g wheel of her old, beaten-up car, knuckles white from the pressure. Her mind was racing, a swirl of doubt and fear mixing with the raw need for escape. She had driven the sam

ke a beacon, inviting her into a world she wasn't sure she was ready for. But it was too late to turn back now. She could

ng at the dashboard, the silence in the car amplifying her inner

r: Room 1203.

body. She couldn't even bring herself to reply. There was nothing lef

she were an imposter in a world that wasn't meant for her. The hotel lobby was pristine, opulent, everything polished and perfect-everything she had

smile, the kind that was given to anyone who did

bove a whisper as she gave

rief flash of recognition in his eyes before he handed he

of two ways: either she would walk out of it with the money she so desperately needed, or it would swallow her whole. And as she

ognizing herself. Her makeup felt heavy, her clothes too tight. She wasn't the woman she had once imagined she would be. She wasn't

r that she wasn't. She was just a woman tryin

elf as she stepped into the hallway. The lights here were dimmer, the carpet lush beneath her feet. She

inserted it with a sharp click, and the door swung open to reveal a dimly lit suite. The air was thick with the scent of exp

ndow, looking out over the ci

caught in

tmare for the past two years, the man who had denied her every opportunity to move forward. His tall, imposing figure was outlined against the city light

stood there, his eyes trained on the city below, a

say. Didn't know how to react. Every instinct in her screamed at her to run, to get out of the

ow and smooth, but carrying an ed

stion. He knew

nothing came out. What was there to say? How could she explain that she was just

ixed on the floor, not daring to meet his gaze. She didn

so piercing it felt like it could burn through her. A flicker of something unre

ftly, his voice almost gentle, yet laced wit

g in her chest. She had expected shame. She had expected disgust. But instead, there was only a

ntinued, his gaze never leaving

ot form in her stomac

f his body radiating against her skin, smell the faint traces of his cologne, and hear the steady beat of his heart-a heart that bea

against her cheek. It was a touch that sent a jolt of electricity t

, Serena," he murmured, hi

but she didn't know what they meant, or how they could possibly change anything. She

e, she realized something else-something more te