The elevator chimed. The doors slid open to the underground, climate-controlled parking garage.

A blast of cold air hit them.

Alois carried Hayden quickly across the polished concrete floor toward the black, bulletproof Maybach parked in his reserved spot.

His driver, Rudy Kowalski, practically jumped out of the driver's seat and yanked the heavy rear door open.

Before Alois could step inside, the adjacent elevator dinged.

Barnett stormed out, his leather shoes slapping loudly against the concrete.

"Alois!" Barnett yelled, his face red with frustration.

Alois stopped walking. He didn't turn around. He just carefully lowered Hayden onto the soft leather seat of the Maybach.

The second Hayden's legs touched the seat, she grabbed the edge of the doorframe. Her knuckles turned white as she looked nervously past Alois at Barnett.

Barnett marched right up to the car. He pointed a stiff finger at Hayden.

"Are you out of your mind?" Barnett demanded, staring at Alois. "You actually believe this bullshit?"

Barnett lowered his voice, but the venom in it was thick. "She is a snake. You can't domesticate a snake. Ten minutes ago she was ready to slit her own wrists to ruin you, and now she's playing the good girl?"

Barnett leaned closer. "This is a new trick. Erick taught her this. She's just trying to steal your corporate secrets to please that pathetic, broke loser!"

Hayden sat frozen in the backseat.

Hearing those words felt like a physical blow to her stomach. The pain radiated through her chest because she knew Barnett was right. In her past life, she had been exactly that vile.

She didn't snap back at him. She didn't scream.

She just lowered her head. Huge, heavy tears welled up and dropped onto the back of her hands.

Alois shifted his stance. He moved his massive body directly in front of the open door, completely blocking Barnett's view of Hayden.

He stared at his oldest friend. His eyes were as cold as a morgue.

"Watch your mouth, Barnett," Alois said, his voice dropping to a dangerous, vibrating low. "She is still under Wyatt protection."

Barnett flinched, physically stepping back from the sheer violence in Alois's eyes. He gritted his teeth. "She's going to get you killed one day."

Alois calmly reached up and adjusted his right cufflink.

"That's my problem," Alois said flatly. "Not yours."

He turned his back on Barnett, stepped into the Maybach, and slammed the heavy door shut.

The loud thud instantly cut off the echoing noise of the garage. The inside of the car was suffocatingly quiet.

Alois leaned his head back against the headrest. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, his chest rising and falling heavily.

In the driver's seat, Rudy kept his eyes glued to the rearview mirror. He didn't dare start the engine.

"Mercer Hospital," Alois ordered, his eyes still closed. "Drive fast."

The Maybach's engine roared to life. The heavy car glided smoothly out of the underground garage.

The dim blue ambient lighting clicked on, casting sharp, cold shadows across the hard lines of Alois's profile.

Hayden curled her legs up on the opposite side of the spacious backseat. She kept her head down, but her eyes darted sideways, watching the man beside her.

She saw his right hand resting on his thigh. It was curled into a tight fist. The knuckles were completely white.

She slowly uncurled her legs. She tried to slide across the smooth leather to get closer to him.

The movement pulled the skin on her left wrist.

A sharp, tearing pain shot up her arm. She sucked in a sharp breath through her teeth.

The tiny hiss of pain was magnified in the silent car.

Alois's eyes snapped open.

His gaze locked onto her like a predator. He stared straight at her left wrist. The blood was still slowly dripping from the cut.

He reached into the breast pocket of his suit jacket and ripped out his silk pocket square.

He leaned across the wide center console, his large hand snapping out to grab her wrist in an iron grip.

The blinding surgical lights in the top-floor VIP suite of Mercer Hospital burned Hayden's eyes.

The doctor held a pair of tweezers, carefully swabbing the deep, jagged cut on her left wrist with iodine.

The chemical burn of the antiseptic hitting raw flesh made Hayden's stomach roll. A cold sweat broke out across her forehead. Her entire body trembled.

She bit down hard on her lower lip, tasting the metallic tang of her own blood. She refused to make a single sound. She was terrified of angering the man standing in the corner.

Alois stood near the heavy wooden door. His arms were crossed over his chest. He stayed in the shadows, his dark eyes fixed on the bloody mess of her arm.

The doctor finished the last stitch and snipped the black thread. He let out a long breath.

"You're lucky it missed the main vein," the doctor said, tossing the bloody gauze into a metal bin. "Keep it completely dry for at least a week. And absolutely avoid any severe emotional fluctuations or physical exertion that could spike her blood pressure and tear the sutures wide open again."

Alois gave a single, stiff nod.

"Get out," Alois said. His voice had zero inflection.

The doctor and the two nurses felt the crushing pressure in the room. They didn't say a word. They quickly pushed the metal cart out into the hallway.

The heavy door clicked shut. The lock engaged with a loud, metallic thud.

They were alone.

Alois pushed off the wall. His leather shoes clicked against the polished linoleum floor. Each step was slow, deliberate, and heavy with threat.

He stopped at the foot of her hospital bed. He gripped the metal railing with both hands, leaning his weight forward as he stared down at her pale face.

The smell of bleach and fresh blood hung in the air, making it hard to breathe.

"The pity play is over," Alois said, his lips curling into a cruel sneer. "Let's talk terms."

Hayden froze. She looked up at him, her chest tight with confusion.

