Chapter 245

Evelyn shut her eyes tight and began counting backwards from one hundred.

Ninety-nine, ninety-eight... at seventy-six, she sensed Dominic's body pressing closer against her back.

His calloused palms slid beneath her silk nightgown, fingers tracing the delicate curve of her waist before dipping below the elastic band of his sleep pants.

Curled on her side, Evelyn felt his warm hands kneading slow circles across her abdomen. Her knees instinctively drew upward...

The movement arched her hips backward until they met the hard ridge of his arousal pressing insistently through thin fabric.

"What are you doing?" Evelyn's brow furrowed. She wasn't in the right headspace tonight.

Moonlight filtered through the curtains, gradually revealing Dominic propped on one elbow studying her. He leaned in, brushing his lips against her flushed cheek.

"Doctor's orders," he murmured against her skin. "Regular physical activity helps manage hypoglycemia."

"Exercise..." Evelyn's thoughts stuttered.

Surely the physician meant brisk walks or pilates, not Dominic's interpretation of therapeutic movement between sheets.

Though reserved in intimate matters, Dominic approached them with single-minded determination, like a man possessed.

No amount of protest could deter him once his mind was set...

"Exhaustion leads to better sleep," he reasoned while already pushing her nightgown upward. "Otherwise you'll stay up overthinking again."

Silver moonlight painted Evelyn's bare skin as it was revealed inch by inch...

Tonight taught Evelyn how inventive men became when justifying their desires.

Every "for your health" masked selfish craving.

Dominic's kisses came slow and deep throughout the long night, each one stealing her breath until dizziness threatened.

She barely registered when he finally stilled, only pushing weakly at his shoulders moments later. "Get off me..."

Dominic chuckled as she buried her face in pillows. "Still blushing like a schoolgirl after all this time?"

"About what?" Evelyn feigned ignorance, though heat flooded her cheeks.

His thumb traced her hipbone. "Everything. After two children together, what's left to be shy about?"

Evelyn considered this as Dominic continued, "Not that I mind. Your embarrassment is... charming."

The comment only deepened her flush.

"Sometimes this still feels unreal..."

Dominic's questioning hum prompted her to continue.

"Coming from nothing to this... your world operates by different rules. Even when I understand them, I don't know how to move through them." She shook her head. "I can't explain it properly."

Dominic pondered her lingering uncertainty. Perhaps he hadn't done enough to make her feel secure.

Yet he understood her disorientation.

Since returning to Blackwood Estate, he'd watched countless outsiders lose themselves navigating elite society's labyrinthine expectations.

Always because of men like him.

As Dominic searched for reassurance, his body moved instinctively, sheathing inside her. "Real enough now?"

Evelyn experienced his "reality" until exhaustion claimed her...

Morning found Evelyn waking to two neatly dressed children presenting her with a toothpaste-laden brush.

Isabella beamed while Alexander adjusted his backpack straps. Their morning routine soothed the grief still lingering from her father's passing.

By 8:30, after breakfast preparations and shoe-tying assistance, Evelyn finally had a moment to herself.

Dominic leaned against the kitchen doorway. "Leave the dishes."

"I'm not made of glass," Evelyn insisted, scrubbing a plate. "You all don't need to treat me like an invalid just because—"

Dominic's sudden presence behind her cut off the protest. His breath warmed her ear. "Not fragile? You were begging me to stop last night..."

The plate slipped from Evelyn's fingers with a clatter.

Dominic spun her around, capturing her mouth in a searing kiss. "Stop distracting me and go to work," she gasped when they parted.

Across town, on a bustling film set...

Sophia froze when police officers approached.

That witch Evelyn actually pressed charges!

An hour earlier, Linda had taken the police call but informed Lillian instead during a shooting break.

Thus Lillian learned of Sophia's legal troubles.

Evelyn's father's death came as a surprise.

Yet Maxwell showed no signs of mourning a father-in-law's passing.

Lillian resolved to check on Evelyn after filming. Someone needed to handle arrangements since Maxwell clearly wouldn't.

Was Evelyn managing everything alone?

Preoccupied with these thoughts, Lillian barely registered Sophia's arrest.

"Rot in hell, Evelyn!" Sophia shrieked as officers led her away. "Just like your pathetic father! Think you can steal everything?"

"Enough!" An officer shoved her into the squad car.