LUCIFER'S POV
I loved him, there was no doubt about that but in my world, love was never enough. Love got you killed, love got the people you cared about gutted in alleyways or taken in the middle of the night, leaving you with blood on your hands and guilt in your veins.
I had avoided marriage for as long as I could, avoided labels, promises, and contracts because permanence meant weakness and weakness was fatal in my line of work.
But the contract Seb was offering? That was different, it wasn't just romance wrapped in a pretty bow. It was structure, control, my terms, my boundaries. If I accepted, I wouldn't be dragged into a normal marriage where emotions dictated my moves, I would be entering one that I commanded, and control was everything to me.
Still, that wasn't the only reason.
With him, I would have a cover… a billionaire husband with a spotless reputation. A man who lit up charity events and made front pages for his boardroom victories. Who would ever suspect that beneath that polished smile, his wife ran one of the most feared criminal syndicates in the city? Nobody would dare connect the dots between Sebastian's Sabrina and the devil they called Lucifer.
And there was the business advantage. A man like Seb opened doors no amount of blood money could buy. His name, his network, and his influence, they are all shields, and weapons I could use. The cops breathing down my neck would have to second-guess themselves before moving against Mrs. Montgomery.
And then there was the truth I'd never admit out loud, he had already been tied to me in ways he couldn't begin to imagine. Bound forever by something I had kept hidden all these years and with or without marriage, Sebastian Montgomery was already mine.
"I don't want you in the crossfire," I said quietly, still staring out the window.
Behind me, he didn't move, and he didn't speak.
"I have spent my whole life building this empire, killing for it, bleeding for it. I have made enemies you can't even pronounce." My voice was even and cold like it always was when I started closing doors around my heart. "If anyone finds out about us, if anyone even suspects, they will use you to hurt me."
"Sabrina …"
"I'm not saying this to be noble," I cut in, turning around. "I'm saying it because it's real. If you marry me, you are no longer safe."
His hands moved again, rubbing his thigh, running through his hair. That nervous tic again. It was the only time I ever saw his calm crack and those damn eyes, still watching me like I was his whole universe.
"I have never been safe," he said finally. "Not since the moment I fell in love with you."
I blinked.
He stood slowly and walked toward me, wrapping his arms around my waist. His touch was firm, warm, grounding. "You don't scare me, your world doesn't scare me."
"I don't want you to get hurt." I whispered.
"Then don't push me away."
I closed my eyes.
He had never asked for anything from me. Not money, not favors and now, for the first time ever, he needed me.
So even though every instinct told me to stay alone, stay hidden… I said, "Draft the contract."
He smiled like I had just handed him the stars.
"And we will live together," I added.
If I am doing this then I am going all the way, with no limitations, or reservations. I love him, so I will do this right.
His brows shot up. "You are serious?"
"Deadly."
"Thank you, baby."
The huge grin on his handsome face and the happiness glittering in his eyes is all I need to know that I have made the right decision for both of us and our future.
…
He cooked dinner for me half-naked.
He chopped peppers shirtless, still grinning like a boy who won the lottery. I leaned against the counter, stealing pieces of meat from the pan just to make him glare at me.
"Stop eating my dinner." he said.
"Stop cooking slowly like I'm not starving." I shot back.
We ate fast, laughing, and then he pulled me into the living room and onto his lap, kissing me like he had something to prove and maybe he did.
I straddled him on the couch, hands in his hair, his mouth tracing fire across my collarbone. His fingers dug into my hips as I rocked against him, chasing that slow, delicious friction that made my brain stop working.
"Fuck, Sabrina." He groaned as I whined on him.
"I know." I whispered, biting down on his shoulder. "Don't stop."
His hand slid between us, guiding me onto him. "Fuck." I gasped as I sat on his dick, feeling every inch of him deep inside me.
Our bodies connected, hot, full, deep. We moved together like we were made for it, like we had been doing this in every lifetime before this one.
His eyes were locked on mine, intense and breathless, as he whispered, "I love you."
"Ohhhh, yeah… I love you." I moaned and kissed him hard, rolled my hips as I felt him twitch inside me.
"Damn>" he cursed. The edge was right there, I could taste it.
Then my phone rang…. Loud, sharp, invasive.
I froze and halted my movement as his dick pulsated in me.
"Don't answer that." He said, panting, hands still gripping my ass.
I hesitated but the screen flashed: Red.
I reached for it.
"Sabrina." He warned but I picked it up anyway.
"What?" I snapped.
Red's voice came through, tight and urgent. "We have got a problem, there is an emergency. I need you back now." I didn't even ask, I knew that tone.
I climbed off Seb, heart pounding, and began throwing on my clothes.
"Sabrina, wait… what the fuck?"
"I have to go." I said quickly.
"Now?! We were… You can't just…" He stood, running his hand through his hair again in frustration.
I walked up to him, kissed his stunned mouth, and whispered, "You know who I am."
Then I left.
Neither of us had an orgasm.