Chapter 31

Eliora's POV

The sound of the shattered porcelain against the kitchen tiles seemed to echo through the entire villa. I stood frozen, the steam from the spilled herbal tea rising around my ankles, but I couldn't feel the heat. All I could feel was the icy blood rushing through my veins as I stared at the birth certificate on my phone screen.

Ezra Monroe Donovan. 

My secret. My soul. My only reason for breathing. And now, a weapon in the hands of a ghost.

I slowly knelt, picking up the jagged pieces of the cup with trembling hands. One sharp edge sliced into my thumb, a bead of crimson blood forming instantly, but the physical pain was a relief compared to the mental agony. I didn't call Zoey. I didn't call Elijah. If I told them, the secret would be real. It would be out of my control.

I cleaned the floor in a trance, my mind racing. I had to handle this alone. I had to find out who this person was before they destroyed Ezra’s life.

Just as I was throwing the broken shards into the bin, my phone vibrated again. I flinched, expecting another threat, but the name on the screen made my heart take a different kind of leap.

Caden.

I hesitated. It was nearly midnight. A normal person would ignore it. But I wasn't a normal person anymore; I was a woman drowning, and Caden felt like a life raft made of gold and mystery.

"Hello?" I whispered, my voice sounding raw.

"You sound like you're standing in the middle of a storm, Eliora," his voice rumbled. It was smooth, confident, and carried a hint of that playful arrogance that had caught me off guard earlier. "I hope I'm not interrupting a dream."

"I wasn't sleeping," I said, leaning against the cold marble counter. "What do you want, Caden?"

"The payback," he said, and I could practically hear the smirk in his voice. "I don't like to let my debts linger. Tomorrow night. Seven o'clock. I’ll pick you up at your office."

"Caden, I... my life is a bit complicated right now," I started, thinking of everything that has been happening lately.

"Life is always complicated, beautiful. That's why we have dinner. To forget the complications for a few hours." He paused, his tone softening just enough to make my chest ache. "You looked like you needed an ally today. Let me be that for a night."

An ally. A powerful stranger who didn't know my past, didn't know about Ezra, and wasn't trying to control my company. It was the most dangerous idea I’d ever had—and the most tempting.

"Seven o'clock," I agreed. "But don't come to the front. There are... eyes everywhere. Meet me at the side entrance near the parking garage."

"I like a woman who knows how to play it low-key," he chuckled. "See you then, Eliora."

---

The next day at the Monroe Group was a nightmare of paranoia. Every time Clara walked into my office with a file, I jumped. Every time a delivery person arrived at the front desk, I checked the security cameras. I spent half the morning looking over my shoulder, waiting for the birth certificate to appear on the evening news.

But it didn't. The stalker was silent, playing a waiting game, watching me squirm.

"Ms. Monroe? You've been staring at that same page for twenty minutes," Clara said softly, standing at the edge of my desk.

I blinked, looking down at a financial report that made no sense to me. "I'm just tired, Clara. Long night."

"You have the gala on Friday," she reminded me, her eyes full of the efficiency that made her the best assistant I’d ever had. "Mr. Elijah called three times to confirm the color of your gown. He wants to coordinate his tie."

"Tell him midnight blue," I said, rubbing my temples.

The thought of the gala made me nauseous. Acting as Elijah’s fiancé while Kian watched from the shadows, and now with a stalker in the mix. It was a recipe for a public execution.

As seven o'clock approached, I sent Clara home early. I went to the private restroom in my office, reapplied my lipstick and smoothing down the emerald green silk of my wrap dress. It was professional enough for work but had a neckline that suggested I was off the clock.

I looked at myself in the mirror. My eyes were bright with a mixture of fear and adrenaline. I looked like a woman with a secret.

I made my way down to the side entrance, the air in the parking garage smelling of damp concrete and exhaust. Exactly at seven, the low, powerful rumble of a vintage engine echoed through the space.

The black muscle car pulled up, sleek and predatory. Caden stepped out, and for a moment, I forgot how to breathe. He had swapped his dark suit for a pair of black trousers and a charcoal-colored button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, exposing tanned, muscular forearms.

He looked... devastating.

