CHAPTER.12:THE LINE WE CROSSED
1328 Words
~Chiara
I couldn’t understand why Alex was looking at me like that.
Like I was something rare and complicated, a puzzle he was almost afraid to solve.
His gaze lingered — heavy, searching, too intimate. He stood there, towel slung low around his hips, chest rising in tune with his breathing . And I— I couldn’t look away.
God help me, I tried.
But my eyes betrayed me, tracing the curve of muscle across his shoulders, the way his chest rose and fell, strong and steady. And there, inked right over his heart, was a name .
Anna.
The sight of it did something strange to my chest — a sharp twist, half jealousy, half ache. Who was she? What had she meant to him?What sort of emotion had made him tattoo a name on his chest?
I tore my gaze away, pretending to adjust the sleeve of my dress, but my thoughts refused to behave. Every breath between us thickened with something that felt like danger and desire all tangled together.
And yet beneath all that… I was still reeling from his mother’s words.
“Quit your job, Chiara."
Margaux had said it with the finality of a war general. I could still feel the humiliation crawling under my skin. I loved my job — it was my independence, my pride. But then Alex had promised to take care of my parents, to make sure they’d never worry again. And that had been my undoing.
My parents were my soft spot — the only people who had ever truly loved me without condition. And I had just sold my freedom for their comfort.
I doubted I handled the situation well.
I sighed, glancing toward Alex again, but the sight of him made my throat go dry. He was still watching me, eyes hooded, expression unreadable.
“Why do you keep looking at me like that?” I blurted out, more defensive than I meant to sound.
He didn’t answer. Instead, he stepped closer, one slow, deliberate stride at a time. I took an involuntary step back;my back brushed the cool wall before I even realized I’d moved.
“Alex…” My voice came out low,breathless.
"Who are you really , Chiara?"
He braced his hands against the wall of either side of me. His cool body, fresh from his bath, smelt of body shampoo and something more dark, manly. He brought his face to hover inches from mine, his breath warm against my cheek.
“Chiara?” he whispered,huskily
I didn’t get the chance to answer. His mouth found mine — rough, urgent, desperate in a way that felt like it had been waiting too long. My knees nearly gave out. I felt the room tilt, the air caught fire. Every touch, every breath seemed to pull us closer until the world narrowed to the sound of our hearts beating too fast.
“Alex—” I whispered, not sure if it was protest or plea.
He pulled back just enough to look into my eyes. “Tell me to stop.”
I couldn’t.
The word simply wouldn’t come.
Something in me wanted to know what it felt like to fall — just once — without worrying about where I’d land.
The next moments blurred — the press of his hand at the small of my back to pull me tight against me, the soft gasp that escaped me when his lips found the hollow of my throat and his tongue flicked across the whorls and back of my ear, the rough edge of his voice when he said my name. It was all heat and desire and reckless abandon when he picked me up from the floor into his arms . I wrapped my legs around his waist while his palms wrecked havoc to my butt cheeks.He massaged and grabbed them .
I didn't know how we made it from the terrace to the bed but we did.
He deposited me on the bed.
I was all dizzy from desire but I instinctively followed his lead.
I turned and bent over ,my ass to him.
He grunted hoarsely.
He smacked my ass ..
I yelped in the jolt of pain that trailed down my spine but moaned when a thrill of pleasure followed.
Emboldened,he pulled down my jeans and slapped my bare ass again.
Once ,Twice.Thrice.
I moaned with each sharp pain.
"Punish that ass, daddy."
I moaned throatily.
Alex froze.
Completely.
His eyes darkened, the warmth and desire in them vanishing in an instant. He took a step back from the bed as if I’d just slapped him.
The sound of my own pulse roared in my ears.
“Alex?” I said tremulously. “What’s wrong?”
He didn’t answer. His jaw tightened, and then—without a word—he turned and walked out.
I stood there for a moment, my heart pounding, my skin still tingling from where he’d touched me. Shame rushed through me, cold and sharp.
What had I just done?
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~Alexander
I couldn’t breathe.
The second the word left her lips,My brain crashed.
It wasn’t Chiara’s voice I heard anymore.
It was another in my head— small, bright, innocent. A child’s laughter as she stretched a hand to me so I could lift her into my shoulders.
Stumbling like the blind,I made it quickly enough out of room and into the bathroom sink to throw up.After retching to my heart's content .I washed my hands .
My reflection in the mirror caught my attention, I gripped the porcelain until my knuckles went white.
I desperately wanted to break something so I settled for smashing the mirror in with a fist.
I grinned in satisfaction, watching the blood pool from my cuts.Pain was no alien feeling to me . I stauched the bleeding with first aid and walked out into the night.
Chiara's face rose in my mind's eye and I pressed on my bandaged cut to inflict more pain on myself.
I’d almost lost control. I’d almost touched her in a way I couldn’t take back.
What the hell was wrong with me?
For a man who’d spent his whole life in control, Chiara unraveled me. Her stubborn fire, her defiance, the way she looked at me like she would like to see the man under the money and the cold exterior. And now—this.
I pressed a hand to my chest, right over the tattoo.
Anna.
The name burned there like a scar that would never fade.
My feet carried me down the long hall, past the portraits and the silence, until I found myself in front of Amelia’s door.
He knocked once.
It opened almost immediately. Amelia stood there, her robe loosely tied, a faint smile curving her lips. “Can’t sleep?”
My throat felt tight. “Something like that.”
Her eyes softened, understanding too much. “You never could, when you were upset.”
Her eyes fell to my bandaged hand .A resigned expression crossed her eyes.
She reached out, fingertips brushing the bandage. “You did it again, didn't you?,” she whispered.
She pulled me into her arms "You don't have to be alone this night, Alexander."
She smelt as she always did.Expensive feminine perfumes
I should have turned away. But instead, I looked at her — really looked — and all I could think was that maybe if I let myself drown in something familia-
I leaned forward, brushed her lips with mine . once — slow, delibe
rate — and then kissed her deeply.
When she stepped back into the room, I clasped my hands around her waist and followed.
Lifting her legs off the floor, I kicked the door closed behind me.
- Writer
