Chapter 13: Damian Mine
1408 Words
Jealousy.
Damian had always believed it was an emotion reserved for men who lacked control.
He had built an empire through discipline.
Every decision was calculated.
Every word carefully measured.
Every action deliberate.
Emotion had no place in leadership.
Anger was controlled.
Fear was weaponised.
Mercy was earned.
Jealousy…
Jealousy was weakness.
At least…
That was what he had believed.
Until Skylar.
⸻
The storm had ended two weeks ago.
Three days.
Three nights.
Three nights where thunder had driven Skylar into his room with nothing but a pillow, a blanket and those enormous frightened eyes.
The first night had surprised him.
The second had warmed him.
By the third…
It had become natural.
A quiet knock.
“Come in.”
Skylar slipping inside.
No awkward explanation.
No embarrassment.
He would simply climb into bed as though he had always belonged there.
The cuddling had slowly disappeared once the storms ended.
Skylar no longer buried himself against Damian’s chest.
Instead, he slept on his own side.
Close enough that Damian could hear his breathing.
Far enough to respect the boundaries Skylar still carried around his heart.
And somehow…
That was enough.
Even after the weather cleared…
Skylar never went back to sleeping in the room opposite his.
Every night, without fail, he would appear with a quiet, almost shy smile before disappearing beneath the blankets.
Neither of them spoke about it.
Neither of them questioned it.
It simply…
Became theirs.
⸻
Life settled into another routine.
Breakfast together.
Still two chairs apart.
Damian found the distance amusing now.
Three months ago Skylar had practically eaten in another postcode.
Now…
Two chairs.
Progress.
Phone calls during the day.
“Have you eaten?”
“Yes.”
“You’re lying.”
“…Maybe.”
“I’ll send lunch.”
Fresh pastries arriving at his office.
Little notes tucked inside the boxes.
Don’t skip meals.
This one’s my favourite.
Tell me if it’s too sweet.
Every tiny gesture made Damian’s heart impossibly lighter.
Skylar still rarely met his eyes.
Still fidgeted with his wedding ring.
Still spoke more to his coffee than directly to Damian.
But…
He smiled now.
Often.
Especially when speaking about the café.
And Damian found himself falling deeper every single day.
⸻
His afternoon meeting had lasted almost three hours.
A private negotiation.
No phones.
No interruptions.
When it finally ended, Damian retrieved his mobile from the table.
Two unread messages.
Skylar
His expression softened immediately.
Have you eaten yet?
Five minutes later…
You’re probably busy. Just don’t forget lunch.
A smile touched his lips.
He glanced at the time.
Still early enough.
Instead of replying…
An idea crossed his mind.
“I’ll surprise him.”
⸻
The café smelled exactly as it always did.
Fresh bread.
Vanilla.
Butter.
Coffee.
Warmth.
Employees greeted him respectfully.
Some looked slightly intimidated.
Others smiled politely.
One young woman behind the counter bowed her head.
“Good afternoon, sir.”
“Where’s Skylar?”
“Upstairs.”
“The balcony.”
“He usually eats lunch there around this time.”
Damian thanked her quietly before walking towards the staircase.
His footsteps were almost silent.
As he reached the second floor…
He heard laughter.
Soft.
Bright.
Happy.
His chest warmed.
He’s laughing.
Then he stepped onto the balcony.
And froze.
Skylar sat at a small table beneath the afternoon sun.
Lunch half-finished.
Across from him…
Andy.
The bodyguard Damian himself had assigned.
They weren’t sitting particularly close.
There was appropriate distance between them.
Andy was saying something.
Skylar laughed.
Actually laughed.
His head tipped back.
His eyes crinkled.
The sound…
Was beautiful.
Something inside Damian snapped.
It wasn’t logical.
It wasn’t reasonable.
It wasn’t fair.
But it happened anyway.
A cold, vicious feeling clawed its way through his chest.
His jaw tightened.
His heartbeat slowed.
His entire expression emptied.
The warmth vanished from his eyes.
Grey turned to ice.
The temperature on the balcony seemed to drop.
Skylar noticed him first.
His smile disappeared instantly.
