The sterile scent of the hospital room felt overwhelming, even more so now that we had moved from the ICU to a private room. The dim lights cast soft shadows across the floor, making the space seem both more intimate and somehow heavier. “I’m glad you’re here,” dad said softly, his voice filled with sincerity and love. “I love you, my Kat. I love you a lot.” With just those two lines all the uncertainty and fear I had in my heart washed away in a blink of an eye. He was glad I was there. He wasn't angry at me for the text I sent him. He didn't ask me to leave, so that he could be alone with Harry. He said he loved me. Harry’s body tensed immediately, and I could feel his gaze burning into the side of my face. I didn’t need to look at him to know he was glaring, furious that dad had noticed me first. Dad stil hadn't noticed him, his eyes were on just me. “I-I love you too, dad. I love you so much.” My eyes started to fill with tears and no matter how much I tried to control the
The cool air from the air conditioner welcomed me as I stepped out of the bathroom, towel wrapped around me. My hair was still damp from the shower and the air felt cold against my skin. The tension from the long day at the hospital clung to me like a second skin, but the warm water had helped wash away some of the exhaustion. For now, at least. After the shower, I expected to have a few minutes to myself, but as I walked into the room, I found Lucas sprawled across the bed, his head propped up on one hand as he stared at the ceiling. He was lost in his thoughts and didn't even notice me. I paused mid-step, raising an eyebrow at him. “Really?” I asked, shaking my head in mock exasperation. He turned his head toward me, a lazy grin spreading across his face when he looked at me. “What? Just getting comfortable. Long day, you know? And I don't mind the view.” I rolled my eyes, heading toward where my bag was thrown in the corner. “You’re in my bed, Lucas. I am pretty sure, C
The kiss lingered on my lips even as I pulled away, my breath still unsteady. I wasn’t sure what it meant—what we meant anymore. Things had been so complicated, so full of unspoken emotions between Lucas and me. But right now, in that moment, I didn’t want to analyze it. I just wanted to feel it, but I couldn't, because I felt like it was morally wrong to even think about him. My dad was in the hospital, I was in London to look after him, to make things better between us and not to kiss guys and get laid. It should have been the last thing in my mind. However, I wanted to know what was was going on inside Lucas' head. Did he feel the difference in the kiss too? “Can I say something to you, Katherine?” he questioned but I didn't answer. I kept looking down at the street. I wasn't ready for that. “Not now, it is not a good time, Lucas.” I glanced at him after a few minutes passed, but he didn’t say anything. His eyes held mine, intense and searching, but for once, he didn’t push
The silence lingered between us, thick and heavy. I could feel Lucas breathing next to me, each rise and fall of his chest matching my own. My heart was still racing, despite the quiet that had settled over us. His question hung in the air, unanswered. What did he want to tell me? I shifted slightly on the bed, turning my head to look at him. His profile was just visible in the dim light, the soft shadows of the night playing across his face. I couldn’t see his eyes, but I knew they were staring up at the ceiling, just as mine had been moments ago. I didn’t want to break the silence, but I needed to know. “Lucas,” I whispered, my voice barely breaking through the stillness. “What did you want to tell me?” For a moment, I thought he wasn’t going to answer. His chest rose and fell in a slow, measured rhythm as if he were carefully weighing his words before speaking. He wanted them to mean something more. He wanted me to understand them. So, when he finally did, his voice was low,
The room felt impossibly quiet after I’d said those words. My heart pounded as if it might break free from my chest. The air between Lucas and me was thick with anticipation, with all the things we hadn’t said and the things we didn’t need to say. My skin tingled, every inch of me acutely aware of him, of the closeness of our bodies, the gravity pulling us together. Lucas blinked, his eyes wide for a second, as though he was processing my request. But then a slow smile crept across his lips, mischievous and full of heat, the Lucas I had come to know so well. He shifted, pulling away just slightly to give me space as his hands moved down to the hem of his shirt. “Anything for you, little wolf,” he murmured, his voice low and rough around the edges. “But make demands from me, don't request. I am a slave of your love, do what you want with me.” “T-take off your shirt and show me your body.” I ordered, trying to be more intimidating. “I want to see you without clothes.” He smirked,
The air between us felt electric, crackling with a tension I couldn’t name but didn’t want to stop. My heart raced, not just from the closeness, but from the control I held over him in that moment. Lucas was at my mercy, just the thought of that made me wet. His hands, warm and calloused, traced a path down my sides, each touch sending shivers through me. I could feel the heat of him, the way his body responded to mine, and it made me dizzy. The soft rise and fall of his chest under my fingers felt like an unspoken plea, his submission to me so obvious it filled the room. “Look at me, Lucas,” I commanded softly, my voice steady, even though inside, I was on fire. He lifted his head, eyes dark with desire, and it hit me then—how much power I had over him, how much he wanted me. “I’m yours, Kat,” he whispered, his voice strained, filled with raw needs. His words stoked the fire inside me, a sense of dominance I hadn’t known I possessed. But it wasn’t just the power that made me trem
