25. Chapter Thirty-Five Jade
Chapter Thirty-Five: Jade
I ran.
My heart hammered in my chest, a frantic drumbeat urging me to flee. I stood there, in the middle of Dante’s penthouse, scantily clad in just a t-shirt and panties, the air thick with an urgency that clawed at my throat. I scanned the room I had instinctively ran to—the lab with its sterile beakers and metal surfaces offered no secrets, no hidden escapes.
Dante’s bedroom door was slightly open, a dark void beyond. My gaze flitted over to his office; the door ajar, spilling out shadows and the clutter of papers I knew were more sinister than they seemed. Three bathrooms, each one checked in desperation, all dead ends. No windows to climb through, no vents large enough for escape.
Not that I would do that. That would be crazy.
I bolted again, bare feet slapping against the cool marble floor. The sound of my own breath was loud in my ears, punctuated by the ominous cadence of Dante’s measured footsteps somewhere behind me. He wasn’t running. He didn’t need to—he owned every inch of this place, and he knew it. The penthouse felt like a labyrinth designed to ensnare me at every turn.
“Jade,” his voice echoed, a low rumble that sent a shiver down my spine despite my resolve not to fear him. “You can’t outrun me.”
But I couldn’t stop—I wouldn’t. So I kept running, the maze of rooms folding in on me, making me dizzy with terror and defiance. Every corner I turned, I half-expected him to be there, waiting. But he remained unseen, his presence lurking in the periphery, a ghostly predator playing with his prey.
The chase seemed endless, a cycle of hope and despair as I searched for some way out of this nightmare. But deep down, I knew the truth. There was no escaping Dante Moretti—not from his penthouse, and perhaps not from whatever twisted fate he had in store for me.
I couldn’t let myself think about it.
My mind was racing, every neuron firing in search of an exit strategy as I dashed through the endless corridors of his penthouse. But my scientific precision was useless here; there were no equations to solve, no data to analyze, only the cold hard fact that Dante’s world was one I couldn’t navigate with logic.
The balcony. It lured me with its illusion of escape, the vast city sprawled beneath the high-rise a testament to freedom just beyond my reach. I burst through the balcony doors, gasping for air, the frigid outside breeze a sharp contrast against my heated skin. For a fleeting moment, I considered the railing—considered the impossible.
But I was pregnant. I had to worry about more than just myself.
“Jade,” the voice came again, closer now, and I turned.
Dante stood there like some ancient god, his nakedness unashamed and raw. The sight of him struck me—a man in his purest form, stripped of all pretense, yet still draped in power. His jaw was tight, muscles coiled like a lion ready to pounce, and I could read the anger written in the tense lines of his body, in the ink on his skin.
His anger…at me.
My breath hitched. He didn’t move towards me, didn’t need to. That electric charge that always seemed to surround him pulled at me, despite my better judgment. In that moment, he was both the most vulnerable I had ever seen him and the most dangerous.
“Running, Jade?” His voice was a low thrum that vibrated through the space between us. “You should know by now...there’s nowhere you can go where I won’t find you.”
His words were a reminder of the reality I faced. Here, on this balcony, the city below might as well have been another planet for all the good it did me. And Dante, standing before me, was the undisputed ruler of the universe I was trapped in.
“Dammit, Dante,” I managed to say, my voice steady though my heart was anything but. “What is this? What do you want from me?”
He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he took a measured step forward, closing the distance between us, forcing me to acknowledge the raw intensity that seemed to emanate from him.
“Look at me, Jade,” he commanded softly, and I did.
I swallowed hard, my resolve wavering under the weight of his stare. “What are you going to do to me?” I asked, the words slipping out shakily, betraying the fear that knotted in my stomach.
I swallowed hard, my resolve wavering under the weight of his stare. “What are you going to do to me?” I asked, the words slipping out shakily, betraying the fear that knotted in my stomach.
My breath hitched at the thought. Bound? Tied? Yet there was something in the way he said it, something that made it sound less like a threat and more like a twisted form of care.
And I mean…fuck it. Where was I going to go?
“So you’re going to tie me up all day…and what?”
He smirked. “Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ll be watching you all day.”
I felt my cheeks redden. “That wasn’t really what I was worried about.”
