Taylo

ttering shards on the marble floor, its amber contents staining the white rug like a fading bruise. The portraits o

, but of weary disappointment. He loosened his tie, his gaze sweeping ov

s voice calm, which only fu

ill amidst the chaos I had created. "Do

ed hair. "Cassie, I already told you. She's young. S

. She knew enough to tell me she's pregnant with my husband's ch

to look pained. "I w

was born? After you mo

broken glass, and poured himself a scotch from another de

escaped my lips. "A mi

iberate. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a folded pi

ity institute, confirming the c

in confusion. Then his gaze locked on the date.

he asked, his vo

t laced with venom. "I closed the door on tha

hich had been a mask of cool indifference, crumpled. His eyes, for th

e stammered, his body tr

ired," I said, my vo

ble force field between us. "Why?" he yelled, his face just inches from mi

with adoration, with a promise of protection. And I felt a strange, det

he night he acted for me. The second was when a rival corporation tried a hostile ta

he never knew, with a wom

ing. "You were the one who wante

d his cheek, my fingers tracin

is no room for her. Or for that possibility. If you try to brin

. "I will unravel the very tapestry of the man

in my eyes. The cold, hard conviction. He saw the girl he had created that night in th

ting on his cheek. He noticed the way I cradled my palm, a faint tre

ld Adam, the protector. His hands, which had been clenched into fists moments

murmured, his voice n

inet, his movements practiced and familiar. He had done this a hundred times before, patching me up after I'd pushed m

er, it felt like a violation. He was trying to fix the wound he had caused, a tiny

a bandage, I sna

ed up,

the words feeling like acid

nd than any I could inflict with a blade. He didn't argue. He didn't

poke to one of the house staff who w

void of emotion. "Tell her to bring the fir

aving me alone in the pristine white bathroom, my ow