"You're on time," he said, leaning against the door of the car. His amber eyes swept over me, lingering on the curve of my waist before meeting my gaze. "And you look like you're ready to run away from something."

"Maybe I am," I said, trying to keep my voice steady as I walked toward him.

He opened the door for me, his hand brushing against my lower back as I slid into the leather seat. The touch was brief, but it sent a jolt of electricity through me that made my skin tingle.

As he drove, the city lights blurred past the windows. Caden didn't ask about my company or my fiancé.

It's either he doesn't know or he doesn't care.

He talked about the architecture of the city, about a trip he took to the Mediterranean, about things that had nothing to do with the suffocating world of the Monroe Group.

We pulled up to a hidden gem of a restaurant—a rooftop spot overlooking the river that required a private key to enter. It was quiet, luxurious, and completely secluded.

"How did you find this place?" I asked as we sat at a corner table, the city spread out beneath us like a carpet of diamonds.

"I have a talent for finding the things that are hidden," Caden said, pouring me a glass of deep red wine. He leaned forward, the candlelight catching the gold in his eyes. "Like you, Eliora. You're hiding so much behind that CEO persona."

My heart skipped a beat but offered a smile, "I don't know what you mean."

"I mean that you're sitting here with me, but your mind is somewhere else. Is something or someone bothering you?" He reached across the table, his fingers grazing the back of my hand. "You know you can tell me anything.”

I pulled my hand back slightly, the thought of Kian and Elijah bringing the reality of my life crashing back. "It's complicated, Caden. I told you that."

"Then let me simplify it," he said, his voice dropping into a low, dangerous register that reminded me of a predator. "I'm not here for your company. I'm not here for your money. I'm here because I saw a beautiful woman who looked like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders, and I wanted to see if I could make her laugh."

For a moment, I wanted to tell him everything. I wanted to tell this mysterious stranger about the birth certificate, about Ezra, and about the man who was watching me from the shadows. Maybe Caden was the ally I needed. Maybe his power was the shield I had been searching for.

But then I remembered the photo of me outside Kian's penthouse. The stalker was watching.

I looked at Caden, a small, genuine smile finally breaking through my mask. "You're very good at this, aren't you? The charm. The mystery. Getting words out of someone."

"It's not a mystery if you just ask the right questions," he said, raising his glass to mine. "But tonight, no questions. Just the view, the wine, and the payback."

As we talked and laughed, I felt a weight lifting off my chest. For two hours, I wasn't the CEO. I wasn't a mother in hiding. I was just a woman on a date with a man who made me feel alive.

But as the night came to an end and Caden walked me back to my car in the quiet garage, the darkness returned.

He stopped me near the driver's side door, his presence large and overwhelming in the confined space. He leaned in, his face inches from mine. I could smell the sandalwood of his cologne and the faint scent of the wine.

"One more thing, Eliora," he whispered.

"Yes?"

"I don't like to share. So whatever game you're playing with those other men... make sure you're careful. I'd hate to see something so beautiful get caught in the crossfire."

“So you have any idea I'm engaged?” I said, raising my finger to his face.

His smirk widened, “I know that the famous Eliora Monroe is engaged to the philanthropist Elijah Hayes, 

He leaned in closer, “But I just don't care.” 

He didn't kiss me. He just tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear, his fingers lingering on my skin, before he turned and walked back to his car.

I stood there, my heart racing, watching his taillights disappear. Caden wasn't just a distraction. He was another player on the board, one who was just as possessive as Kian, but far more mysterious.

I climbed into my car, my mind buzzing. As I pulled out of the garage, my phone chimed in the cup holder.

I looked down, my breath hitching.

It was a text from the anonymous number.

"That was a lovely dinner, Eliora. Caden looks like he has very deep pockets. I wonder if he'd be willing to pay the price for your silence? Or should I stick to my original plan and call Kian tomorrow morning?"

The photo attached was of me and Caden on the rooftop, laughing.

I gripped the steering wheel so hard my knuckles turned white. They were everywhere. They were in the shadows of the restaurant, in the corners of the garage.

I wasn't just caught in a crossfire. I was the target.

And as I drove toward the secret villa to check on Ezra, I realized that my payback date might have just handed the stalker the very rope they needed to hang me.