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“That’s the problem, right there,” she sighed, turning him loose. “Do we know each other?”

“Yes. Not as well as we will, but well enough to continue on the path to get there. Stop letting that loser-ass nigga get in your head, Princess. That nigga is bouncing from family member to family member, practically begging someone to help him get a wife, and that’s who you’re going to listen to? Come on, now.”

Aella inhaled deeply and slowly released her breath. “I know. He’s a degenerate. I’m just so sensitive about all of this.”

Planting a hand at her waist, Cassius pulled her closer. “Because this wasn’t exactly how you planned or envisioned it, but that’s okay. The journey doesn’t have to be perfect as long as you arrive at the desired destination. Your fairytale ended with a husband, did it not? And before you decide to be smart and get into the fine details, just know I’m not in the mood for that shit right now.”

Aella dragged her fingertips against the back of his arm and pulled her lip between her teeth. “Yes.”

“One who ensures you’re protected while providing anything your heart desires?”

Their eyes met.

“Yes, but⁠—”

Cassius firmly planted his lips on hers and swallowed the end of her sentence. Aella’s argument moved to the back of her mind as she relaxed in his embrace.

She didn’t protest as his hands moved under her dress, bunching it around her waist.

Aella gasped sharply as Cassius’ lips moved to the base of her neck. Swallowing a moan, she swiftly unbuckled his belt and unzipped his pants.

Lifting her with ease, Cassius pivoted to place her onto the sink with her back resting against the cool mirror. With his hands planted on her wrists to keep her in place, Cassius hooked his arms under her thighs, maintaining eye contact while slipping inside.

“Oh, shit,” Aella whimpered, lamenting that she couldn’t move. Their current position gave Cassius full authority and her very little room to challenge him.

She was at his mercy, and they both knew it. From the pleasure splashed across Cassius’ contorted face, he enjoyed every moment.

Sinking her teeth into his collarbone, Aella fought her hardest to keep from alerting anyone who may have been passing by of their illicit rendezvous, but the difficulty increased with each stroke he delivered.

“Nah, fuck all that quiet shit. Let me hear you,” Cassius growled, sinking his teeth into her earlobe. “You think I care about anyone outside the door hearing that you belong to me?”

The intensity of his thrusts increased, forcing Aella’s eyes into the back of her head. Throwing caution to the wind, she proudly released all the love sounds imaginable, as a small part of her enjoyed the potential of them being discovered.

“Fuck, Elle,” he growled, his back stiffening as he released himself in her.

Breathing heavily, he slowly pulled out, seemingly satisfied with her freshly fucked look. Aella could only imagine how ragged she appeared after being thoroughly ravished.

“You can clean up as much as necessary, but not too much,” Cassius said. “Your punishment for doubting us is spending the rest of the night remembering me every time you move.”

Her mouth gaped, as it was one of the most outlandish and risqué orders a man had ever given—an order she planned to follow to a tee.

The engagement party was everything it needed to be. Everything had been curated down to the smallest detail so that every glass of champagne, every flicker of candlelight, reinforced exactly what tonight represented.

Solidarity.

Cassius stood at the center, composed as ever, a lowball glass resting untouched in his hand as voices swirled around him. His gaze shifted across the room, landing on Aella, who was in a significantly better mood than she’d been before.

For the moment, she was at least, which was all that he could ask for—another ten minutes passed before he slipped out of the room and made his escape.

The cold wrapped around him the moment he exited the back of the restaurant. Cassius adjusted his coat as he walked leisurely in the shadows.

The beater car waited where he’d had Mars park it hours earlier, painted, windows tinted, false plates in place—completely nondescript. Anyone walking past would think it was an old, forgotten vehicle, just as they wanted.

The car purred quietly as Cassius slid in behind the wheel and turned the engine, the heater cutting through the bite of the night.

By the time he reached Daniel Korr’s house, the streets were almost empty. It was still early, around 8 p.m., but streetlights threw long, pale beams across the snow-dusted sidewalks as Cassius’ phone pinged with a message from Mars, who’d exited the party about twenty minutes before him.

Perimeter is clear. Get here ASAP.