Page 113 of Dark Billionaire Stalker
I was going to tell you. I've been trying to tell you. But every time I looked at you, the words died in my throat.
None of the versions sound right. None of them capture the impossible truth—that the first man I ever killed was the father of the woman I've become obsessed with. That fate, or chance, or some cosmic joke has bound us together through blood and death in ways neither of us could have imagined.
How do you explain something like that? How do you make someone understand that the violence you did was necessary, justified, that the world is better for the life you took?
You don't. You just tell the truth and hope it doesn't destroy everything.
Today. I'll tell her today. No more delays, no more excuses, no more hiding behind the cowardice I've always despised in others.
I'm preparing to leave the office when Hutton calls.
"Sir. We have a problem."
The words send ice through my veins. "What kind of problem?"
"Zachary Mercer was spotted near the flower district again yesterday. Same time frame as Ms. Rivers' supply run."
I grip the phone tighter. "And?"
"And our surveillance lost her for approximately two hours. She entered Dawson Floral Supply at 1:15 PM. We had a man watching the front entrance. She didn't exit until 3:30 PM."
"So she was inside the warehouse for two hours. That's not unusual."
"Except she wasn't inside the warehouse, sir." Hutton's voice is carefully neutral—the tone he uses when delivering news he knows I won't want to hear. "We pulled security footage from the building. She entered through the front, walked straight through to the loading dock, and exited through the back. She was gone within five minutes of arriving."
The room seems to tilt. I brace myself against the desk, fighting for equilibrium.
"Where did she go?"
"We're still working on that. She took a taxi—we're trying to trace the route. But sir, given Mercer's presence in the area..."
He doesn't need to finish the sentence. I can complete it myself.
She went to meet Zach. She's been sneaking around behind my back, lying to my face, meeting with the man who wants to destroy me.
She knows. She must know. Why else would she agree to meet him? Why else would she come back and lie in my bed, let me touch her, pretend everything was normal when she knew—
Whatever happens, remember that I never meant to hurt you.
My own words from two nights ago. I said them because I was planning to tell her the truth. She must have heard them as confirmation of what Zach had revealed.
She knows I killed her father. And she's still here.
Why? What is she planning?
"Sir?" Hutton's voice cuts through my spiraling thoughts. "Do you want us to increase surveillance? Restrict her movements?"
"No." The word comes out harsh, jagged. "No, don't do anything. I'll handle this myself."
"Are you certain? If she's been compromised—"
"I said I'll handle it."
I end the call and stand in the silence of my office, rage and fear warring for dominance.
She lied to me. She looked me in the eye and lied, the same way I've been lying to her. We've both been keeping secrets, both been hiding truths that could destroy us.
The only difference is that my secret was meant to protect her.
