Rook POV“You do realize,” I say, throwing a ridiculously tiny onesie into the cart, “that you’re gonna have to learn how to change diapers, right?”Mercer freezes. His head turns so slowly toward me that it’s almost comical. “The fuck I am.”I raise an eyebrow. “So, what, you planning on just letting her sit in her own shit?”He scowls, opening his mouth to argue, but then a small noise escapes the baby carrier, and he glances down at her. His expression softens slightly before he rubs a hand down his face. “Fucking hell.”“That’s the spirit,” I grin, pushing the cart toward the checkout.We don’t even make it that far.The moment we turn down another aisle, I hear it—voices. Too many voices. And then the flash of cameras.Mercer groans the second he realizes what’s happening. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”I glance over and, sure enough, a group of journalists is already swarming the front of the store. Some asshole must’ve tipped them off that we were out shopping together
Kade POVYesterday was a disaster. The kind of day that leaves you feeling like you’ve been run over by a damn truck, then backed over just to make sure the job was done. We’ve been calling her baby, just baby, but Nikolai found a note in her bag, something with her name on it. Harlow. That’s what Amelia called her. It feels strange, knowing now, putting a name to the tiny thing that spent the entire night screaming her lungs out.Why the fuck do babies need to eat so much? They’re tiny, fragile little things, you’d think one bottle would be enough to last at least eight hours, but no. Every three hours, like a goddamn alarm clock from hell, she was wailing, demanding food like she hadn’t just been fed. I don’t know how the hell people do this every day and survive.I’ve been in and out of the office at least ten times today, trying to get a word in with Nikolai, trying to get any update on Amelia. Just something. But she’s gone south—that’s all I’ve got so far. My mother? Yeah, she’s
Kade POVI tighten my grip on Paul’s collar, yanking him up just to slam him back against the wall, his head snapping back with a dull thud. He groans, blood dripping from his busted lip, but there’s still that flicker of defiance in his eyes, like he thinks he can still twist this to his advantage.“You wanted me to come back,” I growl, my voice dark and sharp like shattered glass. “You wanted me trapped. But how the fuck did you think that would work, Paul? Huh?”I don’t wait for an answer. My fist crashes into his ribs, the impact sending a jolt up my arm, but all I care about is the sickening crack that follows. He exhales sharply, his body jerking forward, but I shove him back again.“You knew,” I spit, rage boiling under my skin, tightening my grip until my nails dig into his flesh. “You knew you fucking slept with my sister, and you still thought I’d crawl back into your bed?”His head tilts slightly, his breath coming out in ragged gasps, but he doesn’t deny it. That only make
Rook POVThis shopping trip isn’t happening. I didn’t even make it halfway before she threw up all over herself, and like a dumbass, I didn’t think to bring extra clothes.By the time I pull up to the house, she’s calmer, but I’m still covered in baby puke, which means I need to pass her off and sort myself out before she does it again. Stepping out of the car, I unclip her from the carrier, lifting her carefully into my arms.Walking inside, I glance around, already knowing where to find them before I even ask.“They’re in the cellar,” one of the guys mutters, jerking his chin toward the door.I sigh and nod, shifting Harlow in my arms before heading down. The moment I step through the doorway, I stop short. Well, shit.“Okay, not exactly a baby-friendly scene,” I mutter, holding Harlow out toward my father.He barely reacts, just takes her from me with one arm like she’s a file being handed over rather than a tiny human. His gaze flicks over to Mercer, who hasn’t moved from where he
Rook POVI watch as Kade grabs his phone, his grip on it tight like he’s bracing himself for whatever conversation he’s about to have.“I’ve got to make a call,” he mutters, his voice quieter than usual. His eyes flick to me, then away. “Alone.”Leaving him alone isn’t something I want to do, especially not now, but I can already tell he’s in one of those moods where he’ll fight me on it if I push. And honestly, I’m too fucking drained to deal with another argument right now.“I’ll be downstairs,” I say, studying him for a second longer before turning and walking out.I want to know who he’s calling. And why. After everything that just happened, making phone calls should be the last thing on his mind.When I get downstairs, my father is sitting with Harlow, one hand gently rocking her carrier while sipping his coffee like he doesn’t have a single care in the world.“What the hell was that?” I ask, motioning towards the cellar door.He barely spares me a glance. “Before you start blami
