CHAINS THAT BITE 2“The nurse is dead." The words cut clean through Damien's speech, shorting the words ready to leave his lips. He just laid there, staring at the attorney with eyes wide open. A single breath left him as he shook himself back to reality. "The nurse… what?”Adrian nodded, his expression remaining unchanged. "As you know, she took a shot straight to the chest," he said calmly. “It was a direct hit to her heart. She managed to stay alive for a while according to the reports, but she died before they could fully stabilize her." Damien blinked, silence–real silence this time–falling over the room. He ran his free hand through his sweat-slicked hair, his gaze drifting away, unfocused now. His throat bobbed once as he forced a swallow. His thoughts traveled, and for a second, everything replayed smoothly in his mind. He saw the tray falling, the blood blooming from her chest, her body jerking to the thunder clap of the bullet whizzing through the air. "Shit,” was all h

A NEW PAGE AGAIN 2“You look better than the last time I saw you." Adrian's words felt like a jab against the silence. Damien dragged his hand through his hair, his fingers untangling the knotted strands as he exhaled loudly through his nose. Biting down, he kept his eyes fixed on the ceiling as his lips parted slightly. "I've been waiting for you to come back,” he muttered quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. "What do you want now?”"Well,” Adrian said simply, turning to the side, "you asked for your lawyer and I took my time to get him for you.”That got a reaction out of him, causing Damien to finally turn his head toward the attorney. Adrian’s hands sat neatly in his pockets and a grey suit hung from his shoulders. His hair was neatly combed and slicked back as usual and his purse lips twitched as he turned toward the doorway. Following his gaze, Damien met the second man standing beside him. This one was taller and older with hair greying at the temples. He held sharp e

AFTERBURN 1Sweat rolled down Sebastian's arm, following the curves of his biceps before dropping down on Lola's body. His hands moved slowly up her belly, traveling to her chest before grabbing her breasts. “Oh, fuck," she exclaimed softly her eyes rolling back as he pinched her nipples. “Oh, don't stop." His hips rocked back and forth in one fluid motion as he caressed her breasts and traced her areola. Lola continued to moan under him, her fingers digging into the sheets and clawing at his back. “Fuck, yes," Sebastian groaned, his head tilting upward as he dug deeper and deeper into her with every thrust. He felt her tighten around his member, as though begging him to climax early. Lola lifted her hand to Sebastian's chest, feeling every curve of his chest and bumps of his abs. She curled her hands around his neck before forcing his head down toward her. “Oh–” Sebastian groaned, the sound broken as Lola pressed her lips against his. They shared a passionate kiss, one that cau

GILDED GLASS The phone remained on Vanessa's ear, her lips still moving with words when the call suddenly went dead. She paused, still for a moment before slowly pulling the phone away from the side of her face. For a second, she just stared blankly down at the screen, her brows knitting slightly. Then her lips pressed together into a thin line as her grip on the device tightened. She was sure–almost sure–that she had heard something, or someone, in the background during the call. It was definitely the voice of someone, soft and… female. It was a faint sound that most definitely didn't belong there. A low groan slipped out of her lips, her frown deepening as she clenched the phone harder until her knuckles began to ache and turn white. But then she just lessened her grip and exhaled loudly through her nose. Shaking her head lightly, she simply brushed it off and lowered her hand down. She was just overthinking the entire thing anyways. Sebastian had already told her ex

BREAKING POINT 1No.Damien's jaw tightened, his fists clenching hard under him as his gaze remained fixed on the side of Brooks' neck. It never left the tattoo. Instead, it continued to study it, letting the pent down memories flow freely as his breath began to heighten. No… that… that wasn’t possible.He clamped his hands down against the table in a bid to calm the trembling but his fingers only curled tighter against the edge. His nails scraped against the polished wood faintly, the sound barely audible beneath the courtroom noise… and the chaos that ravaged his thoughts. You're just reaching, he told himself. You're just fucking reaching now. It had already been years–way too many years–since it happened. There was no way memories stayed clean after that kind of a long time. Not after everything that he had been through. They must have been twisted now, blurred and lying to him. His mind had to be lying to him. That meant that this… this had to be his mind just playing tricks