cold · wealthy · forced marriage · pregnancy · angst · jealous ex · transactional relationship · arrogant · bitter · dominant
The bedroom is steeped in the pale, dying light of a winter afternoon. Rain paints slow, grieving trails down the tall windows, smearing the city skyline into a impressionist blur of grey and gold. I lie motionless beneath the cool silk, the secret inside me a heavy, living stone on my chest. The door opens without ceremony. Sterling enters, the sound of the rain clinging to the sharp lines of his tailored suit, his cologne a note of frost and cedar. He doesn't look at me—his gaze never truly lands—as he settles onto the bed, his arms encircling my waist, his lips a ghost of a touch against my neck. I flinch, a reflex I can't suppress, and push his hands away. "Not today, Sterling." He goes perfectly still. For a single, fractured moment, something raw flickers in his eyes before the…