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he couldn't control. After her conversation with Eva, Sophia had tried to regain some semblance of normalcy, but it was

ia had settled deep within her, turning her world into a labyrinth of fear. It didn't matter that she hadn't heard directly from Mikhail in day

e lights above her, was oddly comforting, even as her nerves pulsed with every flicker of movement arou

outside her office door. She froze, unsure if her mind was playing tricks on her, bu

ized all too well called fro

in her throat. I

on her. She didn't want to open the door. She didn't want to face him, but she k

cing into her. His intense gaze swept over her, taking in every detail of her app

to come," she said, trying-and fail

oom. "You've been busy," he said smoothly, his tone casual, but there was an underlying darkness to i

th to deny it, but the words faltered on her tongue. In

e like a lie she wanted to believe than a truth. "I've

"You're lying," he murmured, the accusation slipping off his tongue like a confession. "I know yo

nvestigation into her father's debts. How d

out what happened to my father," she

forcing her to back up until she was almost pressed against her desk

gned to pull her deeper into the dar

spered, the words barely leaving he

y disappeared, replaced by the ice-cold intensity she had come t

omposure despite the fear gnawing at her. "

e. Then, slowly, he turned his back to her and walked toward the window. H

r. "Whether you accept it or not, you belong to me. Your father's debts,

ldn't ignore the crushing weight of them. He was right. Her father's actions had dragged her into this worl

managed to say, her voice cracking

to get away from me?" He took another step toward her, closing the distance between them. "No, Sophia. It's impossible

breathe. The truth of his words settled around her like a suffocating fog. The

she asked, barely able to

sk slipping just enough for her to catch a glimpse of something deeper, s

oftly, his voice low, almost intimate.

her face, the touch sending an involuntary shiver down her spine. She wanted to pull away

ed, his breath warm against her skin.

ve her one last, lingering look before he turned and walked ou

her mind spinning. He was right. There was no way out. She

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