Chapter 23: The Devil’s Sleeping Beauty (Steamy)
Ana stood frozen in the center of the dimly lit penthouse bedroom, her chest heaving as the silence of the room closed in on her. She couldn’t believe she was actually doing this... standing here, waiting for him, exactly like he had told her to.
The heavy double doors clicked open.
Damian walked in, taking his sweet, agonizing time. He had already discarded his tie, his shirt unbuttoned halfway down his chest, radiating a terrifyingly casual dominance. A wicked smirk pulled at his lips as his dark eyes swept over her trembling form.
"Look at you," Damian taunted, his deep baritone dripping with dark amusement as he closed the distance with slow, predatory steps. "Standing right where you were told. You’re practically craving my touch, aren’t you, Anastasia? So shameless, begging me for things you’re too afraid to even speak out loud."
He stopped right in front of her, his shadow completely enveloping her. He reached out, his calloused fingers capturing her jaw in a firm grip, forcing her to look into his piercing eyes. "Tell me... is this really the same innocent woman I was once married to?"
Ana’s blood boiled. She wanted to slap his beautiful, arrogant face a hundred times for humiliating her like this.
But she kept her mouth tightly shut, her knuckles turning white as she balled her hands into fists. The worst part wasn’t his taunts... it was the sickening realization that he was right. She was shameless.
Despite everything he had done, her body was traitorously aching for him.
"Cat got your tongue?" Damian murmured dangerously low.
Before she could answer, he crashed his lips onto hers.
The kiss was fierce, bruising, and completely consuming. Ana groaned into his mouth as his hands tore at her clothes, peeling her dress away piece by piece until she was stripped bare before him.
Without breaking the kiss, Damian lifted her up effortlessly, his muscles straining as he carried her to the massive bed.
He threw her down with a heavy, commanding force, immediately pinning her body beneath his weight. His mouth devoured hers before trailing down her jawline, burying his face into the crook of her neck, leaving a trail of burning kisses that made her arch into him.
Ana whimpered, her hands tangling in his dark hair as he moved lower, capturing one of her breasts. He pulled, tugged, and bit at the sensitive peak, driving her into a blind, breathless frenzy. She was completely unraveled, a helpless mess beneath him.
Damian’s hands slid down to her thighs, roughly parting her legs wide. He shifted his weight, his dark eyes burning with an untamed hunger as he hovered over her core, his breath hot against her bare skin, just seconds away from teasing her with his mouth...
Knock. Knock.
The sharp, sudden sound echoed through the bedroom.
Damian froze, his body going rigid. An absolute, murderous fury flashed across his face.
"Go away!" Damian roared toward the door, his voice booming with lethal impatience.
But the voice from the other side didn’t retreat. "Sir, I apologize deeply," the old butler’s voice trembled through the heavy wood, but remained urgent. "It’s an emergency."
Damian let out a dark, low curse that sent a shiver down Ana’s spine. He slowly raised himself off her, the sudden absence of his heat leaving her shivering against the sheets.
He looked down at Ana, his eyes black with unfulfilled lust and raw anger.
"Stay right here," he commanded, his voice a low, threatening growl. "Don’t move a single inch."
Without waiting for a response, he grabbed his shirt, threw the door open, and disappeared into the hallway, slamming the door shut behind him and leaving Ana alone in the dark.
Her chest heaved as the heat of his touch slowly evaporated from her skin, replaced by a sudden, biting chill. Shivering, Ana pulled herself up and dragged the heavy silk blanket around her body, wrapping it tightly over her shoulders.
She sat in the center of the massive bed, her heart still hammering against her ribs as she stared at the door, waiting.
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Downstairs, Damian strode into the grand living room, his face dark with murderous impatience. Standing by the marble pillars was Thomas, his mother’s head bodyguard, looking disheveled and pale.
"This had better be life or death, Thomas," Damian growled, his deep voice slicing through the room.
"Sir, I apologize deeply for interrupting," Thomas stammered, bowing his head quickly. "But it’s Madam Sterling. There was an incident at the estate. She fell down the grand staircase this evening and had to be rushed to the hospital."
Damian’s jaw clenched, his eyes narrowing into dangerous slits. "How severe?"
"No major fractures, thankfully," Thomas assured him hastily, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead. "The doctors have stabilized her, and she is currently resting under heavy sedation. She’s out of danger for the night, but the hospital requested your immediate presence."
Damian remained silent for a long moment, his mind calculating. If she was stabilized and resting, rushing to the hospital now would achieve nothing but media frenzy.
"Keep the private security detailed at her door," Damian ordered flatly. "No press gets in. I will be there first thing tomorrow morning."
Dismissing the bodyguard, Damian turned and walked back up the grand staircase. The intense fire that had been burning in his veins minutes ago had settled into a heavy, cold focus.
When he pushed the bedroom doors open, the room was quiet. He stepped inside, expecting to find Ana waiting anxiously or glaring at him with her usual defiance.
Instead, she was fast asleep.
Ana had curled up into a small, tight ball in the very center of his bed, completely buried beneath the massive silk duvet to keep out the cold. Only the top of her head and a few stray curls were visible.
Damian approached the side of the bed, looming over her sleeping form. He shed his shirt, throwing it carelessly onto a chair, before sliding beneath the heavy covers. The moment he settled in, the sheer warmth radiating from her small body hit him.
Without thinking, he reached out, his large, heavy arm sliding around her waist to pull her flush against his bare chest, absorbing her heat into his own skin.
He looked down at her peaceful, unbothered face in the dim moonlight.
"You better be sorry for sleeping so soundly in my bed, doll," he muttered darkly to himself, his thumb lightly brushing the curve of her hip beneath the sheets.