Aria made it to her room and closed the door before her legs finally gave out.
She slid down to sit on the floor, back against the door, her entire body still trembling from what had just happened.
What did I just do?
Her hand went to the necklace at her throat the warm tal a constant reminder of Damien’s words. "This is mine, marking what’s mine."
She should take it off. Should throw it away.
Should march back to his study and tell him she wasn’t his possession, wasn’t sothing he could claim and mark.
But her fingers just traced the delicate chain, feeling the weight of it, and she couldn’t bring herself to remove it.
Because so dark, reckless part of her liked it. Liked being claid. Liked the way he’d touched her, commanded her, made her body respond in ways she’d never imagined possible.
She’d had her first orgasm sitting on Damien Blackwood’s thigh while he watched her fall apart.
The realization sent a fresh wave of heat through her body, part embarrassnt, part lingering arousal.
This is insane. This changes everything. You can’t...
Her real phone buzzed in its hiding spot. Aria pulled it out with shaking hands, seeing a text from Marcus: Your mom’s asking about you again. She seems worried. Says you sound different when you call. Everything okay?
Guilt crashed over her like ice water.
Her mother. The mission. The reason she was here.
She’d been so consud with Damien with his touch, his commands, the way he made her feel that she’d almost forgotten. For those monts in his study, nothing else had existed. Not her dying mother. Not the plant she needed to steal. Nothing but sensation and surrender.
How could you forget? How could you let yourself get so distracted?
She typed back with trembling fingers: I’m fine. Just adjusting to new job. Will visit Sunday. Tell her I love her.
But she didn’t feel fine. She felt like she was being torn in two directions the daughter desperate to save her mother, and the woman who’d just discovered desire in the arms of the man she was supposed to be deceiving.
Another buzz. This ti from her Sarah Mitchell phone.
Damien: Stop overthinking. I can practically feel you spiraling from here.
How did he know? How did he always know?
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard. She should ignore it. Should maintain so distance, so control.
Instead, she typed: I don’t know what I’m doing.
His response ca imdiately: Good. That ans I’m doing my job right.
Serah: "This is dangerous."
Damien: Yes. That’s what makes it exhilarating.
Serah: I should take off the necklace.
A pause. Then: But you won’t. Because you like wearing my mark. Like knowing that tomorrow when you look in the mirror, you’ll see it and rember how you fell apart for . How good it felt to surrender.
He was right. Damn him, he was right.
Serah: Why are you doing this? Why ?
Another pause, longer this ti.
Damien : Because from the mont you walked through my door, you’ve been the only thing I can think about. Because you’re brilliant and beautiful and so carefully controlled that I want to see what happens when that control shatters.
Because I know you’re lying to about who you are, and instead of pushing you away, it makes want to pull you closer. To uncover every secret. To know every truth you’re hiding.
Her breath caught. He knew. He definitely knew she was lying about sothing.
And before you start panicking, his next ssage ca, I don’t care. Whatever brought you here, whatever you’re really after it doesn’t change this. Doesn’t change what I’m going to do to you. What you are going to beco.
Serah: What am I going to beco?
Damien: Mine. You’re going to beco completely, irrevocably mine.
Aria stared at that ssage for a long mont, her heart pounding. She should be terrified. Should be planning her escape. Should be rembering that this was supposed to be simple—get in, get the plant, get out.
Instead, all she could think was: What if I want that? What if I want to be his?
Another ssage: Go to sleep, Sarah. Dream of . Tomorrow’s lesson will be even better.
She set the phone aside and climbed into bed, still fully clothed, her fingers unconsciously going back to the necklace.
Tomorrow. There would be another lesson tomorrow. More touches. More commands. More of that overwhelming surrender.
She should be planning how to avoid it. How to maintain distance. How to refocus on her actual mission.
Instead, she found herself wondering what he would teach her next. What new sensations he would introduce her to. How much further he would push her boundaries.
You’re falling for him, a voice in her head whispered. This is exactly what you can’t afford to do.
But lying there in the darkness, her body still humming with the aftershocks of pleasure, Aria couldn’t bring herself to care.
For the first ti in her life, she wanted to stop planning. Stop controlling. Stop being careful.
She wanted to fall.
Even if it destroyed her.
********
Aria didn’t sleep much that night. Every ti she closed her eyes, she felt Damien’s hands on her body. Heard his voice in her ear. Felt that overwhelming rush of pleasure as she’d fallen apart.
At 5 AM, she gave up and got out of bed, catching sight of herself in the small mirror.
The necklace glinted at her throat delicate but unmistakable. A claim. A mark. A promise.
She should take it off before anyone saw. Should hide it. Should pretend last night never happened.
Instead, she tucked it under her uniform collar where it would be hidden but still present. Still touching her skin. Still reminding her.
The staff kitchen was empty when she arrived. She made coffee and sat alone, trying to organize her thoughts.
Okay. Reality check. You ca here for a reason. Your mother is dying. You need that plant. That’s what matters. Not...
"You’re up early."
Aria jumped, nearly spilling her coffee.
Damien stood in the doorway, already dressed for the day in a dark suit. He looked impossibly put-together for 5:30 AM, while she felt like a disaster held together by caffeine and confusion.
"I couldn’t sleep," she said, trying to keep her voice steady.
"Neither could I." He moved into the room, and despite the early hour, despite being in the staff kitchen where anyone could walk in, there was nothing professional about the way he looked at her. "Kept thinking about how you looked last night. How you felt. The sounds you made."
"Soone could hear..."
"There’s no one here but us." He stopped in front of her chair, close enough that she had to tilt her head back to et his eyes. "Let see it."
"What?"
"The necklace. Show ."
Her hand went automatically to her collar, but she hesitated. "Soone might co in.."
"Then you’d better be quick."
It was a test. Another one of his endless tests to see if she’d obey, if she’d take the risk, if she’d choose him over her own caution.
Aria’s fingers found the clasp of her uniform collar and undid the top button. Then the second. Just enough to reveal the delicate gold chain and pendant resting against her collarbone.
Damien’s eyes darkened with satisfaction. "Perfect. You wore it."
"You told to."
"I did. And you obeyed. Just like you’ll obey everything else I tell you to do." His hand ca up, fingers tracing the chain, following it down to where the pendant rested. "This looks good on you. Like it belongs there."
"Damien..."
"I have a eting in the city today. Won’t be back until late afternoon." His thumb brushed across her collarbone, and she shivered. "That gives you ti to think. To process what happened last night. To decide if you’re ready for more."
"What if I’m not?"
"You are. You just don’t know it yet." He leaned down, his lips brushing her ear. "But by the ti I’m done with you, you’ll be begging for more. Desperate for my touch. Addicted to the way I make you feel."
Before she could respond, he straightened and walked away, leaving her sitting there with her uniform half-unbuttoned and her heart racing.
The man was going to drive her insane.
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