"What exactly does Erick want this time?" Alois demanded, his voice rising in volume. "The development rights for the harbor plot? Or five percent dry shares in the group?"

Hearing Erick's name made Hayden's throat close up. A violent wave of nausea hit her stomach.

She scrambled to sit up straight, desperate to explain. The sudden movement yanked her freshly stitched wrist.

She let out a sharp gasp of pain.

Alois's eyes flickered, his fingers tightening on the metal rail, but he didn't move an inch to help her. He kept his defensive posture.

Hayden ignored the pain. She looked straight into Alois's cold eyes. Her own eyes were red and wet.

"I don't want anything," she said, her voice shaking but completely clear.

She took a deep, ragged breath. "I will say it again. I am absolutely not marrying Erick."

Alois narrowed his eyes. He looked at her like she was a cheap, counterfeit painting he was trying to appraise.

He suddenly let go of the rail. He walked around the side of the bed and leaned over her.

His large hand came up, not to touch her, but to hover inches from her face. His fingers didn't make contact, yet she felt the menacing heat radiating from them. He tilted her chin up with the sheer force of his proximity. His face was mere inches from hers. She could feel the heat of his harsh breaths hitting her skin.

The violent madness Alois had been suppressing all night finally cracked through his calm facade.

"Hayden," he whispered, his voice dropping to a terrifying, gravelly pitch. "Do you have any idea what will happen to you if you're lying to me?"

Hayden didn't try to pull away. She stared right back into his dark, obsessive eyes.

A single tear slipped from her eye and dropped onto the back of his hand.

"If I ever go back to him," Hayden said softly, her voice filled with absolute conviction, "I give you the right to take my freedom. To ruin me completely."

The words hit Alois like a physical blow to the chest.

His pupils dilated rapidly. His breathing completely stopped.

He jerked his hand back as if her skin had burned him. He stood up straight, his chest heaving as he turned his back to her, desperately trying to hide the violent, possessive thrill that had just ripped through his blood.

The Maybach rolled smoothly through the empty, dark streets of Boston. The orange glow of the streetlights flashed rhythmically through the tinted windows, washing over the backseat.

Alois sat on the right side, leaning his head against the cold glass. His eyes were shut tight, and a deep crease marked his forehead.

Hayden sat on the far left side. She kept her hands folded neatly in her lap. The thick white bandage wrapped around her left wrist practically glowed in the dim light.

The air conditioning in the car was blasting. Hayden was still wearing her thin silk evening gown. A violent shiver ripped through her shoulders.

She turned her head and looked at Alois's broad, stiff shoulders.

She bit the inside of her cheek. Slowly, she began to slide across the leather seat toward him.

The expensive leather squeaked under her weight. In the dead silence of the car, the sound was deafening.

Alois's thick eyelashes fluttered for a second, but he didn't open his eyes. He didn't tell her to stop.

Hayden finally closed the gap. She took a deep, shaky breath and reached out, wrapping both her arms around his thick left bicep.

She rested the side of her head against his shoulder, absorbing the solid, radiating heat coming through his suit jacket.

Alois's entire body went rigid. His lungs froze. He didn't push her away.

Suddenly, the front tires hit a deep pothole.

Rudy slammed his foot on the brake. The heavy car jerked violently forward.

The momentum threw Hayden off balance. Her body pitched forward, and her left wrist slammed hard against the hard plastic backing of the front seat.

The fresh stitches ripped open instantly.

A blinding flash of white-hot pain exploded behind her eyes. Her vision went completely black for a second.

She bit down on her lip so hard she tasted copper. She swallowed the scream building in her throat. She was terrified that if she made a sound, he would push her away and ruin this rare moment of closeness.

Hayden quickly sat back up. She shoved her left hand behind her back, hiding it against the seat cushion. Cold sweat poured down her neck.

Alois had opened his eyes the second the car jerked. He turned his head and looked at her.

He instantly saw the sickeningly pale color of her face. He saw the way her right shoulder was awkwardly pushed forward to hide her left arm.

Then, the smell hit him.

The sharp, metallic scent of fresh blood began to fill the enclosed cabin.

Alois's face darkened. A terrifying, violent storm gathered in his eyes.

He reached out and grabbed her right shoulder, physically twisting her body so she was forced to face him.

"Bring your hand out," he ordered. His voice was deadly cold. "Don't make me say it twice."

Hayden shook her head frantically. Tears welled up in her eyes. "I'm fine. It really doesn't hurt."

Alois's patience snapped.

He reached behind her back and forcefully yanked her left arm out into the open.

The pristine white bandage was already soaked through with a massive, spreading stain of dark red blood.

Alois stared at the blood. His chest he heave up and down. Raw fury and agonizing panic warred in his dark eyes.

"Are you out of your mind?" he roared, his voice shaking the windows. "You're bleeding! Don't you know how to say it hurts?"

Hayden flinched violently at his shout. The tears she had been holding back finally spilled over her cheeks.

"I was afraid," she sobbed, her voice a tiny, broken whisper. "I was afraid if I cried, you would think I was annoying and kick me out of the car."

That sentence hit Alois like a sledgehammer to the ribs.

All the explosive anger drained out of his body in an instant, leaving him hollow.

He let out a heavy, defeated sigh. His large hands moved with agonizing gentleness as he cupped her bleeding wrist.

He lifted his head and glared at the back of the driver's head.

"Drive steady," Alois snarled. "Are you trying to kill us?"