The weight of Charlie's touch lingered long after he had pulled away, the darkness of the club swallowing up the lingering tension between them. Mae stood there, her breath still ragged, her body trembling with a confusing mixture of emotions. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, every beat a reminder of how deeply he had gotten under her skin.

Her lips still tingled from the kiss, a ghostly reminder of what had just happened, but her mind was a whirlwind of confusion. This was wrong. Everything about this was wrong. And yet, she couldn't deny the way her body had responded to him, how every touch, every whispered word had unraveled her resolve, leaving her exposed and vulnerable.

Mae stared at Charlie, standing just a few feet away, his dark eyes watching her like a predator watching its prey. There was a flicker of satisfaction in his gaze, as though he knew exactly what he had done to her. As though he had planned every moment of this carefully, pulling the strings and watching her dance.

It made her feel sick.

But beneath the nausea, beneath the fear and the anger, there was something else. Something dangerous. Something she wasn't ready to admit to herself.

"You don't have to fight me anymore, Mae," Charlie said softly, his voice smooth as silk. He took a step closer, his presence overwhelming, suffocating. "You know that, don't you? This is where you belong."

Mae clenched her fists at her sides, trying to summon the strength to push him away, to tell him he was wrong. But the words wouldn't come. Instead, she found herself frozen, trapped in the web he had spun around her, every thought, every instinct tangled in the darkness he had wrapped around her life.

"I'll never belong to you," Mae whispered, her voice trembling. It was a lie, and they both knew it.

Charlie's smile widened, a slow, predatory curve of his lips. "You already do."

The certainty in his voice sent a shiver down her spine, but Mae refused to let him see the fear in her eyes. She straightened her back, lifting her chin, trying to reclaim some sense of control over herself. But it was futile. Every time she thought she had found her footing, Charlie was there to pull her back down, reminding her of just how deep his influence went.

"Why are you doing this?" Mae asked, her voice strained. "Why me?"

Charlie's gaze softened for a moment, and Mae almost thought she saw a flicker of something genuine in his eyes, something that went beyond the control and manipulation. But it was gone as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by that same calculated intensity she had come to expect from him.

"Because you're different," Charlie said simply, his voice low and dangerous. "You're stronger than the others. Smarter. And that makes you valuable."

Mae's chest tightened at his words, a mix of confusion and dread swirling inside her. Valuable. That's what she was to him. A pawn, a tool he could use to further his own goals. It didn't matter what she wanted, what she thought. In his eyes, she was just another piece on the board, one he had been carefully moving into place since the beginning.

"And what if I don't want to be your pawn?" Mae asked, her voice sharper now, a flicker of defiance in her tone.

Charlie chuckled softly, the sound dark and full of amusement. "You don't have a choice, Mae. You never did."

Mae's heart sank at his words, the finality in them hitting her like a punch to the gut. She had been fighting for so long, trying to claw her way out of the mess she had found herself in, but it was all for nothing. Charlie had been in control from the beginning, and he wasn't about to let her slip through his fingers now.

"You think you can keep me here forever?" Mae asked, her voice tight with frustration. "You think I'll just give in to whatever you want?"

Charlie's eyes gleamed in the dim light of the club, a dangerous smile playing on his lips. "I don't need to keep you here, Mae. You'll stay because you want to. Because deep down, you know you belong here—with me."

Mae's stomach churned at his words, but she couldn't deny the pull she felt, the dark, twisted connection that seemed to grow stronger with every interaction they had. It was like being caught in a storm, unable to find her way out, and the more she fought, the more she was dragged under.

She hated him. She hated the way he made her feel, the way he could tear down her defenses with just a look, a touch. But the worst part was that he was right.

There was a part of her that wanted to stay.

A part of her that couldn't walk away.

"You've been fighting this for too long," Charlie said softly, his voice cutting through her thoughts. "But I know you, Mae. I know what you need, what you want."

Mae's chest tightened as he stepped closer, his presence overwhelming, his dark eyes locking onto hers. She could feel the heat radiating from him, the tension between them thick enough to suffocate her.

"I'm not yours," Mae whispered, her voice barely audible. But even as she said the words, she knew they weren't true. Not anymore.

Charlie's smile widened, his eyes gleaming with triumph. "You will be."

Mae's breath hitched as he closed the distance between them, his hand reaching up to cup her cheek. The touch was soft, almost tender, but there was a possessiveness in it that sent a shiver down her spine.

"I can make you feel things you've never felt before," Charlie murmured, his thumb brushing lightly against her skin. "I can give you everything you've ever wanted. All you have to do is stop fighting."

Mae's heart pounded in her chest, her mind racing with conflicting emotions. She should push him away. She should run. But her body refused to move. The pull between them was too strong, too intoxicating, and Mae could feel herself slipping, falling deeper into the darkness he had created around her.

"I hate you," Mae whispered, her voice trembling with the weight of the words.

Charlie's eyes darkened, his grip on her tightening ever so slightly. "Hate me all you want," he said softly, his lips brushing against her ear. "But you can't deny what's between us."

Mae's breath hitched as his words sent a jolt of heat through her, a fire she couldn't extinguish no matter how hard she tried. The tension between them was suffocating, overwhelming, and Mae felt herself drowning in it, unable to break free.