Kade POVThere’s something deeply wrong with me. I know it, I feel it, but I don’t fucking care.I should. I should be fucked up over what just happened. I should be panicking, regretting, drowning in the weight of what I’ve done. But as I sit here, staring at my once bloodstained hands, there’s nothing. No guilt, no fear, no heavy, sickening feeling crawling up my throat.Just… nothing.I didn’t hesitate. Not once. I felt my knuckles crack against Paul’s face, felt the resistance give way, felt his bones break beneath my hands, and I didn’t stop. Not when he stopped fighting back, not when he couldn’t even lift his fucking head. I kept going.And the worst part?I liked it.Not in the way a sick fuck like Axel would. Not because I got off on it. No, it was better than that. It was control. Power. A high I’d only felt once before, something that had my heart racing, my body thrumming with adrenaline, my mind clear for the first time in weeks.I should be wrecked over this. I should be
Kade POVI don’t know how long I sit there, letting the drinks pile up, letting the noise blend together until it’s nothing but background static. All I know is that it’s not enough. None of it is. The whiskey, the jokes, the guys pushing me to react, it’s not enough to quiet the shit in my head.And I fucking need it to stop.I stick to talking to Tyler for now. The conversation with him starts off easy, filled with the usual shit-talking and half-drunken laughter, the kind that’s always been there, even before everything got so fucking complicated.“You know,” Tyler grins, swirling his beer in his hand, “if I didn’t know better, I’d think Volkov had some kind of blackmail on you.”I snort, shaking my head. “If he did, I’d be playing for his team already.”“Yeah, yeah. I’m just saying, I always figured if you were gonna let someone keep you in their bed, they’d at least be wearing the right jersey.”“That’s the problem with you,” I smirk, tipping my glass toward him. “You think the j
Rook POVI should have known he’d run. It’s Mercer. Running is practically his second nature. I gave him space for one damn second, and now here I am, standing in front of him again, watching him dig his heels in like the stubborn bastard he is.His jaw is set, his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes dark and unyielding as he stares me down. He’s daring me to push him, to give him a reason to throw a punch or bolt again.“You’re making this harder than it needs to be, Mercer,” I say, my patience already worn thin.His lip twitches, that smug little smirk appearing just enough to piss me off. “And you’re making this a bigger deal than it is, Volkov.”I grit my teeth. “You’re coming with me.”He chuckles, shaking his head. “Not happening.”“Then I’ll drag your ass out of here.”That gets a full laugh out of him, one of those mocking, slow ones that makes me want to put my fist through a wall. “And I’ll just run the moment I get the chance. What, you planning to lock me in a room again
Kade POVDanielle watches, waiting, maybe hoping that I’ll finally break. I don’t. I inhale slowly, shaking the blood from my lips, and laugh.“How long do you think you’ve got left?” I ask, my voice rough but still steady. “Every minute you waste here? That’s more time my men have to find me. And when they do? You’ll be fucking wishing you killed me the second I walked through that door.”The guy in front of me hesitates, glancing back at her, waiting for an order.“Keep going,” she snaps, her voice sharper now.He does. Another punch to my ribs, another to my jaw, but I don’t stop grinning. The pain is sharp, burning through my body, but I don’t let it show. They want me to break. They want me to plead. That’s never going to happen.Danielle steps closer, her eyes locked onto mine. “You think you’re so fucking smart, don’t you?” she
Kade POVI hiss through my teeth, more from the annoyance than the pain. “There you go. That’s a little better.”She glares, dragging the blade in a shallow cut across my side, but she’s still holding back. Testing me. I shake my head, sighing.“See, this is why you’re not going to win,” I say, my voice steady despite the sting. “You don’t actually know how to do this.”Danielle scoffs. “Oh, I don’t?”I tilt my head. “No. If you did, you wouldn’t be wasting time with this weak shit.”She presses the knife in harder, and I grin, feeling her frustration build. “You want to break someone? You don’t start here,” I say, nodding toward my ribs. “You start small. Fingers. Knees. Maybe a little nerve damage if you want to get creative.”She stills, something flickering across her face. Disgust. Uncertainty.&ldq
Kade POVHer nostrils flare as she presses the blade harder, drawing a thin line of blood. “You don’t hold the power here.”“Don’t I?” I whisper, locking eyes with her. “Then why are you the one trying to prove something?”Her grip tightens on the knife, but she hesitates. That’s her biggest fucking problem. She doesn’t commit. She doesn’t know how to follow through.“Let me tell you how this plays out,” I continue, voice smooth despite the sting on my cheek. “You keep me here, keep trying to break me, but it doesn’t work. Eventually, you get frustrated, you get sloppy, and then my men find me. And when they do, you don’t walk away from this.”Her eyes narrow. “You sound pretty fucking confident for someone tied up right now.”“Because I know how this ends.” I smirk. “And so do you.”Danielle exhale
