Reed

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For once, Adrianna is speechless as I guide her up the gravel path toward the cabin, my hand hovering at the small of her back. She's stiff beneath my touch, every muscle taut, like she's preparing to bolt.

Evangeline ushers us in as soon as we reach the porch, her eyes scanning the trees like she expects Carrera's men to burst from the shadows. She looks thinner than the last time I saw her. Paler. Adrianna looks up at me, her eyes filled with an uncertainty I'm not used to.

One nod from me, and Adrianna steps through the door. I follow close behind, her perfume still lingering in the air between us. Five hours in close quarters and it's still doing things to me I don't care to unpack.

I move aside as her eyes dart around, taking everything in. The living room is modest, with mismatched furniture that looks like it's seen better decades. A threadbare rug stretches across the wooden floor, and the only decorations are a couple of empty photo frames on a paint-splattered shelf. Hardly the accommodation Evangeline is used to, but it's safety. San Diego was no longer secure, and in a few days, this place won't be either.

Gabe stands by the window, watching the treeline. The Glock in his waistband is the same one I gave him the night he killed Denaro. "Anyone follow you?" he asks.

"Yes, there's a convoy outside as we speak."

He glances over his shoulder, lips twitching. Not quite a smirk, but close enough to piss me off. "Is that supposed to be funny?"

Evangeline steps in before either of us escalates. "Forgive him," she says to me, casting Adrianna a tired smile. "We're all on edge. Cabin fever and paranoia don't mix well." She gestures to the couch. "Maybe we should sit."

Adrianna doesn't speak, but she follows. She sits, reaches into her bag, and pulls out a notepad and pen. Then I see it.

The fire in her eyes.

I don't know what I expected. Maybe for her to seem more alarmed, or impressed. Maybe for her to show doubt, but instead, this is another day in the office for her.

"Before we start," Adrianna says, "I need to know exactly who you're running from."

The room stills. Eva and Gabe share an uneasy look before Eva folds her hands in her lap. "GSS," she says finally. "They place bodyguards with high-profile clients, steal from them, blackmail them, and cover it all up. Gabe was supposed to rob me the night of the gala."

Adrianna's pen stills. Her eyes flick to mine and flash with pure fury.

"GSS," she repeats. "As in..."

"As in my father's company," I say.

The glare she gives me should turn me to stone. She turns back to Evangeline. "And you plan to expose them?"

Evangeline nods. "Daniel Redwood is hunting us. Reed helped us escape, but unless we go public, we'll never be free."

Adrianna says nothing. Her jaw tightens as she flips a page in her notebook. Then, finally, she offers Evangeline a tight smile. Much warmer than anything she's ever spared me. "Reed," she says politely, already standing. "May I speak to you outside?"

She's out the door before I can answer. Gabe makes a low noise of annoyance, one I echo with a sigh.

"She'll come around," Evangeline says as if she can read our minds. "We just need to give her more time."

"We don't have time," Gabe says. "If she can't tell the story, we need to find someone who can."

I run a hand along my jaw, hit with the sinking feeling that I've made a mistake. I'd known Adrianna was a wildcard when I enlisted her help, but I'd wrongly assumed her witch hunt to expose Hollywood corruption would override all else. I was wrong.

"It has to be her," Evangeline says, her hand tightening around Gabe's arm. His eyes soften in a way I've only seen happen around her. "She's the only one who'll tell this right. She's just scared. We all are. The second she agrees to this, she's just as much of a target as we are."

And I'm the one to blame. I dragged her into this. I'm still dragging her. But she's right. There's no one like her. No one who would put their reputation and safety on the line like this.

It's why I picked her.

I push to my feet. Part of me wants to cut Adrianna loose before she gets hurt. But I'm selfish, and without her, this plan falls apart.

I step out into the cold. Adrianna's standing with her back to me, arms folded tightly across her chest, eyes fixed on the stars above. I stop a few steps behind her, expecting her to pull away, but she doesn't move.

