My husband pinned my little sister against his mahogany desk and murmured, "Nora will never know."

Our lips met in a kiss that swept away four years of pain, cold rain, and lonely nights.

It wasn't a tentative kiss. It was explosive, deep, filled with a desperate hunger and an overwhelming tenderness that took my breath away. Dominic’s arms wrapped around my waist like steel bands, pulling me flush against his chest, lifting me slightly off my feet as if he were trying to merge our bodies into one.

I buried my hands in his dark hair, pulling him closer, letting out a soft sigh against his mouth as the familiar heat of his love washed over every dark corner of my soul.

When he finally pulled back, both of us were breathing heavily, our foreheads resting together.

"God, Nora..." Dominic groaned, his thumb tracing the swollen line of my lower lip. "I love you. I have never stopped loving you for a single second."

"I know," I whispered, kissing his palm. "I know."

That night, we didn't hurry.

In the master suite of Blackwood Point Estate, with the fire roaring in the hearth and the ocean waves crashing outside, Dominic held me as if I were made of precious glass. Every touch, every kiss was a silent apology, a sacred vow, a restoration of what had been stolen from us.

When we lay tangled in the high-thread-count sheets late into the night, my head resting on his muscular chest, his heart beating steadily beneath my cheek, I knew that the running was finally over.

"Dominic?" I asked softly into the dim room.

"Hmm?" He tightened his arm around my shoulders, pressing a soft kiss into my hair.

"What happens now?"

Dominic looked down at me, his thumb lightly stroking my bare shoulder.

"Now, we live," he said gently. "We build a life here. Or in New York. Or anywhere you want. Vale Enterprises can run without me being in the office eighty hours a week. I’m stepping down as active CEO next month."

I sat up slightly, looking at him in surprise. "You're stepping down?"

"I spent the last four years realizing that all the money and power in the world means nothing if the bed is cold and the house is empty," Dominic said, his eyes filled with absolute clarity. "I am appointing Arthur as interim CEO. I will remain Chairman of the Board, but my full-time job will be being your husband and Jack and Noah’s father."

Tears of pure happiness gathered in my eyes. "Are you sure?"