"CRAVING FOR HER INNOCENCE"

Chapter 14: The Mark of Ownership✨

The hallway of the William mansion was no longer just a corridor; it had become a battlefield of egos. Marry stood frozen, her eyes wide as she stared at the heavy oak door David had just slammed in her face moments ago. The echo was still vibrating in her ears, a brutal reminder of her position in this house.

A wave of hot, stinging shame washed over her. She looked at her trembling hands—the same hands that had touched his wet skin, the same hands that had felt the pulse of a monster.

‘How could you, Marry?’ she screamed internally, her soul weeping. ‘How could you let him get that close? You are betraying your heart. You belong to Kai. Only Kai has the right to see you this way... only his touch should matter.’ Her guilt was a physical weight, crushing her chest. She felt like a sinner in a temple. Desperate to escape the suffocating scent of David’s sandalwood soap that still clung to her clothes, she turned and ran. She wanted to vanish, to bury herself in the darkness of her room and never come out.

But as she turned the corner, she collided with a solid, warm wall of a man. Strong fingers dug into her shoulders to steady her. Marry gasped, her breath hitching, and looked up into the eyes of her last hope.

Kai.

For a heartbeat, time stopped. Her heart, which had been cold and terrified, flared with a desperate warmth. But then, the jagged memory of that night at the D’Souza house pierced through her—the way Kai had stood by and watched as she was signed away like a debt.

She flinched, pulling back from his touch. "Kai... what are you doing here?"

Kai, ever the master of deception, saw the hesitation in her eyes. He knew he had to play the 'grieving lover' to get what he wanted. He stepped closer, his voice dropping into a soft, manipulative caress.

"Marry, my sweet love... I’ve been living in hell without you," Kai lied, his eyes mimicking a pain he didn't feel. "Seeing you in this place, with a man like him... it’s tearing me apart. I’ve come to save you, but I need your help first."

Marry’s voice was a fragile whisper. "You left me, Kai. You let him take me."

"I had no choice, baby!" Kai urged, stepping into her personal space, his hands reaching for her waist. "If I had fought him then, he would have destroyed your family. I did it to protect you. And now, I’m here to fix it. Just sign these fund release papers. Your stepmother needs them to settle the final debts. Once this is done, we can be together again. I’ll take you away from this devil."

Marry looked at the papers. She was tired. She was scared. She wanted to go home. The memory of the bathroom incident—the heat, the water, the way David’s eyes had burned into hers—made her desperate to find an exit.

"Take me away, Kai. Please," she pleaded, her resolve crumbling.

Kai smirked internally, handing her the pen. "Just sign, Marry. Do it quickly before he sees."

Marry’s fingers gripped the pen. She was a second away from signing her life away when the temperature in the hallway seemed to drop to sub-zero. A heavy, predatory silence descended.

"Wait."

The word wasn't a request; it was an ultimatum.

Marry and Kai both jerked their heads toward the master suite. David William was standing there, framed by the shadows. He was dressed only in a black silk bathrobe, tied loosely at his waist. His chest was still glistening with droplets of water, and his hair was damp, falling over his eyes in a way that made him look like a lethal god.

Marry felt the blood rush to her face. The sight of him immediately brought back the sensation of being in that tub with him.

David walked toward them with a slow, rhythmic grace. He didn't look at Kai; he didn't even acknowledge his existence. His eyes were fixed solely on Marry, unblinking and obsidian. He stopped right in front of her, his shadow swallowing her small frame.

Without warning, David reached out. His large hand moved with lightning speed, snaking around Marry’s waist and pulling her violently toward him. Her body collided with his hard, warm frame. She could feel the dampness of his bathrobe against her skin.

David’s head tilted slightly as he finally looked at Kai. A slow, terrifying smirk touched his lips.

"Don't you have any manners, boy?" David’s voice was a deep, resonant growl that vibrated through Marry’s back. "Two people were in the middle of a private, romantic encounter... and here you are, standing in my hallway, gawking like a peasant. Get out."

As he spoke, David’s fingers began to move. He didn't just hold her waist; he began to stroke the fabric of her dress precisely where Kai’s hands had been just moments ago. It was a slow, deliberate movement—firm and possessive—as if he were physically scrubbing Kai’s presence off her body. He was marking her, claiming the territory Kai had dared to touch.

"Marry, the papers! Sign them now!" Kai yelled, his voice cracking with fear and frustration.

Marry tried to struggle, her hands pushing against David’s rock-hard chest. "David, let go! I need to—"

David didn't let her finish. He tightened his grip until she could barely breathe, his fingers sinking into her hip. He looked at Kai, his eyes flashing with a cold, blue fire.

"I’m sorry, Mr. Kai," David said, his voice dropping to a whisper that carried the weight of a death sentence. "But the moment Marry D’Souza crossed the threshold of this mansion, she ceased to exist. In this house, she is Marry William. And I don't allow my property to sign anything, or go anywhere, without my seal of approval. Your pathetic papers mean nothing to me. Now, leave my sight before I decide to lose my temper."

Kai stood there, humiliated, looking like a child standing in the presence of a king. The power imbalance was so vast it was sickening.

Marry opened her mouth to scream, to tell him she wasn't property, but David looked down at her. That one look—the same predatory stare he had given her in the shower—snapped her jaw shut. The raw dominance in his eyes was a cage she couldn't break.

David turned her around, his arm still locked around her like a shackle, and began leading her back toward his room. Marry walked like a ghost, her head turned back to look at David.

‘You are a monster, David William,’ she thought, her heart pounding against her ribs in a chaotic rhythm of fear and unwanted electricity. ‘You have destroyed everything today. I hate you... I will hate you until my last breath.’

Behind them, the elevator dings, and Kai is left standing in the cold silence, his papers worthless, his 'fiancée' now hidden behind the closed doors of a man who played by no one's rules but his own.

The past just collided with the present, and David is NOT playing games! ⚡

Do you think Kai’s tears are real, or is he just a master manipulator? And that possessive move by David... erasing Kai’s touch from Marry's skin? Absolute Alpha energy! 🐺🔥

Drop a comment: Team Kai 💔 or Team David 🖤?

Next chapter is going to be even more intense. Don't forget to Add to Library and Vote! ❤️✍️

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