"You should've told me this was about your father. There's no anger in her voice, just resignation, as if she's already decided how this ends. "Before you dragged me halfway across the state and dangled a career-defining story in front of me."

I arch a brow. "It doesn't change anything."

"It changes everything." Her voice is like fire and ice. "You're what we call emotionally compromised. You're too close to the story, and that makes you a liability." There it is, that spark. Fury. I should be annoyed, but I'm not.

I'm twisted enough to enjoy it.

"You think I'll back out because he's my father," I muse. She underestimates me. The sadist in me wants to punish her for it.

A strand of hair falls across her cheek. I reach out and tuck it behind her ear. She doesn't move. Her breath stills. Mine does too. I lean in, my lips brushing close enough to send a shiver down her spine.

"I'll forgive your naivety," I whisper, "considering you don't know me. But you couldn't be more wrong."

She meets my gaze head-on, her eyes burning with something challenging. "This story will destroy your father," she says slowly, as if I haven't yet comprehended this. "His reputation, his career. There will be investigations, charges, prison, probably. And you might think you're ready for that, but you're not. Because at the end of the day, he's still your father." She pauses, her voice tightening. "You're asking me to risk my life—and my career—on a story you might decide you no longer want to tell."

"I will," I vow.

"Then you're either a hero or a villain," she says, tiling her head. "I just can't decide which."

"Neither," I say. "My reasons for wanting to expose my father are none of your concern, and if you want to walk away from the biggest story of your career, I won't stop you. I don't blame you for being afraid, Adrianna."

"I'm not afraid," she bites back. "I just don't trust you."

"I can take you home right now." I let my fingers trail briefly along her jaw, tilting her face to look at me. "But don't let me be the reason you walk away from something that actually matters."

Her gaze flicks to mine. I see the war in her eyes, but I already know how it ends.

She's not built to run.

"I'll help," she says quietly. "But only on my terms. And I'm doing this for Eva, not for you."

"Understood."

She starts to brush past me, but I'm not letting her go that easily. "Adrianna." I catch her hand, pulling her gently back. She spins toward me, flattening against my chest. Her eyes flick up to mine, wide and questioning, but I don't let go.

"You have my word," I say, "that I'll do whatever it takes to keep you safe. No harm will come to you because of this story." Her pulse races beneath my fingers. I feel it as much as I see it in the rise of her chest, the sharp hitch of her breath. "But Adrianna?" I lean in just enough to make sure she hears me, lowering my voice. "Don't ever question my capabilities again."

She swallows hard, then slips her hand from mine and turns without a word, disappearing back into the cabin. I don't follow right away as the guilt of what she's about to be put through settles in my chest. As quickly as it appears, I force it back down.

Inside, she's already back in reporter mode. "I need evidence," she says. "Something concrete to corroborate your story."

Gabe pulls a thick folder from the table and slides it across. Blueprints. Photos. Schedules. It's all there. She flips through the pages in silence, her brows furrowing the further she goes.

Finally, she stops at the photo of Evangeline's home floorplan. "You're aware this evidence incriminates you, right?" she asks, glancing at Gabe. "If this goes public, there's no walking away."

"I know," he says.

Evangeline pales. "Wait. We're not trying to implicate Gabe. This is about stopping Redwood."

Gabe and I exchange a look, subtle but unmistakable. Evangeline catches it. Her gaze darts to Gabe, and before he can say a word, she grabs his hand, gripping it tight. "I'm not doing this if it means putting you at risk," she says, panic already creeping into her voice. "I'd rather run forever than see you dragged into this."

Gabe's expression shifts, softening as he reaches up to cup her face, his thumb brushing her cheek. "We'll figure it out," he says quietly.

Adrianna doesn't say anything as she continues to flick through the evidence. She lifts one of the photos—Gabe's wound—angling it toward the light. Her voice is calm, but there's tension beneath it. "Did you get this treated at the hospital?"

"No," Gabe says, his fingers still wrapped around Evangeline's. "It was too risky. My brother took care of it."

She exhales. "I can't use any of this. It's all just speculation without evidence. My studio's already wary after our last lawsuit. They won't green light this as it stands."

