Page 28 of The Boss's Hideaway Baby

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I reply. “I guess we’re not the most skilled cleaners, are we?”

“Speak for yourself,” he teases, attempting to stand up and slipping once more. “Okay, maybe you’re right.”

We eventually manage to clean the floor, our laughter echoing through the cabin as we stumble and fumble our way through the task. And for a little while at least, Nathan’s worries about his business and the danger that brought us here seem to fade away, replaced by a sense of normalcy neither of us could have anticipated.

We finish the rest of the cabin, and by sunset the place nearly sparkles. With an orange glow coming through the windows, Nathan’s phone buzzes loudly on the table, shattering our little bubble of peace. He hesitates for a moment before grabbing the phone.

“Hello?” he answers, his voice tense.

My heart races as I wonder what this call might mean for us. I pick at a loose thread on the couch, trying to focus on anything other than the conversation happening just a few feet away.

“Okay… Yes, I understand.” His face grows more serious with each passing second. “What do we need to do?”

He listens intently, nodding occasionally, and I find myself holding my breath as I wait for him to explain what’s going on.

“All right. Thank you. Keep me updated.” Nathan finally ends the call. He sits down on the couch next to me, his expression a mixture of frustration and concern.

“Is everything okay?” I ask tentatively, unable to contain my curiosity any longer.

“Sort of,” he replies, rubbing his forehead. “My security team says some of my competitors have banded together to take me down. They’re the ones who hired the men to kidnap me. And they weren’t planning on a ransom… They want to kill me.”

I gasp. “That’s awful… but I’m not surprised.”

“Neither am I.”

He and I both know how cutthroat this business is, and even though we’re shocked at others wanting to murder him, it does make sense. It also makes all of this even more serious.

A shiver runs through me, and suddenly I’m acutely aware of every creak the cabin makes.

Nathan sighs. “They’re still gathering information before they can present a case, so we’re stuck here for a while longer.”

While the thought of Nathan’s enemies working together sends a chill down my spine, I can’t help but feel a secret thrill at the prospect of spending more time in this cabin with him. Not that I would ever admit it to him, of course.

“They suggested we get rid of our cellphones for now,” he continues, his grip tightening around the device in his hand. “We can’t risk being tracked.”

“Are you sure that’s necessary?” I ask, even though I know it’s for the best. It’s obvious how hard this is for him, and I feel a pang of sympathy as he reluctantly powers off his phone.

“Better safe than sorry,” he mutters, tossing the now useless device onto the coffee table.

“Here,” I say, handing him my own phone. “We can throw them in the ocean or something. Give them a hero’s send-off. And we can use the phone at the grocery store if we need to.”

The corners of his mouth twitch into a small smile, and I know that, despite the danger we’re in, there’s a part of him that appreciates my attempt at humor.

“Was that man I met at the gala one of them?” I ask. “Jack Finn, right?”

Nathan’s eyes narrow, and it’s all the answer I need. “‘Yep.”

I wrap my arms around myself, remembering the way that man had looked at me — like I belonged to him. It makes me furious that he would consider killing Nathan over something as petty as business. What kind of human would resort to such a thing?

“He’s been champing at the bit for a long time,” Nathan says. “Trying to take what’s mine. It started when we worked together years ago, and it hasn’t stopped since.”

“And he wants to kill you to make money,” I breathe.

He rubs the back of his head. “That’s the world, I guess.” Nathan sighs, running a hand through his hair. “Money makes people do crazy things. All you can do about it is be smart, and be careful.”

I don’t want to be that careful, though. A life lived constantly looking over my shoulder doesn’t sound worthwhile to me.

“Come on.” I stand up and pull Nathan to his feet. “Let’s go make sure our phones are truly off-grid.”

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