The first thing I noticed when I woke up was the warmth surrounding me. The weight of an arm draped over my waist, the steady rise and fall of a chest against my back. For a moment, I didn’t move, letting the reality of where I was, who I was with, sink in. Lucas. The memory of the night before hit me all at once. The way his hands had touched me, the way his eyes never left mine, full of that burning intensity I could still feel on my skin. I swallowed hard, trying to shake off the sensations that now lingered like ghosts, haunting my every thought, making me smile. I opened my eyes, staring at the soft morning light filtering through the curtains, but I wasn’t ready to face him. I wasn’t ready to confront what had happened between us, or worse—what it meant for our future. And my place in the family. My heart raced with a mixture of excitement and uncertainty. “Uhh... You awake?” I felt him shift behind me, his body moving closer, pulling me into him. “Yeah, I just wok
“We need to talk, sweetheart.” “Talk about what?” I questioned, staring at Caspian to figure out what he told dad. “What were you guys talking about?” “Your dad will tell you that,” Caspian said standing up. “It's important you listen to your dad and try to understand.” “Understand what?” Lucas questioned, a little harsher and a little louder than anyone should speak in a hospital. “Calm down, Lucas.” Caspian walked towards us, and I turned to face dad. He pulled a pillow from the side to put it behind his back. “I need to talk to Kat, alone. So, if you two don't mind.” “Yeah, of course,” Caspian agreed but Lucas didn't. He groaned and added. “No, we can't leave her alone with him.” “Leave,” She said, keeping her eyes fixed on the man on the bed. “He is my dad; I will be fine.” “Come on,” Caspian took the reluctant Lucas out of the room and that made me question what happened before I came to the room. The quiet hum of the hospital room settled around us after
I was always good at fixing things, maybe because I was broken from the inside and knew I couldn't be fixed. I became a lawyer to help my family, to help my brothers. I thought if I knew the ways of law and legal system, I could use it to my advantage, to protect them in any way needed. Yet, it had been more than a month and I was still fighting a battle with no end in sight. I gave up on too many things in my life, thinking I never deserved them. There was always a reason to hold myself back from being truly happy, about something or with someone. There were these little voices in my head that would make me question everything. For years, they had been silent, but ever since I learned the truth about Dad's involvement in the money laundering, they came back. ‘How could you let yourself be happy when your brothers are in trouble?’‘How could you be that selfish?’I couldn't rub my love for Kat on my brothers' faces, especially when most of them wanted her, too. It was not fair to
The sky was cloudless, the bright light of the moon covered the Salvatore property. We just had dinner, and it wasn't like the regular Salvatore family dinner. It hasn't been so ever since we returned to the mansion. Lucas was in Chicago, meeting with some of the investors whereas Caspian had himself locked in his room. Mom was back in Texas, and the twins went to their grandparents (mother's parents). We were all scattered, and the frustration over the situation was torturing us. The news about the Salvatores reached my dad in London and he had been calling and texting me constantly. He wanted me to leave them and come back to London. I almost laughed when he suggested that, but I controlled myself and told him that I would pay a visit soon.He wasn't satisfied with the answer, so I reminded him that I was an adult and he couldn't force me to leave. That shut him up for the moment, and I hung up the phone soon after. He had been texting me ever since, apologizing and asking me if
The Salvatore mansion didn't feel like home anymore.As I walked through the mansion once again, I felt the same way I did the first time—cold and out of place. The strange environment loomed around me, and with each step I took inside, I sensed a profound emptiness, the lingering ghosts of everything that had happened. Perhaps we changed while we were in the safe house, or maybe it was the mansion that had endured too much destruction in a very short period of time. The mansion was still recovering from the nightmares, and the gloom was maybe its way of narrating the pain. Not long ago secrets had been unraveled, trusts were shattered between the family members, and blood was spilled in the very entrance hall I was standing inside. In just a month, it was just a house again—not a home like it used to be. The brothers felt the changes, too; it was apparent on their faces. They could hear the silence everywhere inside the house, and the winds of winter that seemed to fill every corn
