Chapter 205

Aiden

Fridays were always busy at Dominion.

Classes, consultations, private sessions, scenes that ran late—by the end of the night I usually felt wrung out and hollow. Tonight was no different. I’d finished my last training session feeling like my bones were sand. All I wanted was a drink, a shower, maybe the illusion of peace for ten damn minutes.

But Hale had asked for a favor. A special one, he’d said.

A “personal friend of his” returning to the life needed guidance, someone experienced to rekindle his love for dominance.

Normally, I avoided this kind of thing—training former dominants had never been my passion. Plus, it was hard nowadays teaching others how to fulfill desires I hadn’t allowed myself to even fantasize about lately… it felt like chasing shadows. Training others to live the life I’d lost.

But it was Hale.

And Hale had held me upright when I’d fallen apart.

And his lawyers were already sifting through the rubble of my life, trying to find a way out of an impossible contract. I owed him, so I didn’t say no.

I showered, ate something small, and pulled on one of my sharper outfits—black trousers, crisp dress shirt, sleeves rolled twice, belt with silver hardware, and the fitted leather vest Noah once said made me look like “danger and authority made a man.”

I didn’t think about him.

I tried not to.

I headed to the training room Hale had assigned. It was soundproof—every dominant preferred their own atmosphere. I dimmed the lights, just enough to set a calm tone, and turned on a low jazz track to make the room feel grounded. Professional. Neutral.

I checked the time. The prospect was due any minute. I stood near the table, posture straight, mask of the composed Master firmly in place, when a soft knock hit the door.

“Come in,” I said, not looking up yet.

The door opened and closed again with a soft click behind me. I didn’t turn.

“Close the door, please,” I added out of habit.

It shut.

And then—

Something hit my spine. A feeling. A presence.

Familiar. Wrong. Impossible.

I turned and my whole world stopped.

No—

My breath stopped. My heart missed at least three beats. My knees nearly buckled… “Noah…?”

He stood there, naked, gorgeous—mask already removed, chest rising and falling too fast, lips trembling, eyes shining like they were moments away from breaking open.

“Sir…” he whispered.

That was it. The dam inside me shattered—tears rushed up before I could fight them.

My vision blurred instantly.

“Oh my baby boy…” I choked, stepping toward him, hands shaking.

He moved at the same time—both of us stumbling forward until we collided in the middle of the room, arms wrapping around each other like we were drowning and finally found land.

I held him so tight I felt his heartbeat against my ribs.

He held me like it hurt to let go.

“Noah…” I buried my face against his shoulder, inhaling him like oxygen. “It’s you… it’s you, you’re here—God, you’re really here.”

We pulled back just enough to see each other—to see the months of suffering carved into our faces.

His hands cupped my cheeks.

My thumbs brushed away the tears sliding down his.

I didn’t even try to stop mine.

“I missed you,” I breathed, voice cracking. “I missed you so damn much. I didn’t think I’d see you again before—”

“No.”

He kissed me. Hard. Desperate. All that longing poured into seconds. He devoured my mouth like he’d been starving.

I grabbed his waist, pulling him closer, and kissed him back just as fiercely, trembling from the force of it.

Our bodies pressed against each other, chests heaving, breaths mixing, heat sparking everywhere.

“Don’t say it,” he whispered against my lips. “Don’t talk about tomorrow. We’re here now. I’m here now. ”

I exhaled a broken sound—half sob, half prayer—and kissed him again, slower this time, like I needed to memorize the taste of him before the universe ripped us apart again. “You are here now, my love. And I am with you… I’ve got you, baby.”

His hands slid into my hair. Mine slid down his back. And just like every time he was near, everything made sense. Just us. Just him. Just my boy in my arms again.

Noah’s lips were still brushing mine when he let out a shaky laugh, half-sob, half-hysterical joy.

“God… I can’t believe I’m here,” he whispered. “I can’t believe this actually worked.”

I stroked his jaw, trying to memorize every line of him again. “Tell me how. How did you even—how the hell are you standing in front of me right now?”

He smiled, small and breathless. “We had… help.”

“Help?” I echoed.

“Yeah.” He laughed again—tiny, stunned, disbelieving. “Lexi. Micah. And—uh—Hale.”

I blinked. “Wait…, I can imagine stubborn Micah… He can’t help it… But did you say Lexie?? And, Hale? Master Hale knew?”

“Oh, he’s in on it. Completely.” Noah shook his head like he still couldn’t believe it himself. “Micah was so hyper and so damn contagious he probably couldn’t take one more minute of it—so he caved.”

“I can already see Micah chattering him into complying.” I shook my head with a smile. That boy…

“I bet… And then, Lexie… she figured out a way to make her dad think this was just a date night. Like, a real one. She told him she wanted to spend time with me before the… wedding, so he’d let us go alone.”

My jaw dropped. “She did that?”

“She did.” His voice went soft. Tender. “She knows everything now. I told her. All of it. She didn’t freak out. She didn’t hate me. She’s been… she’s been incredible, Aiden. She wants us to have this chance.”

I cupped the back of his neck, rubbing my thumb slowly over the warm skin. “She didn’t have to do that.”

“I know.” He leaned into my touch like he’d been starved for it. “But she did. And Micah—he brought the glitter.”

I snorted before I could stop myself. “Of course he did. I cannot believe all of you coordinated this for us.” I shook my head in disbelief, laughter bubbling into my chest for the first time in months. “God… we owe them everything.”

“Yeah.” Noah’s fingers brushed my cheek.

“Now, babe… Are you sure you two weren’t followed?” The humor dissolved instantly. I tightened my hold on him. “Like, absolutely sure?”

He shook his head quickly. “No. We didn’t. William let his guard down. And he had the opera tonight—some big event.”

I swallowed hard. “Then we’re safe tonight.”

“Yeah,” he said it again, softer. “Yeah… we are.” His gaze lowered. “Aiden… I’m sorry I had not been able to stop that wedding—”

“No.” My voice cracked with how desperately I needed him to hear this. “Noah, baby… this situation isn’t your fault. None of it is. And we’re not talking about it right now.”

He blinked fast, tears shimmering again.

I stroked his cheek, my forehead pressing to his.

“The future isn’t written yet. Hale’s lawyers are digging. Your friends have your back. My people are looking for ways out. We will fight this. Together.”

His breath hitched. “Aiden…”

“But tonight,” I whispered, brushing my thumb along his bottom lip, “it’s just us. Nothing else matters. Not William. Not the wedding. Not the contract. Not tomorrow. Not the future.”

He closed his eyes, leaning into me like the words were air.

“Please,” I murmured. “Forget everything, my baby boy. Forget the world. Just love me now.”

His answer was a sound—soft, broken, aching—and then his mouth was on mine again, kissing me like he’d waited a lifetime for this moment.

His hands slid into my hair.

Mine wrapped around his waist.

He pushed me back toward the wall with a desperate, breathless urgency, and I felt myself shudder with the force of wanting him—needing him—more than I’d ever needed anything.

We kissed like the world was ending as his hands worked on my clothing, peeling layer after layer in seconds, until we were skin against heated skin. “I love you now, and I will love you always, Aiden…. Would you make love to me one more time?”