I didn't sleep. Not really.
I laid there for hours, hair still damp, towel discarded on the floor like the rest of my dignity. My sheets felt like a trap—too clean, too tight around me. I could still smell both of them on my skin.
Cassian.
Dante.
Two men who didn't ask. Who didn't wait.One who fucked me like he owned me.And one who reminded me he already had.
I should've blocked his number. Changed the locks. Called someone.But all I did was stare at the ceiling, eyes wide, heart drumming hollow beats into the night.
My phone buzzed at 5:13 AM.
Unknown Number
Be ready at 7.
No name. No punctuation.But I didn't need either.
Cassian.
7:02 AM – The Car
He didn't say hello. Just pushed the door open from the inside and watched as I got in.
His eyes ran over me—no smile, no greeting, just cold calculation.
"You're late."
"I didn't know I was clocking in."
"You are now."
He didn't look at me again as the car pulled away. No driver. He was behind the wheel this time—sleeves rolled up, jaw tense, a paper coffee cup balanced between two fingers like he wanted to crush it.
The silence stretched too long.
I shifted in my seat, still feeling the ghost of Dante's grip on my wrist. Still raw. Still shaken.
"What are we doing?" I asked.
He finally glanced over.
"I have meetings. You'll shadow me."
"Shadow?"
"You want to be useful, don't you?"
I stared at him.
"No. I want to understand what the fuck I'm actually doing for you."
His lips twitched. Just barely.
"That's cute," he murmured, eyes back on the road. "You still think this is a job."
9:18 AM – Vale Media HQ
The elevator doors opened, and suddenly I was inside a different world.
Polished floors. Frosted glass. A lobby so pristine it looked like no one had ever dared to breathe inside it. Every assistant in pencil skirts and designer heels turned to look at me—some with curiosity, some with something sharper.
I didn't belong here. Not in this skin. Not in this body that still felt bruised from every truth Cassian hadn't spoken out loud.
"Smile," he said beside me as we stepped out. "You're mine now. Might as well play the part."
10:30 AM – His Office
I sat two chairs away from the head of the table.
Conference room. Six men, three women. All older. All polite. All pretending not to notice the girl in black jeans and yesterday's fear sitting like a shadow beside their boss.
Cassian was fire in human skin. Sharp. Controlled. Merciless.
He tore through numbers and strategies like he was disassembling a bomb, and the others nodded like worshippers at the altar of a god who could kill them with a look.
When it ended, I stood too quickly, knees aching from tension.
He didn't turn.
"Wait outside," he said. "You're not done."
12:03 PM – Hallway
The assistant gave me a once-over and a smile that felt more like a paper cut.
"Mr. Vale usually doesn't keep his girls long."
I didn't reply.
Because I wasn't sure if I was the girl, the experiment, or the next headline waiting to happen.
And then—my phone buzzed again.
Unknown Number
He's lying to you.
I stared. No name. No context.Just static in my chest and a text that read like a match about to drop.
Was it Dante?
Was it someone else?
Cassian stepped out of the room just then, adjusting his cufflinks like the whole fucking world belonged to him.
"You ready for the next round?"
I looked at the message again. My stomach twisted.
But I smiled anyway.
"Always."