Dinner and Defiance

POV: Chiara

The brass handle refused to budge an inch under my palm, the mechanism locked tight from the outside.

I gave it another hard jerk before stepping back, heat rushing straight into my face as I stared at the solid wood slab. Who the hell gave Dima Volkov the impression he had any claim over my life? I wasn’t someone’s possession to shove into a corner and lock away. I belonged strictl