Scarlet Chains: The price paid

Ash Locke wants her.



Not in a fleeting way. Not in the way people admire something beautiful and move on. He wants her in a way that consumes, in a way that refuses to be rationalized or ignored.



But Alina Sinclair is married. Off-limits.



She wasn't supposed to want him, either. He was meant to be her guard dog-loyal, fierce, hers when she called and gone when she didn't. But she's no longer satisfied with that. She doesn't just want his protection. She needs his devotion , his obedience , his everything.



Ash craves her like something vital, something necessary. Alina clings to him like possession, like ownership .



It was never supposed to happen. They were never supposed to cross this line.



But hunger doesn't ask for permission. It takes .