Page 54 of Ivory Legacy

“Since the start, I think,” I murmured, feeling a strange sense of comfort in his acceptance of the harsh reality.

Dante nodded slowly, the corners of his lips turning down in a frown—not of anger, but of contemplation. “Betrayal is likea shadow here, Jade. It lurks in every corner, under every whispered promise.”

I pulled my legs up onto the couch, wrapping my arms around them. “Why though? Why is it so common in our…your world?” The question slipped out, fueled by a mix of curiosity and the ache of fresh wounds.

“Power,” Dante responded without hesitation, his gaze shifting to the skyline visible through the expansive windows. “In this life, trust is currency, and everyone’s trying to be rich. People will do anything for a piece of that power, even if it means turning on their own.”

“Is that all we are then? Just pieces on a board to you people?” I couldn’t help the bitterness that seeped into my tone.

“Jade,” he turned back to me, his expression softening. “Not to me. You’re not just another piece on the board. You never were. You never have been and you never will be.”

“I…”

Dante’s fingers–which were, weirdly, immaculately clean–touched mine. “Jade,” he said, and I could hear the weight of unspoken vows in his voice. “I need you to understand something.” His gaze locked with mine, as steady and unwavering as the man himself. “There’s no betrayal in my heart when it comes to you or our child. You both are my future, my priority. And I’ll protect that with everything I am.”

I studied Dante’s face, searching for any hint of deception. But all I found was the raw honesty of a man who had seen too much, yet still dared to hope. “I believe you,” I replied, thewords tumbling out with a certainty that surprised even me. It wasn’t just his assurance that convinced me; it was the shared experiences, the vulnerability we’d glimpsed in each other.

Dante’s thumb traced the line of my jaw, a silent question lingering in the space between us. The heat from his touch seemed to travel directly to my core, and I leaned into him instinctively, seeking the warmth that only he could provide.

“Kiss me,” I whispered, no longer able to resist the pull of desire that Dante ignited within me.

He smiled. “Yeah,” he said. “Okay.”

Chapter Twenty-Six: Dante

The penthouse was silent except for the sound of our uneven breaths. Jade sat before me, her eyes red-rimmed, her dark waves a mess around her face. “Kiss me,” she had said.

I reached for her without hesitation, pulling her close. My lips met hers, and I couldn’t help but notice the unexpected taste of fried chicken lingering on them. A chuckle escaped me at the absurdity, but it was swallowed by the depth of Jade’s kiss. She leaned into me, her hands gripping the fabric of my shirt as if anchoring herself in the storm of emotions she was weathering. And just like that, the laughter died, replaced by a hunger that was all too serious.

“Jade,” I murmured against her lips, but she silenced any further words with another demanding kiss, deepening the connection between us until nothing else existed.

Jade’s breath hitched as our mouths melded together, her fingers threading through my hair, tugging me closer. The tasteof fried chicken was a distant memory now, replaced by the intoxicating flavor of her lipstick and the faintest hint of her own natural essence.

“Jade,” I groaned, the sound rumbling from deep within my chest as desire coiled tightly around my spine.

Her response was not in words but in action, her tongue tracing the seam of my lips with an eager urgency that belied the composure she wielded like armor. There was a rawness in this kiss, a feral need that resonated with the part of me accustomed to taking what I wanted. But with Jade, it was different.

With Jade, everything was different.

The penthouse seemed to shrink around us, the air charged with an energy that buzzed beneath my skin. Our breaths mingled, quick and ragged, as the kiss intensified, transcending the boundaries of mere physical pleasure.

“Jade,” I tried again, my voice hoarse, but she cut me off with a deeper kiss, her body pressing insistently against mine. Her hands roamed over my shoulders, down my chest, leaving trails of fire in their wake.

She pulled back just enough to look into my eyes, her gaze fierce, almost defiant. “I’m going to ride you,” she declared, her voice a whisper that nonetheless echoed with resolve.

“Jade, you don’t need to do anything,” I said, even as every fiber of my being screamed for her to follow through on her claim. In this moment, with her standing before me, there was nothing more I craved than to lose myself in her.

I was still reeling from the heated exchange, the gap between our lips pulsing with an untamed energy, when Jade’s voice cut through the thick air of the penthouse. “I’m done doing things just because I need to do them,” she said, her breaths coming fast and determined. “Tonight, I’m going to fuck you hard.”

Her words hit me like a freight train, lust and surprise colliding in a heady rush. I’d seen many sides of Jade—the scientist, the survivor, the enigma—but this fervent declaration peeled back yet another layer, revealing a raw, primal aspect of her I hadn’t known existed.

Without further argument, I reclined into the plush cushions of the couch, my body language surrendering to her command. The world outside the towering glass walls of my penthouse might as well have ceased to exist; all that mattered now was the woman who stood before me, ready to claim control in a way that only someone like her could—a blend of precision and passion.

“Let me help you with these,” I offered, my fingers hooking under the waistband of her leggings, which seemed far too confining for the scene that was about to unfold. She lifted one leg, then the other, allowing me to peel the garment down her thighs, past her knees, until they were nothing more than a discarded whisper on the floor.

I looked up, taking in the sight of Jade standing in front of me, her body a symphony of curves and shadows in the low light of the penthouse. My heart pounded in my chest, anticipation humming through my veins like an electric charge. Without a word, she guided herself onto my lap, her lips finding mine once again in a kiss that was as soft as it was intense.

She reached down to undo my buttons, her fingers deft and sure, her eyes never leaving mine. Her touch sent jolts of electricity through my body, each one building on the last until I was nothing more than a bundle of pure, desperate want.

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