Chapter 7: When Truth Breaks
1426 Words
The moment his hand touched her, everything inside Selene shattered.
Not loudly.
Not visibly.
But completely.
His palm rested against her abdomen with a care that felt more dangerous than force. Like he understood something sacred had been placed between them and refused to treat it lightly.
“…it’s mine.”
The certainty in his voice stole the air from her lungs.
Selene jerked back instantly, his touch burning long after it left her skin.
“No.”
The word came out sharper than she intended.
Desperate.
Her hands came up instinctively, creating space between them, shielding herself in a way that said more than any confession ever could.
Damian didn’t move.
Didn’t reach for her again.
But his eyes followed every movement.
Locked.
Unwavering.
“You just proved it,” he said quietly.
Her heart slammed painfully.
“I didn’t prove anything.”
“You did.”
“I didn’t!”
The denial cracked at the edges.
Too fast.
Too emotional.
Too real.
Silence fell between them, heavy and suffocating.
Selene could feel it slipping now.
Everything she had tried to control, to hide, to protect was unraveling piece by piece right in front of him.
“You touched me like it mattered,” he continued. “Like it wasn’t just you I was touching.”
Her breath hitched.
“That’s not…”
“You pulled away like I crossed a line,” he added. “Not because of me. Because of this.”
His gaze dropped again.
To her stomach.
Selene’s pulse roared in her ears.
“Stop looking at me like that,” she whispered.
“Like what?”
“Like you already know.”
A beat.
“I do.”
Her chest tightened painfully.
No.
You don’t.
You can’t.
“You don’t get to decide that,” she said, forcing steadiness into her voice. “You don’t get to claim something that hasn’t been proven.”
Damian’s expression didn’t change.
“Then prove me wrong.”
Her throat went dry.
“I don’t have to prove anything to you.”
“If it’s not mine,” he said calmly, “say it.”
Selene froze.
The words caught in her throat.
Trapped.
Refusing to come out.
Because she couldn’t say them.
Wouldn’t.
And he saw it.
Of course he did.
A slow breath left him, like the final piece of doubt had just fallen into place.
“That’s what I thought,” he murmured.
Her chest rose and fell unevenly.
“You’re twisting this.”
“I’m understanding it.”
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “You’re forcing it.”
“And you’re avoiding it.”
Their eyes locked again.
Tension snapped tight between them, sharper now, more dangerous, because this time it wasn’t just about the past.
It was about something real.
Something irreversible.
“You don’t know what you’re stepping into,” she said.
His gaze hardened.
“I do.”
“You don’t,” she insisted. “You think this is simple. That you can just decide it’s yours and everything falls into place.”
“It does.”
Her breath caught.
“No,” she said firmly. “It doesn’t.”
A step back.
Distance.
She needed distance.
“You don’t get to walk in and take control of this,” she continued. “You don’t get to decide what happens next.”
His jaw tightened.
“If that’s my child, I absolutely do.”
Her heart twisted painfully.
“It’s not a business deal, Damian. It’s not something you can control with power or influence.”
“And you think I would treat it like that?”
“Yes.”
The word came out before she could soften it.
Before she could stop it.
Before she could take it back.
Silence.
Heavy.
Explosive.
Damian went completely still.
“You really believe that,” he said quietly.
Selene swallowed hard.
“I know the world you come from.”
“And you think that’s all I am?”
Her chest tightened.
“I think that’s the part of you that would win.”
His gaze darkened.
“You think I’d take your child from you.”
“I think you’d never let me walk away.”
The truth sat between them now.
Raw.
Unfiltered.
Dangerous.
For a long moment, neither of them moved.
Didn’t speak.
Didn’t breathe.
Then
“You already walked away once,” he said.
Her heart stuttered.
“And I survived it,” she replied.
“Did you?”
The question hit deeper than it should have.
Because the answer wasn’t simple.
Wasn’t clean.
Wasn’t something she could say out loud.
Selene looked away briefly, gathering what little control she had left.
“This doesn’t change anything,” she said.
“It changes everything.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
The word was firm.
Final.
Unyielding.
Selene shook her head.
“You don’t get to rewrite this.”
“I’m not rewriting anything,” he said. “I’m stepping into something that was always mine.”
Her chest tightened painfully.
“You don’t even know me anymore.”
“Then let me.”
The words were quieter this time.
Less sharp.
More dangerous.
Because they sounded real.
For a second, something inside her wavered.
A memory.
A feeling.
Something she had buried too deep to touch.
But it didn’t last.
It couldn’t.
Because this wasn’t just about them anymore.
“You had your chance,” she said.
His expression darkened.
“You didn’t give me one.”
“I shouldn’t have had to.”
Silence again.
This time heavier.
More final.
“What are you going to do?” she asked.
The question slipped out before she could stop it.
And the moment it did
She regretted it.
Because something in his expression changed.
Shifted.
Settled into something more dangerous than anger.
Decision.
“What do you think I’m going to do?” he asked.
Her pulse spiked.
“I think you’re going to try to control this,” she said. “Just like everything else in your life.”
“And if I am?”
Her breath caught.
“Then I won’t let you.”
A pause.
“We’ll see.”
The quiet confidence in his voice sent a chill through her.
Because it wasn’t a threat.
It was a promise.
Selene’s heart raced.
“You can’t force me to do anything,” she said.
“No?”
He stepped closer again.
Not rushed.
Not aggressive.
But certain.
Every step deliberate.
Every movement controlled.
“You think I don’t have that power?” he asked.
Her chest tightened.
“I think I won’t let you use it.”
His gaze held hers.
Sharp.
Unrelenting.
“You don’t have a choice in that.”
Her breath hitched.
“Yes, I do.”
“Not if it’s mine.”
The words landed hard.
Heavy.
Final.
Selene’s stomach twisted.
This was exactly what she feared.
Exactly what she tried to avoid.
“You don’t own me,” she said.
“I never said I did.”
“Then stop acting like it.”
“I’m not acting like I own you,” he said quietly.
A pause.
“I’m acting like I won’t lose what’s mine.”
Her heart slammed violently.
The way he said it
Calm.
Certain.
Possessive.
Terrifying.
Selene shook her head, stepping back again.
“You don’t get to decide that.”
“I already did.”
Silence.
Sharp.
Unforgiving.
Everything felt like it was closing in now.
The room.
The air.
Him.
There was no space left.
No control left.
No way to go back.
“You’re not taking this from me,” she whispered.
His eyes darkened.
“I’m not taking anything.”
“Then what are you doing?”
A beat.
A breath.
A shift.
And then
He stepped even closer.
Close enough that she couldn’t move without hitting something behind her.
Close enough that his presence surrounded her completely.
His hand lifted again.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Selene’s pulse exploded.
“Don’t,” she said, her voice breaking this time.
But he didn’t stop.
His fingers brushed lightly against her wrist.
Then slid down.
Intertwining with hers.
Not forceful.
Not rough.
But firm.
Unyielding.
Like he had no intention of letting go.
Her breath caught.
His gaze held hers.
Deep.
Certain.
Unavoidable.
And when he spoke
His voice wasn’t questioning anymore.
It wasn’t angry.
It wasn’t even cold.
It was something far more dangerous.
Something that left no room for doubt.
“Then you’re not going anywhere.”
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD