Heaven or Hell: Loving My Twisted Billionaire novel Chapter 26

Heaven or Hell: Loving My Twisted Billionaire

Chapter 26

Hannah’s POV

“How do you feel? Lillian asked as she finished the massage, her expert hands giving my shoulders one final gentle squeeze.

I stretched lazily on the table, feeling like a cat in sunshine. “Amazing. I didn’t realize how much tension I was carrying

“Sleeping on hard floors will do that to you,” Lillian remarked with a knowing smile. “Your muscles were knotted like sailor’s rope.”

I sat up slowly, holding the towel against my chest. The massage had left me feeling both energized and deeply relaxed–a strange but pleasant combin As I slipped back into my clothes behind the privacy screen, I found myself thinking about Finn arranging this for me.

“Thank you,” I said, emerging fully dressed. “Your hands are magic.”

Lillian smiled as she cleaned up her supplies.

Dinner was a solitary affair in the grand dining room. Victoria was away for the evening, and Finn–unsurprisingly–hadn’t appeared. I pushed my salmon around the plate, thinking about the moment in the music room when Finn’s fingers had danced across the keys, revealing glimpses of who he might have been without the trauma that shaped him.

“Will Mr. Sterling be joining you, Miss Lancaster?” the server asked, interrupting my thoughts.

‘I don’t think so,” I replied. “Is Mrs. Sterling out for the evening?”

“Yes, Miss. She’s attending a charity function in the city.”

1 hesitated before asking my next question. And Mr. Sterling? Is he out as well?”

The server’s expression tightened slightly. “No, Miss. We… we’re not at liberty to discuss Mr. Sterling’s whereabouts. It’s not our place to know where he is at

all times.”

I nodded my thanks and returned to my meal, my appetite diminishing as I wondered what had happened.

After dinner, Amy and I took a walk around the estate grounds as twilight settled. The air was cool and fresh, carrying the scent of night–blooming jasmine.

‘Miss Hannah, I was worried after… you know, the music room incident.”

‘Please, just Hannah,” I corrected automatically. “And don’t worry about earlier. Finn wasn’t angry with you.”

Amy cast a nervous glance toward the west wing. “He seemed pretty upset to me,”

“He was just… having a moment,” I said lamely, not sure how to explain the complexity of Finn’s emotions. ‘How are the flowers coming along

Beautiful,” Amy replied, clearly grateful for the subject change. “Though the gardeners do most of the work. I’m just helping out today.

Amy spoke again, her voice lowered. “You know, things have been different since you arrived,”

‘Different how?*

Mr. Sterling… he’s still terrifying, don’t get me wrong, she hastened to add. “But he hasn’t shouted at the staff as much. Before you came, someone got fired almost weekly for the smallest mistakes.”

I considered this as I carefully removed a wilted rose. ‘I doubt I have anything to do with that.”

Amy shook her head. “Today was bad, though. We heard crashing–he broke several vases. The cleaning staff was terrified to go in.”

My stomach twisted. “Do you know what upset him?‘

“No idea. He had a meeting with Mrs. Sterling earlier, but that’s normal.” Amy hesitated, then leaned closer. “There’s talk among the staff… they’re saying you might be the only one who can approach the beast without getting your head bitten off.

1 frowned at the term. “He’s not a beast, Amy. He’s just…” Just what? Damaged? Dangerous? Definitely both, but something more complex too.

“If you say so,” Amy replied, clearly unconvinced. “You’re probably the only person in the country who thinks he has a kind side.”

kness fell comple

ked me back to my suite.

diately sensed something was wrong. The room was darker than it should have been–the curtains drawn tight against orway, remembering that I’d deliberately left them open this morning.

e light switch as I strained to see into the darkness. Years of childhood ghost stories with my brothers made my heart pound, bu Stay calm. “Is someone there?” I called, trying to keep my voice steady.

wer came, but I felt a presence–solid and unmistakable. I flipped the light switch.

My breath caught when I saw him. Finn sat on the edge of my bed, still as a statue. He wore black pants and a charcoal shirt, his sunglasses firmly in place despite the room’s darkness. And beside him on the bed lay a slender cane in a shocking shade of pink.

“Finn,” I gasped, relief and something else–excitement?-flooding through me. “You scared me.”

He didn’t respond, his face impassive beneath the dark glasses. The room around him was slightly disheveled, the bed covers wrinkled where he sat,

suggesting he’d been there for some time.

“Have you had dinner?” I asked, trying to sound casual as I stepped further into the room. “I missed you at the table.”

Still, he said nothing. His jaw was tight, lips pressed into a thin line. Then I noticed his hands–clenched into fists on his thighs, knuckles white with

tension.

I moved closer, drawn to the pink cane beside him. It was exactly as I’d imagined–sleek and professional, but in that soft rose color that seemed so at odds with everything about Finn Sterling. Seeing it there made my heart swell with unexpected emotion. It was a tangible connection between us, something he’d

commissioned because of me.

“The cane is perfect, I said softly, stopping a few feet from him. “Jack did an amazing job.”

Finn finally spoke, his voice low and cold. “Come here.”

373

7:47 pm

Chapter 26

MMM.

The command sent a shiver down my spine. There was anger in his tone, tightly controlled but somistakable. I hesitated only a moment before simning the

distance between us.

Before I could fully register what was happening, Finn’s hand shot out and grabbed my wrist. With one powerful motion, he pulled me down onto the bed, flipping our positions until he was above me, pinning me beneath his weight.

“Tell me something, Hannah,‘ he said, his face inches from mine. ‘If it wasn’t for Peter, you wouldn’t be doing this, would you?”

His hand slid under my shirt, fingers splaying against my ribs, moving upward with deliberate slowness. My breath caught, confusion mingling with the sudden heat of his touch.

“You wouldn’t be here, in my family’s home, offering yourself to me,‘ he continued, his voice harsh as his fingers traced the underside of my breast. If not

for the money.”

“Finn, I–I tried to speak, but his mouth came down on my neck, hot and demanding, sending shockwaves through my body. He bit down hard, marking my skin with his teeth, making me whimper.

“You think I’m soft,” he murmured against my skin, his tone dripping with venom. “You think because I ordered you a massage and accepted this ridiculous pink cane that I’m some wounded animal you can tame, you little slut.”

His hand slipped beneath my bra, roughly yanking it up to expose my breasts. I gasped as his thumb brushed across my nipple, pinching it hard enough to

make me cry out.

My body arched involuntarily, responding to his touch even as my mind raced to catch up. He slapped my breast lightly, then harder, making it jiggle with a cruel smirk.

“Why so quiet now?” he taunted, his breath hot against my ear. “You had plenty to say before, you filthy whore.”

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