Sarah lay sprawled across the bed, her figure illuminated by the moonlight.Her long hair spilled over the pillow, curling like dark tendrils against the white linen.At some point, she had rolled closer to him, her arm now draped across his chest in a way that was both unexpected and… comforting.Alexander froze, unsure of what to do.The woman who had spent the day sparring with him, teasing him with her quick wit and sharp tongue, now looked impossibly serene.Her lips, which had delivered more barbed remarks than he could count, were slightly parted as she breathed in and out, soft and rhythmic.Her long lashes cast delicate shadows over her cheeks.For a moment, the sight of her distracted him from everything else, the investigation, the pretense, the world outside their bedroom.She sighed in her sleep, her brow twitching slightly as if she were reacting to some dream he couldn’t see.The sound was so soft, so unguarded, that it sent a pang through him.How is it that you’re alw
They lay there for a moment longer, the morning light wrapping them in a cocoon of warmth.“Alright,” Alexander finally said, his voice tinged with amusement. “Since you’re clearly so captivated by my presence, why don’t you help me up so we can start the day?”Sarah rolled her eyes but sat up, the sheets pooling around her waist as she reached out a hand to him. “Oh, please. I’m doing this out of kindness, not admiration.”“Of course you are,” he replied, smirking as he clasped her hand.As she helped him sit up, Alexander took a moment to study her.Her hair was slightly tousled, and her cheeks were still pink from their earlier exchange.She looked different from the composed, guarded woman he had married.She looked… real.“Alright, time to freshen up,” Sarah announced, breaking the moment as she slid out of bed.She stretched briefly before grabbing her robe and heading toward the en suite bathroom.Alexander leaned back against the headboard, watching her retreat with a faint sm
The morning air was crisp and refreshing, a stark contrast to the suffocating atmosphere of the dining room.They walked in silence for a while, the gravel crunching softly beneath their feet.“You don’t have to let her treat you like that,” Alexander said finally, breaking the silence.Sarah glanced at him, her expression conflicted. “She’s your mother,” she said quietly. “I don’t want to make things harder for you.”Alexander stopped and turned to face her, his gray eyes searching hers. “She’s my mother, yes. But you’re my wife. And I won’t stand by while she disrespects you. You shouldn’t either.”Sarah looked down, her fingers twisting nervously. “It’s not that simple,” she murmured.“It is,” Alexander insisted, his voice firm but not unkind. “You’ve stood up to me plenty of times. You can do the same with her.”She gave a small, humorless laugh. “You’re different,” she said, finally meeting his gaze. “With you, I feel like I can fight back. With her... I feel like I’m sixteen aga
Sarah returned to the study with a tray in her hands, balancing a steaming cup of coffee and a small plate of biscuits.She set it down on the edge of Alexander’s desk with exaggerated care, shooting him a smirk as she straightened.“Your coffee, sir,” she said, adopting a mockingly formal tone. “Three teaspoons of sugar, just as you requested. Though I think your dentist would have something to say about it.”Alexander grinned, taking the cup. “My dentist doesn’t know what he’s missing.” He took a sip, his eyes closing briefly as if savoring the taste. Then he opened one eye and looked at her. “You might survive this assistant thing after all.”Sarah leaned against the edge of the desk, her arms crossed. “Glad to hear it. So, boss, what’s next? More coffee? Should I shine your wheelchair? Maybe dust off your ego?”Alexander chuckled, setting the cup down. “Very funny. Actually, I thought it was time you learned about your new real job.”“Oh?” Sarah arched an eyebrow. “And what might
The atmosphere in the boardroom was electric with tension.The heavy oak doors creaked open, and Alexander entered, Sarah following close behind.She immediately felt the weight of the room’s scrutiny, powerful gazes appraising, dismissing, and judging her presence.At the head of the long table sat Lawrence Blake, Alexander’s father, his face a storm of barely contained fury. Beside him, a man who bore a striking resemblance to him, his younger brother, Gerald Blake, leaned back in his chair, exuding smug satisfaction.“Ah, Alexander,” Gerald drawled, his smile as sharp as a knife. “So good of you to join us.”Alexander’s jaw tightened. “I wasn’t aware I had a choice,” he said coolly, wheeling himself toward the table.Sarah kept her head down, trying to remain inconspicuous as she took a seat at the edge of the room.But her eyes never left Alexander, who radiated restrained anger as he parked his wheelchair at the table’s head, directly opposite his uncle.“I’m sure you’ve been inf
Alexander wheeled himself into the expansive CEO’s office, the room that had been his sanctuary, his command center.Sarah followed silently, her steps soft against the plush carpet.She could feel the weight of his frustration, the air thick with unspoken words.The office was as opulent as one might expect from a corporate giant like the Blake Group.Floor to ceiling windows offered a breathtaking view of the city skyline, and the furniture was sleek and modern, exuding an air of power. Yet, for all its grandeur, it now felt stifling to Alexander.He sighed heavily, rolling his chair to the large mahogany desk that dominated the room.Resting his elbows on the polished surface, he buried his face in his hands for a moment before straightening.“This place used to mean something to me,” he muttered. “Now it feels like a cage.”Sarah wanted to say something comforting, but before she could, the door opened. Alexander’s assistant, William, entered briskly, clutching a slim leather fold
