Page 1 of Conquer

Prologue

One more andhe would be done.

He’d wired the living room, kitchen, dining room.

Still, Adrian hesitated at the edge of the bedroom door, something keeping him from going in.

By now, he’d lost count of the number of times he’d done this, the number of places.

But today, it felt different.

Shefelt different.

He stood in the doorway, feeling like he was at a threshold, a precipice, something inside of him shifting even though his body was unmoving.

He was lingering, wasting precious moments he didn’t even know he had, warring with himself over something that had to be done, while at the same time soaking in her presence, feeling something like joy at being in her space.

He didn’t know what was wrong with him, what he was feeling. Was shocked that he felt anything at all.

Knew it was her doing.

He had the woman’s picture, but had only seen her in person from a distance, had never even heard her voice. But the depth of the connection he’d felt the instant he’d laid eyes on her, one that he felt now, had his heart beating wildly.

Adrian had never experienced anything like it before and had no idea what the feeling meant or what he should do about it.

But he knew how to do this, knew that at least for a little while, he could retreat into the familiar. It was that knowledge that made him move.

He crossed the threshold and entered her bedroom, curiosity, embarrassment making his skin tingle.

He shouldn’t be here, but he had no choice.

He also couldn’t pretend he wasn’t enjoying it.

The fact of his presence was wrong, but there was also a thrill, a comfort of being in this space, her space.

And since he was here…

Adrian looked around, trying to use these stolen moments to try to understand the woman who had so captured him.

The furnishings were delicate but not overtly feminine, sturdy, mature, but with a bit of the whimsy Adrian thought he sometimes saw in her.

The pile of clothes on the floor. The book on the nightstand that looked like it had never been opened. The framed picture next to it. They all helped tell the story that Adrian had been building in his head.

The room was messy but had a lived-in feel that made his heart pound again.

The items, the place itself were ordinary, yet they made him feel closer to her.

What they didn’t do was help him understand how it had come to this, what cruel twist of fate that had brought him to this woman he thought he loved.

This woman he might have to kill.

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