Kade POVLorenzo is weird. Not in a bad way, just… he’s always had that tone in his voice that says he’s not right in the head, and sitting here, talking to him, I know he’s far from right.I glance at my phone again. I know it’s disrespectful, but I want to stay on time and prove to Rook that I won’t mess up.“You keep looking at it,” Lorenzo taps the phone.“Sorry, I just want to stay on schedule.”He nods. “I understand that, which is why, as soon as the hour is up, my watch will vibrate to remind me,” he laughs, and I nod.Maybe that’s what I need to do—rather than constantly checking my phone.I go back to focusing on our conversation, making sure he knows exactly who I am and the kind of person I am. He talks a bit about Nikolai and the time they spent together when he had just started taking over here. He respects Nikolai&mdash
Rook POV“Find him!” I shout, turning back toward the others, fury and fear bleeding into every word.“We’re working on it,” Damon says quickly. “But his phone was found out the back of the restaurant. Smashed.”No. No, no, no. That phone was the only way to find him.“Track my phone,” I demand. “Whoever it is has my phone. Track it!”“We already tried when you didn’t answer my calls,” one of the men mutters. “It’s not giving off a signal.”My head shakes violently. “Nothing? You’ve had nothing? Not a single fucking thing to give you a hint of what they want?”Damon hesitates.I step toward him. “What is it?”His jaw clenches before he finally speaks. “Lorenzo dug into it and he mentioned there were three targets. Kade, you… and Harlow.”Everything inside me stills.
Rook POVHarlow is still relaxed against me.“You having fun, princess?” I murmur, resting my chin on top of her head.She nods against me. “I like it here. It’s quiet, and you and Rose aren’t talking about boring grown-up stuff.”Rose chuckles from where she’s sitting nearby. “I’ll have you know I’m very fun, Harlow.”Harlow tilts her head back, grinning. “You’re fun, but you still say boring stuff sometimes.”I laugh, squeezing her a little. “Well, you got me there.”She sits up a little, looking at me seriously. “Can we stay here forever?”I raise an eyebrow. “Forever is a long time, princess.”She sighs, playing with the edge of my sleeve. “I know, but I like when it’s just us. No busy stuff, no people being mad about things, just us.”Damn. I feel that. I know exactly what
Rook POVFor the first time in a long time, I feel myself fully relax, knowing that he won’t be stretching himself thin anymore. He won’t be trying to do too much, won’t be running himself into the ground trying to be in three places at once.He made the decision, and I know he won’t go back on it.“You okay with it?” he asks, like my opinion actually matters in this.I press a kiss against his forehead. “Yeah. I am.”Kade lets out a quiet breath, his body sinking into mine again. I feel the way his hand tightens around mine, the way he clings to me just a little bit more.For once, he’s letting go of something that doesn’t serve him anymore. And for once, he’s choosing himself. Choosing us.This week has been amazing. It’s weird, I didn’t know what I was missing, I just knew things weren’t right. The more of this week that passed, the more time
Rook POVThe house is simple, almost too simple. The walls are bare stone, the furniture minimal, just enough to make it livable. It’s not extravagant, not dripping in wealth like the places we usually stay, but somehow, that makes it better. There’s nothing here to distract us. No reminders of the world we left behind for the week, no ringing phones, no people demanding our attention. Just us.I walk further in, dragging my fingers along the edge of the wooden table in the center of the room. Kade doesn’t say anything, just watches me with that unreadable look on his face. I know what he’s thinking. This place isn’t like us. But maybe that’s why he chose it.He disappears into the bedroom, and I follow, finding him already stripping off his clothes. He tosses his shirt onto the chair by the window before moving onto his pants. I smirk. “Eager?”He doesn’t bother looking up as he kicks
Kade POVThe meal continues with Rottami di Pollo in Padella, a rustic dish of pan-fried chicken finished in a wood oven. The skin is golden and crisp, the aroma rich and inviting.Rook picks up a piece, biting into it with an appreciative groan. “Okay, I’ll admit, this is really good. But no pasta? No pizza? What kind of Italian meal is this?”I chuckle. “Authentic, traditional. Not the tourist menu.”His lips quirk up as he leans back. “Still think pizza would’ve been a nice touch.”A wedge of Parmigiano Reggiano is placed on the table, the waiter cutting thick slices straight from the wheel. Rook stares at it, his eyes widening slightly.“That is an excessive amount of cheese,” he mutters.“Think you can handle it?” I tease.He grins, taking a generous piece. “Watch me.”When we finally finish that, the final course arrives, Arance all