The drive home was quieter than usual, the hum of the car a soothing backdrop to their conversation.Alexander gazed out of the window for a moment before speaking. “When I was sixteen, my grandfather passed away. He was the original founder of the Blake Group. His death hit my father hard, but it also left a gaping hole in the company’s leadership. My dad, Lawrence, stepped up, but he was more of an enforcer than a visionary. The board respected him, but they didn’t fear him.”Sarah listened intently, her usual playful demeanor replaced with genuine interest.“I was always close to my grandfather,” Alexander continued. “He taught me the ropes early on, how to negotiate, how to recognize talent, how to think ten steps ahead. When he died, I think a part of me felt responsible to carry on his legacy. So, I started working part time at the company during school breaks, absorbing everything I could.”“Were you the prodigy everyone claims you are?” Sarah teased gently.“Maybe,” he admitte
Alexander leaned back in his chair, the tension in his shoulders visibly easing as Sarah sat beside him.His piercing gaze settled on the mound of files stacked on the desk.“Sarah,” he said, his voice steady but laced with fatigue, “I need your help.”Her eyebrows lifted in surprise. “With what? Sorting papers? Organizing chaos?”He smirked at her attempt at humor. “Rummaging through chaos, actually. I need to figure out what’s salvageable in the jewelry department.”Her expression grew serious. “You trust me with that?”He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk. “You’ve got an eye for design, Sarah. I’ve seen the way you analyze things, meticulous, thoughtful. Besides, you’re my personal assistant now, aren’t you?”She rolled her eyes playfully but nodded. “All right, where do I start?”He gestured toward a smaller stack of files on the left. “Start there. Look for anything that mentions past collaborations or high value clients. I need to know who we can still rely on.”Sar
Sarah turned slowly to Alexander, her hand still pressed to her mouth. “We’re… we’re going to have a baby.”His eyes glistened with fresh tears, shock, joy, fear, all colliding in one single breath.He reached out to cradle her face with both hands, his broken leg momentarily forgotten.A baby.A child made from chaos and pain, love and survival.“I don’t deserve this,” he whispered hoarsely. “Not after everything I’ve done. Not after I almost lost you.”“You didn’t lose me,” she whispered back. “And you won’t. Not now. Not ever.”He kissed her forehead, resting there for a long moment, his tears soaking into her hair. “I swear I’ll protect both of you. Even if I can’t walk. Even if I have to crawl to the ends of the earth, Sarah.”She laughed through her tears, arms wrapping around him tighter than ever. “Then we’ll crawl together. And when we’re ready… we’ll run.”They held each other in the stillness of that room, at the beginning of something even greater.A heartbeat they hadn’t
Sarah stayed curled in Alexander’s arms for a long moment, breathing him in like he was the only tether keeping her from floating away.His hand cradled the back of her head, his chest rising and falling in unsteady waves as if he still couldn’t believe she was real, that she was here.But then her eyes drifted down.Her gaze locked on the white sheets, crumpled and slightly lifted around his lower half.Something tugged at her memory, the shot.The sharp crack of a bullet.The sight of him falling behind her as she ran, screaming his name. Her stomach twisted.She leaned back slightly, her hand moving instinctively to the edge of the blanket, brushing against the thick padding of a cast beneath.Her voice was soft. “You were shot… I remember… I...”Alexander caught her hand gently, pressing it to his lips. “It’s okay. I’m here.”But Sarah’s heart had already begun to race again. “You were limping… and I saw… but I didn’t know it was this bad.” Her eyes darted toward the crutches now
The first thing Sarah registered was the scent of antiseptic, clean, sharp, and nauseating.Then came the ache. Deep in her bones. In her chest. In the marrow of her soul.She stirred, her fingers twitching over crisp hospital sheets as her body shifted ever so slightly, and her mind scrambled to catch up.She wasn’t tied down. She wasn’t cold anymore. She wasn’t in that dark room. That house. That… nightmare.She was safe.Or… something like it.Her eyes fluttered open slowly, lashes damp from tears she hadn’t even known she’d been crying.The ceiling was a sterile white blur. The walls hummed faintly with distant activity, soft footfalls, medical monitors, the low murmur of conversation somewhere outside the door.But none of it mattered.Because he wasn’t there.And without him, none of this felt real.Her lips parted, cracked and dry, and she tried to speak. Tried to push out the name that had lived on the edge of every prayer she'd whispered during captivity.It came out broken a
