All Chapters of HEARTBREAKER: Chapter 31 - Chapter 39

Aurora’s POVConsciousness returns in fragments, my mind struggling against the thick haze of whatever sedative Riccardo used to knock me out. The darkness around me is suffocating, the air heavy with dampness and something more insidious—fear. My limbs feel sluggish, but the sharp bite of rope digging into my wrists and ankles tells me enough. I’m tied to a chair.A low chuckle slithers from the shadows, sending a shiver down my spine. The sound is familiar, a cruel rasp I’ve heard before.Riccardo Agosti."You finally came back to us, Aurora. I was starting to get bored of waiting." His voice is all mockery, smooth with the confidence of a man who believes he has already won.I force my eyes open, blinking against the fog clouding my vision. The dim light in the bunker flickers, casting eerie shadows along the steel walls. My captor steps forward, emerging from the gloom with a smirk carved into his gaunt face.I yank at the ropes, testing their hold. The chair creaks under my weigh

The sway of Lucian’s steady steps carries me through the warehouse, each footfall a quiet promise that I am no longer trapped. Part of me is convinced this must be a hallucination—that any second, I’ll wake up, still bound, still drowning in the dark. But when I press my face into the crook of his neck, the heat of his skin grounds me. The scent of him—smoke, leather, and something distinctly Lucian—tethers me to reality.He doesn’t let go. Not once.The blinding sunlight stabs at my eyes as he carries me outside, the stark contrast making my vision blur at the edges. I cling to him like a lifeline when he lifts me into the backseat of a waiting SUV. My entire body feels like it’s still tied to that steel chair—muscles locked, nerves frayed, phantom pain pulsing across my skin. The fear hasn’t left me yet. Maybe it never will.Someone climbs into the front seat and starts the engine, but I don’t look up. My universe narrows to the sound of Lucian’s heartbeat beneath my ear, steady and

Here’s your revised version with a slower pace and the name changes applied:---I crack one eye open the following afternoon when I hear the bedroom door creak.Lucian strides in purposefully, carrying yet another tray piled with enough food to feed several households. He places it on the nightstand before perching beside me on the bed, his ever-worried gaze sweeping over me as if he expects any significant changes to have happened in the single day that’s passed since he brought me home.“How are you feeling, principessa?” he asks, brushing a lock of hair out of my face with a gentle hand. It’s as if he’s convinced I might shatter like paper-thin glass if he doesn’t keep his touch featherlight.I heave an exasperated sigh, my fingers closing around his hand before he can pull away. “The same as when you asked me an hour ago, husband of mine. And the hour before that.”His worried expression splits into a smirk at my fiery tone. “Forgive me for asking again, wife of mine.”I roll my

Once the last dregs of wine have been drained from their bottles, I rise from my chair, moving toward the bar cart with steady deliberation. The low glow of the lamp casts long shadows across the room as I select a bottle of my finest scotch. Two cut crystal glasses catch the light, their sharp edges gleaming as I pour a generous measure into each.Lucian sinks into the chair across from mine with a tired sigh, the weight of the years evident in the way he carries himself. For a long moment, he says nothing, merely swirling the amber liquid beneath his nose before taking a deep pull.I watch him, my own glass resting in my hand, the rich aroma of peat and smoke curling into the air between us. There is a quiet understanding in the silence, a space carved out for words yet unspoken."Three years," I begin, my voice thick with emotion. "Three years of sitting with the weight of your name, your legacy—the foundation upon which so much has been built."Lucian exhales slowly, his fingers t