Ava’s breath hitched, but she didn’t have an answer.
Damon claimed her mouth again, deeper this time, his control slipping just enough for her to feel the raw hunger beneath it.
His hand moved between her thighs, and when he found her already wet and slid one finger inside, she gasped against his lips .
“So ready for me,” he murmured.
A second finger joined the first, stretching her slowly.
Her hips lifted on instinct, heat spreading through her like wildfire.
“Please,” she whispered—and hated how easily the word came.
He settled between her legs, the thick head of him pressing against her entrance.
Ava tensed.
“Relax.” He kissed her temple.
“I’ve got you” .
He pushed in inch by inch, until he was fully seated and went still, his forehead against hers.
“Breathe, Ava.”
She obeyed, her breath shaking.
The fullness was almost too much—until her body gave way and the ache turned into something that set her on fire.
He drew back and drove in again, deeper.
She cried out, nails biting into his shoulders.
“That’s it,” he said roughly.
“Let me hear you” .
He set a relentless rhythm, hands locked on her hips, and Ava lost track of everything but the way he filled her.
“Damon—” she gasped.
“Come for me.” His thumb found her clit and rolled it in tight circles.
Ava shattered.
Her orgasm tore through her, her walls clenching until he groaned and spilled deep inside her with a low growl.
But he didn’t stop.
Before she could catch her breath, he flipped her onto her stomach, a hand pressing at the small of her back to arch her hips up.
“Again,” he said simply.
This angle was deeper, and she couldn’t hold back her cries.
His fingers tangled in her hair, drawing her head back.
“You’re mine, Ava.
Say it.”
“I’m yours,” she gasped, her voice breaking.
“Good girl.”
He took her until she lost count of how many times she came apart beneath him—until she was boneless and aching, unable to move.
When it was over, his touch turned gentle.
He gathered her against his chest, brushed the damp hair from her face, and kissed her forehead.
“You okay?”
She nodded weakly.
“I think so.”
He chuckled and reached for the water on the nightstand.
“Drink.”
She did, grateful.
He pulled the blanket over them both.
“Sleep.
I’ll take care of you.”
She woke later to a sore body—and the sight of Damon already dressed, sitting on the edge of the bed, watching her with a small smile.
“Morning.”
Ava pulled the blanket to her chin, suddenly self-conscious.
“Morning.”
His smile widened.
“How do you feel?”
“Sore,” she admitted.
“I’ll run you a bath.
And have breakfast brought up.”
She blinked.
“You don’t have to—”
“I want to.” He leaned down and kissed her forehead.
“Get used to it, Ava.
This is what having a husband looks like.”
Then he was gone into the bathroom, and a moment later she heard water running.
Ava lay back against the pillows and stared at the ceiling.
In the span of a few days, her entire life had rewritten itself.
So much for “I won’t touch you until you’re ready.”
She almost laughed.
But she had to admit—she’d liked it.
More than she was ready to say out loud.
Her phone buzzed.
Chloe’s name flashed across the screen.
“Ava!
Have you seen it?” Her voice was sharp with fury.
“Victor just announced his engagement to Stella.
Last night.
It’s all over social media.”
Ava waited for the sting to come.
It didn’t.
No anger.
No ache.
Just a faint, distant satisfaction—like watching a door close on a room she’d already left.
“Good for them,” she said flatly.
“Good for—?” Chloe sputtered.
“Ava, you two broke up days ago.
He’s doing this to humiliate you.”
“Maybe.” Ava crossed to the window and pulled the curtain aside.
Endless green hills.
A lake burning silver in the morning light.
The city skyline beyond.
A view she could never have afforded on her own—not in a hundred years.
“Chloe,” she said quietly.
“I got married.”
Silence.
Then: “You what?”
“I got married.
To Damon Sterling.”
Another beat of stunned silence.
“Damon Sterling?
As in the Alpha King?
Ava, have you lost your mind?”
“No,” Ava said calmly.
“He offered me terms I couldn’t refuse.
Money.
Status.
Protection.
Why wouldn’t I accept?”
Chloe’s voice climbed an octave.
“Because he’s Victor’s adoptive father!
I know they’re not blood-related, but still—this is insane.
What are you going to do when you see Victor again?”
“That’s Victor’s problem, not mine.” Ava’s gaze didn’t leave the lake.
“From now on, he’ll have to call me Luna Sterling.”
For a long moment, Chloe said nothing.
“Ava…
are you doing this because you’re hurt?
Because Victor isn’t worth it.
This whole thing is—”
“It’s not about Victor,” Ava cut in.
“I know exactly what I’m doing.
Marrying Damon gives me everything I’ve ever wanted.
This is better than anything I could have planned for myself.”
“But do you love him?”
Ava thought of silver-blue eyes, and the way he’d looked at her in the dark.
“No,” she said.
“I know what I’m getting into, and I’m fine with it.”
Chloe sighed heavily.
“Alright.
You’ve always been stubborn.
But Damon Sterling has a reputation—ruthless, dangerous.
Just be careful.”
“I will,” Ava said softly.
“But so far, he’s been good to—”
The bathroom door opened, and steam rolled out ahead of him.
“Good to you,” Damon finished, leaning against the frame with his sleeves pushed up his forearms.
His silver-blue eyes swept over her, slow and unhurried, lingering on the marks his own mouth had left along her throat.
“I’d like to think I’m very good to you.”