CHAPTER 35 — SECRETS UNVEILED
The blackout lasted only seconds, but it stretched into an eternity in Eva's mind. Every creak, every whisper of movement outside the bedroom made her pulse spike. Derek moved beside her like a shadow, silent, lethal, his every muscle coiled and ready.
"Eva," he murmured, low and urgent, his hand brushing hers. "Stay calm. Do exactly what I say."
She nodded, barely daring to breathe. His control—so overwhelming yet protective—was intoxicating. She had felt his dominance in their earlier moments of intimacy, but this… this was another level.
Derek reached the window and pressed a button on a small device. A soft green light blinked. The blinds slid up silently, revealing the city beyond. Nothing. Empty streets, shadows dancing, rain slicked pavement reflecting the city lights.
"False alarm?" Eva whispered.
He shook his head. "Not entirely." His gaze hardened. "Someone's testing us. Checking if I'm distracted. If I'm vulnerable."
Eva swallowed hard. The intimacy, the closeness moments ago, felt fragile now—like it could shatter at the slightest misstep.
"Who?" she asked.
Derek didn't answer immediately. Instead, he turned, walking toward the sitting area. He gestured for her to follow.
"What are we doing?" she asked, following him cautiously.
"You need to understand," he said. "Some truths… can't be discovered accidentally."
Her curiosity flared despite herself. "What truths?"
He paused, leaning against the back of the couch. "About me. About what I do. What I have to do."
Eva felt a shiver. He didn't need to elaborate—she already knew his world was dangerous. But now, the closeness they'd just shared made the danger personal.
"You're scaring me," she admitted.
Derek's eyes softened, just briefly, before the shadow returned. "Good."
She frowned. "Good?"
"Fear sharpens the mind. Makes survival instinct real. And it also… tests loyalty. Tests limits."
Her chest tightened. Loyalty. Limits. Those were the words that always accompanied his arrangements. The whispered rumors she'd heard… the hints in his behavior. And now, in his penthouse, after everything tonight, she realized she was part of it.
"You mean… the arrangements?" she asked cautiously.
His lips twitched—not a smile, but a subtle warning. "Partially. You're about to see a fraction of what I've done, what I've created. But even this will be more than most can handle."
Eva's heart raced. "Why show me?"
"Because I need you to understand the world you've stepped into," he said. "And because curiosity, as you've discovered, can be dangerous."
She nodded, though uncertainty gnawed at her.
Derek walked toward his desk, a sleek, imposing monolith of black steel and glass. He opened a drawer and pulled out a leather-bound folder, its edges worn, corners slightly frayed. He placed it on the table between them.
"This," he said, voice low, "is part of what I don't share lightly."
Eva leaned closer, eyes widening. She wasn't supposed to see this yet. But the invitation—or the command—was in his eyes.
"What is it?" she asked, her fingers hovering over the folder but not daring to touch it.
"Arrangements," he said simply. "Some business. Some… personal."
Her pulse quickened. "You mean… women? Employees?"
Derek's lips curved into the faintest shadow of a smirk. "That's one way to put it. But the truth is more complicated."
"How?" she pressed.
He sank into the chair opposite her, steepling his fingers and watching her. "I provide stability, protection… guidance. Some would call it controlling. Others call it mentoring. But for those I take in… life changes. Completely. Permanently."
Eva's mind raced. Every story she'd heard—the rumors, the speculation—made sense now. His dominance. His possessiveness. His calculated gestures. It wasn't just desire or ego. It was a system.
"Why me?" she whispered.
He leaned forward, dark eyes intense. "Because you're… different. You can think for yourself. You can resist… and you do. That makes you rare. That makes you valuable."
Eva felt a flutter of both pride and fear. Valuable. Rare. But at what cost?
He opened the folder, revealing papers, photographs, and detailed notes. Documents outlined financial arrangements, legal contracts, and personal agreements. There were lists, schedules, even notes on behavior patterns and preferences.
