Selene couldn't sleep.
Not after what she had just learned.
Vincent Rossi. A name she had never heard before, but now it felt like a shadow that made her skin crawl.
She lay in the huge bed Lucian had insisted she sleep in his bed. The silk sheets felt cold, strange, just like the tension outside the walls.
She turned to her side, looking out at the city through the huge windows. It was beautiful, but tonight it felt like a cage.
Someone was out there, watching her. Hunting her.
She had thought she was caught in a dangerous love triangle between two billionaire brothers. But it was bigger than that now.
It was about survival.
A soft knock at the door broke her thoughts.
She sat up quickly, her heart racing.
"Lucian?" she called out, but she knew it wasn't him.
The door creaked open, and Ethan stepped in, his figure sharp against the dim light from the hallway.
"You're still awake," he said quietly, closing the door behind him.
Selene let out a breath, running her hand through her hair. "How could I sleep?"
Ethan leaned against the door, arms crossed, his dark eyes fixed on her. "You're handling this better than I expected."
She gave a small laugh. "What did you expect? For me to lose it?"
His lips twitched. "Most people would."
Selene shook her head, pulling the blanket tighter around her. "I don't want to be one of those people."
Ethan took a slow step toward her. "Then don't be."
His voice was low, almost electric.
Selene swallowed. She had spent so much time in Lucian's world, his control, his possessiveness. But Ethan? He was different.
Lucian treated her like she was his to own. Ethan made her feel like she still had a choice.
"Lucian won't like you being here," she whispered.
Ethan smirked. "Lucian doesn't like a lot of things."
Selene should've told him to leave. She should've stayed in bed like Lucian wanted.
But she was tired of being told what to do.
She threw the blanket off and stood up, facing him.
"Tell me the truth," she said. "About Vincent Rossi. About what's really going on."
Ethan's smirk faded.
For a moment, he just stared at her, unreadable. Then he sighed, running a hand through his hair.
"Vincent was once part of our family's empire," he said quietly. "Lucian trusted him. I didn't. Turns out, I was right."
Selene frowned. "What happened?"
Ethan's jaw tightened. "He stole from us. Millions. And when Lucian found out, he didn't just get back at him, he destroyed him. Rossi lost everything."
Selene's stomach twisted. "And now he wants revenge?"
Ethan nodded. "And he knows exactly how to get it."
She didn't have to ask what he meant. The answer was obvious.
Her.
Selene's hands balled into fists. "So what do we do?"
Ethan's eyes darkened. "We play his game. And we win."
A chill ran down her spine.
Ethan wasn't just a smooth billionaire. He was just as ruthless as Lucian, maybe even more.
And now, she was right in the middle of their war.
Selene's heart raced in her chest as she stood frozen between the two cars. The night air felt thick, charged with tension, like everything was on the verge of snapping.
Lucian leaned against his Lamborghini, his smirk slow and knowing. "Get in, sweetheart." His voice was smooth and commanding, carrying an unspoken promise of danger.
Ethan's grip on the steering wheel tightened. "You don't have to go with him, Selene." His tone was different, firm but full of something deeper. Something protective.
Her breath caught in her throat. This wasn't just about a ride home.
This was a test. A game. And the stakes were higher than she was willing to admit.
Selene took a step back, forcing herself to think past the chaos inside her. Every decision she made with them felt like standing at the edge of a cliff. One wrong move, and she'd fall…hard.
"I said I can take myself home." Her voice was steady, but even she wasn't sure she believed it.
Lucian tilted his head, his piercing eyes scanning her. "Then why are you still standing here?"
Her hands balled into fists. Damn him. Damn them both.
Before she could respond, Lucian pushed off from the car, his steps slow and deliberate. "Let's not pretend, Selene. You want to get in." His voice was like a dark caress, wrapping around her like silk. "You just don't want to admit whose car you'd rather be in."
Ethan's door swung open, and in an instant, he was standing in front of her. His jaw was tight, his eyes locked on Lucian. "Back off."
Lucian chuckled, but there was no humor in it. "Why? Afraid of what she might choose?"
Selene's head spun. This wasn't about her anymore, it was about them. Two brothers, caught in a battle neither would back down from. And she was the prize neither of them would give up.
A sick realization twisted in her stomach.
If she let this go on, it wouldn't be a game anymore.
It would be war.
"I'm done with this." She turned on her heel, walking past them both.
Lucian grabbed her wrist. Not rough, not forceful, just enough to stop her. "Running away again?"
She yanked her arm free, glaring up at him. "I'm done playing your game, Lucian."
His smirk didn't fade, but something flickered in his gaze. Was it amusement? Intrigue? She couldn't tell.
Ethan stepped closer, his voice low. "I'll take you home."
Selene exhaled, worn out. "I'll call a cab."
Neither of them argued this time. They just watched as she walked away, the sound of her heels echoing against the pavement, her heart pounding in her chest.
When she slid into the backseat of a taxi, she stole one last glance at the two men standing under the streetlights.
Lucian Blackwood. Ethan Blackwood.
Two men who could destroy her.
And she was already too deep to stop it.
Selene let out a sigh as the cab pulled away from the curb, the city lights blurring outside the window. But even as the distance between her and the Blackwood brothers grew, their presence still lingered in the air.
Lucian's smirk.
Ethan's intensity.
The way the atmosphere shifted whenever they were together.
Selene closed her eyes, pressing her fingers to her temples. She needed some peace, needed to stop letting them drag her into their mess.
But as the cab made its way through Manhattan, her phone buzzed.
Lucian: You can run, sweetheart, but don't fool yourself into thinking you're escaping me.
Her stomach churned.
Before she could even process that, another message popped up.
Ethan: Let me know when you get home.
Two messages. Two men. Two different kinds of chaos.
Lucian was a fire she didn't know how to handle.
Ethan was the storm she never saw coming.
And she was stuck right in the middle of it all.
She didn't reply to either of them. Instead, she shoved her phone into her bag and leaned back, staring out the window, trying to clear her mind.
But as the taxi pulled up to her building, she knew something was off.
A sleek black car was parked out front.
Her heart skipped a beat.
Not just any car.
Lucian's.
Selene hesitated before stepping out. As soon as she did, the driver's side door opened, and there he was, leaning casually against the car like he owned the night.
"Surprised?" Lucian's voice was dripping with amusement.
Her jaw clenched. "Are you following me now?"
He smirked and stepped closer. "Sweetheart, if I were following you, you wouldn't have seen me coming."
Damn him. Damn that voice, that confidence.
Selene forced herself to stay calm. "What do you want, Lucian?"
His gaze lingered on her face, slow and deliberate. "I could ask you the same thing."
"I want you to leave."
His smirk didn't waver. "Lying doesn't suit you."
Her pulse quickened. "I'm not…."
Lucian took another step, his presence pressing in on her like a mix of silk and steel. "You think you can just walk away, Selene? After everything?"
Her breath caught in her throat. "There is no 'everything.'"
He chuckled, low and dangerous. "Then why are you shaking?"
She hated that he was right. Hated that her body reacted to him, even when every part of her mind screamed to run.
Lucian reached out, his fingers barely brushing her wrist before she jerked her hand away.
His smirk widened, but his eyes? They darkened.
"You're mine, Selene." His voice was a quiet promise, but also a warning. "You just don't know it yet.