Kaden slowly chewed his food. His jaw clenched and his eyes set ablaze. He shifted his attention to her.

  Lina was intimidated? by his sharp action. He knew how to bring someone to the edge of their seat. She was waiting for his every breath. Waiting for him to speak. Waiting for him to take action. Instead, he swallowed his food. Then, cleanly popped a cube of fruit into his mouth. All the while, he didn't break eye contact.

  "I wanted to know if it was because of something I said," Lina stated. "Is that why you killed Everett?"

  Kaden finished the fruit. He gazed at her for the longest time. His stare was deliberate and devious.

  "What makes you think I did it?" Kaden asked in a threatening, but amused voice.

  Lina rapidly blinked. "If not you, then who?"

  Kaden laughed under his breath. The sound was short. Curt, even. His lips curled into a sneer. Then, he went back to the food.

  Lina pressed her lips together, realizing she misspoke. If not Kaden, then who would? She searched her brain for answers. Only Kaden knew how heinous that man was. Then again, Everett had a lot of enemies because of his father's firm. Everett's tragic death in the alleyway could've been fabricated by an angry client.

  With great curiosity, Lina grabbed a remote from the table and turned on the tv. Right on time. It was bright and early in the morning. The news reporter was just getting started.

  "Police have made advancement in their investigation. The Leclare heir was beaten to near death before he was killed in an execution style murder. Found beside him was the symbol of a notorious mafia. For legal reasons and to prevent any disruption to the ongoing investigation, the symbols are being kept as classified and have not yet been released to the media."

  Kaden leisurely enjoyed his breakfast like it was morning tea under the sunlight. He wasn't disturbed by the talk of the brutal murder. But his wife was visibly shaken up, her eyes never leaving the television. He took a deliberate sip of his black coffee.

  Without warning, Lina grabbed his hand. He paused. If not, the hot coffee would've splashed onto her.

  "Dove, if you want to get burned, I can brand you myself," Kaden gritted out, shooting her a warning glare.

  "Sorry…" Lina mumbled.

  Kaden slammed his coffee cup to the table. What was his mischievous wife up to now? Just then, she pulled his hand to view. Her fingers traced over his knuckles where? faded scars could be seen. Without warning, she kissed them

  Kaden froze. "What's the occasion?" he hoarsely asked, feeling himself tighten.

  Lina raised her head and shook it. She said nothing of her intentions and returned to her food.

  Kaden clenched his jaw. He watched her eat. She was so oblivious, it began to hurt him. He was already throbbing and all she did was kiss him. He needed to get laid more often. But taking a good look at her, he knew it wouldn't work. No matter how many times he took her, no matter how many times he came inside, he could never get enough.

  Kaden's gaze flickered. Lina pulled back her hair. She revealed her elegant neck, lean and tall. Her collarbone was like a swan and her skin was too soft not to be touched. When she ate, her pink lips were too inviting. Her eyes would flutter shut to admire the food. If he didn't know better, he'd think she was in ecstasy.

  "Fuck." Kaden tightly gripped his burning coffee cup. It was the only distraction. From her.

  Kaden would be damned. She wasn't deliberately seducing him. She was enjoying breakfast. But all he wanted to do was bend her over the kitchen table and enjoy her whilst she ate. Was that too much to ask?

  "How do you not find black coffee to be bitter and sour?" Lina asked him, turning her head. "I like it with so much milk, it might as well be a cup of milk with a splash of coffee."

  Kaden snorted at her words. "You ruined a farmer's hard work cultivating the coffee beans then."

  Lina tilted her head. "But it's so much better with additives."

  Kaden wryly glanced at her. "Eat your food, dove."

  Lina scoffed. Instead of relishing in coffee, she drank fruit juices. Today was watermelon.

  Kaden always found it intriguing. She was rainbows and sunshine. He was the gloomy clouds before a rainstorm. They couldn't be more different. She sipped her pink drink whilst he touched his bitter coffee like alcohol.

  "Do you think you're my destruction?" Lina asked him.

  Kaden was thrown off by the question. He looked at her long and hard. Who even asks that?

  "There was a quote," Kaden murmured. "You told me at our first encounter in the museum."

  Lina's lips parted. She remembered. "I am the reason you'll never win this battle."

  Kaden slowly nodded. "Even so, I took Teran. Even so, your people became mine."

  Lina twirled the metal straw of her fruit juice. "I want you to be the man of my destiny."

  Kaden's lips spread into a smile. "We all want the things we can't have."

  "Is there nothing I can do to change fate?" Lina asked in an eager voice.

  "There is," Kaden softly said. "A woman's destiny changes when life is created from them. Her destiny becomes entangled in the one she creates, leading to confusion."

  Lina knew what he meant. A child. If she gave birth, nothing could stop her. No one could stop her.

  "Is that why you wanted children?" Lina questioned.

  Kaden shook his head. The action was so small, she almost missed it.

  "I've waited a millennium to father your child. A millennium to build what we could've had, but lost too quickly. I waited for you, not because I expected something in return, but because I knew it was worth it."

  Kaden grabbed her hand, forcing her to turn her body to him. "I waited a millennium because I love you, Lina. I want to start a family, so there is legacy—reminisce of our love shall it end due to natural causes."

  One thing was for certain, Lina realized. All the love she poured into Kaden in the past was resurfacing.

  Kaden had lost her once out of greed, another out of foolishness, and now, he wasn't going to make the same mistake. He meant every word he said. He'd love her the same way she loved him, but he had reciprocated too late.