The flash goes off, startling me even though I knew it was coming.

Catching myself clutching the gun at my waist, I force my hand to uncurl and move away from the weapon. With a hundred of our best guards securing the field, my gun isn’t necessary. Still, I feel better having it on me—and I know Nora is glad her semi-automatic is tucked inside her purse. Though the opening of her second art show in Paris went off without a hitch last year, we’re both more than a little paranoid today, determined to do whatever it takes to ensure the safety of our unborn daughter.

Another flash goes off beside me. Glancing at the seats to my right, I see Nora’s parents taking pictures with their new camera. They look as proud as I feel. Sensing my gaze on them, Nora’s mother looks in my direction, and I give her a warm smile before turning my attention back to the stage.

The next graduate is already up, but I don’t notice who it is. All I see is my pet, carefully making her way down the left side of the stage. The leather folder with the diploma is in her hands, and the tassel on her cap is hanging on the other side of her face, signifying her new diploma-recipient status.

She’s beautiful, even more beautiful than at her high school graduation five years earlier.

As she makes her way through the rows of graduates and their families, our eyes meet, and I feel my heart expanding, filling with the mixture of dark possessiveness and tender love she always evokes in me.

My captive. My wife. My entire world.

I will love her to the end of time, and I will never, ever let her go.

THE END

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Craving more of these characters? Then don’t miss:

• The Capture Me Trilogy – Lucas & Yulia’s breathtaking enemies-to-lovers romance
• Tormentor Mine – Peter & Sara’s intense story of love and revenge
• Darker Than Love – an addictive standalone dark romance between Yan and Mink, co-written with Charmaine Pauls

Ready for my other sizzling stories? Check out:

• Wall Street Titan – an opposites-attract romance with an irresistible alpha billionaire
• The Mia & Korum Trilogy – an epic sci-fi romance with the ultimate alpha male
• The Krinar Captive – Emily & Zaron’s captive romance, set just before the Krinar Invasion
• The Krinar Exposé – my scorching hot collaboration with Hettie Ivers, featuring Amy & Vair—and their sex club games
• The Krinar World stories – Sci-fi romance stories by other authors, set in the Krinar world

Prefer action, fantasy, and sci-fi? Check out these collaborations with my hubby, Dima Zales:

• The Girl Who Sees – the thrilling tale of Sasha Urban, a stage illusionist who discovers unexpected secret powers
• Mind Dimensions – the action-packed urban fantasy adventures of Darren, who can stop time and read minds
• Transcendence – the mind-blowing technothriller featuring venture capitalist Mike Cohen, whose Brainocyte technology will forever change the world
• The Last Humans – the futuristic sci-fi/dystopian story of Theo, who lives in a world where nothing is as it seems
• The Sorcery Code – the epic fantasy adventures of sorcerer Blaise and his creation, the beautiful and powerful Gala