Carina looked through the crowd and wished she'd stayed at BookCrazy, hosting her Friday poetry reading. Tonight's work dinner party was a turning point in Eric's career. She knew influencers were gathering in this hall for a chance to make a splash, and Eric needed to stand out from the crowd to get noticed. She handed her coat to the waiter and let Eric lead her into the crowded dance hall. "I assume you have a master plan for your attack?" she asked. "So who are the two characters you need to focus on?"He pointed toward a thick cloud of cigar smoke. A packed circle of cautious businessmen surrounded a perfectly dressed man in a gray suit and silk tie. "Hyoshi Komo is building a Japanese restaurant. His vote is key to becoming the third partner in the waterfront project deal." "Then, why don't you go over there and give me your offer?" She took the salmon tart from a tuxedo-clad waiter and picked up a glass of champagne from another. "Because I don't want to be in that crowd. I
Carina decided it was time to find her husband. Aside from the brief time they spent sitting next to him at dinner, they split up to meet each other's partners for the rest of the night. She hummed to the tune of "I Get a Kick out of You" under her breath, checking around the room but couldn't spot him in the crowd. She decided to go down the elaborately carved corridor. Maybe he went to the bathroom.Her heels echoed against the shiny marble floor. The sounds of the music had faded, and she studied the pictures on the wall with delight, whispering to herself when she found one she recognized. Her footsteps carried her around the next corner into a gallery-like room filled with old bookshelves, their bindings only carefully displayed. She held her breath as her itchy fingers caressed the old leather cover and enjoyed the crackling sound as she flipped open the pages of a book steeped in history. "Ah, so in order to get your attention with me tonight, should I turn into a book?"She
"Oh, I noticed you." She turned her back and continued to study the books. "I knew you wanted me by the end of the night.""And you've been looking forward to this moment, haven't you, lady (Signorina)?""With each breath. So, should we use one of the bedrooms here or go to yours?"A stunned silence fell.Carina looked over her shoulder. A mixture of frustration and temptation etched into his expressions. Carina bet he missed the idea for a chase, but didn't want to turn down such an offer either. A smile of satisfaction boiled over her lips at the obvious conflicts and his rapidly losing confidence.A light of understanding shone in his black eyes. "You're making fun of me, aren't you?"She turned to face him, still smiling. "I suppose so."He shook his head with amusement. "You are an evil woman to tempt a man like that.""You're an evil man to think that a woman would do such a thing.""Perhaps, you're right. A woman like you should have a husband to watch out for at all times. Lik
"Congratulations, Eric. Carina told me you're newlyweds. It's hard to get yourself back into the business, isn't it?" "Sure." His head lowered. Her breath hitched as his lips brushed the lobe of her ear, and his nose nuzzled into her ear. Her nipples had hardened and tingled. She prayed her bra would hide the evidence of her body's betrayal. Michael followed the gestures without hiding his amusement. "Richard seems to think you're the perfect man for the job. Perhaps we could schedule a meeting to review your ideas.""Thank you. I'll call your secretary and arrange an appointment." She had noticed the obvious perfunctory in his tone, and knew that Michael noticed it too. Eric wasn't playing definitive business, he was too arrogant to be exact to pick up his phone and call for an appointment. "Very good." Michael took her hand and planted a kiss on her palm. "Nice to meet you, Carina." His Italian accent caressed her name. "I'm having a dinner party with some of my close friends two
She lifted her chin and deliberately mocked him. "I'll follow the rules of our agreement, but I'll also go to Michael's party. It's been a long time since I've had the company of a man. A real man. charming and funny and... warm." Her last words exploded in the air between them. She watched in hypnosis as the calm man she knew transformed into someone else. His keen eyes turned cloudy, his jaw clenched, his body clenched. His hands rose until they grasped her biceps. He looked like he was ready to shake her, or do something else, something completely…unreasonable. Her body lit up like an electric current. Her lips parted to catch her breath. And she waited."Do you need someone that badly, Carina?" His mocking tone scratched her. He lowered his head so that his mouth stopped a few inches from hers. With slow intention, his hand moved from her arm toward the skin around her neck. Linking his fingers around sensitive flesh, his thumbs tilted her head up, letting him detect the wild pu
Carina sat at the table and faced her parents. Her hands trembled with joy and relief as she pushed the check across the warped kitchen counter, covered in happiness by a plastic sheet of yellow sunlight. "Eric and I want you to take this to pay off our debts," she announced. "There won't be any arguments or protests. We've been talking about this for a long time, and we're lucky to have that much money. We want to share. It makes sense. is very big to us, so please accept this as a gift from us."The identical stunned expressions on their faces brought stinging tears to her eyes. How many nights had she stayed awake, feeling guilty for not being able to help her parents out of their difficult financial situation? Like her siblings, she hates helplessness suffocating her. She had decided to make a deal with Eric and her overwhelming emotions right now were worth it. This is a payment for safety and security, for her family to alleviate a deep pain she has struggled with since her fath
