LOGINLaura's POVWhen Quinn said he was increasing my security, I hadn't expected him to literally double it.Four armed men.Four massive men who looked like they could break concrete with their bare hands.And they were instructed to escort and follow me everywhere I went, they only retired when I went to sleep and even then they lined themselves at the entrance of my door.And now...The movie set. I felt nervous that I was starting work again after the kidnap but I had to be professional, I had slowed the production of this movie too much anyway.I climbed out of the SUV and immediately felt dozens of eyes turn toward me.Wonderful.Exactly how I wanted to start my morning.Like a circus attraction.The security detail stepped out after me.Two in front.Two behind.A moving wall of muscle.I sighed."Do you really all have to walk this close?"One of them, a square-jawed guy named Collins, nodded."Mr. Cardiff's orders."Of course.I adjusted my bag and headed toward the studio.The w
Laura's POVI was safe.That was the first thought that entered my mind.I was actually safe.But my body didn't seem to understand that yet.My hands were still shaking.My breathing was still uneven.Every small sound made me tense.Every movement made me think I was back in that room.Back tied to that chair.Back wondering if anyone was ever going to find me.It was becoming a pattern.A horrible, terrifying pattern.Why was I always the one caught in situations like this?Why did danger keep finding me?First Hemsworth.Then the threats.Then the attack.Then this.It was like my life had turned into one never-ending nightmare.I was tired.So unbelievably tired.Quinn held me firmly as we drove back to the mansion.Not in the way he usually held me.Not like he was trying to remind me of the agreement.Not like I was some responsibility he had to manage.Just... firmly.Like he was making sure I was really there.That I wasn't going anywhere.Ryker drove silently, his eyes focus
Quinn's POVI was losing my mind.That was the only explanation.Because the more I thought about it, the more the guilt started eating away at me.We were so close.So damn close.And yet somehow, we were still behind.Maybe if we hadn't stopped at the station.Maybe if I hadn't wasted time standing in front of Hemsworth, letting my anger get the better of me.Maybe if I had just listened to Devon and driven straight here the moment we got the lead.Maybe Laura would already be safe.Maybe she would be sitting beside me right now.The thought made my hands tighten around the steering wheel.I was always prepared.Always thinking ten steps ahead.That was how I survived.That was how I built everything I had.I calculated every possibility.Every risk.Every outcome.So how did I miss this?How did I fail to protect her?"Mr. Cardiff."Thomas's voice cut through my thoughts.I glanced at him through the mirror.He looked tense.Focused."Stop the car."My eyebrows pulled together "Wha
Quinn's POVI was losing my mind.That was the only explanation.Because the more I thought about it, the more the guilt started eating away at me.We were so close.So damn close.And yet somehow, we were still behind.Maybe if we hadn't stopped at the station.Maybe if I hadn't wasted time standing in front of Hemsworth, letting my anger get the better of me.Maybe if I had just listened to Devon and driven straight here the moment we got the lead.Maybe Laura would already be safe.Maybe she would be sitting beside me right now.The thought made my hands tighten around the steering wheel.I was always prepared.Always thinking ten steps ahead.That was how I survived.That was how I built everything I had.I calculated every possibility.Every risk.Every outcome.So how did I miss this?How did I fail to protect her?"Mr. Cardiff."Thomas's voice cut through my thoughts.I glanced at him through the mirror.He looked tense.Focused."Stop the car."My eyebrows pulled together "Wha
Quinn's POVI was losing my mind.That was the only explanation.Because the more I thought about it, the more the guilt started eating away at me.We were so close.So damn close.And yet somehow, we were still behind.Maybe if we hadn't stopped at the station.Maybe if I hadn't wasted time standing in front of Hemsworth, letting my anger get the better of me.Maybe if I had just listened to Devon and driven straight here the moment we got the lead.Maybe Laura would already be safe.Maybe she would be sitting beside me right now.The thought made my hands tighten around the steering wheel.I was always prepared.Always thinking ten steps ahead.That was how I survived.That was how I built everything I had.I calculated every possibility.Every risk.Every outcome.So how did I miss this?How did I fail to protect her?"Mr. Cardiff."Thomas's voice cut through my thoughts.I glanced at him through the mirror.He looked tense.Focused."Stop the car."My eyebrows pulled together "Wha
Laura's POVIt didn't take long.The moment the call ended, everything moved quickly.Too quickly.Before I could even process the fact that I had actually spoken to Quinn, they were alreadydragging me out.Back into the cold night air into another vehicle.The sky was completely dark.No way for me to tell the time.But judging from how quiet everything was, I assumed it was still the early hours of themorning.The kind of hour where the entire world was asleep.Except me.Except the people who had taken me.They forced me into the car and shut the door behind me.The sound made my heart drop.Again.The engine started immediately.The tires screeched against the road.And then we were moving.Fast.I sat there, my hands shaking.My mind kept replaying the call.Had Quinn understood?Had he heard what I was actually trying to say?Or had I failed?I couldn't tell him where I was.Barry made sure of that.Every single word I said had been controlled.Care
Laura's POVI stood in the middle of my room, staring at my phone like it had personally betrayed me.Because honestly? It felt like it had.The call had ended minutes ago, but I was still frozen.The words replayed over and over again in my head.The agreement cannot be terminated until the t
Quinn's POVBy the time Laura finished wrapping up for the day, I was already waiting.I told myself it was because I needed to make sure she got home safely.Nothing more.That was the explanation I repeated in my head every time my eyes drifted towards her. Everytime I noticed the tiredness
Laura's POVThe next day rolled over quicker than I expected, and before I even realized what washappening, I was already back on set, standing under bright lights and pretending I wasn'tcarrying a storm inside my chest.I still hadn't replied to my dad's message.I had stared at those words
Quinn's POVI couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.Hemsworth's reaction kept replaying in my head over and over again. The anger, the confusion,the way he looked genuinely offended that I would accuse him of trying to hurt Laura.But that was the problem.I knew Hemsworth.I