His hand, warm and steady, moved up to my wrist, the delicate bones providing a stark contrast to his masculine strength. With his thumb, he traced tiny circles on my skin, sending waves of strange shivers up my arm. The room seemed to shrink around us—no, it seemed to disappear, leaving only the two of us and the sound of our beating hearts.
“There’s no need to bother your pretty head about what comes next.” His voice was low and husky, each word laden with an unspoken promise of protection...and something else. It was a voice that I found both reassuring and disquieting.
“Aren’t you cold?” I asked. He was standing there stark fucking naked and the breeze had a sharp bite to it. But Dante, standing tall and unflinching, seemed utterly impervious to the cold. He threw me a lopsided grin that was almost boyish in its charm.
“Cold?” He glanced at his bare body, as though noticing his undressed state for the first time. “I guess I hadn’t noticed.”
He moved closer, until his heat seeped into my skin. I didn’t retreat. Couldn’t. My back pressed against the cold railing of the balcony, while my front...well, my front was graced by Dante’s naked form. It was almost comical, the absurdity of it all.
“You have no idea what you have started,” Dante whispered softly into my ear. The hot puff of his breath sent a shiver skittering down my spine.
I shook my head in denial. “I didn’t start anything.”
“Didn’t you?” He chuckled darkly, a menacing shadow cast by his towering figure blocking out the city lights below.
I felt a sudden surge of defiance well up within me. “I didn’t ask for any of this,” I spat.
“Funny to think you’re going to be begging for more in a couple of hours,” he said.
I had no idea what to say to that, but it was really difficult to keep looking into his eyes as he spoke. “Are you getting hard?”
“You could be looking at my face,” he said. “But you’re not so…”
My cheeks flushed, embarrassment mingling with a sudden rush of desire. It was ridiculous, the effect he had on me. But there we were, two bodies caught on a precipice, teetering on the brink of something neither one of us fully comprehended.
And then, without warning, he pulled me into his arms. His hold was firm, yet gentle, as if he was afraid I might shatter in his grasp. His lips hovered dangerously close to mine, his smoky gaze never leaving my own.
“Dante,” I whispered, my breath hitching as the tip of his nose brushed against mine. His name tasted foreign on my tongue, exotic and intoxicating.
“Shh,” he hushed me, his thumb tracing the outline of my trembling lips. The sensation coursed through me like a bolt of electricity, igniting an unfamiliar desire within the pit of my stomach.
And before I could protest or pull away or even think coherently, his lips crashed onto mine. His kiss was demanding yet tender, his tongue exploring the recesses of my mouth in a way that set my nerves on fire. It’s as if he already knew every part of me...and wanted more.
“I want you to know that I would never hurt you,” he said. “But I need to make sure that you understand that you can’t just up and leave.”
I stared at him, my heart pounding in my chest like a trapped bird seeking escape. I knew his words were a warning, a promise of sorts. And somehow, it didn’t terrify me as much as it should have. Instead, I felt a strange sense of calm wash over me. The chaos that had swirled around us seemed to quell in the face of his sincerity.
“I know,” I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper.
He looked at me for what seemed like an eternity, studying my features as if searching for some hidden meaning in my response. It was disconcerting to be under such intense scrutiny, but I held his gaze. There was something reassuring in the depth of his dark eyes – a promise of protection perhaps, or was it possession?
“See, I hear you say that,” he said. “But there’s no way for me to know if you’re fucking with me. So I’m still going to have to tie you up.”
I swallowed. “Is this strictly necessary?”
“Come on,” he said, his grip on my waist tightening a little. “Don’t pretend you don’t want to find out what happens. I can smell how wet you are.”
My face burned at his audacious statement. I wanted to deny it, to lash out at his assumption, but the traitorous heat between my legs did nothing to support my defense.
“I-” I began, but he cut me off, bringing a finger to my lips.
“Shh,” he said softly, “you don’t have to say anything. Not yet.”
His hand left my waist and moved to my hair. He wound a stray lock around his finger before tucking it behind my ear. The simple gesture held an intimacy that made my heart flutter, and I couldn’t help but lean into the warmth of his touch.
But then, in one swift motion, he backed away from me. His warm skin receded, leaving me standing alone on the cold balcony. I regretted the loss of his touch instantly, more than I’d expected.
“Come with me, Jade,” he said. “Let’s go back inside.”
And when he gave me his hand, there was nothing to do but take it.