"I'm serious. I had a few minutes to think. And it was perfect. You're both too self-respecting, so you know he's not going to sleep with anyone else. This is how you got it. You can't have the sex you need, and then after a year, you just have to say goodbye, no hard feelings, no complicated stuff . It wasn't because she was confused by Anna's suggestion No, it was just the opposite. The idea appealed to her. She lay awake at night, picturing him in the room at the far end. His naked, muscular body stretched out on the bed, waiting for her, her hormones screaming for that fantasy. Ended up in a mental hospital at the end of this year.Cause: Single status. Anna snapped her fingers in front of her and pulled Carina out of her daydream. "You've disappeared from me again. Is Eric coming tonight?" "Oh, yes, your brother's probably going to love this sort of thing tonight. Or maybe he'd prefer a root canal or a prostate exam." "How are you two living together? Apart from that physical
Eric made his way through the bookshelves by himself. A certain guy in black clothes is reciting poetry into the microphone, talking about the connection between flowers and death. The scent of coffee mochas hit his nose, the sounds of a flute and the faint howl of a wolf drifted into his ears. All his impressions were on his wife.Her ebony-black hair fell loose and wild behind her shoulders. Her black-framed glasses really accentuated her blue eyes, which widened slightly to her surprise as she watched him approach. The sweater hugged every inch of her attractive breasts, then fell loosely around her hips. A tight black mini skirt stopped at thigh level. At the second glance, Eric corrected his opinion, the skirt was much shorter than he had previously thought, because that piece of fabric was quietly pulled up in a comfortable sitting position. her and now it can barely cover her. Knee-high black leather boots fully complemented her outfit. Those strong Amazon legs of hers were wra
It's just a feeling, but I've been feeling it for a while. Someone is following me. I contacted Kudo, and he seriously sent some scouts to see if I was in danger. He was supposed to see me in a few days, in the name of investigating a fake case. During that time, he wanted me to behave normally. He didn't want my stalker to find out I knew.Kudo said he had heard several reports of people targeting Raymond's allies. Raymond has been missing for over a year and his government is not happy about it. They think the FBI has something to do with his disappearance. Of course they have no proof. Kudo didn't seem too upset about that, though. The culprit is clearly an unknown person. He freed eighteen women from sexual slavery.When I first heard the news, I immediately thought it might be Eric, and my heart felt like it was being squeezed by someone. Kudo didn't say it, but I think he might as well suspect Eric. It showed in the way he asked if I was likely to know who the person was or if s
Johnny sits across from former Miss Yena Ruiz. She looks terrible. Her long dark hair was pulled back from her face and pulled into a messy bun. She has dark circles under her eyes and doesn't eat much either. The lack of food kept her in the hospital for another 72 hours, but they couldn't keep her once she decided she wanted to leave. Agent Sloan was also in the room. The revelations of the case were hard to swallow for her, too, and Johnny wished there was some way to comfort her without misleading her into thinking he was seducing her. She went to his room after visiting Yena at the hospital, and learned about his last conversation with Yena. They discussed the case for a while, but then she wanted to talk about the night they had sex, and he had to tell her frankly that it was just a one-night stand. She called him a coward. He called her even worse. “Is this the last piece of paper?” Anne Caliph asked. “Yes,” Johnny said. “Once you step out of this room, you will be Anne Cali
“Why don't you let me decide for myself what is right? I want to stay with you.” I said choked. My heart rate increased, and I couldn't hold back the tears anymore. You're giving me a chance to go back home, back to my life, back to what I said I wanted - but all I can think about is, it doesn't matter if That means I'll never see you again. He tightened his grip on the steering wheel and pressed his forehead against it, “You don't know what you want, Nana, and what you want, you're just brainwashed into wanting them.” I immediately inhaled, trying to protest; He raised his hand to stop me. “I've been doing this for a long time - manipulating people to my liking. That's why I think I love you. Because you broke me and then put me back together and made me believe it. This is not an accident. Once you've left everything behind…you'll see that." I could barely see him through the mist of tears clouding my vision. Eric believed what he said. I could hear it in his voice – but he was w
