Page 4 of Once in a Lifetime, Part 2

Every step up the staircase felt heavier than the last. He didn’t know exactly what she was planning, but the cold certainty in her voice told him it wouldn’t be anything simple.

At the top of the stairs, she pushed open a door and stepped inside. Mano followed her into the room. Gray walls. Pink pillows scattered on the bed. A white bedsheet stretched tight across the mattress. The lamp on the nightstand glowed the same soft pink as the pillows. The room looked almost innocent.

Stella sat down on the bed and leaned back against the pillows. She stretched her arms along the mattress, like she had all the time in the world. A satisfied smile curled on her lips. “Strip.”

Mano froze. He simply stared at her. The word echoed in his head, heavy and unreal. He searched her face, hoping he’d misunderstood. But the calm certainty in her expression left no room for doubt.

“You’re joking.”

“I’m about to hit send,” she said, lifting her phone.

Mano stood across the room, glaring at her. He could see the message open on her screen. Anna’s name sat at the top of the chat. One tap and everything would explode.

“Go ahead,” he said. “Send it.”

Stella’s thumb hovered over the screen. “Are you sure?”

Mano held her gaze. He almost said yes. Then Ody’s face flashed in his mind, pale, shaken, those green eyes fixed on him. “I trust you. More than anyone.”

His chest felt heavy. Ody had been terrified of this. Of Anna finding out through Stella. Through cruelty and humiliation.

Mano’s hands curled into fists at his side.

He had promised him he would stop it.

No matter what.

Chapter 2

He closed his eyes. When he opened them again, the decision was already made. He pulled his shirt over his head. The fabric hit the floor.

Her gaze dragged over him, unhurried, tracing his shoulders, the ink along his arms, the tight set of his chest, before lingering on his abs. She took her time, studying him as if she were examining something she had already decided she owned. “The rest,” she said.

“You’re out of your fucking mind.”

She didn’t answer. Instead, she lifted the phone again, holding it up between them.

Mano exhaled through his nose, his gaze dropping. When he looked back at her, his expression had hardened. He grabbed the drawstring of his sweatpants and pulled it loose. The fabric slid down his legs. He stepped out of them and kicked them aside.

Cold air brushed against his skin. His entire body was rigid with tension as he looked back at her.

Stella’s eyes moved over him again, slower this time. “All of it.”

Mano just stared at her. Something in his expression shifted, going cold. “What the hell is wrong with you?” His voice came out low. “Do you even hear yourself?”

Stella didn’t answer. She lifted the phone, her gaze flicking over the screen. Then she looked at him. “What do you think happens when Anna finds out about you and Ody?”

Mano didn’t move. The room seemed to shrink around him. Anna’s face flashed in his mind, the look on it when she’d understand. Then Ody. Scared.“I won’t let them destroy what we have. Do you trust me?”

Mano felt the ground shift beneath him. If she sent that message now, everything would explode. Ody would be the one left standing in the middle of it.

Stella tilted her head. “Do you want to find out?” Her finger lifted above the screen, hovering. One tap away.

Mano’s eyes closed. “Don’t…”

Stella’s lips curved into a slow smile. “Don’t what?”

Mano swallowed. “I’ll give you whatever you want. Just… don’t do this.”