Fire did not care who you were. It did not care whether you were rich or poor, powerful or forgotten. It did not recognize family names, bank accounts, promises, or regrets.

By 4:00 AM, the heavy iron gates of the Lake Forest estate opened to admit the returning convoy of black SUVs.

Sadie was still awake in the library when she heard the heavy front doors open. She immediately stood up, her heart pounding in her throat as she walked out into the grand foyer.

Dominic stood near the bottom of the staircase. He looked untouched by the battle—his charcoal suit pristine, his posture erect—though the dark intensity in his eyes signaled the heavy violence that had transpired hours prior.

When he saw Sadie standing at the top of the short landing, his steps paused.

Sadie slowly walked down the marble steps toward him. "Is it over?"

"It's over," Dominic said, his voice deep and resonant in the quiet foyer. "Marco Moretti is gone. His family business is finished. You are no longer in danger, Sadie."

Sadie let out a long, shuddering breath she felt like she had been holding for days. Relief washed over her, so intense her knees buckled slightly.

Dominic was beside her instantly, his arms catching her before she could fall. He pulled her flush against his chest, holding her securely.

"I've got you," he whispered into her hair.

Sadie pressed her face into the crook of his neck, breathing in the scent of rain, leather, and cedar that belonged entirely to him. For the first time in days, the suffocating anxiety dissolved.

"You're safe now," Dominic murmured, his hand gently tracing the curve of her back. "No one will ever threaten you again."

Sadie pulled back slightly to look into his face. "So... I can go back now? To my life?"

Dominic’s expression shifted, the softness vanishing, replaced by that dark, unyielding possessiveness that defined him.

"Your apartment is gone, Sadie," he said softly. "Your job at the diner was terminated three days ago."

Sadie blinked, stepping back out of his embrace. "What do you mean terminated?"

"I bought the building," Dominic stated calmly, as if discussing the weather. "And the diner. I closed it down. The owner received a very generous payout, and the staff were given six months' severance."

Sadie stared at him, absolute shock turning rapidly into white-hot fury. "You did what?"

"I eliminated the variables," Dominic explained, stepping toward her as she backed away. "You cannot return to a life where you are vulnerable to every low-level criminal in Chicago. You deserve better than working double shifts for pennies."

"Who gave you the right to destroy my life?!" Sadie shouted, her voice echoing off the high ceilings of the foyer. "You bought my diner?! You closed it down?! You had no right, Dominic!"

"I have every right when it comes to keeping you safe!" Dominic snapped back, his own voice rising, dark and commanding. "Do you have any idea what would have happened if Moretti’s men had found you before I did? They would have tortured you to get to me! I protected you!"

"You didn't protect me, you erased me!" Sadie yelled, tears of anger springing to her eyes. "You took away my independence! You took away my job, my home, my choices! You treated me like property!"

"You are NOT property!" Dominic roared, stepping directly into her space, his dark eyes blazing with a terrifying passion. "You are the only person in five years who looked at me without fear! You are the woman who walked into a burning inferno for my mother! Do you think I'm going to let you go back to starving in a tiny apartment while I sit in this house with millions?!"

"I don't care about your millions!" Sadie cried out, striking his chest with her bandaged hand—not hard enough to hurt him, but with all the frustration in her soul. "I cared about my freedom!"

Dominic caught her wrists gently, pinning them against his chest. His heart was hammering wildly beneath his shirt, matching the frantic rhythm of her own.

"Your freedom is intact, Sadie," Dominic said, his voice dropping into a desperate, raw whisper. "You can walk out those gates tomorrow if you truly want to. I won't stop you. I will give you a house, a bank account, and a secure life anywhere in the world. But if you walk away... you leave me here."

Sadie went utterly still. The anger drained from her, replaced by a sudden, breathtaking vulnerability as she looked into his dark eyes and saw something she never expected to find in Dominic Castile.