The atmosphere in the dining room froze instantly, but not because of the presence of a husband missing his wife. Dante's presence brought a cold air capable of killing anyone's nerve cells in that room. He stood at the doorway, his black suit still looking flawless, contrasting with the chaos I felt inside my chest.
His eyes, sharp and cold as ice, swept over the scene in front of him, Hunter who still had his giant arm wrapped around my waist,
"Dante... you're home?" my voice squeaked, barely audible.
Dante did not answer. He stepped in, the sound of his loafers on the marble floor sounding like the ticking of a clock towards an execution. He walked past me as if I were just one of the concrete pillars in this mansion under renovation. There was no hug, no kiss on the forehead, not even a gaze that lasted more than a second.
As he was right beside me, the scent of his expensive, cold perfume—not the tobacco scent of last night—pierced my sense of smell. He stopped for a moment, only to remove Hunter's hand from my waist with a very minimal movement, as if he were brushing dust off his clothes.
"Prepare my clothes. I only have thirty minutes to shower before the board of directors meeting," Dante said flatly, his voice devoid of any emotion.
I froze. The corridor of my soul screamed in pain. This man... this man who had just ignored me in front of his brothers, could he be the one who gave that wild warmth in the darkness last night? Impossible. The Dante I saw now was a lifeless robot. His cold attitude truly deceived my common sense, making me increasingly sure that it was Jax who entered my room.
Dante stepped up to the top floor without looking back. His departure left a suffocating void. Jax laughed low, a mocking laugh aimed at me.
"Look at that, Reia. Your beloved husband doesn't even care to look at your pale face," Jax sneered while getting up and walking away. Joan only snorted, straightened his glasses, and returned to his medical room without a word.
I was left alone in the dining room with Hunter. This man was different. If Dante was ice and Jax was a cunning fire, Hunter was clay and coarse earth. His body, the most giant among the five of them—the result of years of managing heavy equipment and modern farmland—made him look like a functional physical monster. His muscles were not just for display.
"You shouldn't be here, Reia," Hunter murmured. He stared at me with a glint in his eyes that was hard to interpret—between pity and suppressed desire.
"I have to find my suitcase in the downstairs warehouse. The maid said some of my things were moved there because of the master bedroom renovation," I replied softly, trying to stay out of reach of his intimidating body.
I walked towards the back area of the mansion, passing through corridors filled with piles of wood, paint cans, and protective plastic. The warehouse was at the end of a narrow corridor, a room with minimal light and filled with construction dust.
As soon as I stepped into the musty warehouse, I heard heavy footsteps behind me. Before I could turn around, the warehouse door closed with a loud thud.
Brak!
I gasped, turning quickly only to find Hunter's giant body already standing in front of the door, locking the only way out. The room was cramped, and Hunter's presence made the oxygen around me feel sucked away. He wasn't wearing work clothes now, only a sleeveless shirt that showed off his biceps as large as a human head, the protruding veins on his arms telling of a strength capable of crushing anything.
"Hunter, what are you doing?" my heart pounded fast, this time not because of passion, but pure fear.
Hunter did not answer with words. He stepped forward, forcing me to back up until my back hit the cold, dusty wooden shelf. He placed both of his large hands on either side of my head, locking my body within the confinement of his massive muscles. The scent of honest male sweat and wood dust wafted strongly from his body.
"You are too soft for this house, Reia," he whispered, his face lowering until his nose almost touched mine. "This house is full of monsters. Dante, Jax, Joan... they all have ways to destroy you. And you? You are just a flower growing in the wrong place among us."
In that musty and dimly lit warehouse, Hunter's presence felt like a mountain ready to collapse upon me. I could feel the heat radiating from his tanned skin, a heat that came from hard physical labor under the sun, not from the luxury of an air-conditioned office like Dante. The muscles of his arms locking my position at the wooden shelf looked tense, revealing veins that protruded like the roots of a strong old tree.
"Hunter, let me go... I just want to find my suitcase," I whispered, my voice trembling violently.
Hunter did not budge. Instead, he ducked even lower, forcing me to inhale an honest masculine scent—a mixture of construction dust, engine oil, and heavy male sweat. His gaze was not cunning like Jax or cold like Dante his eyes were straight, sharp, and full of raw, undisguised desire.
"That suitcase isn't important, Reia. What's important is that you understand where you are now."
"You think Dante will protect you? He only cares about numbers and inheritance. He didn't even look at you when he passed by earlier. He's letting you rot here."
I gripped the edge of the wooden shelf until the splinters pierced my palms. "He is my husband, Hunter. He is just busy."
"Busy?" Hunter chuckled darkly, a sound that sounded like the grinding of a whetstone. "He's busy planning how you will provide an heir without him having to touch you."
"What were you doing last night? I can still smell his tobacco on your skin."
My face heated up from overwhelming shame. The corridor of my soul felt shattered.
Suddenly, Hunter released one hand from the shelf and grabbed my chin. His rough and calloused fingers gripped my jaw with a strength that could crush bone, yet there was a slight tremor in his hand—a sign that he too was struggling against his own desire.
"Don't trust them. They are demons who only want to break you."
"And you? What's the difference between you and them?" I challenged with what remained of my courage, even though tears began to well up.
Hunter stared at my lips hungrily. His heavy breath felt hot sweeping across my face. "Me? I don't have complicated plans like them, Reia. I just want to pluck this beautiful flower before they completely destroy it. I want to have you in the most real way, without the pretense of suits and ties."
He pressed his giant body tighter against mine. The weight of his athletic and functional body made me nearly breathless. I could feel the hardness of his thigh muscles pressing against my legs, an absolute physical intimidation. Hunter was the type of man who would take what he wanted with his physical power, and in this locked warehouse, no one could stop him.
"Don't ever walk alone in this renovation area again," Hunter commanded, his voice now sounding like a threat as well as possessive protection. "Because if I find you again in a lonely place like this... I can't guarantee you'll be able to return to your room with your dress intact."
Hunter released his grip abruptly, giving me room to breathe. He turned and opened the warehouse door with one strong jerk, letting in the dim light from the corridor. Without looking back, he stepped out, leaving me slumped weakly among the dust and secondhand goods.
I slid to the floor, hugging my knees. My body trembled violently.
Just as I tried to stand up, I felt a strange sensation. As if there were eyes watching me from the dark upper corner of the warehouse. I looked up and saw a small glinting lens behind a pile of wood—like a hidden camera placed very neatly.
My heart pounded fast. If that was a camera it meant someone had just watched everything Hunter did to me?