"Tell me what you need," I say. "I'll get it."

"Documents. Audio. Video. Everything verified and clean," she says, glancing pointedly at me. "Nothing stolen or obtained through coercion."

The corner of my mouth twitches. "It might take some time, but I'll find something."

"You'll probably need a cover in case you're caught spending time together," Gabe says, looking between us. "Redwood is paranoid. The second he sees Reed with a journalist, he'll be following your every move. We can't afford for him to find out what we're doing before the story's airtight."

"Tell him you're my bodyguard," Adrianna says, her voice even. "You already promised to protect me." She meets my eyes, her expression challenging, like she's daring me to walk it back.

My jaw tightens. I'm not used to being questioned, let alone challenged. But Adrianna knows how to push my buttons, and if the defiant glint in her eye is anything to go by, she enjoys it.

"And I will," I say. "But my protection would be unofficial. My father's well aware I've stepped back from the protection side of the company. If I suddenly take you on as a client, he'll start asking questions. He's been trying to rope me back in for months." I pause, letting the silence stretch just long enough before raising an eyebrow. A slow flicker of satisfaction twists in my gut at the thought of punishing her for challenging me. "If I tell him you're my girlfriend, however."

She looks like she might murder me. "Absolutely not."

"It makes sense," Gabe says. "Explains why you're together and gives Reed a reason to invite you to his father's events."

"I'm not pretending to be his latest conquest," she says flatly. "Besides, his father knows I'm a reporter. He won't want me anywhere near him whether I'm Reed's girlfriend or not."

"Knowing you're a journalist, he won't want you out of his sight," I say. "He's hosting a family barbecue at the weekend. It will be the perfect opportunity to introduce you."

She says nothing. Instead, she looks at Evangeline, whose shoulders slump under the weight of it all. The resolve in Adrianna's eyes hardens. She closes her notebook with a snap. "We'll discuss your idea later. For now, I want to hear everything about what happened. From the beginning."

She sets the tape recorder on the table, and for the next hour, she listens without interruption, her pen moving steadily, occasionally pushing up her sleeve or chewing the end in concentration. And somewhere in the middle of it all, I feel it a quiet sense of admiration.

By the time we finish, it's late enough that Evangeline insists we stay the night. She leads us upstairs to the cramped guest room, where Adrianna walks in first, eyes sweeping over the double bed and rollaway cot.

"I'm taking the bed," she says, crawling in and yanking the covers up to her chin like a stubborn child.

The corner of my mouth lifts involuntarily at her poor attempt to establish some authority over me. I'd have given it to her anyway.

"I'll see you guys in the morning," Eva says at the door, a twinkle in her eye. "Try not to kill each other in the mean time."

The door shuts, and I roll up my sleeves and lie on the cot. A spring stabs me in the ribs. I curse under my breath. Neither of us says anything, and I begin to think she's fallen asleep when suddenly, I hear a sigh.

"If we're really doing this, I'm in control," she says quietly. "I decide the rules, and I decide how far we take this fake relationship. I won't do anything I'm not comfortable with."

"Fine," I say, leaning back and lacing my hands behind my head. "All that matters is convincing my father this is real." I let the words sink in before adding, "That means I'll have to treat you the way I would anyone I'm genuinely interested in. In return, you'll need to act like you like me."

"I don't like you," she says.

I smirk faintly. "That's why I said act, Adrianna."

I hear her breath, soft and fluttery. The guilt continues to gnaw at me. It's selfish to involve her in my plot for revenge, but selfishness is in my blood. It's what I've been taught and what I've always been. Unlovable. Broken.

Just like him.

Restless, I shift onto my side, eyes tracing the cracks in the wall. I try not to think about her lying just a few feet away, her scent still clinging to the air like a distraction I can't shake.

"Goodnight, Adrianna," I murmur.

She mutters something under her breath, probably a curse, and I catch myself smiling before it fades. I need to be careful, I think. Because if I'm not?

This smart-mouthed reporter might just be the end of me.