BOUND TO THE TEXAS TYCOON

Chapter Twenty

Jasmine’s POV

“We have to talk.”

The voice came from behind me in the kitchen. I spun around, heart already racing, and found Sebastian standing at the back door.

“Are you crazy? It’s late and Adonis is upstairs in the bedroom. Do you want us to get caught?”

He stepped closer, ignoring the warning. “You still love me, right, baby? I know it. I can feel it. You still love me the same way I love you, Jasmine. This can’t be over.”

He kept coming until he had me pressed between his body and the kitchen cabinet. I could smell the night air on his clothes and the faint scent of the ranch that now clung to him.

“Don’t you see that your being here only makes my life harder?” I whispered. “If you stay, I will never be able to forget you.”

“But I—” he started to raise his voice. I quickly covered his mouth with my hand.

“Shh. Please stop yelling.”

His eyes searched mine. “Jasmine, I don’t want you to forget me. You’re burned into my heart, my mind, everywhere.” He leaned in to kiss me. I pushed him back.

“Seb, you should find someone else and start over. I am so tired of this mess. I can’t do it anymore.”

“I can’t imagine my life without you.” His voice cracked. He grabbed my waist and tried again. This time I didn’t fight as hard. The kiss was soft and slow, filled with everything we still felt for each other. For a few seconds I let myself fall into it, but the risk made my pulse hammer.

I pulled away, breathing hard. “I wish I didn’t feel what I feel when I kiss you. I’m weak when you’re near me. But you really need to leave. Dave knows you’re here. He’s demanding an outrageous amount of money to keep his mouth shut.”

“Then let’s leave together,” Sebastian said urgently. “I know it’s not safe, but I can’t leave you here alone. Your brother could expose us at any moment if you don’t pay him.”

“I can’t leave, Seb. You have to go without me. Please. Once you’re gone, Dave won’t have anything to hold over me.”

He stared at me like I had slapped him. “You know you’re asking for something impossible. Do you think I’m not jealous? Every time you push me away I start to believe you already have feelings for Adonis, and it drives me crazy. It clouds my mind. While you sleep in the same bed with him, I’m wide awake in my room. It’s torture, Jasmine. I suffer every single night.”

Tears spilled down his face. Seeing him break made my own eyes burn. I wiped them quickly. I could not afford to be weak right now.

“Jasmine, answer me. I’m ready to risk everything for you. Let’s leave tonight. I don’t care what happens. I just need your yes or no.”

I took a shaky breath. “No, Sebastian. I’m not leaving. I love you. As much as I want to run with you, it would be selfish. My father is sick. If he finds out, it could kill him. Adonis would make my family suffer just to force me back. What’s the point? I’m never trying to run again. If you really love me the way you say you do, then have some consideration for me and leave. Please. I don’t want to keep repeating myself.”

His expression hardened. “You promised you would leave with me when the time was right. Why are you changing your mind now?”

“Because my place is here. With my husband.” I raised my left hand so the diamond ring caught the light. “I’m married. If you don’t want Dave to hurt me, then you’re the one who needs to leave my husband’s house and stop lying to him.”

“Jasmine! Jasmine!” Adonis’s voice called from the staircase.

My blood turned cold. “Sebastian, leave now. He’s coming.”

“No. I’m not leaving. You can’t be serious. You’d rather stay with that fucker than come with me?”

“If you don’t get out of this house right now, you’re going to see something you don’t want to see.”

I wiped my face quickly, opened the kitchen door just enough to step out, and closed it firmly behind me so Adonis couldn’t walk in.

“What’s wrong?” he asked. “You said you were getting ice cream. Why did you take so long?”

“Nothing. I just ate it in there and cleaned up a little.” I tried to keep my voice steady.

“Alright. Can you move? I need something from the kitchen.”

“What do you need?”

“I’ll get it myself. You can go upstairs.” He tried to step past me.

I did the only thing I could think of to stop him. I grabbed his shirt, pulled him back, and spoke against his lips in a low voice.

“What you want from the kitchen can wait. Your wife can’t.”

He froze. “What do you mean, Jasmine?”

“I want you to make love to me, Adonis.”

He pulled back just enough to look at my face. His eyes searched mine as though he were waiting for me to laugh and say it was a joke. “Am I supposed to believe that?”

“I’m giving you my body willingly. With my consent. I need you to touch me so I can be sure I made the right decision. So I can be sure I want to end this mess and stay with my husband.”

“What is going on?” he asked again, quieter this time.

“Adonis, stop asking questions and take me upstairs. Please.”

Something shifted in his eyes. Without another word he lifted me into his arms and carried me up the stairs. I looked back toward the kitchen door one last time. This was my life now. The sooner I accepted it, the better. I was choosing Adonis. It was the only choice that made sense for everyone I cared about.

He set me down on the bed carefully and climbed over me. For a second he just stared at me, as if waiting for me to change my mind. When I didn’t, he lowered his mouth to mine.

The kiss was different from the ones he had forced before. It started slow, almost careful, then deepened as he realized I was kissing him back. His hand slid into my hair while the other rested on my waist. I could feel the tension in his body, the way he held himself back even as he wanted more.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer. Part of me still felt guilty. Another part felt relief. For the first time I was not fighting him. I was choosing this moment, even if the reasons were complicated.

His mouth moved from my lips to my jaw, then down my neck. Every touch felt heavier because of everything that had just happened downstairs. I closed my eyes and tried to focus only on the present. On the weight of his body, the warmth of his skin, the way his breathing changed when I touched him back.

He undressed me slowly, almost like he was afraid I would stop him. When I reached for his shirt and started unbuttoning it, he made a low sound in his throat. The rest of our clothes followed. The cool air of the room brushed over my skin before his hands replaced it.

When he finally pushed inside me, I gasped. It still hurt a little, but the pain mixed with something else. He stayed still for a moment, forehead pressed against mine, giving me time to adjust. Then he began to move, slow and deep.

I held onto his shoulders. Tears slipped from the corners of my eyes, but they were not only from physical discomfort. They came from everything I was letting go of and everything I was choosing. Sebastian’s face flashed in my mind for a second, then I forced it away. I had made my decision. I needed this to feel real.

Adonis kissed the tears from my cheeks without stopping. His movements grew stronger, more urgent, as if he could sense that something had shifted between us. I met him halfway, wrapping my legs around him, giving him more of myself than I ever had before.

When it was over, he stayed inside me for a long moment, breathing hard against my neck. Neither of us spoke. The room was quiet except for the sound of our breathing.

I stared at the ceiling, heart still racing. I had chosen this. I had chosen him. And even though part of me still ached for the man who had just left through the back door of the kitchen, I knew I could not go back.

This was my life now, and there was no turning back.