𝐅𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 [𝟏𝟖+]✓

32

This is the last chapter that happens in the past. This also has a crossover between Acquisition and Fettered. Just 3k but the next chapter is worth waiting for.

Vote and comment please this is the book I'm most hyped for I don't want to abandon it.

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Tyrone's house buzzed with muted chatter, glasses clinking softly, but my focus wandered elsewhere. I leaned back against the plush couch, my attention oscillating between the room's polished chaos and a faint hope that Cyrus would emerge from one of the shadowed corners. My reason for being here felt ridiculous, desperate even, but obsession does that to a person. I couldn't help myself.

To my surprise, Tyrone Grant had invited his business acquaintances for dinner. Xayvion had informed them they have all gone to the same college as Cyrus and Tyrone did so they could be considered as friends, but no one was serious. Their names, Craig and Romeo, were just as forgettable as their faces were - nothing extraordinary like Cyrus Hudson.

However, Romeo's eyes darted over me with an intensity that would make me stop in my tracks. For a brief moment, I could have sworn I saw something flicker behind his gaze-recognition, maybe? But the instant passed, and he quickly masked it with a calculated look, like he was trying to contain a secret. I tilted my head slightly, studying him from across the couch. He wasn't like strangers I came across in most room, all those eager eyes following me, their desire plastered across their faces. No, there was something more guarded in his expression. Something I couldn't quite put my finger on. It wasn't the typical admiration I got, no. It was different-almost as if he knew me.

But, of course, that was absurd.

I flicked my hair over my shoulder, a practiced gesture, and let a lazy smile curve my lips. His reaction was almost comical. His gaze softened even as his body language betrayed him-he was captivated, just like the rest of them. That initial surprise? That was nothing but the first bite of curiosity, I was certain of it.

I'd seen it all before.

Men were predictable. They looked at me, and I knew exactly what they saw: a beautiful woman who could have whatever she wanted. The kind of woman who made hearts race and imaginations run wild. So, whatever Romeo's momentary shock was, I dismissed it. It was just another man, just another reaction. He'd be smitten with me by the end of the night, just like the rest.

Cyrus, on the other hand, was very different - very immune to my charms.

My gaze caught on Celestina who just entered the room, looking like a lost puppy. Her dark hair framed her delicate face, and though her demeanor seemed composed, something in her posture suggested unease. I couldn't blame her. She was an island in a sea of chaos, underdressed in comparison to the room's glittering inhabitants-and clearly, she felt it.

Tyrone Grant, cutting through the hum of the room with an air of unshaken confidence, moved towards her, eyes on Celestina, his steps unhurried.

"Do you want something, Licorice?" he asked casually.

"Did you just call her Licorice?" I interjected, my tone light with amusement, trying to ease the tension.

Only this man would call a woman with such silly names. Or maybe, like Xayvion suggested, Tyrone was indeed addicted to her, just like he had been addicted to chocolate as a boy.

Celestina's confusion deepened, her brows knitting slightly.

Tyrone shot me a pointed glare over his shoulder, his voice laced with mock annoyance. "Calm your tits, woman."