HAZEL STYLES POV "Hazel, don't you think you've chopped that cabbage enough." Lena's loud voice startled me, and I flinched. A sharp pain bloomed on the tip of my finger as my head whipped in her direction."Oh my goodness, you got cut," she said, rushing toward me, but I raised my hand to stop her from getting closer."Don't worry, It's just a small cut," I choked out, then took a deep breath to settle my trembling. My gaze dropped to the cabbages that had been chopped into tiny pieces. That hadn't been what I was going for but I must have spaced out. "I ruined the cabbages." I dropped the knife—I literally threw it—and watched it clatter to the floor."Hey," Lena exclaimed. "You're going to hurt yourself, Hazel"I stepped away from the counter and took off my apron. "I think I'd much prefer that to the way I am feeling now" I let out in frustration and then slammed the apron on the stool much harder than was necessary."Is this because of Julian's disappearance?" Lena asked as she
HAZEL STYLES POV I was frozen. I knew I should be screaming and running to save my life, but my legs refused to move. How the hell did he get in here? What happened to all the alarm systems that had been put in place, and where were the night guards that patrolled the house?He moved towards me with predatory grace, each step he took a drumbeat against my racing heart.He lifted his hand to his lips, the black and white mask he wore, ominous.He was telling me not to make a sound.I nodded once, my lungs closing up. It was too late to scream anyway and defying his order was only going to lead to more problems. Lena was probably asleep right now so that meant she was safe in her room. If I shouted and she came down...I didn't want to imagine what could happen.My heavy breathing filled the space as he stopped to regard me quietly, his head cocking to the side as if he was contemplating something. What was he going to do? When was he going to lunge for me?I couldn't look away, but In
HAZEL STYLES POV He seemed to freeze up, my confession taking a few seconds to register.My heart pounded, the rhythm strong and steady. "I love you, Riven," I repeated, then yelped when he suddenly yanked me close and kissed me, his tongue slipping into my mouth as I gasped.His kiss was hot and desperate, every swipe of his tongue igniting a flame in me.I kissed him back, the world disappearing around us as sparks spread through every nerve in my body. He cupped my ass, and I groaned as I felt his hardness throbbing against me, driving me insane as he yanked me impossibly closer.I tugged at his shirt and yanked it off of him, my hands dancing against his burning flesh as we kissed. I dared to go lower, my finger skimming down his taut stomach muscle until I met the barrier of his pants. He let me go all of a sudden, his hands trembling and his body vibrating with barely restrained passion.He grabbed my neck, his dark gaze holding mine captive. "Don't," he warned.He was holding
ETHAN BlACKWOOD POV I was anxious and it only got worse by the minute. I haven't heard from David— the man I had watching Riven—and he was supposed to have reported what was going on an hour ago. Just what the hell was the hold-up for?The door to my office opened and I glanced up to see who had entered without my permission.It was Keira and she looked furious.I let out a sigh and arched a brow."What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with your fiance"She crossed her arms. "Are you seriously asking me that? Did you text me and tell me to meet up with him at that company to prove something to me"If she was here and not with Riven, then something had definitely gone wrong.I shrugged, my eyes darting to the door. "No, I asked you to meet up with him because I wanted you two to get closer". It was a lie though. I had texted her deliberately. I had messaged her to meet with him, hoping that she'd get there the moment Hazel got off work. Riven had said he was only going to watch he
ETHAN BLACKWOOD "Stop saying nonsense. Have you finally lost your mind, Keira" I yelled as I grabbed her by her arms and shook her harshly.She winced, her eyes defiant as she stared at me. "I was only guessing and you react like this." I let go of her as if I had been burned, and she scoffed. "You really haven't changed, huh? You don't get tired of going after what belongs to Riven, do you"I sighed, then let out a breath. "Hazel doesn't belong to Riven. She does not belong to anyone. She is her own person and can decide for herself who she wants to be with.""But you want that person to be you, don't you."I gritted my teeth, my whole body tense. "I am not interested in Hazel"She snorted then jabbed her finger into my chest. "Who do you think I am? I am not stupid, Ethan, and if I can see it, it's only a matter of time before Riven sees it too," she said, her eyes burning into mine, then she sucked in a breath and pursed her lips. "Look, I don't really care if you like her, Etha
HAZEL STYLES POV "You look really good." I grinned as I watched him cook, and he smirked."You should still be in bed. I was planning to surprise you with breakfast," he said, flipping the content in the pan he was holding.My gaze lingered on his bare chest and the way his muscles rippled as he moved about, the kitchen counter the only barrier between us."Stay in bed and miss all of this," I said and placed my hand beneath my chin, my elbows resting on the counter. I watched him for a few more seconds. "I don't think it's fair for you to look this good early in the morning, Riven. It's messing with my heart."He stilled, then leaned toward me. "If you keep complimenting me like this, I won't be able to control myself from jumping your bone, love. I'm barely holding back as is," he said, his lust-filled gaze dropping to my neck. The sport he'd bitten me tingled as he stared at it and I pulled back."Cook," I ordered, and he chuckled, then he went back to stirring the food, his gaze
