LOGINAdrian hadn't slept, and neither had I. The share-transfer agreement was still spread across the dining table the next morning, surrounded by documents he had pulled from his briefcase in the small hours. He had barely spoken since returning from Vance Tower, and something in him had shifted. It wasn't fear. It was suspicion, the kind that settles behind a man's eyes and refuses to leave. "I keep thinking about my father," he finally said, and I looked up from my untouched coffee. "What about him?" "He could have asked me to step aside without creating all of this." I frowned. "Maybe he wants control." "He does." Adrian lifted one of the pages and studied it. "But I don't think that's the whole reason. Robert has always wanted control. That's nothing new." He set the paper down. "This feels different."Grace's warning surfaced in my mind again. "What do you think he's protecting?" I asked. Adrian looked at me for a long moment. "I don't know." He stood and pushed his chair in with car
Adrian's phone started ringing before we had even reached the penthouse, and he pulled it from his pocket with the same tired reflex of a man who had stopped expecting good news from it. He glanced at the screen, and I watched his expression harden before he said a word. "Robert." I touched his sleeve. "Don't answer if you don't want to." "I have to," he said, and he accepted the call with a single clipped word. "What?" His father's voice came through loud enough that I could hear the anger from where I stood, though not the words. Adrian said nothing for several long seconds, and his jaw tightened until a muscle jumped beneath his skin. "I'll be there," he said at last, and he ended the call."What happened?" I asked. "Board meeting." "Again?" He nodded. "Robert wants me at Vance Tower." The doctor's warning rose in my mind, every instruction repeated so carefully that I could still hear it, and I stepped in front of him before he could reach for his keys. "No. You just got home from
The hospital doors opened before we had fully stopped walking. Adrian was beside me immediately. "Easy," he said. "I've got you.""I don't need to be carried.""I know."His hand remained at my back anyway. My heart was pounding so hard that I could barely hear anything else. Every sound around me felt too loud—the wheels of the hospital beds, the voices at the reception desk, the footsteps rushing across the polished floor.Then a nurse appeared. "Ms. Bennet?"I nodded. "I'm here.""Dr. Harris is waiting for you."Adrian started to follow. The nurse looked at him. "Family only.""He's coming with me."There was no hesitation in my voice. The nurse glanced between us before nodding. "All right."We followed her down the corridor. My fingers were cold. Adrian noticed. He took my hand. "Look at me."I did. "Whatever they found, we'll deal with it together."I wanted to believe him. I really did. But my mind kept returning to the phone call. A result from your routine scan. What could be
By the time we reached the penthouse, my name was already everywhere. Maya had sent me the first screenshot before we even made it through the elevator doors. VANCE CEO'S SECRET BABY SCANDAL. My stomach turned. I opened another message. ADRIAN VANCE HIDES PREGNANT WOMAN FROM PUBLIC. Another. LIAM MERCER CLAIMS HE IS THE FATHER OF CHLOE BENNET'S UNBORN CHILD. I stared at the screen until the words blurred."This is insane."Adrian stood beside me, his phone pressed against his ear. "Get every article taken down that contains the false claims," he ordered. "And find out who supplied the reporters with the information."He listened for a few seconds. "No. Don't contact Liam."His eyes met mine. "Not yet."He ended the call. I dropped onto the sofa. "They know."Adrian sat beside me. "They know you're pregnant.""Everyone knows.""I'll protect you."I gave him a bitter laugh. "How?"He frowned. "By making sure this doesn't get worse.""It already got worse."I held up my phone. "My pregna
The first thing I noticed when we arrived at the charity gala was the cameras. They were everywhere. Flashing lights followed Adrian and me from the moment we stepped out of the car. Reporters crowded behind the barriers, calling his name, asking about Vance Corp, the board scandal, and the rumors that had been circulating for days.Adrian kept one hand firmly around mine. "Don't answer anything," he murmured."I wasn't planning to."His thumb brushed against my knuckles. "Stay close to me."I nodded. For the first time in days, I almost believed we might get through one evening without another disaster. Then I saw Liam.He stood near the entrance with a glass in his hand, surrounded by reporters. My stomach dropped. "Adrian."He followed my gaze. His expression changed immediately. "Liam."Liam looked toward us. For a second, our eyes met. Then his face transformed. The anger disappeared. The bitterness vanished. He lowered his head and gave the reporters a sad smile. It was almost c
Adrian's question stayed between us. "Why have you been calling your aunt?"I stared at him, my phone still in his hand. For a moment, I thought about lying again. Then I remembered Grace's face. The fear in her eyes. The way her voice had broken when she told me my father died because of a Vance. I couldn't keep it from Adrian anymore."Because she knows something."Adrian's expression tightened. "About what?""My father."He slowly lowered my phone. "What about your father?"I took a breath. "I went to see Grace because of Meridian."That got his attention. "What did she say?""She told me to stay away from it.""Why?""She wouldn't explain."Adrian stepped closer. "Chloe, what happened at that house?"I looked down. "I asked her about you."His face changed. "About me?""About your family."Silence. I could see the questions forming in his eyes. I forced myself to continue. "When I said your name, she went pale."Adrian didn't move. "Which name?""Vance."His jaw tightened. "What d







