home, digging
Mirabella's pov“Why are you trying to drink yourself to death?” I asked Jayden, surprise and shock still etched on my face. He didn't say anything but only stared at the ceiling as though it held the answers to every question he was too tired to ask. The Jayden I knew was sharp, always in control. But version of him looked... shattered and exposed, a shift that had been obvious since he struck the boy. "Why are you doing this to yourself?" I asked gently, moving a little closer. He muttered something under his breath, too low to catch at first, but the words eventually registered.“What if the boy dies, uh?” His eyes darted to mine, wild and glassy, searching me for something I didn’t understand. "I can't just stop wondering about the possibility no matter how hard I try not to."It was hard to ignore the state he was in."You are drunk, Jayden," I said, closing the distance between us after realising there was no point in having this conversation with him again. "Come on, l
Mirabella's pov "Did we... Is he dead?" My eyes shot wide with shock, locking with Jayden's equally panicked gaze. Without a word, he unbuckled his seatbelt and jumped out of the car. I hurried after him, heart pounding as we approached the front. "Shit!" he muttered, his voice strained with panic. He crouched down immediately, pulling the boy toward him. Blood was seeping out fast, staining the floor. "Is he...?" "He's alive," he said suddenly, his face lighting up with relief as he felt for a pulse. "He's alive, Bella!" he repeated, a shaky laugh escaping him. Around us, a crowd had started to gather. Some were filming on their phones, others just standing there, watching like it was a movie. "Are you all seriously just standing there?" Jayden's voice boomed. "Put your damn phones down and help!" His shout echoed through the street, cutting through the murmurs. But no one did. "We should call an ambulance," I said quickly, turning back to the car to grab my p
Jayden's povIf there was one thing that still got under my skin, even after things had started to shift between Mirabella and me, it was how she still was not completely at ease around me. "What do you want to listen to?" I asked as I prepared to drive out of the mansion, my fingers drumming lightly on the steering wheel. She turned her head to me, eyes narrowed like I had asked a tricky question. I rolled my eyes and scoffed. "Come on, don't overthink it. What genre do you like, dummy?" A small laugh escaped her lips as realisation dawned on her, and for a second, I felt the warmth of it. "Anything works, I guess," she shrugged. Her answer rubbed me the wrong way, and I could not hide the flicker of disappointment on my face. I still could not wrap my head around why she was still walking on eggshells around me. "Come on," I said with a short laugh, masking how I really felt. "How can you say that? You can’t be serious. Just name something. Any artiste or genre. Just name it
Mirabella's povIt turned out to be Jayden as he leaned casually against the doorframe."Relax, it's just me," he said, throwing his hands up in the air with that stupidly charming grin of his."I'm not here to steal anything from you or harm you."I rolled my eyes as a faint smile tugged at my lips."Oh really? Then why exactly are you sneaking into a girl's room uninvited? Pretty sure that's called trespassing, you know." I chuckled, my brows furrowing playfully.He shrugged, trailing his gaze down my body with a slow, deliberate stare that made my cheeks flush. "Well... just making sure things are in perfect ways."My breath caught in my throat as my mind raced to decipher what he meant by that. "Things like?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper, the smile still lingering on my lips despite the heat creeping up my neck.His smirk deepened, and he took a step closer, his presence filling the room with an almost tangible intensity. "Things like making sure your appearance is p
Mirabella's pov The fear and foreboding that had hung over my time with Jayden seemed to fade with each passing day. Our silent meals in the dining room, which I always expected to end in having sex with him, which didn't, began to include small conversations. They were not much, just fragments, but enough to make me realise he could be something other than the cold and ruthless man I first knew. Evening walks through the mansion followed, requested in a surprisingly humble tone instead of his usual commanding bark whenever he did want to make me do things, and even shopping trips, where he bought me anything I desired. If someone had told me this shift would happen between us, I would have laughed in disbelief. Yet, here I was, growing oddly comfortable around him. This made me recall Eunice and Lucy’s observations, trying to follow their suggestions in the hope of bridging whatever strange gap lay between him and me. Standing in front of the mirror in my room, a faint smile cur
Jayden's pov"I’m lost, Ariana," I admitted, my voice uncharacteristically low."I’ve never felt like this before. Never. For the first time in my life, I want someone—not for control, not to conquer—but because I need her. And it’s messing me up." I ran a hand through my hair, my frustration bubbling to the surface. "Do you have any idea how hard it is for someone like me to admit this? To feel like I’m begging for scraps of attention? She’s all I think about, but I feel like I’m hitting a wall every time I try to get through to her. And it’s driving me insane." She stayed silent, her expression unreadable as I continued. "I know I don’t deserve her," I said, my voice dropping even lower. "Not after everything I’ve done. I could force her, sure—I’ve forced people into things before; we both know that. But this… It’s about her being the one thing in my life that is real." "I... I just want her to choose me. I want it to be real, Ariana. I want her to want me on her own. Not becau
Jayden's povI could not keep humiliating myself by confessing my feelings to Mirabella over and over again. Her constant doubt about my intentions and the way she avoided me were getting under my skin. It frustrated me to no end, tempting me to do things I did not want to resort to. I was not used to being denied what I wanted—no matter how far or difficult it was to reach. Sure, I was in love with her. But if I wanted to, I could force her to fall for me because the calm I had been wearing to wait for her acceptance could slip at any moment. Yet, before taking that route, I figured I should talk it out with Ariana first after confessing my love to Mirabella for the second time, since she was always pushing me to become a better version of myself.When I arrived at Ariana’s door and knocked, I was not sure if I was more amused or shocked when a guy opened it. He stood there like he owned the place, wearing nothing but a pair of black underpants that hung low on his hips. My eyes
Mirabella pov"Good morning, Mirabella," Jayden said.I froze, my gaze locking with his as my breath caught in my throat. This was exactly what I was avoiding, yet here I was, caught in his intense gaze. "Shit," I cursed inwardly, unsure whether to retreat back to my room or proceed with my original plan. My hesitation must have been obvious, but he seemed unfazed as his lips quirked into a faint smile. He wiped his mouth with a napkin, never breaking eye contact. "I see you are feeling better for you to walk from your room all the way down here. That’s… good to know." His casual tone contrasted with the tension simmering in the air. My chest tightened, berating myself for coming downstairs at all. "What was I even thinking?"Finally, I decided to end this humiliating encounter and spun on my heel, aiming to retreat to the safety of my room. I moved so quickly that I tripped over my own feet. My heart lurched as I braced for an embarrassing fall. But it never came as a hand gr
Mirabella's povA knock rattled my door, breaking the fragile bubble of sleep I had barely managed to slip into. I groaned, pulling the pillow over my head. My eyes cracked open, still weighed down with sleep, as Jayden’s words from last night echoed faintly in my mind: "It’s because I love you.”It sounded even more absurd now in the daylight, like a dream that had overstayed its welcome.I still could not figure out if I should laugh or panic. Love? Him? The same man who had terrorised me like it was a hobby? I quickly rubbed the sleep from my eyes, my heart racing with panic just as the knock came again, more insistent this time. I froze, thinking it was Jayden, here to finally unleash his wrath on me."Mirabella?” Eunice’s voice echoed from behind the door."Come in,” I mumbled, sitting up and rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I stretched my arms above my head.The door creaked open, and she stepped in.As she walked towards me, her eyes scanned me from head to toe like I was a