Chapter Seven: When Control Slips
The warning came quietly.
Too quietly.
Royalty noticed it first.
A delay in the perimeter scan. Barely two seconds. To anyone else, it would've meant nothing. To him, it meant someone had stepped exactly where they shouldn't—and knew how to disappear afterward.
He closed his tablet slowly.
"They're testing me," he said.
Luca looked up. "You sure?"
Royalty's gaze drifted to the upper floor. To her room.
"I don't miss tests."
Feifei was brushing her hair when the lights flickered.
Once. Twice.
Then steady again.
Her stomach tightened.
She didn't scream. She didn't panic. She remembered what she'd been taught.
Notice first. React second.
The door opened before she could move.
Royalty.
His expression was dark, sharp, dangerous—not teasing this time. Protective. Focused.
"Get behind me," he said.
Her heart jumped. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing yet," he replied, stepping inside and locking the door behind him. "That's what worries me."
She did as told, standing close—too close. His body was warm, solid, grounding. His hand lifted instinctively, resting at her lower back.
"You're shaking," he said quietly.
"I'm not scared," she lied.
His thumb pressed once, slow and deliberate. "You don't have to be brave with me."
That did it.
The tension snapped.
She stepped in front of him, eyes burning. "Then stop treating me like something fragile. Or something you can walk away from whenever it gets hard."
His jaw clenched. "You don't understand what's circling you."
"Then explain it," she challenged. "Or stop pretending this doesn't matter."
Silence crashed between them.
Then Royalty moved.
He cupped her face, hands firm, decisive—and kissed her.
Not restrained.
Not careful.
Hungry. Controlled only by willpower stretched thin.
Her breath caught as she kissed him back, fingers gripping his shirt, heat flooding through her. His hand slid to her waist, pulling her closer, like he'd finally stopped denying himself.
For a moment, there was nothing else.
No mansion.
No danger.
No rules.
Just them.
Then—he pulled away.
Breathing hard.
Eyes dark.
"This is me losing control," he said roughly. "And I don't do that unless it means something."
Her voice was barely a whisper. "What do I mean to you?"
He rested his forehead against hers.
"Everything I shouldn't want."
A sharp beep cut through the room.
Royalty stiffened instantly.
He stepped back, reaching for his comm. "Talk."
Luca's voice came through, tight. "Perimeter breach. Gone already. No visuals."
Royalty's gaze snapped to Feifei.
That was the moment she knew.
Not suspected.
Not guessed.
Knew.
"I'm not just collateral anymore," she said.
He didn't deny it.
He crossed the room, cupped her face once more—gentler now, but no less intense.
"No," he said quietly. "You're the reason they're coming."
Somewhere in the city, a man smiled as alarms reset and systems went silent again.
"Good," he murmured. "Now he feels it."
The game had begun.
And everyone was standing at their breaking point.