Alina woke to sunlight spilling across her face and the sound of her phone buzzing like it had something urgent to confess. She groaned, dragging herself upright. Her head was still full of last night lanterns floating into the sky, Kade's sudden reappearance, and most of all…
Lucian Hale.
His name alone made her chest tighten in a way she didn't want to examine. She rubbed her eyes, trying to steady her heartbeat. She was being ridiculous. People like Lucian didn't get tangled up with girls like her. He was a billionaire. A force of nature. A man with a reputation that came with shadows.
He didn't pursue. He didn't chase.
And she wasn't someone men like that noticed twice.
At least, that's what she told herself.
Until she reached the kitchen and saw her mother staring at her phone with the expression of someone witnessing the end of the world.
Alina.
Her mother's tone was strange tight, breathless. You… you have a visitor.
Alina blinked. A visitor?
At this hour? her father grumbled from the living room. Nobody decent visits before noon.
Her mother didn't answer. She just pointed toward the front door with a trembling hand.
Alina followed her gaze.
And froze.
Standing outside on their small front porch like he belonged there…
Lucian Hale.
Her heart dropped to her stomach.
He looked completely out of place against the peeling paint and the potted plants her mother kept forgetting to water. He wore another dark, perfectly cut suit hands in pockets, posture relaxed but unsettlingly controlled. The kind of controlled that said: I can break whatever rules I decide to.
Alina wasn't ready for this.
Not mentally.
Not emotionally.
Not physically in her bunny-print pajamas.
Oh my God, she whispered. Why is he here?
You tell us, her father snapped. Did you meet this man yesterday?
Yes, she admitted weakly.
Where? Prison?
Dad!
Before her parents could question her to death, the doorbell rang again one crisp chime that somehow sounded like a command.
Her mother shoved her forward. Go answer it! Before the neighbors think we're bankrupt or hiding a crime lord!
Well… considering who Lucian Hale was, the neighbors thinking he was a crime lord wasn't the worst guess.
Alina swallowed hard and opened the door.
Lucian's gaze swept over her instantly slow, deliberate, too observant. His eyes paused on her pajamas for half a second, and his lips twitched.
Not amusement.
Recognition.
As if he already expected her to be unprepared for him.
Good morning, Alina, he said.
His voice was the same as last night low, smooth, almost magnetic.
Lucian… what are you doing here? She asked, trying not to sound breathless.
He gave a small tilt of his head. I said I noticed things. I noticed you left last night shaken. And I don't like loose ends.
Loose ends.
Was that what she was to him?
Her father appeared behind her, crossing his arms. Is there a reason you're visiting my daughter at eight in the morning?
Lucian nodded politely. Yes. There is.
And? Her father demanded.
Lucian's eyes returned to her. I'd like to take Alina out for breakfast.
Alina nearly choked.
Her father did choke.
No, her father declared immediately. Absolutely not.
Her mother squinted at Lucian like she was trying to remember if she'd seen him on the news. What do you do for a living, young man?
Lucian didn't blink. Business.
What kind of business?
Profitable.
Her father bristled. You think you can just walk up here in your fancy suit and
Yes, Lucian said calmly.
The audacity.
The calm audacity.
Alina stepped between them quickly before her father burst a vein.
Dad, Mom just give me a few minutes.
Her parents exchanged frantic looks but retreated to the kitchen.
Alina stepped onto the porch, closing the door behind her.
You can't just show up at my house, she said.
I can," he corrected. Ijust did.
She stared at him. People don't do that.
I'm not people.
God help her, he wasn't lying.
Lucian, she said softly, why are you here?
Something flickered in his eyes something tightly contained, something that felt too close to interest.
I wanted to see you again.
Her breath hitched.
He continued, voice level but far too intense: Something happened last night. I don't like things I can't explain. And I can't explain… you.
Her heartbeat stuttered.
And, he added, I don't wait.
He let the weight of those words settle between them.
Dominant.
Direct.
Relentless.
Alina exhales slowly. You're not making this easy.
Im not trying to make it easy.
He took a step closer.
Not touching.
But close enough for her breath to tangle.
I'm offering you breakfast, he said. "Not a contract. Not a lifetime vow. Just breakfast.
But she heard what he wasn't saying:
And if you say yes, it won't stay just breakfast.
Alina dropped her gaze, trying to gather her courage. She had always been the good girl. Careful. Predictable. Safe.
But something about Lucian made her want to step into the unknown.
Maybe it was reckless.
Maybe it was stupid.
But it felt… extraordinary.
Give me ten minutes, she whispered.
Lucian nodded once, satisfied.
Alina changed quickly jeans, a soft blue top, her favorite sneakers. When she stepped back out, her parents were still watching from the window like anxious security cameras.
Lucian opened the car door for her.
She hesitated.
Is this safe? she asked.
No, he said. But it's real.
He didn't sugarcoat. He didn't pretend. Somehow, that made her trust him more.
