Bounded By Love, Broken By Laws

ad grown to love over the years, a reminder of the stillness in the world outside her own chaotic thoughts. Bu

the day cooped up inside the house. She dressed quickly, choosing something casual but polished-a pair of black jeans and a fitted blouse. I

at her was a mix of determination and weariness. Her mother's marriage had thrown everything into disarray, and now she

n Sin

being her stepbrother. It didn't make sense, and ma

door broke her

s tentative. "Lucian's downst

f to ask why he wanted to speak with her. What did it matter?

dded, "Please. Just...

er that civility was the last thing she wanted when it came to Lucian. The man was a puzzle, wrapped in layers o

aw him sitting there, in the same tailored suit as yesterday, looking as composed as ever. His dark eyes flicked

" he said, his

farther than the actual distance. The silence that followed felt thick, suffocating. It wasn't just the

owing slightly as though assessing her.

ow. "Important? You

't need to know you to understand what this is." He gestured va

don't say. You're not exactly what I imagined w

want me here. And that's fine. I get it." His eyes locked onto hers, and for the first time, Isl

't about to get sucked into some weird family drama. "I'm sure you've got o

ut what's expected of us. We don't get to pick our families or the roles we play in them

world she had no part in. But the more she stared at him, the more she realized he was right. W

He turned to her with a smirk playing on his lips. "I'm not asking for your ap

, her heart pounding. He was r

't shake no matter how hard she tried. Something about him was magnetic, something dark and