Chapter 21%
*
“You know,” I said quietly, “he still sends gifts.“”
Dominik’s jaw tensed. “And do you open them?“}
I smirked. “No. I send them back. With notes.”
“What kind?”
“The kind that hurt.”
He stood, walked to me, and pulled me up by the hand. Warm grip. Steady. “You don’t need to pretend with me. I know what this is. You
don’t have to lie.”
“Then let me be honest,” I said, staring up at him. “If he won’t bury my memory… I’ll hand him the coffin myself.”
I picked up the ring. Slid it onto my finger.”
Dominik kissed my knuckles, just once. Then whispered into my palm, “Then let’s go to war… prinţesă mea.“}
<-0
The engagement announcement went live the next morning. A glossy photo of us on the balcony. No captions. Just that damn emerald ring glowing like a threat.”
Within hours, my phone buzzed with messages. Luca laughed so hard he nearly dropped his espresso. The Moretti inner circle flooded with congratulations laced in quiet warning. The mafia forums exploded.}
And Zeus? He didn’t say a word. But by nightfall, I heard the reports. Two hotel suites–wrecked. Three of his men–beaten.}
9ne
doctor–called in for his knuckles.
Good.
Let him burn in the house he built.
-1
It was past midnight.
The city was quiet, but my floor at Moretti HQ still hummed low with power. One guard at the elevator. Two downstairs. Everyone else was gone. I liked the silence. It let me think. Let me be still.
I was nursing a glass of Barolo, legs crossed on the corner of my desk, reviewing shipment ledgers when I felt it.”
The shift in the air.
First came the scent. That cursed cologne–spiced leather and ash. It was him. The one ghost I didn’t have to see to recognize.
I didn’t look up.
“I hope you’re not here to beg,” I said, voice steady. “Because I don’t take pity clients after midnight.“}
No response.
I finally lifted my eyes.D
He stepped from the shadows like some war–beaten relic. Zeus Lambert. Unshaven. Eyes bloodshot. Tie gone, shirt untucked, rage simmering beneath every vein. He didn’t speak. He just stared at me like he was remembering the version of me he destroyed.
I stayed right where I was, swirling my wine, cool as a glacier.”
“You’re really gonna marry him?” he rasped, voice cracked and low like it had been used to scream into walls.}
I didn’t blink. “Yes,” I said, soft and sharp. “And I’ve started to love him.”>
He flinched.ů
I sipped the wine. “You’re just a memory now.“>
He moved then–slow and tense, like an animal pacing before the pounce. “That’s a lie and you fucking know it,” he growled, coming closer. “You love me. We were seven years, Savannah. Seven.”
I smiled. Not warmly.
“And yet… here we are,” I said. “I’m reborn. You’re unraveling.”
His jaw tightened. His gaze dropped to my hand, to the massive sapphire Dominik had placed on my finger. It shimmered under the dim lights like a taunt.}
He reached out, grabbed my hand hard. Held it close to his face, breathing uneven.
“Does it feel better than the one I gave you?” he whispered, jaw trembling.
I tilted my head. “I lost yours in the fire,” I said coldly. “Like everything else you touched.”@
He slammed both palms on the table, the glass shook but didn’t break. I didn’t flinch.
“I never stopped loving you!” he shouted, chest heaving. “Not for a fucking second. I see you every night when I close my eyes. I feel you in every breath. You think this is about ego? About jealousy? No. This is blood. This is bone. You’re carved into me, Savannah.”
I stood.
Slow. Deliberate.
Walked around the desk like I had all the time in the world. My heels were quiet on the marble floor. He didn’t move. I leaned in, our lips inches apart.
Chapter 21
2/286.0G
10:09 AM
“You had me once,” I whispered, voice velvet and venom. “You buried me twice. I don’t resurrect for cowards.“}
His mouth twitched Desperate. Broken. He lunged forward to kiss me–foolish.
My hand slid up my thigh, pulled the blade from my holster, and pressed it gently against his neck. Just a kiss of steel.}
“One more inch,” I whispered, smile curling slow, “and I won’t be as merciful as your guilt.“}]
He smirked, eyes glassy. “You wouldn’t hurt me.“}
I leaned in until my lips grazed his ear. “I don’t have to. The woman I became… already did.“}
And then–crack–the butt of my pistol met the back of his neck. He dropped like a man surrendering to gravity. Out cold. Stil! breathing, unfortunately.
I clicked the safety back on and called into my comms. “Car. Five minutes. I’m delivering a gift.”
My guards came in, lifted his heavy body without a word. I followed them down to the basement garage, fixing my lipstick as I walked. Calm. Controlled.
As they loaded him into the car, I laughed under my breath.”
“You know,” I said to Luca over the radio, “remember how Zoraya brought him home to me once? When I waited all night wondering if he’d return?”
Luca chuckled. “Cruel memory.”
“Well tonight,” I said, sliding into the car beside Zeus’s unconscious body, “I’ll return the favor.“}
I leaned back in the seat, looked at one of my men. “Oh, and open three condoms. Toss them around. Lube too. Let it look… intimate.”}
He blinked. “All three?”
“Yes,” I said with a grin. “Zoraya’s imagination needs material.“}
He laughed. “Cruel, boss.“}
“Not cruel,” I corrected. “Educational.”
I stared down at Zeus’s unconscious face.
“Let’s go see if she still wants what’s left of him.”
clapte