She slid into the leather interior. Luxurious didn't even begin to cover it. The car hummed softly, responding to Lucian like it recognized its owner's touch.
He pulled away from the street smoothly, effortlessly.
So, Alina said after a moment, "do you always kidnap girls for breakfast?
If I were kidnapping you, he replied, you wouldn't have been given time to change.
Her heart skipped. That's… not reassuring.
He glanced at her, eyes glinting. I'm not here to reassure you.
No. He definitely wasn't.
Lucian took her to a restaurant on a cliff overlooking the sea private, quiet, almost unreal. It didn't just serve breakfast. It served wealth.
Alina shifted awkwardly as they sat down.
You don't have to look so tense, Lucian said.
You brought me to a place where the plates probably cost more than my shoes.
They do, he admitted. But that's not why I brought you here.
Then why?
His gaze locked with hers.
Because I want to understand why I can't stop thinking about you.
Her stomach flipped.
He didn't look away. Didn't soften his voice. He told the truth like a man who didn't fear consequences.
You're not like the girls in my world, he said. You don't want anything from me.
I don't even fully know who you are.
And that, he said, is strangely refreshing.
She looked down at her hands. I don't think you should be here with me.
Because I'm older?
Because you're dangerous.
He smiled faintly. Dangerous doesn't mean harmful.
And which one are you? she whispered.
His answer was too honest.
Both, depending on who provokes me. But not to you.
Her chest tightened.
As breakfast arrived, Alina tried to distract herself pointing out the ocean, asking about the restaurant, anything to steady her nerves. Lucian answered politely, but he didn't stop watching her. It wasn't creepy. It was… observant. Like he was studying a puzzle.
Stop looking at me like that, she said finally.
Like what?
Like you're reading me.
I am. He leaned back. You're not difficult to read, Alina. You're brave, but you don't know it yet. You think you're ordinary, but you're not. And you're curious even if you're trying to pretend you're not.
Her face heated. You don't know me.
Yet.
Silence fell.
Heavy.
Charged.
She took a sip of water to hide how flustered she felt.
Lucian laughed softly a rare sound, low and surprisingly warm.
You're interesting, he said.
You're intimidating, she countered.
That's fair.
After breakfast, Lucian drove her home. She expected him to drop her off and leave without another word.
Instead, he got out of the car, walked her to the porch, and said:
I'd like to see you again.
Her breath caught. Lucian
He didn't push. Didn't corner her.
He simply lifted her hand gently, brushing his thumb across her knuckles a touch so light it made her entire arm shiver.
Think about it, he murmured.
Then he walked away, leaving her on the porch with her heart pounding.
That afternoon, Alina sat at the park, trying to journal her thoughts.
Lucian.
Kade.
Danger.
Attraction.
Confusion.
The universe was doing too much.
She was midway through a sentence when she heard footsteps behind her.
Fancy seeing you again, birthday girl, a familiar voice drawled.
She turned.
Kade.
In a leather jacket, leaning against a tree with the lazy confidence of a boy who didn't care about rules. The sun caught the gold flecks in his hazel eyes. He smirked.
You didn't say goodbye last night, he said.
I did say goodbye.
Not to me.
She sighed. What do you want, Kade?
Two years, he said quietly, stepping closer. I disappear for two years, and when I come back, the first person I look for is you. And guess what I find?
She swallowed. What?
You. Standing with some billionaire stranger like you're living in a movie.
Her cheeks warmed. It wasn't like that.
It looked like that.
Kade's voice softened as he sat beside her.
You okay? You looked… shaken last night.
She hesitated.
For all his recklessness, Kade had always read her too easily.
I'm fine, she said.
You sure?
Yes.
No, you're not.
He leaned back, arms folded. So who is he to you?
No one.
Didn't look like no one.
There was jealousy in his tone unhidden, unashamed. It made her pulse flutter for the wrong reasons.
I barely know him.
But you want to.
She froze.
Kade's jaw tightened.
Be careful, Lina, he said softly. Guys like him? They don't fall. They pull.
Her breath caught.
And once you're in their world, he added, you don't come back the same.
She didn't know how to answer not when his warning echoed too perfectly with Lucian's presence.
Kade…
He stood, brushing dirt off his jeans.
I'm not going anywhere again,he said. If someone's going to look out for you, it's me. Not some powerful stranger with secrets.
He started to walk away.
Kade!
He stopped.
She opened her mouth, but the wind stole her words. He waited a few seconds, then nodded once and left.
Alina sank back onto the bench, heart split.
Lucian.
Kade.
Two very different storms.
One sharp and controlled.
One wild and unpredictable.
And she was caught in the middle without a clue which direction would ruin her first.
That night, when Alina finally got home, she found a small black envelope slipped under the door.
Her name written in elegant handwriting.
Her breath caught as she opened it.
Inside was a single note:
I'm not done.
Her heart stuttered.
Because even though she knew this was the edge of something dangerous…
She also knew she would step over it.