eager protection of the awn

eedles. She raised her arm, stepping o

against the hem of her coat. She yanked the d

told the driver, her voic

ough the congested avenues. Atha stared out the sm

nto something else. The sadness was burning away,

the taxi pulled up t

to the penthouse. The doors opened

ment from her bag. She tossed it onto the marble consol

ht into the massi

g in perfect alignment. The wardrobe of Mrs. Mor

hangers clattered aggressi

storage boxes she hadn't unpacked since her college days. Sh

dress. It barely covered her thighs and clung to every c

nd let them fall to the floor. She s

n at her va

quid eyeliner and drew sharp, aggressive wings at the corners of her eyes

a pair of blac

n staring back at her looked dangerous. She looked l

irror. It was a col

her off in front of a three-Micheli

ly at the sight of her glittering, provocative dress

e said, using her maiden name.

lit dining room toward a secl

k the heavy v

ly still, holding a martini glass by the

icked up as

n the clinging silver sequins. His pupils dilated violently for

e crossed her legs, letting her foot brus

ghtly and pulle

stantly, pouring sparkli

was thick with unspoken hostility. They both pic

ut. She looked at the so

a Romanée-Conti," Atha said

bottle in the cellar. A bl

gave the sommelier a brief,

intricate plates of food neith

k down on the porcelain p

t month," Haiden said, his voice cutting through

ze halfway to h

his words. Her heart began to poun

file the initial divorce petition, Haiden?" her voice tre

er, his expression

grandfather Cornelius

with the force of

stomach cramped violently, a sicken

udden coldness. The rushed p

ondition in a dead man's will. A prop he needed to secure his

he metallic tang of blood. She refused to let the t

d the priceless red

. She didn't smell it. She threw her head back and dow

er throat, temporarily numbing t

wn on the table. The crystal l

a sneered, her voice dripping with venom. "I

rabbed her clutch and slid out of the b

s clicking aggressively a

of the women's restroom and locked

les. She gasped for air, her chest heaving as th

ingers were shaking so badly she dropped i

nch, Haiden's exe

the second ring

pitch as she pressed her forehead against the cold tile. "I need you to book me

Mr. Moran di

e lethal. "Book the ticket. Put it on his corporate card. D

all without wai

inks. She turned on the cold wat

a deep breath, smoothing her features i

d lipstick, making t

dining room. Her spine was straight, her chin held high. She