His laugh was low and humorless. “Is that what you think?”
I looked up at him.
“No,” I said.
That was the problem.
Because if this had all been manipulation—if the kiss in Monaco had been calculated, if the way he looked at me was strategic—I could hate him cleanly.
But it wasn’t.
It was messy.
Real.
Dangerous.
“You should hate me,” he said suddenly.
“Don’t tell me how to feel.”
“You should,” he repeated, voice tightening. “Because if I had to choose again—between your father’s empire and your safety—I’d ruin him every time.”
My chest constricted.
“That’s not romantic,” I said.
“It’s not supposed to be.”
Silence stretched.
Then—
A buzz.
Sharp. Intrusive.
Liam’s phone vibrated on the glass coffee table.
He glanced at the screen.
His expression changed.
“What?” I demanded.
“It’s nothing.”
“Liam.”
He hesitated a fraction too long.
I stood and crossed the room, snatching the phone before he could stop me.
A notification glowed on the screen.
Unknown Sender.
Attachment: Photo.
My stomach dropped.
I opened it.
The world tilted.
It was me.
Not Monaco.
Not the balcony.
This was older.
College.
A party.
A red dress. Too much champagne. Liam wasn’t in the picture.
But the man who was—
My blood ran cold.
Ethan Caldwell.
Liam’s biggest rival.
His hand was on my waist.
And the angle of the shot made it look intimate.
Very intimate.
The message beneath the photo was simple.
Thought you’d like a reminder of what’s yours. —E
My hands shook.
“How long?” I asked faintly.
“It just came in,” Liam said tightly.
“You think this is a coincidence?”
“No.”
The storm outside felt distant compared to the one rising in my chest.
“He knows,” I whispered.
“Yes.”
“How?”
Liam’s jaw hardened. “There’s a leak.”
“In your company?”
“Or yours.”
My pulse raced.
My father’s arrest. The merger war. The leaked photos. Now this.
It wasn’t over.
It was escalating.
“Ethan wants you unstable,” Liam said. “He wants you questioning me.”
“He doesn’t have to try very hard,” I shot back.
Pain flickered across his face—but it was gone in an instant.
“You think I’m your weakness,” I said slowly.
“No,” he replied. “He thinks you’re mine.”
The weight of that truth settled between us.
“And are you?” I asked.
His gaze locked onto mine.
“Yes.”
No hesitation.
No deflection.
Just truth.
My heart stumbled.
“That’s terrifying,” I whispered.
“I know.”
The admission was raw.
For the first time since I’d met him, Liam looked almost… exposed.
Not the ruthless CEO.
Not the strategic predator.
Just a man standing in the wreckage of his choices.
“Ethan will use that,” I said.
“He can try.”
“And if he leaks this photo?”
“Let him.”
I blinked. “What?”
“I don’t care about optics,” Liam said. “I care about you.”
“You say that like it’s simple.”
“It is.”
“It’s not!” I snapped. “You went to war for me without telling me. You destroyed my father. And now your rival is circling like a shark because he knows I matter.”
“Yes.”
“Do you hear yourself?”
He stepped closer again.
“If loving you is a liability,” he said quietly, “then I’ll accept the loss.”
The words wrapped around my throat.
“You don’t get to say things like that,” I breathed.
“Why?”
“Because it makes it impossible to leave.”
The confession slipped out before I could stop it.
His eyes darkened.
“Is that what you want?” he asked softly. “To leave?”
I didn’t answer.
Because I didn’t know.
All I knew was that my world was burning.
And the only person standing in the flames with me was the man who lit the match.
“You’re not the only one who can protect,” I said finally. “If Ethan wants a war, we don’t just react. We strike first.”
A slow, dangerous smile curved his lips.
“That’s my girl.”
“Don’t,” I warned, even as heat flared in my chest.
“What?”
“Claim me like that.”
His gaze dropped to my mouth.
“Then don’t stand so close.”
The air thickened.
The storm outside raged.
And somewhere between betrayal and devotion, between ruin and desire, I realized something terrifying.
This wasn’t the end of the war.
It was the beginning.
And this time—
I wasn’t the pawn.
I was the weapon.