Arthur Salinas's drunken scheming still clawed at his skull. By the time he reac

nst the lock plate. Th

around her small silk wristlet-the delicate champagne-colored pouch that held her phone, he

irt half-untucked. The mask of cold indifference he had worn at the al

er hand tightening around the

His large fingers clamped around her delicate bones like a steel

voice steady, refusing to l

r toward the door. Her heels skidded uselessly against the thick carpet. "Where ar

When the doors slid open, he shoved her inside. She stumbled against the

d herself upright. She opened her mout

d gasps. A thin sheen of sweat glistened on his forehead. His dark eyes we

mething sharper. The man before her

her voice low and carefu

spended second, his burning eye

rom of chaotic lust and primal rage. Arthur's greedy voice had triggered a catastrophic cascade in his PTSD-riddled brain-the phantom smell of gasoline, his mother's

yes, replaced by something wounded and feral

pen onto the dar

iling windows overlooking a glittering, indifferent Manhattan.

nightstand. She scrambled backward, her spine colliding with the tufted leather

eet control had been stripped away, leaving only a raw, bleeding wound in the shape of a

Claire said, her voice trembl

respond, a loud rin

wristlet on the nightstand. The screen glowed

. The greedy voice from the balcony flooded

nto the hardwood floor. He brought the heel of his shoe down with

u?" Claire screamed. "

He sneered, a grotesque mask of the cold, controlled man from the wedding.

cold. "What are y

heavy, muscular frame. The heat rolling off him was suffocating. She could smell ciga

ting beneath him, her nails raking acros

hand and slammed them down above her head. A thin, red welt circ

his mouth

h clashed against hers. She tasted copper as her bottom lip split

t in a nightmare she couldn't reach. She went still, her eyes squeez

the penthou

leared, leaving behind a pounding headache. He lay still, his mind

Soft, ragged bre

is head on

e white sheet like a shield. He could see the violent tremor running through her body

foreign. He had lost control. He had become the ver

n. His gaze drifted to the shattered remains of Claire'

erial number etched into the inner casi

to the Pierce Group's elite cybersecurity division. Within five minutes

ead texts from Arthur Salinas, timestamp

the pla

as to be

mission. The trust

. Don't sc

en or Rosa p

of guilt that had stirred in his chest didn't just vanish-i

to bleed his family's legacy dry. And schemes like that were

cted glow of the city lights, Houston's expression was a mask of