Page 217 of Villainous Rise

“You’ve really thought about this.”

“I have. I want mornings with you. Coffee on the deck while the sun rises. Watching you get ready for work, knowing you’ll come back to me at night.”

I was speechless. The image his words conjured, a home together, waking up to the sight of sunlight sparkling on the bay, falling asleep to the distant sound of waves, was so unexpectedly perfect it hurt.

“It would also be closer to the Tower than my penthouse,” Cipher added, his thumb tracing circles on the back of my hand. “Or your current apartment, for that matter.”

I blinked, realizing he was right. A place on the bay would put us almost equidistant between where the Tower stood and where the Labyrinth was hidden. Of course he would have thought of that.

“That would make my commute easier,” I admitted, trying to sound practical while my mind was already racing ahead, imagining what it would be like to live with him.

It sounded... perfect. Terrifying, but perfect.

“I never pictured you as the beachfront property type,” I said, trying to wrap my head around this new vision of our future.

“I wasn’t.” His hand slid up my arm, leaving goosebumps in its wake. “Until I fucked you over the beach.”

And there it was—the blunt, unapologetic Cipher I knew. My cheeks flushed hot at the memory.

“I want to hear your moans mixing with the sound of the ocean,” he said, his voice going rough. “The thought’s been stuck in my head since that night. You, spread out on the sand with nothing but moonlight on your skin while I’m fucking you.”

“That’s why you want a private beach? For sex?”

“Among other things.” His fingers traced my collarbone. “But yes, I want to fuck you with the waves crashing behind us. I want to taste salt on your skin and feel you come apart under the stars.”

The strange thing was how right this felt. I’d always assumed the idea of living with someone as a partner, especially a Super—especially a Villain—would terrify me. I’d spent my entire adult life carefully maintaining my independence, keeping emotional distance even from the people I cared about.

But as I pictured sharing a home with Cipher, I felt none of the panic I’d expected. Instead, there was a warm certainty settling in me, as if some part of me had been waiting for this all along.

“Annie?” Cipher’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. “You haven’t argued with me yet. That’s concerning.”

“Yes,” I said, before I could overthink it. “I want to live with you.”

Cipher’s mouth fell open, his eyes widening in surprise. For a moment, he just stared at me, as if he couldn’t quite process what I’d said.

“What?” he finally managed.

“I said yes,” I repeated, feeling more certain with each passing second. “I want to live with you. Whether it’s the penthouse or somewhere on the bay or wherever. I just want to be with you.”

Cipher blinked rapidly, looking almost comically shocked. “I thought you’d fight me on this.”

Heat rushed to my cheeks as doubt crept in. Had I misread the situation?

“If you don’t actually want me to—“ I started, beginning to pull away.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” he cut me off quickly. “Of course I want you with me. It’s just I had a presentation and everything.”

I stared at him. “A presentation?”

“Several speeches, actually,” he admitted. “Different approaches depending on your level of resistance.”

“How do you have speeches prepared if you just found out I was going to move out of my apartment.”

Cipher scoffed, his familiar arrogance returning. “You think I haven’t already been planning this, Bishop? Please.” He shook his head as if I’d said something particularly ridiculous. “I’ve had this mapped out for months. Your apartment situation just accelerated my timeline.”

“You were going to logic me into cohabitation?”

“Absolutely.”