AYLA
"And what do you want?" I asked, turning the water heater on.
"You."
One word. Centerfold meaning.
I turned around, feeling hot water run down my skin.
He stepped in behind me, pressing his body into my back.
"I will not be bought, Mr. Moretti," I deadpanned, pushing every emotion aside.
He lifted one brow, more amused than impressed.
"You cannot be bought, Miss Thorne."
His words pinned me to the spot, a grin tugging at a corner of my mouth.
His hand clasped in front of me, water cascading down our bodies, merged together.
"You see me now, you respect me," I said. "That does not mean your father will."
He said nothing.
Cassian turned slightly, eyes flicking to our shadows in the corner of the bathroom.
He didn't have to say it. His silence was proof he couldn't guarantee his father would see me as a human, as a mother, as someone his son loved.