HAZEL STYLES POV I jumped in front of Riven at the last second, my eyes clenching shut at the same time Riven's hand shot out.It went quiet for a few seconds, then I blinked, my eyes widening as I stared at Lena and the firmly pressed palm of Riven against her forehead, keeping her at bay. "Careful, Lena, you almost hurt Hazel just now," he warned, his voice a low rumble that had the hairs on my arms standing on end.Lena shook his hold off and then scoffed in disbelief. "Are you going to let him talk to me like this?""Lena, please if you can just calm down and—""—Calm down? He had me drugged just to break into the house. I could have died!""But you didn't," Riven answered, and my gaze snapped to his. Like seriously? I was trying to pacify her, and he was saying things that were only going to make her a lot more mad than she already was."Riven" I called, glaring at him a little.He huffed out a breath, his lips forming a thin line. "I was just stating the obvious, also I'm alwa
RIVEN BLACKWOOD POV THREE DAYS LATER "Are you nervous?" I asked as we stood in front of the door of my father's mansion.She glanced up at me, her smile faltering for a moment. "Shouldn't I be? I don't think your father is a big fan"I cupped her chin, my thumb grazing her cheek. I loved the way the simple contact had my heart racing."Well, you're mine, so he has no choice but to be a big fan. Besides anyone that does not like you must have some sort of brain disorder or something, because you're the most lovable person I know"She chuckled, the sound of her happiness making my heart twist. God, she was perfect, and I couldn't help but fall in love with her all over again."That's so reassuring," she said and slowly pulled her face away from my grip. I missed the contact almost instantly. It was hard to be in the same place with her and not touch her. She was like a magnet, always pulling me closer and closer, and no matter how many times I touched her, it never seemed to be enoug
HAZEL STYLES POV The sounds of waves crashing against the shore pulled me out of the dark fog I was in, and I slowly regained consciousness. My eyes opened, then I glanced in the direction the sound was coming from, but I was only met with a thick black curtain. Where the hell was I? I blinked hard to clear away the fogginess from my eyes, then slowly pulled myself into a sitting position.I winced, my head hurting all of a sudden. "Ugh. What the hell happened to me. Did we get into an accident or what" I muttered to myself, my gaze darting around the room I was in. I couldn't really see much because aside from the table lamp that looked like it was running out, there was no other source of lightning in the room.Where the hell did Ethan take me for me to be able to hear the sound of the waves so close?I grabbed my head, trying to recall what had happened and how I got here but it was all blank. "Ethan" I got out, my voice scratchy. I waited for a few seconds but no answer came.
EARLIER ETHAN BlACKWOOD POV I got to my feet, my eyes bulging as I stared at David."What the hell are you talking about? What do you mean you got intel that Riven is going after Julian.""Exactly what it means, boss; I have a feeling that Riven has been keeping an eye on you, boss. It's no coincidence that he found Julian so soon after he escaped our hideout""Or maybe he has been keeping an eye on Ksar," I said, refusing to believe that he knew that I had been planning to betray him. "I told him to look into Ksar after the whole kidnap." "That could be the case but we can't rule out the possibility that Riven already knew everything before now and was just bidding his time to attack""I refuse to believe that. Riven would have had me killed if he knew what I'd been planning. Family means nothing to him, and what he despises the most is betrayers—" David's face was a grim mask. "—Except, this was all a game to him," I stated, realization dawning. He found out that I was planning t
JULIAN STYLES POV "You chose such a shitty place as a hideout, Julian; I had more faith in you," he said, his eyes darting around the room. He looked disappointed. "You should have just stayed where Ethan was keeping you," he said, and I met his gaze. How the hell did he know that Ethan had been keeping me? Was it just a guess to see how I would react?If he was just baiting, he wasn't going to get anything from me. Yes, Ethan fucking betrayed me, but if Riven killed me, then he would be the only one left that could take him out. Dying sucked but I guess I would be able to rest easy knowing that Riven would be joining me soon enough. He would die at the hands of his own brother."What the hell are you going on about, Riven?" I let out a breath, my injuries flaring as my heart pumped hard in my chest. "If you're going to kill me, just do it"He smirked. "We will get to that part Julian, you don't need to be in such a hurry"I stared at him, my hands clenching at my side. If only I h