“…Damian?”
Andy turned.
The colour drained from his face.
Damian didn’t look at Skylar.
Not once.
His gaze settled entirely on Andy.
“What…”
His voice was calm.
Terrifyingly calm.
“…is going on here?”
Andy immediately stood.
“Boss, I—”
Damian took one slow step forward.
“Answer the question.”
“I was just having lunch with Mr Laurent.”
“I can see that.”
Silence.
Damian’s stare never wavered.
“Is this…”
Another slow step.
“…what I’m paying you to do?”
“No, sir.”
“You are employed to protect my husband.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You are employed to identify threats.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You are employed to eliminate danger before it reaches him.”
“Yes, sir.”
Each answer came quicker.
More frightened.
Damian stopped directly in front of him.
“So explain…”
His voice lowered.
“…why I find my bodyguard laughing over lunch instead of doing the job I entrusted him with.”
Andy swallowed hard.
“We’d already finished the security sweep.”
“There were no threats.”
“Mr Laurent asked if I’d eaten.”
“I didn’t think—”
“No.”
Damian cut him off.
“You didn’t.”
The words weren’t loud.
They didn’t need to be.
Skylar had never heard silence become so frightening.
Even the wind seemed to stop.
Andy lowered his head.
“I’m sorry, sir.”
“I’ve served your family faithfully for years.”
Damian spoke with eerie composure.
“And that loyalty…”
“…is the only reason you’re still standing here.”
Andy looked physically ill.
“The next time…”
Damian continued.
“…I see you forgetting why you’re beside my husband…”
“…I will no longer remember your years of service.”
Another pause.
Then—
“And I assure you…”
His grey eyes became colder than steel.
“…that will be the last carefree laugh you ever have.”
The words were quiet.
Almost gentle.
Which somehow made them infinitely worse.
Andy immediately bowed.
“I’m sorry, sir.”
“It won’t happen again.”
“It won’t.”
He didn’t wait for permission.
He practically fled.
⸻
Silence settled over the balcony.
Skylar remained seated.
Completely frozen.
His heart pounded painfully.
He had always been frightened of Damian.
But…
This…
This wasn’t the Damian who patiently ate every pastry he baked.
This wasn’t the man who tucked blankets over him during thunderstorms.
This…
Was the man the underworld whispered about.
The man whose reputation crossed oceans.
The mafia king.
Damian finally looked at him.
Their eyes met.
For only a second.
Skylar couldn’t read the expression.
There was anger.
Something darker.
Something strangely wounded.
And beneath all of it…
Something almost desperate.
Damian looked away first.
“I’m leaving.”
That was all he said.
Then he turned.
Walked back through the café.
Down the stairs.
Past every employee who immediately lowered their eyes.
Moments later…
Skylar heard the unmistakable growl of Damian’s car disappearing into traffic.
⸻
The drive back to the office was silent.
Damian gripped the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles turned white.
Every traffic light felt too long.
Every red light irritated him.
Every second replayed the same image.
Skylar…
Laughing.
Not with him.
With another man.
Ridiculous.
Completely irrational.
Andy had done nothing wrong.
Skylar had done absolutely nothing wrong.
He knew that.
He knew it with absolute certainty.
Yet…
The feeling refused to disappear.
Instead…
It grew.
Burned.
Possessive.
Ugly.
Primitive.
His chest tightened.
His thoughts darkened.
He hated it.
He hated how quickly his mind had spiralled.
He hated the look of fear on Skylar’s face.
Most of all…
He hated himself for being the cause of it.
By the time he reached his office, he didn’t immediately get out of the car.
He sat alone in complete silence.
His reflection stared back at him in the windscreen.
Cold.
Expressionless.
Dangerous.
For the first time in years…
Damian admitted something to himself that he had been avoiding.
This wasn’t simple affection anymore.
This wasn’t merely wanting to protect Skylar.
No.
It had become something far more dangerous.
Far more consuming.
Far more difficult to control.
He was possessive.
Hopelessly.
Completely.
Terrifyingly possessive.
And if he wasn’t careful…
The very thing he feared most—
Becoming someone Skylar could never feel safe with—
- Writer