Charlie's hand slid down to her waist, pulling her closer until their bodies were pressed together. Mae's pulse raced, her mind clouded with a mixture of fear and something darker—something she couldn't control.

"I'll never be yours," Mae whispered, though the conviction in her words was slipping.

Charlie's lips brushed against her jaw, sending a shiver down her spine. "You already are," he murmured, his voice low and dangerous.

Mae's heart pounded in her chest, her mind screaming at her to push him away, to run, but her body betrayed her. The pull was too strong, the darkness too intoxicating. She was caught in his web, and no matter how hard she tried to fight it, she couldn't escape.

Not anymore.

Mae's pulse thudded loudly in her ears as the suffocating heat of Charlie's presence wrapped around her, pulling her deeper into the darkness that had slowly been consuming her for months. Her body betrayed her, leaning into him even as her mind screamed for her to resist. She was falling, and there was no one to catch her.

Charlie's grip tightened on her waist, his fingers pressing firmly into her skin, a silent reminder of the power he held. Every inch of her was on fire, every nerve alight with the tension that buzzed between them. It was intoxicating, overwhelming—something she had never felt before. And the worst part was that it felt inevitable, like she had been moving toward this moment for far longer than she cared to admit.

His lips hovered near her ear, his breath warm and dangerously close. "I don't think you've fully accepted it yet," he murmured, his voice sending a shiver down her spine. "But you will. In time, you'll see that there's no escaping this. No escaping me."

A strangled breath escaped Mae's lips, and she forced herself to step back, putting a sliver of distance between them. Her body screamed in protest, her mind torn between the primal need he ignited and the deep-rooted fear that accompanied it. She hated him, hated how easily he could control her emotions, but even more, she hated herself for wanting him—no, craving him.

"Why me?" she asked again, her voice hoarse, barely louder than a whisper. "Why go through all of this?"

For the briefest moment, something shifted in Charlie's gaze, something almost like vulnerability, but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared. His expression hardened, the predator once again in control.

"Because you're different, Mae," he said, his voice a mixture of dark promise and dangerous certainty. "You don't realize your potential yet, but I do. I saw it the moment you walked into Hell's Angels. You're stronger than you know, but that strength makes you fragile too. You fight so hard against the things you want most."

Mae's breath caught in her throat as his words hit their mark. She had been fighting—fighting against her own desires, against the truth she didn't want to face. Charlie had seen through her from the beginning, stripping away her defenses, her illusions of control. And now, standing here with him, she couldn't deny that a part of her wanted to surrender to it. To him.

Charlie took a step closer, his presence once again overwhelming her senses. "You're trying so hard to resist me," he whispered, his voice a dark caress. "But we both know it's pointless."

Mae's fists clenched at her sides, her nails digging into her palms as she tried to keep herself grounded. She had always prided herself on her strength, her ability to push through adversity, but Charlie was tearing that apart, piece by piece. And she hated how much she wanted to fall apart in his arms.

"I'll never give in," she said through gritted teeth, though the conviction in her voice was weaker now, like a fragile thread stretched too thin.

Charlie's smile was slow, predatory, as if he could sense her unraveling. "You already have," he murmured, his voice dripping with certainty. "You just haven't accepted it yet."

Mae's heart raced, her thoughts swirling in a chaotic storm of fear, anger, and something far more dangerous—desire. She could feel the walls she had built around herself crumbling, the lines she had drawn in the sand fading beneath the weight of his influence. And for the first time, she didn't know if she had the strength to rebuild them.

The thought terrified her.

Before she could respond, Charlie closed the distance between them again, his hand cupping the back of her neck in a possessive grip. His touch was firm, commanding, and despite every instinct telling her to pull away, Mae found herself frozen, her body responding to him in ways she couldn't control.

"You don't have to fight anymore," Charlie whispered, his lips brushing against her temple. "Just let go. I'll take care of everything."

Mae's breath hitched as his words sank in, a dark promise wrapped in a seductive lure. She wanted to fight him, wanted to scream that she wasn't his to control, but the truth was gnawing at her, weakening her resolve. She had been fighting for so long—against him, against herself—and she was exhausted.

The idea of letting go, of surrendering to whatever dark pull existed between them, was terrifying. But it was also tempting. So, so tempting.

And that was the most dangerous part.

Charlie's lips grazed her cheek, his breath warm against her skin, and Mae felt her defenses crumble further, the walls she had built around her heart shattering with each passing second. She was spiraling, falling into the darkness he had created around her, and there was no way out.

"You belong to me, Mae," Charlie murmured against her skin, his voice soft yet firm, like a master commanding his servant. "Whether you like it or not, you've always belonged to me."

Mae's eyes fluttered closed, her breath coming in shallow, uneven bursts as the weight of his words settled over her like a suffocating blanket. She wanted to scream, to deny everything he was saying, but deep down, a part of her—the part she had tried so hard to bury—knew he was right.

She had been his since the beginning.

She just hadn't realized it until now.

With a trembling breath, Mae finally opened her eyes, meeting Charlie's gaze with a mixture of fear and something darker. Something that scared her even more than the fear.

Because in that moment, she knew she wasn't just falling for him.

She was falling with him.

And there was no turning back.