####Chapter five : Breaking the rules

The sun filtered into the penthouse, warm and indifferent, touching Dominic Kane before Amara even stirred.

He was already awake.

Already dressed.

Already pacing.

In his world, a man couldn’t afford to sleep in. Not when his name was inked across contracts that made or broke lives. Not when his empire was built on precision, silence, and control.

But right now, all he could think about was her.

Amara West.

Naked in his bed. Curled up in his sheets like she belonged there. Hair messy. Lips bruised. Skin marked by his mouth and hands.

She looked like trouble.

She looked like his undoing.

And he wanted her again.

God help him, he wanted her.

But he couldn’t. Not today.

Not with everything coming.

One Hour Later

When Amara woke up, Dominic was gone.

Again.

But this time, there was coffee on the nightstand.

And a note.

Be ready by 8:00 p.m. Tonight. No questions. Wear something red.

– D.

Her lips curved before she could stop them.

The man was insufferable.

Demanding.

And addictive.

She read the note again.

Then slipped it into her purse.

Back at Kane Enterprises — 10:14 A.M.

Amara walked into the executive floor like she was on fire.

Dominic didn’t look up when she passed.

Didn’t speak when she brushed his shoulder on her way to his office.

Didn’t acknowledge her presence during the team meeting.

But she could feel it.

The pull.

The tension.

The awareness that, beneath the cold exterior and ruthless commands, his hands had been all over her less than twelve hours ago.

And when he finally did look up during a boardroom debate—

It wasn’t a glance.

It was a promise.

One that made her pulse quicken and her breath catch.

But the calm was short-lived.

---

Later that afternoon, Amara was alone in the elevator with Elena Marsh—the senior VP of Marketing.

The woman was tall, polished, older, and entirely too observant.

“You’re new,” Elena said, eyeing her like a wine label.

“Three weeks,” Amara answered, polite but neutral.

“And already so… close to Mr. Kane.”

Amara stiffened. “Excuse me?”

Elena smiled thinly. “Be careful, darling. Dominic doesn’t do relationships. He does control. Until he gets bored.”

The elevator stopped. Elena stepped out.

“Consider this friendly advice,” she added over her shoulder. “Don’t confuse possession with affection.”

The doors slid shut before Amara could respond.

But the words lodged somewhere she couldn’t reach.

---

Dominic’s Office

At exactly 8:00 p.m., Amara stood outside his office in red.

Silk. Fitted. Dangerous.

He opened the door before she could knock.

His eyes flicked over her, slow and deliberate. “You follow instructions well.”

“You give good ones,” she replied.

His jaw twitched. “Come.”

They took the elevator down—this time in silence. The building was nearly empty, the last few workers trickling out for the night.

He walked her to the underground parking level, where a black vintage Aston Martin waited.

“You drive that?” she asked.

“I own that,” he corrected, opening the passenger door.

Inside, the car smelled like leather, smoke, and him.

“Where are we going?” she asked as he pulled out of the garage.

“Somewhere no one will see us,” he said.

“That doesn’t sound suspicious at all.”

He glanced at her, lips twitching. “You’ll survive.”

---

The Private Dinner

The restaurant wasn’t public.

Not really.

It was a rooftop terrace atop a locked building in Tribeca. A single table. A private chef. No menus. No waitstaff.

Just the skyline, the stars, and the kind of power only people like Dominic Kane could summon.

Amara stared around as he pulled out her chair.

“You planned all this?”

“I don’t do chance,” he said, sitting across from her.

The food arrived moments later,brought by a silent chef who disappeared just as quickly.

Over wine and slow jazz, they slipped into something that felt dangerously close to comfortable.

“Why me?” she asked finally.

Dominic looked up. “You’re not like the others.”

“Meaning?”

“You challenge me,” he said. “You look me in the eye. You don’t flinch.”

She smiled. “And you like that?”

“I hate it,” he said honestly. “But I need it.”

Amara’s heart skipped.

For a moment, she saw a glimpse of something behind the mask. Not dominance. Not cruelty. But something vulnerable.

Something… human.

“What about you?” he asked. “Why stay?”

She sipped her wine. “Because I like watching you squirm.”

He leaned forward. “You’ll make me fall, Amara.”

“Then fall,” she whispered. “But don’t expect me to catch you.”

He reached for her hand.

And held it.

Just for a second.

Just long enough to break every rule they’d made.

---

Back at the Penthouse

This time, he didn’t strip her.

He undressed slowly. Carefully.

Like she was breakable.

And that terrified her more than anything.

Because it meant he was starting to care.

And caring was dangerous.

For both of them.

“On your knees,” he whispered.

She obeyed.

But even as she knelt, even as she surrendered her body to him completely—

Her mind raced.

Because she wasn’t here for romance.

She wasn’t here for games.

She was here for revenge.

And sooner or later, she’d have to choose.

---

While Dominic slept, Amara slipped into his office.

Not to snoop.

Not to betray.

Just… to remember.

She sat at his desk.

Opened his laptop.

Just for a second.

Just to look.

And that’s when she saw it.

A folder.

Labeled: West Holdings — Termination Docs.

Her blood ran cold.

She clicked.

Inside were legal forms.

Dated two years ago.

Signed by Dominic Kane.

Documents that ended her father’s company.

Ruined her family.

Destroyed everything.

And suddenly—

She remembered exactly why she came.

She closed the laptop slowly.

Walked back to the bedroom.

Slid under the covers beside him.

Watched his chest rise and fall.

Watched the man she was beginning to fall for sleep peacefully.

Unaware that the girl in his bed?

Wasn’t just his assistant.

Wasn’t just his lover.

She was the daughter of the man he destroyed.

And now?

She had a choice to make.