"Harder," she demanded, her nails dragging down his shoulders. "Stop treating me like I'll break."
His eyes darkened, pupils blown wide with lust. "You want harder?"
"Yes."
He pulled almost all the way out, then slammed back in, the force of it making her cry out. Again. And again. Each thrust was punishing, claiming, absolutely perfect.
The headboard banged against the wall. The sounds of skin on skin, of their mingled moans and gasps, filled the room.Sidharth's mouth found her neck, sucking and biting, marking her as his.
"Mine," he growled against her throat. "Say it. Tell me you're mine."
"Yours," Advika gasped, too far gone to care about the implications. "I'm yours."
He changed angles, hitting something inside her that made stars explode behind her eyes. She came again, harder this time, her body clenching around him as pleasure ripped through her.
Sidharth followed with a guttural groan, her name torn from his lips like a prayer or a curse.
They collapsed together, breathing hard, skin slick with sweat. For a moment, there was only the sound of their racing hearts, the aftershocks of pleasure still rippling through them.
Then Sidharth rolled off her, sitting up on the edge of the bed with his back to her.
The shift was immediate. The warmth that had been building between them iced over.
"Sidharth?" Advika's voice was small, uncertain.
"This doesn't change anything," he said, his tone flat. Cold. The walls were back up, higher than ever. "Don't read into it."
The words hit like physical blows. Advika pulled the sheet up to cover herself, suddenly feeling exposed in a way that had nothing to do with nakedness.
"Don't read into it," she repeated numbly. "We just—and you're saying don't read into it?"
"It was sex, Advika. Physical release. Nothing more."
She wanted to scream. To throw something. To demand to know how he could touch her like that, make her feel like that, and then dismiss it so casually.
But she'd learned her lessons in this house. Showing vulnerability only gave people weapons to use against you.
"Fine," she said, her voice carefully controlled. "It was just sex. Message received."
He finally turned to look at her, and for just a second, she thought she saw regret flash in his eyes. But it was gone too quickly.
"I have work to do," he said, standing and pulling on his pants. "I'll be in my office."
And just like that, he left. Walked out of the bedroom where they'd just tangled together, where he'd made her scream his name, where for a few perfect moments, she'd felt connected to another human being.
Advika lay in the big bed, alone again, her body still humming with the aftereffects of passion, her heart breaking in slow motion.
This was dangerous. Not the mafia world, not the threats from outside. This—what she felt for him, what had started taking root despite every reason not to let it.
She was falling for her husband. And he'd made it crystal clear he felt nothing for her at all.
The tears came then, hot and bitter, soaking into the pillow as Advika curled into herself. This was her life. This was her marriage. And she had never felt more alone.
Chapter Five
Month Three
The pattern established itself with cruel efficiency.
