iana

ng, the war spilled

waiting outside my office, holding an iPad

hrusting the screen forward. "

and regional pack feeds. It featured a high-resolution photograph of Gabe and Hailee standing on

aptio

as they step into their sacred duty. @Audriana, darling, our doors are al

eds of verified council

arcus Black said she threw a violent fit at the Regist

ty burner accounts and leak the audio recording of

g tone. I gently took the tablet and locked the screen. "Never

as a lunatic to justi

s, financial solvency, and corporate standing. Dagny is performing for the court of public opinion because she k

he constant corporate warfare had left a

bing the stairs to the fourth floor. But

ced. In its place stood a reinforced steel-core security door, fitted wit

ne and immediately

hat happened to m

tectural firm came by this morning. They said the building had selected your unit for a complimentary

ed at the sleek,

g app and tapped Cad

d with a military-grade vault

later, his r

he biometric scanner is synced to your right

ustomed to relatives who saw me as an expendable asset; having someone quietly erect

. The mechanism clicked with a heavy,

, immersing myself in my true passion. With precise, fluid strokes of my graphite pencil, I began sketching a magnificent collar necklac

sounded at

his shoulder, watching me. He had let h

h, but Caden was already across the room. He reached down,

s chest warm against my back,

e rumbling right beside my ear, sending goosebumps dancing down my neck. "It requ

rned my head to look at him.

sement. "And I know that amateur hobbyists do not design forty-million-dol

ainst my ribs. He wa

of my throat. His breath ghosted over the corner of my mouth,

parted s

darkened. "You always

sing the curve of my neck. His mouth found my jaw

ollow above my collarbone. His palm stayed pressed to my waist,

d his throat, barely audible. His lips parted against my ski

gainst my collarbone, "lik