I was just unbuttoning my shirt when it happened. There was a huge explosion and something hit me right in the face. I reached up to touch my cheek. The breath left me in a heartbeat. Eric was above me, screaming, but I couldn't hear what he was saying. Looks like I didn't hear anything. My head ached. I bumped it to the floor when Eric lunged at me. Bricks flew everywhere. “Nana!” Eric shouted as he shook me. It pierced the silence in my head. BOOM! Another flood of rubble flew towards us. Eric lay on top, covering my face with his hands while burying his head near my shoulder. There's someone out there shooting at us. My eyes drifted to the door and I could see huge holes in what used to be wood. We rolled to the back of the bed. My whole body was shaking and I had no idea what was going on. Eric was pushing me and I cried out in pain. “Get in the tub!” He shouted. Then he pushed me again. I managed to get up on my hands and knees. Crawling towards the bathroom, I squirmed in
The mansion is very quiet, strangely quiet. No Felipe. No Celia. No Raymond. Eric didn't answer and I didn't ask any questions.It was very hot outside, even though it was only early morning. I realized I hadn't stepped outside in a long time, under the bright sun. I am wearing clothes. I was…free. My footsteps stopped when that realization hit. FREE!“The truck isn't far, keep going,” Eric said coldly.I felt myself choking, an excited laugh escaping my lips, “Where are we going?” I said with tears of joy in my eyes."Please don't ask. Just go with me.”I looked at him, the pain on his face was so intense. Now is not the time to argue with you. Whatever he was doing, it seemed like a big deal. It will change everything between the two of us, but he is begging me to go with him, and when the man you love asks you to go with him – you will.We walked less than a mile, but I was amazed at the overall scale of Felipe's mansion. Whatever his business is, it's probably making a profit. We
Fear aside, I parted my lips and let his tongue invade my mouth. He groaned as I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him down on top of me. I tug on his dirty shirt and he pulls away from the kiss just long enough to pull it over his head. Sand and blood, I'm sure, fell on my face, but I just wiped them off with the back of my hand and continued to kiss Eric. His hands were everywhere at once, touching my hair, pulling me close, squeezing my breasts. His pillow hill slid between my knees, pushing them apart. I opened my legs and let Eric's lower belly press against me. I can feel his masculinity, confined in his jeans, pressing against his inner thighs. As we pounced on each other, a part of his wild personality seeped into me and before I knew it, I pushed him aside. He grabbed my shirt and let out a sound I understood to be a warning. “Yours, Eric. I promise," I said. I grabbed the hem of my shirt and pulled it over my head, exposing my breasts to Eric. His mouth came in, causi
Eric has been gone for hours. I sat on the floor, next to his gun, waiting for something to happen, anything. So many times I thought about leaving the room and looking for him, but still tried to convince myself to give up the idea. Eric told him to wait. So I wait.A sense of dread began to rise as I saw light seeping through the curtains. The sun was rising and Eric hadn't come back yet. I wonder if Celia will return, but I doubt it will. The bridge between us has been completely burned down. The only consolation was knowing that she would keep Felipe from harming me.Suddenly, there was a very loud thud at the door, and then another hour. My heart almost jumped in my throat, but then I remembered Eric said he'd knock twice. I reached for the gun, just in case.I watched the revolving door handle and when the door swung open I could barely absorb what I was seeing. Eric stood in the doorway. His body was covered in mud. Blood stains everywhere.“Eric?” I managed to whisper, but sti
“There will be no trial,” Kudo said. He started walking again, a fist resting on the back of his neck. “I know how it is. I don't want to believe it, but I know. I've been arguing with my boss for the past few hours. There will be…” Kudo seemed very flustered. “There will be a lot of arrest warrants, I'm sure. Those who are auctioned will no doubt be taken to a shelter, but… no justice will be served. Not the kind that those victims deserve.” "How can that be?" I sobbed. “How could you let that happen?” “Raymond is a senior officer in the Pakistani Army, Nana. His government will not allow a scandal to get out. They agreed to let our government take part in the raid on the condition that they keep their men out of the way. When the chaos is over, it's up to them to decide who's present and who's not, that's how international political organizations work." I felt like someone had just hit me in the chest with a heavy wooden stick. For the second time in my life, I understood Eric's
“Are you sick?” Eric whispered. His blond brows furrowed nervously. I've never seen him like this. He looks so happy and peaceful. I reached up and stroked his beautiful face. "I am fine." He wiped my eyes, "Then why are you crying?" "I don't know," I replied and continued to run my hand over his face. "I think I'm just happy." He smiled, "Strange reaction to happiness, but that's okay." He bent down and licked away one of my tears. I squirmed, “What are you doing?” I laugh. "I'm curious," he whispered seriously. "About what?" “Will happy tears taste the same as sad tears?” he replied. His words made me cry harder. I can't control them. I am overwhelmed by everything. "And?" I managed to ask. "I think they're sweeter," he replied, kissing me, "but maybe it's just your face." We burst out laughing. I heard voices. I sat up in bed. For a few seconds, I forgot where I was. The room is very small. There are bars on the window frames. The bed wasn't Eric's. “I can't come back