Eva's breath hitched. "This… this is all real."
"It is," Derek confirmed. "Every arrangement is tailored. Every decision calculated. Every individual… carefully considered."
She looked at him, trying to read his expression. Fear, perhaps? Or pride? Or a mixture of both?
"You're… ruthless," she whispered.
"Necessary," he corrected. "And protective. The world I live in doesn't forgive weakness. And if I falter, someone gets hurt."
Eva's thoughts immediately went to Kane, the mysterious rival, the hooded figure, the threats. And to Derek. The man she'd kissed, touched, almost surrendered to, the man whose control made her heart pound and stomach twist.
"I don't know if I can…" she started, but he held up a hand.
"You don't need to decide tonight," he said. "Not yet. You only need to understand the stakes."
Her stomach twisted. "And the stakes… are?"
He leaned back, steepling his fingers again. "You. You're part of it now. More than ever. And curiosity… will bring consequences. Some minor. Some life-altering."
Eva's gaze drifted to the folder again. The weight of it pressed on her chest, her mind, her heart. She wanted to dive in, to know everything, but the risk made her hesitate.
"Am I… in danger?" she asked, voice barely above a whisper.
Derek's eyes softened, just for a moment. "Always. And so am I. That's why I control everything I can. That's why I choose who I let close."
Her pulse pounded. "And me?"
He leaned closer, lowering his voice, dark and intimate. "You're not just close. You're necessary. And desired. And if you can handle it…" His eyes flicked to the folder again, then back to her, "you might survive it."
Eva swallowed. Desire, fear, and intrigue mingled inside her. She wanted to step back, to flee from the dangerous brilliance of Derek Blackwell.
And yet…
She couldn't.
Her curiosity, her growing need for understanding, her connection to him—it had tethered her. Held her in place. Pulled her closer to the edge of something terrifying and irresistible.
"Show me," she whispered finally, her fingers brushing the folder, trembling.
Derek's gaze held hers, intense and commanding. "Be careful what you wish for, Eva."
She nodded, though the words did nothing to calm the storm inside her.
He opened the folder further, revealing a photograph—an elegant woman in a ballroom, laughing, holding a glass of champagne. Derek's eyes hardened as he stared at her.
"That was… years ago," he said quietly. "She was part of an arrangement. Someone I had to… protect, control, guide. But she wasn't like you."
Eva's heart clenched. "How so?"
"Because she didn't resist," he said, voice low, tense. "She let me… own her. Completely. And in the end… she broke. Because she wasn't ready for what the world demanded of her. What I demanded."
Eva's breath caught. She realized that his arrangements were more than business. More than contracts. They were tests of control, loyalty, survival. And somehow… she had passed the first threshold.
"And you?" she asked softly. "What if I… don't break?"
Derek's expression softened, almost imperceptibly, but his eyes burned with intensity. "Then I'll have to… decide if I can survive letting you go. Or if I have to protect you… even from yourself."
The air in the room thickened, heavy with tension, desire, and fear.
Eva's hand hovered over the photograph. Derek's arrangements weren't just contracts or rules—they were pieces of him, fragments of control, protection, desire, and dominance.
And now she was part of it.
Her stomach tightened, her mind racing, her heart thundering with both dread and longing.
"I… don't know if I can handle this," she admitted.
He reached across the table, brushing a stray strand of hair from her face. His fingers lingered, electric, commanding, protective.
"You'll learn," he whispered. "You'll learn quickly. Because this… world… it doesn't wait. And neither do I."
Eva's pulse thundered in her ears. She looked at him, at the folder, at the photo, and understood: her life with Derek Blackwell had crossed a point of no return.
And the next revelation… would change everythig
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Eva is now fully aware of Derek's "arrangements"—the calculated, possessive, dangerous side of his life. She is intrigued and frightened, wondering how much control she can maintain—and how much she will surrender. Meanwhile, unseen rivals are circling, and Derek's enemies are closer than she realizes.