Caspian barely slept in a week and it was showing. None of us really got any sleep, but it was a little different with Caspian. The lack of sleep wasn't the only reason for the permanent exhaustion in his eyes like us, it was the weight of everything he was letting press down on him—crushing him, consuming his thoughts. It had been a whole week since the news about Derek's involvement in the money laundering was aired all across the country. Everything had only gotten worse after that. The Salvatore name was plastered across every news outlet—big or small. Everyone had their own take on the case, be it the editors of the Washington Post or The New York Times, anchors from CNN or Fox News, and even the social media influencers who were reporting the controversy in the hope of getting views and likes.In no time it became one of the biggest scandals in recent times. And Caspian being the oldest, took it all upon himself. Although we knew it was the politicians and businessmen whose
The main purpose of us getting a safe house was to be safe, but the FBI made it feel anything but safe for us. The air inside the house felt suffocating to me, thick with an unspoken fear that we all felt, but none of us dared to voice. In the last three days, the FBI has visited us five times. The first day they took statements from us and collected evidence—the standard protocol—nothing more than that. We thought it was all, but Caspian warned us that it was just the beginning, and just like he said, they came back once again. This time they took our individual statements and cross-examined us. Since we were already prepared with our answers, nothing felt out of the ordinary. However, I noticed the way some of the officers were looking at us. They knew we were hiding something, but they had no proof. Caspian made sure that everything in the house was how it was supposed to be after Derek left. It was their sixth visit that day. The FBI agents sat across from us in the living ro
They weren’t kissing, but they were about to, I was sure of that. Matthew called just a few seconds ago, to update on the situation. It wasn't looking good for us and we needed to plan our next move. I went into the room Dev was staying to call them both so that we could discuss the problem and try to come up with a solution together. However, I didn't expect to catch them just as they were about to kiss. I saw the way Dev hesitated and pulled away from Kat when I pushed the door open, the way Kat looked utterly lost as if she didn’t know how to process what had just happened between them. I was heartbroken by that but hid my feelings because it wasn't the right time to have that conversation. Instead, I focused on my brother and noticed the slight flush on his face. His fingers were twitching at his sides like he was debating whether to reach for her again or not. And Kat… she was frozen. It looked like she hadn’t yet decided if what happened was a mistake or not.And for a secon
Kat was never mine to fall for, to hold, to kiss, or to even dream about. She was in love with Caspian even if she didn't realize it herself, or was too afraid to accept the truth. Everyone in the house knew it, and I tried to convince myself the same thing a thousand times, that she wasn’t mine to love, that she had never been mine. The moments that we shared together were the prize for the good deeds I'd done in my life. There couldn't be any other reason for someone as beautiful as her to be interested in someone like me. Someone who is predictable, obsessed with things that don't matter, and lacks any social skills. I had nothing to offer her and I knew I was just another fool caught in her gravity, nothing more. It wasn't her fault or mine, it's just the universe forcing the likes of me to orbit around her. Each one of us was attracted by her warmth and kindness at first but couldn't break free after because leaving her meant spending eons in darkness. In her heart, there ha
Silence filled the room as Lucas finally exhaled and nodded in agreement with Caspian. “I don’t like this plan,” he admitted truthfully, rubbing his temples. I knew it was a hard decision for him because he did blame Derek for the things that were happening to the family. And neither of us could disagree with him. We knew he was right, but the actual issue was Derek's safety. “But… I don’t want Dad in prison with Alaric either. You are right, Alaric would make friends inside if he didn't already have one.”“Not just Alaric, the politicians and businessmen whose names are on the list would also try to have Dad killed,” Harry added, scratching his head. “You know the legal system of our country, one can pay to get anything done. We have to find a solution for them too.”“True, they are going to be troublesome in the future,” Neel agreed with Harry, bringing another pressing matter in front of our eyes. They made many new enemies in order to get rid of Alaric from their lives. “We have
By the time we arrived at the safe house, exhaustion and anxiety had settled deep into my bones. The thing we dreaded for so long finally happened and there was no taking it back. Mom confessed, Matthew showed the cops a file about money laundering and fake charities and officially lodged a complaint against Alaric. We did everything we could have done, there wasn't anything else in our hand. It was now on the cops and Matthew to move things forward. All we could do was wait for the things to unfold and hope they would go how we wanted them, and not in the opposite direction. The drive from the police station had been quiet, aside from Caspian’s occasional instructions about what needed to be done next. It was the same old thing, but I knew he was terrified and needed to say it, so I played along and kept nodding my head whenever he looked at me. My mom was in the back seat, staring out of the window, lost in her own thoughts after everything that had transpired that morning. Even