Alexander turned his head, his eyes bloodshot and glistening. “I’ll be a burden now. She’ll never say it, but I’ll see it in her eyes. Pity. Guilt. I’d rather she hate me than pity me.”“She’s not that kind of woman,” Darius said firmly.A pause. Then Alexander swallowed hard and asked the question that had been clawing at him since the moment the doctor said the word paralysis.“What if she stays… just because she thinks she owes me?”Darius’s brow furrowed. “Then you remind her what you both have been through. Remind her who the hell you are. And what you mean to each other.”Silence again.Then Alexander leaned back against the pillows and stared up at the ceiling. “Gerald got away.”Darius’s expression hardened. “Barely. One of my men put a tracker on his vehicle before he escaped. Victoria got caught in the crossfire. Gerald used her,” Darius replied coldly. “He doesn’t care who dies as long as he gets what he wants.”Alexander’s jaw clenched. “Then we’ll burn every last shadow h
The sterile beep of Alexander’s heart monitor filled the hospital room like a metronome, steady and soft. The worst had passed, so the doctors said. He had survived the bullets, the blood loss, the surgery. He had defied death.But outside the room, just as Darius turned to check on Sarah again, something in her expression shifted.Relief.That was the first thing he saw.A full bodied, all consuming relief that weakened her spine, dulled her eyes, and uncoiled every taut muscle that had kept her upright through pain, fear, and heartbreak.Then she crumpled.“Sarah...!” Darius lunged forward and caught her just before her knees slammed into the polished floor.Her body was limp in his arms, barely conscious, her breathing shallow and unsteady. Her bloodied hands slipped against his shirt as he pulled her close, his voice sharp and commanding as he yelled over his shoulder, “Get a doctor! Now!”Within seconds, nurses flooded the corridor. A gurney was wheeled over, and Darius laid her d
The woman he’d secretly crushed on since the first night he saved her bleeding and defiant.“Holy shit,” he muttered.But she was already in the driver’s seat.The moment her fingers wrapped around the wheel, she changed. Her spine straightened. Her breath slowed. The fear didn’t vanish, but it sharpened, fused into her bones like steel.And when her foot hit the gas, the tires screamed their fury into the night.The SUV became a blur under her hands.Trees melted past them. Headlights glared like ghosts. The world narrowed to instinct and motion.Sarah didn’t flinch when they nearly sideswiped a truck. She didn’t panic when the back tires fishtailed across loose gravel. She was in it.. back.Back to the part of herself she’d buried when she married into the Blake family.Back to Sparrow.“Hang on,” she said under her breath, glancing at Alexander in the mirror, his head resting in Darius’s lap as the man tried to stop the bleeding.“He’s fading,” Darius warned. “We’ve got fifteen min
The air turned electric as Darius’s boots pounded the forest floor, his rifle cradled tight against his shoulder. His men moved ahead of him like shadows, silent, fast, lethal.Their coordinated breaths were drowned out by the distant echoes of gunfire erupting from the estate.Alexander was still fighting.He was alive.But for how long?“Alpha to all units,” Darius growled into his earpiece, “entry on my mark. Hostile count is high. Primary objective, get Alexander out alive. Secondary level anyone who tries to stop us.”“Copy that,” came a chorus of calm, battle hardened voices.Behind him, the night swallowed his words.But not all of it.He turned briefly, his sharp gaze locking onto Sarah, who stood beside the black SUV Darius had arrived in. Her body trembled, her eyes red from tears, but she had not collapsed.She hadn’t fallen apart.And that, Darius admired deeply.“Can you drive?” he asked, voice hard but not unkind.Sarah blinked, startled. “What?”“If this goes south, we’
SarahShe sat on the floor, trembling hands curled around a piece of porcelain, a broken teacup she’d stashed away after a “servant” delivered tea hours ago.The sharp edge glittered in her shaking grip.She was pale.Her lips cracked from dehydration. Her dress hung off her like it didn’t belong to her anymore. Her eyes were void. Empty.As if she was no longer here.“Just one cut,” she whispered to herself. “Just one cut and I’ll see him again.”She looked up, eyes glassy, smile fragile, as if she could see someone standing in front of her already.“Alexander,” she breathed to the ghost in her mind. “I’m sorry I didn’t wait. I couldn’t. I’m just... so tired…”She raised the shard to her wrist.And a hand caught her.Real. Warm. Strong.Her eyes widened in horror and disbelief. “No…”She turned, and for a heartbeat, she didn’t believe it.But he was there.Kneeling before her.Alexander.His chest heaving from the run. Dirt on his clothes. Gun holstered at his side. Eyes red, wild, b
Alexander hadn’t slept.He couldn’t.His mind was a storm of fury, grief, and determination, all tightly leashed beneath the sharp cut of his suit and the red ring around his eyes that hadn’t dulled since Sarah was taken.The private jet cut across the clouds like a missile, Darius seated across from him, tablet in hand, phone to his ear, speaking in rapid fire to his tech team.“She’s still alive,” Alexander muttered under his breath. Not to Darius. Not even to himself. To the universe. As if daring it to prove him wrong. “She has to be.”Darius finally looked up. “We caught a break. One of Gerald’s men paid a contact to move a chopper from that warehouse. The payment route was unusual, and we traced it to a shell company under a different alias… all leading to one place.”He tapped on the screen and turned it to Alexander.An isolated property on the southern coast. Hills. Forest. A private airstrip nearby. No neighbors for miles.Gerald’s new hideout.“You think he’s keeping her th