r real terms-the terms she had co

accato of stiletto heels echoed from the marble hallway ou

gh the heavy oak doors, a shrill f

were violently shoved open. They crashed against the interio

a second skin and carried a limited-edition Hermès Birkin bag that cost more than most people's houses. She was Ar

s, her face twisting into a theatrical mask of disgust. "God, it s

cataloging everything and dismissing it all

complete absence of any visible designer logos or jewelry. Her uppe

g, "why is there a stray dog in my cousin's room? Did th

floor. She raised her hand, aiming a hard, dismissive shove at Ay

e, t

dead. Completel

came down, Ayla shifted her weight a fraction of an inch. Her

ingers around Pen

that required almost no effort-Ayl

pop echoed throug

the white-hot, blinding pain, and she dropped to the marble floor like a puppet with its strings cut, her precious

etting Penelope's arm dro

down her contorted face. She looked up at the bed, her voice cracking. "Aron! Did you s

in the room plum

mask of pure, terrifying rage-the kind of cold, controlled fury

head slowly to

s a lethal whisper, soft and deadly as a blade sli

nstantly cutting off mid-sob. She stared up at Aron

access to the estate. Effective immediately. If she ever steps foot on my property ag

eked, her face going pale as a corpse.

her up off the floor like a ragdoll. She kicked and flailed, her one good arm swinging uselessly, but Morgan's

h a booming finality, cutting of

d in an instant-replaced by a calm, almost gentle warmth that was somehow more unne

oothly, his voice now a low, intimate rumble. "M

ked how he handled things. Brutal. Efficient. No hesita

o the bed, her boots

pound X-7,"

n the bedsheets-stopped dead. His eyes narrowed a fraction,

ound labs. It wasn't something money could buy. It wasn't something that existed on any public or private registr

ulating the risk, weighing the danger of this mysterious girl

on's face-the smile of a predator who ha

romise and dark intent, "I won't just give you the compound. I'll gi

at the corner-a rare, genu

palms slapped together in a firm grip,

r without another word. The king of New York stared at her retreati

n the silent, guarded hallway, her boots echoing on

nected on th

going back to Nevada." Her eyes were hard, focused, burning with old