The hallway stretched out before me, dark and silent, the faint echo of our footsteps the only sound breaking the heavy stillness. Alexander's presence was an unspoken command, and I felt the weight of it in the air, pressing down on me with every step I took. His back was stiff, his muscles coiled in anticipation, but I couldn't ignore the dark pit that had settled in my stomach, the feeling that something even worse was lurking just out of sight.
I couldn't take it anymore. Not the silence. Not the way his cold, unreadable gaze never seemed to leave me. And certainly not the woman—the ghost-like figure—locked away, her eyes filled with such unbearable hunger that I couldn't get the image of her out of my mind.
I caught up to him, my heart pounding in my chest, a mix of dread and burning need for answers. "Why did you force me into this?" I finally asked, my voice trembling despite my best efforts. My hand gripped the sleeve of his jacket, desperate to pull him back, to stop him from retreating into that dark world that kept me on edge. "Why did you marry me? What do you want from me, Alexander?"
He froze. The sudden stillness between us was palpable, heavy with something deeper than just tension. The air itself seemed to pause, the faint hum of the house fading to nothing. His jaw tightened, but he didn't look at me. He couldn't.
"Emma," he said finally, his voice low, almost strained. "You don't understand. You can't understand. Not yet."
"Then make me understand," I urged, stepping into his path, my breath shallow. "Who is she? The woman in the room? What happened to her? Is that what you want to turn me into?"
A flicker of something passed across his face—anger, guilt, maybe both—but it was gone so quickly I could barely hold on to it. "She's not your concern," he said, his voice growing colder. "And neither am I. Not really."
I didn't want to let him go, didn't want to back down. The need for answers was suffocating, and every moment I stayed silent felt like I was drowning in a sea of questions. "Who are you?" I whispered, my voice trembling, barely audible over the pounding of my heart. "What have you gotten me into?"
For a long moment, he didn't answer. He just stood there, his eyes distant, as if he were fighting some invisible battle. Then, he stepped closer, his body a force that left no room for escape.
"You don't know what you're asking," he said in a low growl, his breath hot against my skin. His fingers reached out, grazing my cheek, a touch both tender and possessive. "I forced you to marry for my own selfish reasons, and now you're trapped in a world you never wanted to be a part of." His voice was filled with regret, but also a hint of desperation. "Like it or not, you're mine now."
The heat of his touch ignited something deep within me. My pulse quickened, my body betraying me as I stepped even closer, drawn to him against my will. The tension between us was electric, the air thick with something more dangerous than mere lust. It was desire—raw, unfiltered, and tangled with fear.
"Tell me," I whispered, my lips barely brushing his as my body swayed toward him, unable to resist. "Tell me what you really want from me." I gulped, feeling the weight of his gaze on me as he hesitated before speaking.
"I want everything," he admitted, his voice low and filled with longing. "I want all of you."
His eyes darkened, the hunger unmistakable. He closed the distance between us, his lips capturing mine in a searing kiss. It was brutal, demanding, as though he were trying to claim something deeper than my mouth. His hands were on my waist in an instant, pulling me against him as though he couldn't get close enough. The coldness that had held him before was gone, replaced by an intensity that made my head spin.
I couldn't breathe. My mind screamed to pull away, but my body didn't listen. The heat between us was overwhelming, consuming. I couldn't escape it, didn't want to. The kiss deepened, his grip tightening as though he were afraid I might vanish if he let go.
"You don't want to know," he murmured against my lips, his voice thick with desire. "Not yet."
But the more he kissed me, the more the questions clawed at the back of my mind. The answers I needed were somewhere in his touch, in the way his body reacted to mine, but they eluded me just beyond my reach.
As his hands slipped beneath my shirt, pushing it up slowly, his fingers burned against my skin, leaving a trail of heat in their wake. Every inch of me responded to his touch, every part of me craving more, even as my mind screamed for answers.
"What happens next?" I managed to gasp between kisses, my voice raw with need. "What's going to happen to me? Did you force me to marry just so you could have your way with me? What have I done to deserve this?" His lips brushed against my ear, his voice a low whisper that sent shivers down my spine. "Relax, my love," he murmured. "All will be revealed in due time. Your sins, your fears, your desires—they will all be laid bare before me, and I will judge you accordingly."
His lips paused, hovering over mine, his breath hot against my skin. "I forced you to marry me for a reason," he whispered, his eyes dark with desire. "But what happens next is up to you."
He paused for a moment, his forehead resting against mine, both of us breathless. The sound of his breathing was rough and ragged, and I knew it wasn't just the heat between us that made it so. It was something more, something darker.
"You're going to learn," he whispered, his voice low and almost deadly. "You're going to learn everything, Emma. Whether you want to or not. But you can never escape me." He brushed his thumb over my lower lip, a warning in his touch. "I am your worst nightmare and your deepest desire, all wrapped into one. And you will soon realize that there is no turning back from this."
His lips captured mine again, silencing any further questions as he pulled me deeper into the dark. I didn't know where we were going or what was happening to me, but I couldn't stop. I didn't want to stop.
What has my life become?
I'm tangled in a web of lies, desires, and regrets. He's my ex's father, the man who forced me into this twisted marriage. But as I stand here, unable to break free from his grip, a part of me wonders if I ever even wanted to. The pull of him—dangerous, consuming—is like a drug, and I can't stop. But should I want to?
What happens next?
I don't know. I'm trapped, yet the door is always just a step away. Should I run—or stay, lost in this madness? The thrill of the forbidden grows sharper with each touch, each word. And what if, when I do leave, I can't ever escape?
What's wrong with me?
Why do I crave him? He's the one who's ruined me, and yet—every time his lips brush against mine, every time he pulls me closer—there's this pull I can't resist. Is it fear? Or something worse? Something I shouldn't want?
I don't know what this is anymore. All I know is that Alexander is both my salvation and my destruction. The more I give in, the more I lose myself. But what if I lose everything? What if I don't even recognize who I am when this ends?
I don't know what I'm doing.
I don't know how I got here.
But I can't stop.
I don't want to.