The Don Tore Up Our Divorce (Gemma and Cassian) novel Chapter 42

**Before Rain Touches Earth Memories Return With Gentle Warmth by Eli Dane**

**Chapter 42**

**Gemma**

Yes.

Maybe.

Damn it, I crave him more than I can express!

“We… we shouldn’t do this,” I finally manage to whisper, my breath hitching with uncertainty. “Health codes…”

“I’ll pay them off,” he replies, his lips brushing against my neck, igniting a fire within me. His free hand finds its way to my breast, and the sensation sends shivers coursing through my body. It feels so intoxicatingly good.

“But we’re ending things,” I insist, my voice trembling. “Next year…”

“Next year,” he echoes, his tone laced with a promise that sends my heart racing.

But deep down, I know that once we cross this line, all those boundaries I’ve meticulously set will dissolve like mist in the morning sun.

A sudden thought strikes me, a way to cool the simmering heat enveloping us.

“1.11:26,” I murmur, my voice low and sultry. “Cassian… if we’re going to stay married… if you want to do this right now… you have to give me a baby.”

As anticipated, my words halt him in his tracks. He leans back slightly, his eyes darkened with desire, almost like a storm brewing on the horizon.

Then, to my surprise, he grins, that devilish smile spreading across his face. “Deal.”

“What?” The word escapes my lips in an almost frantic shriek, disbelief coloring my tone.

Cassian is now unbuttoning my shirt, and with my bra already undone, it takes mere moments for him to free my breast.

His lips, warm and demanding, find their way to my skin, kissing and sucking my nipple with a fervor that makes my head spin.

“Ah! Cassian!” I gasp, my fingers tangling in his hair as he pulls me closer, grinding his body against mine with an urgency that leaves me breathless.

Every sensation is overwhelming, new and powerful. I never want this to end.

But wait—what he just said must be some kind of cruel joke, right? It can’t be real. Damn him, how can I think clearly when he’s touching me like this?

“Kids… Cassian… you said…” I start, but he silences me with a soft “Shh,” his lips brushing against mine. “I’ll give you what you want.”

What I want is him, deep inside me, claiming me completely. The need is so intense, it feels like a pulsing ache within me.

But why this sudden shift in his demeanor? It doesn’t add up.

He agreed to a divorce in a year.

Unless…

Is this just another tactic to keep me tethered to him?

Before I can process this thought, a voice pierces the atmosphere from the other room, calling his name. “Cassian!”

It’s a challenge, especially now. My fury bubbles just beneath the surface.

The fact that Gemma is married to Cassian is the most devastating blow I’ve ever endured.

Eve had to tread carefully over the years, ensuring he always remembers that her mother ran my father’s family into the ground—even though she didn’t, of course. My father managed that all on his own.

But even so, Gemma’s mother was always weak. She never equipped Gemma with the tools to pursue power or get what she wanted.

My mother, on the other hand? She instilled in me the belief that I deserve everything, and she taught me how to seize it.

But I’ve convinced Cassian that Gemma’s mother is a wreck, and I’ve painted Gemma as manipulative, dull, and foolish. So far, it’s worked.

Cassian has always believed me. He’s kept his distance from her, even during those three agonizing years when his grandfather forced me out of his life.

What has changed?

“Did you say Cassian is in the kitchen?” I ask James, my voice dripping with false cheer as I push past the gossiping staff toward the kitchen doors. I raise my voice, calling out, “Cassian!”

I’m determined to get him to divorce her, even if it’s the last thing I do on this earth.

As the legitimate daughter, Gemma has always had everything handed to her. It’s simply not fair.

I won’t let her keep Cassian.

Even if it means I have to eliminate her.

Or resort to what my mother did to hers: poison her and drive her to madness.