The hospital room was too white. Too clean. Like it was trying to scrub away what had just happened.
I sat beside Sienna's bed, her face pale, her arm stitched and bandaged. The rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor offered little comfort. She was stable now, but the fear clung to my spine like ice.
Jaxon stood near the window, his silhouette sharp against the night. His jacket was off, sleeves rolled up, tie loose. A storm brewed behind his eyes the same storm that had been crackling between us since the night we met.
"She was the target," I said quietly.
Jaxon turned, jaw clenched. "No. You were."
I swallowed hard, the weight of his words sinking in. "Then why go after her?"
"To hurt you. To rattle me." He crossed to me, lowering his voice. "This is bigger than you know, Ava. My world… it's not just business and billion-dollar deals. There are people who want to see me ruined."
My pulse thudded. "Then why bring me into it?"
His eyes darkened. "Because from the moment you walked into that damn boardroom, I couldn't stay away."
My heart jumped, traitorous and full. But I couldn't afford to get swept up now. "Jaxon, we need answers. Carter"
His name was a blade between us.
"He disappeared like a ghost," I whispered. "And the look on his face before he ran… He knew something. He's part of this."
"We'll find him," Jaxon promised. "But first, you're coming with me."
I blinked. "What?"
"You're not safe here. I'm taking you somewhere I can protect you."
I shook my head. "I can't just disappear"
"You already have."
His voice was steel and fire, and for a moment, I saw the man behind the tycoon the one who had seen too much, lost too much, and now refused to lose me.
Before I could answer, a knock echoed at the door. A man stepped in tall, severe, dressed in black. He looked like he belonged in a private security firm… or a spy movie.
"Mr. Cross," he said, nodding. "We have a problem."
Jaxon's expression turned to stone. "What kind?"
The man hesitated. "Your private files. The encrypted ones they've been accessed. Someone breached the system."
Jaxon cursed under his breath. "Where?"
"From inside your New York office. We're tracing the IP now, but whoever did it knew exactly what they were looking for."
He turned to me. "We're leaving. Now."
"But"
"You want answers? You'll get them. But you can't get them if you're dead."
And just like that, I was on my feet, adrenaline taking over.
Because whatever storm Jaxon had been hiding from me was no longer approaching.
It was already here.
The ride to Jaxon's safehouse was a blur of sleek black leather, tinted windows, and the hum of reinforced engines. A convoy trailed us, silent and watchful. I stared out into the city night, neon lights flashing past like warnings.
Beside me, Jaxon was steel, fists clenched, jaw locked, a thundercloud in an expensive suit.
I broke the silence. "What kind of files did they access?"
He didn't look at me. "Contracts. Personal data. Security codes. Everything that keeps my empire from burning to the ground."
My stomach knotted. "And Carter knew about them?"
"He had clearance," Jaxon muttered, bitterness lacing his voice. "I trusted him. He was with me from the beginning."
"Until he wasn't."
He turned to me now, his eyes blazing. "Don't you get it, Ava? This isn't just about business anymore. Someone's trying to dismantle me from the inside. And they're using you to do it."
I jerked back. "Me?"
"You. Sienna. Everyone I care about."
He didn't say love. Of course he didn't.
Still, that one word care was more than I expected.
The car slowed as we pulled through an iron gate that closed automatically behind us. Jaxon's "safehouse" looked more like a glass-and-stone fortress perched on the edge of the Hudson. Discreet. Imposing. Dead silent.
Inside, the lights flickered on with motion sensors. The place was minimalist cold, clean, guarded by shadows.
He led me into a room with floor-to-ceiling windows and a view of the river. "You'll stay here tonight. I'll have guards posted on every entrance."
I turned to him. "You're not staying?"
He hesitated. "I shouldn't."
"Because it's dangerous?" I challenged. "Or because it's… us?"
His eyes dropped to my lips, and for a moment, the space between us turned electric.
"I'm trying to protect you," he said, voice low. "Even from me."
My breath caught. "But I don't want protection from you."
Something cracked in his expression. He reached out, fingers brushing my jaw, tilting my face to his.
"I can't lose focus now," he murmured. "And you you make me forget every rule I've ever set."
His mouth hovered inches from mine, hot breath mingling with mine, eyes dark with restraint.
My voice was barely a whisper. "Then break your rules."
He pulled back like I'd burned him. "Not tonight."
And just like that, he turned and left the room, the soft click of the door locking behind him echoing louder than it should have.
I stared at the empty space he'd left behind, heart pounding. He wanted me. I knew it.
But something or someone was pulling the strings behind this chaos, and I had a sinking feeling we were playing right into their hands.
That's when I saw it.
A light blinking faintly beneath the window ledge.
A camera. Hidden. Active.
Someone was watching me.
And if they were watching me here… they'd been watching me everywhere.