Owned By The Devil CEO

Chapter 7 — Break the Rules

Adrian lasted exactly ten minutes.

Ten minutes after Luca walked out—

Before the silence became unbearable.

Before the absence started to feel… wrong.

He didn’t like that.

Didn’t like how quickly it happened.

Didn’t like that it happened at all.

“You should go,” Adrian said suddenly.

The woman across from him blinked slightly.

“That’s new,” she replied.

Adrian didn’t explain.

Didn’t soften it.

“I have work.”

She studied him for a moment.

Longer this time.

Deeper.

“This isn’t about work,” she said quietly.

Adrian’s jaw tightened.

“Leave.”

A pause.

Then—

She smiled.

Slow.

Knowing.

“Be careful, Adrian,” she said as she stepped back.

He didn’t respond.

“Whatever that is…” she added, glancing toward the door,

“…it’s already affecting you.”

And then—

She was gone.

Silence returned.

But this time—

It wasn’t empty.

It was loud.

Adrian stood there for a moment.

Still.

Thinking.

Then—

He moved.

Fast.

The door opened sharply as he stepped out, his eyes scanning the hallway immediately.

“Where is he?”

His assistant looked up, startled.

“Mr. Reyes left the floor.”

Of course he did.

Adrian exhaled sharply, already moving.

Elevator.

Lobby.

Parking.

Each step faster than the last.

Until—

He saw him.

Luca stood near the glass entrance, his back partially turned, phone in hand.

Talking to someone.

Adrian slowed.

Not because he wanted to—

But because something about the scene felt… off.

Luca’s posture was tense.

His voice low.

Controlled.

“I said I’m handling it,” Luca muttered.

A pause.

“No. Not yet.”

Another pause.

Adrian’s gaze darkened.

“Stop pushing,” Luca added, sharper this time.

Then—

He ended the call.

And turned—

Freezing the moment he saw Adrian.

Silence.

Heavy.

“Following me now?” Luca said.

Adrian didn’t answer immediately.

His eyes were locked on him.

“Who were you talking to?”

Luca’s expression didn’t change.

“That’s none of your business.”

Wrong answer.

Adrian stepped closer.

“It became my business the moment you signed that contract.”

Luca let out a quiet breath.

“You really believe that gives you control over everything?”

“Yes.”

No hesitation.

No doubt.

Luca shook his head slightly.

“You don’t control me.”

Adrian stepped even closer.

Now they were back in that space.

Too close.

Too intense.

Too dangerous.

“Then stop acting like you belong to something else,” Adrian said.

That hit.

Luca’s eyes flashed.

“And what exactly do you think I belong to?” he asked.

Adrian didn’t answer right away.

Because the truth—

Was complicated.

But what came out wasn’t.

“Me.”

Silence.

Thick.

Explosive.

Luca let out a short, disbelieving laugh.

“There it is,” he said.

Adrian’s gaze didn’t waver.

“You signed the contract.”

“And you think that means ownership?” Luca shot back.

Adrian stepped closer again.

“It means you don’t walk away when I tell you to stay.”

“And it doesn’t mean I stay when you treat me like I’m nothing.”

That—

Landed.

Hard.

Because for a second—

Adrian had no response.

Luca exhaled, running a hand through his hair.

“I’m not one of your employees you can control and discard,” he said.

Adrian’s voice dropped.

“You’re not being discarded.”

“Then what am I?” Luca challenged.

Silence.

The question hung between them.

Because Adrian didn’t have a clean answer.

Not one he was ready to say.

And that—

Frustrated him more than anything else.

“Get back upstairs,” Adrian said finally.

Luca stared at him.

“No.”

That word—

Simple.

Direct.

It snapped something.

Adrian reached for him—

Grabbing his arm.

Pulling him closer.

“Don’t push me,” Adrian warned.

Luca didn’t pull away.

Instead—

He stepped in.

Closing the distance completely.

“Or what?” he asked softly.

Adrian’s breath hitched.

That tone—

That proximity—

It wasn’t a challenge anymore.

It was something else.

Something heavier.

“You think this is control?” Luca continued.

Their faces inches apart now.

“This isn’t control.”

A pause.

“It’s obsession.”

That word—

Cut deeper than anything else.

Adrian’s grip tightened.

“Watch yourself,” he said.

Luca’s eyes didn’t move.

“Or what?” he repeated.

And that—

That was it.

The final line.

Adrian pulled him in.

Not thinking.

Not calculating.

Just reacting.

The distance disappeared.

The tension snapped.

And suddenly—

They were too close to ignore it anymore.

Breath against breath.

Heat against heat.

Everything loud.

Everything real.

Then—

Adrian stopped.

Just before crossing the line.

Just before it became something neither of them could take back.

He released him.

Stepping back.

Both of them breathing harder now.

Both of them aware of what almost happened.

And what it meant.

“This doesn’t happen again,” Adrian said.

But his voice—

Wasn’t convincing.

Luca watched him.

Then shook his head slowly.

“You’re already losing,” he said quietly.

And then—

He turned.

Walking away.

This time—

Adrian didn’t stop him.

Because he couldn’t.