Chapter twenty-eight
429 Words
Chapter 28
The silence between them was heavier than any gunshot.
Days passed, and Damien and Sienna barely spoke more than a clipped “good morning” or “pass the salt.” Their penthouse was filled with everything—opulence, power, danger—but it was starved of warmth.
Sienna couldn’t bring herself to confess what she’d kept hidden, and Damien refused to ask. His pride wouldn’t let him. He told himself it didn’t matter, that she was just another pawn in his empire, another name tied to his ring. But every time he saw her lips press into that stubborn line, every time she avoided his gaze, his control cracked a little more.
One night, the tension finally boiled over.
Sienna was in the study, curled on the leather chair with a book, though her eyes hadn’t moved past the same line in twenty minutes. Damien entered without a word, his presence like a storm filling the room. She didn’t look up, but her grip on the book tightened.
“You’ve been avoiding me,” he said, his voice low, sharp.
Her jaw clenched. “You’ve been ignoring me.”
Their eyes met, the silence humming like live wire between them.
He took a step closer, then another, until the book slipped from her fingers. She stood, defiant, chin raised even though her pulse raced.
“You think this game of silence works on me, wife?” Damien’s mouth twisted into something between a smirk and a snarl.
Sienna’s voice didn’t waver. “You think it works on me, husband?”
Something snapped.
Damien caught her wrist, pulling her flush against him. The heat was instant, undeniable. His lips hovered a breath away from hers, but he didn’t kiss her—didn’t give her that satisfaction.
“You drive me insane,” he muttered, his breath hot against her mouth.
Her heartbeat thundered. “Good.”
The corner of his lips curved. “Careful, Sienna. You’re playing with fire.”
“And maybe,” she whispered, “I want to burn.”
The space between them shattered, and his lips crashed against hers.
It wasn’t gentle. It wasn’t tender. It was raw, desperate, months of pent-up emotion unleashed in one furious kiss. Her fingers curled into his shirt, pulling him closer, while his hand tangled in her hair, keeping her right where he wanted her.
When they finally broke apart, breathless, Sienna’s eyes burned into his.
“Still think silence works?” she dared.
Damien’s smirk returned, darker this time. “Not when your lips betray you
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