MATURE

Life hasn’t been kind to me. One moment, I was a carefree eighteen-year-old with dreams of a bright future. The next, I was a 28 year old lady and my world went up in flames. literally. My mom died in the fire that destroyed our home, my little sister is in a coma, and my brother’s in jail for trying to keep us afloat. My dad? He left us drowning in debt and despair.

I thought I’d hit rock bottom, but then I found myself working in a place where dreams go to die, doing things I never imagined just to survive. That’s when he walked into my life, Alex Romanov. Dangerous. Mysterious. And entirely out of my league.

He’s everything I should fear, but there’s something about him that draws me in. Maybe it’s the way he looks at me like I’m more than just another broken soul. Or the way he makes me feel alive when I thought I’d forgotten how.

But Alex has secrets, dark ones that could destroy us both. And as my past collides with his world, I’m left wondering: Can I trust the man who’s slowly stealing my heart, or will his darkness swallow me whole?

This isn’t the life I wanted, but it’s the one I’ve been given.

I sat in the dimly lit hotel room, the sounds of the city buzzing just beyond the thick curtains. I had just returned from another long day, sealed another deal, and now I found myself staring at my phone, a feeling of longing creeping up on me. I hadn't realized how much I missed Bella until now.


The weight of the situation between us, the complicated layers of our connection, seemed almost too heavy to bear sometimes. But when I thought of Bella, when I thought of her laughter, her smile, the way her voice softened when she spoke to me, I knew that I had something worth holding on to. Something real. Something that went beyond the business world I lived in.


Chapter 159 - I do love you