Page 14 of Devlin

But with Krista, it was different. She wasn’t just a pawn in this game, she was special to him. A reminder of a past he couldn’t let go of, no matter how hard he tried.

As the SUV pulled out of the parking lot on the security feed, a sense of unease settled in his chest. He was sending her into the lion’s den, hoping to draw out an invisible enemy in the shadows. But more than that, he was sending away the one person who had the power to unravel him completely.

He sat back in his chair, running a hand through his hair. This was a gamble, and the stakes were higher than he’d ever imagined. He could only hope that when all of this was over, he wouldn’t lose the one person who had become more important to him than he dared to admit.

Chapter Six

“Ma’am? We’ve arrived,” said an unfamiliar voice.

Krista jolted awake, her heart pounding. She silently berated herself for falling asleep during the drive back to her apartment. Mark, one of the men Devlin had entrusted to guard her, opened the car door.

“Thank you,” she murmured, stepping out into the dimly lit alleyway behind her apartment building.

She noted the precautionary measure—dropping her off in the back alley in case she was being watched.

“We’ll be around. Call us if you need us,” Mark told her, his tone professional.

“Fine,” she answered, maintaining her composure.

She walked briskly to her apartment, pretending everything was fine. Once inside, she locked the door and leaned against it, starting to shake. The reality of the situation hit her like a freight train.

She couldn’t believe what had just happened. When she got caught and brought to Devlin, she thought she’d been a goner. Now, things were far more complicated. She had agreed to Devlin’s offer because she had no other choice.

Her father’s death had taught her one crucial lesson: to survive in this world, one had to be willing to do anything, including resorting to desperate measures.

Her heart raced as she thought of Devlin with his hot mouth over hers. His clever hands on her body and his cock sheathed inside her. The way he’d completely unraveled her after just one fuck. Krista had never experienced anything like it.

No, she furiously thought. Krista couldn’t let her feelings interfere with her survival. She took deep breaths, trying to steady herself. She needed to focus, to stay sharp.

Krista took out the altered documents from her bag, spreading them out on the small table in her living room. The fake documents were a crucial part of Devlin’s plan, and now they were her lifeline. She examined them carefully, making sure everything was in order.

As she worked, she couldn’t shake the image of Devlin from her mind. His touch, his voice, the way he had looked at her—it all haunted her. But she had to push those thoughts away. She couldn’t afford to be distracted, not now.

A sudden noise outside her window made her jump. She quickly turned off the lights and peeked through the blinds, her heart pounding in her chest. It was just a cat knocking over a trash can, but the adrenaline rush didn’t fade. She was on edge, every nerve in her body screaming at her to stay alert.

At first, Krista debated running. She had no sentimental ties to this city, after all. The prospect of leaving everything behind and starting fresh in a new place was tempting.

She gave her studio apartment a quick, assessing look. Due to the dangerous nature of her job, she shifted places often. This apartment wasn’t home, just a place to crash. She owned few possessions, and the things she did cherish could fit in a duffel bag.

The bag peeked out from under her bed, a silent reminder of the life she could so easily escape. It was tempting to take it out and simply be done with all this—to vanish into the night and start anew somewhere far away from Devlin, Enzo, and Phantom.

But her father didn’t raise her to be a coward.

Krista took a deep breath, pushing the impulse to flee aside. Running was easy. Facing her problems head-on was the real challenge. She glanced at the duffel bag again, then deliberately turned away from it.

Krista moved away from the window and sat back down at the table. She couldn’t let her guard down again. The stakes were too high.

With a deep breath, she took out her cell phone. Her next step was to contact her client and schedule a meeting to hand the documents over. Survival was all that mattered now, and she would do whatever it took to ensure it. Her fingers drummed nervously on the table. She picked up her phone and dialed Enzo Rosso’s number, her heart pounding with each ring. Finally, he answered.

“Enzo, it’s Krista,” she said.

“Krista,” Enzo’s voice was smooth, but there was always an edge of suspicion.“Do you have what I need?”

“Yes, I’ve got the documents. Everything is as you requested,” she answered.

“Good. We’ll meet tomorrow, same place as before. Noon. And don’t even think about scanning and sending them via email. I want to see them with my own eyes,” Enzo said.

Krista wasn’t surprised.“I understand. I’ll be there,” she said.

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