"Get off me!" Tessa gasped, struggling beneath Vernon's broad frame.

His dark eyes gleamed with something unreadable—a hunger, a craving.

When he didn’t move, panic surged through her, and she screamed.

His hand shot out, wrapping around her throat, his grip unyielding.

A breathless gasp tore from her lips.

"You can't run from me, Peach." His voice was silk and steel, lethal in its promise. "I own you."

—

Tessa had lost everything—her home, her wealth, her love.

The man she once adored, Tamlin, had not only betrayed her but stripped her of everything she owned, tossing her aside like she meant nothing.

Heartbroken. Weak. Shattered.

And then, things got worse.

Tamlin didn’t just ruin her—he sold her. As collateral.

Now, she belonged to the devil himself—Vernon Carter.

Cold. Dominant. Cruel. A man who didn’t know the meaning of mercy.

But if Vernon thought she would break, he was wrong.

Tessa wanted vengeance. She wanted Tamlin to suffer.

And to do that, she needed power. Wealth. Someone more ruthless than Tamlin ever was.

Vernon was the perfect pawn.

She made up her mind. She would seduce him. Make him crave her. Make him hers.

But what happens when the hunter becomes the hunted?

When Vernon discovers her true intentions—and the game of love and revenge spirals into something far more dangerous?

Chapter 9 - Chapter 9: