We find a rhythm together. Slow at first, then faster as the pleasure builds. Her legs wrap around my waist, pulling me deeper.
"Yes," she gasps. "God, yes, Nathan—"
"Mine," I growl, thrusting harder. "Say it again."
"Yours." Her nails rake down my back. "All yours."
I feel her tightening around me, getting close again. I reach between us, finding that sensitive bundle of nerves.
"Come for me," I murmur. "Let me feel it."
She shatters with a cry, and the sensation of her climaxing around me triggers my own release. I bury myself deep, groaning her name as I pour myself into her.
We collapse together, breathing hard. I roll us so she's draped across my chest, and her fingers trace lazy patterns on my skin.
Afterward, I hold her close, our bodies still connected, and feel the last of my walls crumble.
She's seen all of me now—the monster, the broken boy, the man desperately in love. And she's chosen to stay.
In her arms, for the first time since Alex's death, I feel something that might be peace.
The ghosts are finally quiet.
Chapter 27 - Eve
The sunrise over the ocean is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.
I stand on the villa's terrace, wrapped in Nathan's shirt, watching the sky transform from deep purple to soft pink to blazing gold. The air is warm and salt-sweet, the sound of waves a constant whisper.
Behind me, I know Nathan is still sleeping. For the first time since I've known him, he's sleeping peacefully—no nightmares, no restless pacing, just deep, exhausted rest.
I did that. My forgiveness. My choice.
Tears prick my eyes as I close them and let the truth wash over me like the ocean breeze.
I love him.
Not the version of him I wish he were. Not the man he pretends to be. I love the monster who stalked me, who destroyed my life and rebuilt it according to his obsessive vision. I love the broken boy who killed his best friend and spent sixteen years trying to atone. I love the man who just held me through the night and whispered his fears against my skin.
I love all of him.
The realization should terrify me. Should send me running to the nearest phone to call for help, to escape this beautiful prison he's built.
But I don't want to escape.
My chest aches with the weight of it—this terrible, beautiful truth. Because in his darkness, I've found something I never had before. He sees me—not the successful CEO, not thegrieving sister, not the woman who has to be strong for everyone else. He sees Eve. Raw and real and completely herself.
And he worships what he sees.
I open my eyes and watch the sun climb higher, painting the world in shades of fire and promise, tears streaming freely down my face now.
This is my choice. Not made from fear or manipulation, but from the terrifying, exhilarating freedom of knowing exactly who he is and choosing him anyway.
I am his queen. Not because he crowned me, but because I claimed the throne.
***
We return to New York three days later, and reality crashes back in immediately.
