Chapter 3 MOVING IN

Ava Rosen stood in her tiny apartment, staring at the cardboard boxes stacked haphazardly along the walls. Each one contained remnants of a life she barely had time to live: clothes, books, mementos of simpler days. Her hands trembled slightly, not from the weight of the boxes, but from the anticipation-and dread-of what was about to come.

Damian Blackwell had been clear. She was to move into his apartment that evening. Six months. Her life, his rules. And although the thought terrified her, there was no room for refusal. Not now, not when her father's medical bills and looming debts left her cornered.

When the moving truck pulled up, her stomach knotted. She hadn't slept more than a few hours the night before, her mind spinning with scenarios, warnings, and worst-case consequences. What kind of life awaited her behind the doors of Damian Blackwell's world?

The elevator dinged. Her breath caught.

Damian appeared, as composed and commanding as ever. His presence was impossible to ignore. Even before he spoke, Ava felt herself shrink slightly under his gaze. He gave a faint nod to the movers, his eyes never leaving hers, and stepped closer.

"You'll have your own suite," he said, his tone neutral but carrying the weight of authority. "Privacy. Comfort. But the rest... follows my rules. Do you understand?"

Ava swallowed hard. "Yes... I understand." Her voice wavered despite her determination to appear calm.

He studied her, a hint of amusement flickering across his features. "Good. You will need composure here, Ava. You'll learn quickly that every action has consequences."

She nodded, words failing her.

As they entered the apartment, Ava's jaw dropped. It was nothing like her own modest space. Sleek, modern, minimalistic, and impeccably clean, every surface gleamed under the soft lighting. The scent of expensive leather and polished wood filled the air. It was the kind of place she had only seen in magazines, a world completely removed from the cramped familiarity of her own home.

"You'll unpack," Damian continued, placing a hand briefly on the back of her shoulder. The contact was fleeting but enough to make her pulse spike. "But do not enter my office. And do not interfere with my work. Everything else we will negotiate as time passes."

"Yes," she whispered again. The word sounded hollow even to her own ears.

Later that evening, she explored her suite. Light poured in from floor-to-ceiling windows, revealing a view of the city skyline glittering against the darkening sky. Her own room felt like a sanctuary, a fragile bubble of safety amid the overwhelming authority of Damian's world.

She paused before the bedroom mirror and froze. Damian was there-his reflection at the edge of the glass, silent, observing.

"You're curious," he said, stepping closer. His voice was low, teasing, controlled. "Do you always sneak around?"

Ava's cheeks burned. "I-I wasn't... looking."

"You lie well," he murmured, his eyes sharp, yet something softer flickered beneath the surface. "Good. You'll need that skill in the months ahead."

The words hung between them, charged and dangerous. His proximity ignited something she tried desperately to ignore: desire. Heat she couldn't name, racing through her veins and making her palms sweat. She hated it. And yet... she could not look away.

"You're mine for six months, Ava," he said quietly, lips brushing her hair as he leaned slightly closer. "Do you understand what that means?"

"Yes," she whispered, though the word trembled with uncertainty.

He smiled faintly, and it was that smile that made her knees weak, her body betray her calm exterior. The rules, the contract, the arrangement-it was all supposed to be about survival. But suddenly, survival felt impossible. Something deeper, more dangerous, had been set in motion.

That night, Ava sat on the edge of her bed, unpacking slowly. Her mind wandered relentlessly. What would it be like to live with him? To obey? To navigate the constant tension, the simmering attraction, the unspoken challenges?

Every thought of him made her pulse quicken. She hated the way her chest tightened when she imagined his eyes on her. Hated the way she flushed with a mix of fear and... anticipation.

A knock on the door startled her. She froze, heart hammering.

"It's me," Damian's voice said, calm, almost casual.

She exhaled sharply. "Yes?"

"I'm here to go over the house rules," he said, stepping inside. The faint cologne, sharp and intoxicating, filled the room. His gaze swept over her, lingering, evaluating, making her acutely aware of every inch of herself exposed under his scrutiny.

"You will respect privacy. You will follow my instructions. No wandering into restricted areas. No unnecessary provocations. The rest... we will discuss later."

"Yes," she repeated, unable to stop the word from trembling.

"Good." He stepped closer, the air thick between them. "You'll find that living with me requires... adaptation. Discipline. Awareness." His tone softened slightly, almost intimate, and she felt her breath catch.

"You're... intimidating," she admitted, voice barely audible.

"Intentionally," he murmured, a faint smirk playing at his lips. "But I expect you to adapt. To survive. To excel."

Ava swallowed, mind racing. Six months. That was all. She had to survive six months. And yet, the thought of surviving under his roof, under his gaze, was both terrifying and... undeniably thrilling.

As Damian left, closing the door with a quiet authority, she sank onto her bed, heart pounding. The apartment, the rules, the contract-they were all overwhelming. And yet, beneath it all, a spark of dangerous curiosity flared.

She hated him. She hated how he made her pulse race, how he had invaded her thoughts before even fully entering her life. And yet, she knew this: her world had irrevocably changed, and there was no going back.

Tomorrow, the real challenge would begin. Six months. Six months of obeying, surviving, resisting... and something she was not yet ready to name.