Chapter 193: Eve Left

For a moment, Eve thought maybe this was over. Thought maybe he’d let her go now, thought maybe they could actually talk about what had just happened.

Then she felt him hardening again inside her.

"No," she whispered, her voice hoarse. "Dimitri, please, I can’t....I don’t have anything left...."

"You can," he said, rolling them so she was on top, his hands gripping her hips. "Ride me. Show me you’re not leaving. Show me you’re staying."

Eve shook her head, her body already pushed past its limits, but her hips were already moving. Already taking him deeper. Already coming apart again.

***

POV: DIMITRI

He fucked her for what felt like hours.

Changed positions. Changed angles. Changed everything except his absolute, unshakeable refusal to let her go.

She came at least seven times. He genuinely lost count after four.

Doggy style with his hand wrapped around her throat, feeling her pulse beneath his palm. Missionary with her legs over his shoulders, going so deep she couldn’t do anything but take it. Sitting on the edge of the bed with her straddling him, controlling the pace until she became too tired and he took over.

Each position, each shift, was a statement. You’re mine. You belong to me. You’re not leaving.

By the end, she was barely conscious. Her responses had gone purely instinctual. Her body limp. Her voice hoarse from screaming.

Finally....when he came for what felt like the last time, when her body went completely lax against his, when he knew with absolute certainty that she couldn’t move anymore.....he held her.

He cleaned her gently with a warm cloth from the bathroom, being careful with her oversensitized skin. Dressed her in one of his shirts, large enough that it swallowed her, made her look small and vulnerable and like she belonged to him.

Then he lay down beside her, pulled her against his chest, and held her while her breathing gradually evened out.

She was unconscious. Completely out. Beyond exhaustion.

And Dimitri whispered promises she wouldn’t hear. Promises he meant with every fiber of his being.

"I’m not letting you go," he said into her hair, breathing in the scent of them both. "I don’t care how angry you are at me. I don’t care what you said about leaving. You’re not going anywhere, cara mia. Ever."

He kissed her forehead....soft, gentle, reverent.

"I should have told you," he whispered. "I’m going to tell you everything. I’m going to give you all the truth, unfiltered and unedited. And you’re going to stay, and we’re going to figure this out together."

He held her tighter, felt her unconscious body relax against him.

And let himself fall asleep with her in his arms.

***

POV: EVE (TWO HOURS LATER)

Eve woke slowly, her entire body aching in ways that told her exactly what had happened. What she’d let happen.

For a moment, she lay there in the darkness, not moving, trying to understand where she was and why everything hurt.

Then the memories came back. The conversation. The packing. Dimitri carrying her to the bed.

The sex.

Hours of absolutely brutal, intense sex designed to remind her...to show her....that she belonged to him.

Eve tried to move and immediately discovered she was pinned.

Dimitri’s arm was around her waist, his body curved around hers in a possessive semicircle. His face was buried in her hair. His arm was in a death grip around her middle....even in sleep, he was claiming her.

Eve looked at his face in the darkness. He was completely out. Completely unconscious.

And he would never let her leave.

The realization should have terrified her.

Instead, she felt something else entirely.

But she also felt clarity.

She couldn’t do this. Couldn’t keep loving someone who lied to her, no matter how good the sex was. No matter how possessive he was. No matter how much he claimed to love her.

If she stayed, she was accepting that this was how they would work. That he would make decisions about her life without her input. That he would decide what she could handle.

And she deserved better than that.

Eve waited until his breathing was deep and even. Then, with the kind of care that felt almost apologetic, she began to extract herself from his embrace.

It took ten minutes.

Gentle movement. Slow progress. Rolling away inch by inch. Making sure not to wake him.

Finally, she was free.

Eve got out of bed, her body protesting with every movement. She was sore in places she’d never been sore before. But she ignored the discomfort and found her suitcase where she’d dropped it earlier.

She threw things inside with quiet efficiency. Her phone. Her wallet. Her keys. Her passport, just in case. She didn’t pack carefully or thoughtfully....just grabbed essentials and tossed them in.

This wasn’t about packing for a trip. This was about leaving.

She tiptoed out of the bedroom, down the hallway, past Nonna’s room. The penthouse was silent. Empty. Like the building itself knew what she was doing.

She made it to the elevator without hearing anything behind her. Without anyone stopping her. The doors slid open, and she stepped inside.

Pressed the button for the lobby.

As the elevator descended, taking her down and away from everything, Eve didn’t cry. Didn’t feel the relief she’d expected to feel.

She just felt empty.

The elevator reached the lobby, and the doors slid open.

Eve walked out of the building and into the New York night.

***

POV: DIMITRI (15 MINUTES LATER)

Dimitri woke to cold sheets.

His arm was around empty space.

His eyes flew open immediately, his entire body going on high alert.

The bedroom was dark. The bathroom door was open. No lights. No sound of water running.

"Eve?"

No response.

Dimitri got out of bed, his heart already pounding. He checked the closet. Checked the bathroom. Checked the sitting area attached to their bedroom.

Her suitcase was gone.

"Fuck!" The word came out like a roar. He grabbed clothes, threw them on with shaking hands, and ran to the kitchen.