JULIAN STYLES POV "You look like shit," Ksar said, the scar on his face bunching as his face scrunched up in disgust. "I can't believe you let that bastard get the best of you"I groaned, my face furrowing in pain as the wound on my stomach pulled when I tried to sit up. "Don't move around too much, or you're going to get infected," Ksar warned then came to sit in front of me. "How are you feeling? You've been passed out for two days"I glanced around the sparsely furnished room. "Where am I?""A shitty motel" he answered, then smirked. "You lost everything, so you don't get to be picky." "Fuck off, Ksar"He smirked. "So, Hazel is in charge of the company now, huh?" he said, then scoffed. "I mean it was hers in the first place, so I guess this was just everything going back to its proper place""Are you going to be like this?" I asked and jerked when he suddenly leaned close."I'll be however I want to," he growled, then pulled back, his narrowed eyes digging into me. "So, how are
ETHAN BlACKWOOD POV "Home sweet home," I got out as I stumbled into the house and hit the light switch. Light flooded the whole space, the painting of Hazel I'd bought catching my attention from where it hung on the wall.I walked toward it, stopping when I got close enough."So beautiful," I said and started to trace the vivid colors with my fingertips."Today was so shitty Hazel. I had to sit and watch you and Riven be together and as if that was not enough, I had to deal with that crazy woman. Can you believe she threatened me? She threatened that she was going to tell Riven that I have feelings for you," I groaned, suddenly feeling sick. Hunching over, I took in a deep breath and stumbled to the floor as I lost strength in my legs. A wave of nausea washed over me, cold chills breaking out all over my body."Fuck, I shouldn't have drank so much," I groaned, waiting for the horrible feeling to pass. Seconds ticked by, and once I felt more steady, I pushed myself to my feet. "This
ETHAN BlACKWOOD POV "You shouldn't have pulled a stunt, Keira. You just ended up making yourself Riven's target and don't think he's not going to come for you just because you two used to date"Keira's hands clenched around the drink she was holding. "Shut your fucking mouth, you coward," she gritted out, then downed the shot in her hand, slammed the glass on the table, and screamed like a mad woman, her hand banging against the counter repeatedly."You're going to fucking hurt yourself" I snapped and tried to grab her hand. She shoved at my arm hard, her chest heaving from her outburst."Don't fucking touch me! We had a deal. You were supposed to be on my side but when it came down to it, you couldn't even stand up to your brother, you fucking coward."I was so done with her. "If you stuck to the plan maybe I would have kept to my end of the deal. You were supposed to pretend that we were back together, but what did you do? You let your stupid jealousy get the best of you," I said a
HAZEL STYLES POV "I'm sorry about tonight. It wasn't supposed to go like that"I turned to face him, my eyes lingering on his face. "I actually expected a little bit of animosity you know. I would have been very worried if everything went too well," I said, meaning it. He grinned, then took my hand and pressed a kiss to it. We walked in silence, the cold air comforting."You looked so hot asking her to leave, you know," he said, meeting my gaze. "I wanted to fucking kiss you""You did kiss me" I reminded him. After Keira had left he'd turned to me and kissed me without a care that his father and Ethan were watching.He grinned. "Well, I want to kiss you again," he said and yanked me close all of a sudden, his hands tangling in my hair.I drew my head back, my eyes widening. "What are you doing?""What do you think" he said, his breath fanning my face, his scent seductive. Ugh, why was it so hard to resist him.I shook my head and pushed at his chest but he didn't budge an inch."Ar
RIVEN BLACKWOOD POV I cocked my head, my icy stare fixed on hers."Am I late? I made sure to set my alarm, so I'll be here on time."There was no way she was doing something so daring. "What are you doing here, Keira?" I asked, and she crossed her arms, her head tilting to the side, the sweet smile on her lips stretching."I came for dinner. Ethan invited me," she said, and my gaze cut to Ethan. Him again? God, everyone was testing my patience these days. It didn't take much for me to spiral out of control; they knew that, so why were they acting out all of a sudden?"Did you invite her, Ethan?"The corner of his mouth twitched. "I mentioned it in passing; I didn't actually think she would come,"Keira rolled her eyes. "Don't be such a coward Ethan. You wanted me here, and that's why you invited me."Father cleared his throat and smiled at her. "Well, we made a feast, so you're welcome to join us since you are already here. The more the merrier right"I glanced at Hazel, hating tha
RIVEN BLACKWOOD POV THREE DAYS LATER "Are you nervous?" I asked as we stood in front of the door of my father's mansion.She glanced up at me, her smile faltering for a moment. "Shouldn't I be? I don't think your father is a big fan"I cupped her chin, my thumb grazing her cheek. I loved the way the simple contact had my heart racing."Well, you're mine, so he has no choice but to be a big fan. Besides anyone that does not like you must have some sort of brain disorder or something, because you're the most lovable person I know"She chuckled, the sound of her happiness making my heart twist. God, she was perfect, and I couldn't help but fall in love with her all over again."That's so reassuring," she said and slowly pulled her face away from my grip. I missed the contact almost instantly. It was hard to be in the same place with her and not touch her. She was like a magnet, always pulling me closer and closer, and no matter how many times I touched her, it never seemed to be enoug