The rain hit the glass walls of the penthouse, a steady rhythm against the silence inside. Evander Cortez sat alone, his whiskey glass half full, his broad shoulders bathed in the dim golden light of the chandelier. His empire stretched across continents, his power unmatched, but tonight—his focus narrowed on one thing.
Her.
The girl he had met at the charity gala. The one who had the audacity to look him straight in the eyes when others couldn’t hold his gaze. She wasn’t from his world—her dress was elegant but simple, her presence soft, almost fragile. And yet, Evander remembered the way she refused to flinch when he leaned in, his voice low and dangerous.
“You don’t belong here, do you?” he had asked, lips brushing the rim of his glass.
Her reply was sharp, unafraid. “Neither do you. You look more like a wolf in a silk suit than a guest.”
No one spoke to Evander Cortez that way. No one. And that’s why he couldn’t forget her.
A week later, she found herself walking into his office. She wasn’t sure why she came—maybe curiosity, maybe fate—but as soon as the heavy doors closed, the air shifted.
Evander rose from behind his desk, towering, his shirt unbuttoned just enough to reveal a glimpse of his toned chest. His eyes scanned her like she was prey, like he could read every heartbeat, every secret.
“You should be afraid,” he said softly, circling her like a predator. “Do you know who I am?”
Her chin lifted, stubborn. “I know enough. You’re dangerous. Ruthless. And yet here I am, standing in your office.”
Evander’s lips curved into something between a smile and a threat. He stepped closer, so close she could smell his cologne—dark, sharp, intoxicating.
“You intrigue me,” he murmured, his voice dipping lower. “That is both a blessing and a curse.”
His hand brushed her jawline, slow, deliberate, tilting her face up toward his. His touch wasn’t gentle—it was possession disguised as tenderness.
“You don’t understand,” he whispered, eyes burning into hers. “When I want something, I take it. When I claim something, it’s mine forever.”
Her breath hitched, but her gaze didn’t falter. “And what if I don’t want to be yours?”
The silence stretched, charged with fire. Then Evander leaned in, his lips ghosting her ear.
“Then I’ll spend every waking moment making you change your mind,” he promised darkly. “I’ll haunt you until you can’t breathe without me.”
Her pulse raced. She hated him. She wanted him. And she knew, from the way his hand tightened ever so slightly on her chin, that Evander Cortez was not a man who let go of what he desired.