Page 85 of The Owner's Temptation

Right on schedule.

I school the smirk tugging at my mouth, turning just in time as she storms through the door of my office like a goddamn hurricane.

I lift the delicate porcelain saucer and cup, perfectly calm, my expression schooled into smooth indifference. The scent of dark roast wafts between us as I take a sip.

“Congratulations on being on time today,” I say, cocking a brow as the heat from my coffee rolls across my tongue. “I almost thought I’d have to start without you.”

“Start what? Being an overbearing jerk?” she snaps, her voice tight and biting.

Her eyes blaze—stormy, furious, beautiful. That sharp, blue fire burns through me more effectively than the espresso sliding down my throat.

I set the cup down slowly, carefully, because if I’m not deliberate, I might break something. Or worse—pull her over the desk and end this argument the way Iwantto.

“You had no right,” she grits out. “No right to interfere in my personal life. Invading my space like that?—”

I let her finish, because watching her come undone is almost better than touching her.Almost.

When she finally draws breath again, I speak with practiced calm. “Your safetyismy business, Sienna. Becauseyouare my business.”

She rolls her eyes and throws her hands up. “Don’t give me that bullshit. You don’t get to toss around that line like it justifies everything. I didn’t ask you to protect me.”

“No,” I agree, stepping closer, “you didn’t. But you also didn’t stop to think that someone might need to.”

“I can take care of myself,” she shoots back.

My mouth tilts into something that’s not quite a smile. “Can you? With an ex who still has a key to your apartment? A building with no security? A landlord who doesn’t give a fuck?”

“You can’t just go around doing whatever you want,” she says, her voice rising, every word dripping with frustration. “Sending people to my apartment? Having work done without permission?”

“I can,” I interrupt smoothly. “And I will.”

She stares at me like I’ve grown a second head. “Youwill?”

I nod once, unapologetic. “I did.”

Her jaw clenches as she steps forward, eyes blazing with disbelief. “Stay out of my building, Lucian.”

And now I really do smile.

“I bought it,” I say, letting the words settle between us like a slow-burning fuse. “So technically, itismy building now.”

She goes still.

I watch the exact moment her brain stalls out. The wheels are turning, trying to process whether I’m bluffing.

I’m not.

I never bluff.

“It pays to have friends in the right places,” I continue, casually walking back around to my desk. “Friends who owe you favors. One call to the right person, and by dawn, I owned the building.”

Her lips part, stunned.

“Within fifteen minutes, the locksmith was en route,” I add. “And another fifteen after that, your piece-of-shit landlord found out who his new boss is.”

I sit back in my chair, steepling my fingers in front of me, gaze locked on hers.

“I expect Mr. Jenkins will be much more...amicableto tenant needs going forward.”

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