Page 8 of Quarterback Keeper

“The lock is broken.”

“Oh.” Air whooshed from my lungs. “Yeah, I’m okay. You’re the only one who’s come on board since I started staying here.”

“How long has that been?”

“Just under two weeks.”

He took it in stride, and I was able to breathe easy.

“You might need to move in with me when we’re engaged. It depends on how things pan out with my dad being my dad.”

“What does that even mean?”

“The less time you spend alone with him, the better.”

Yeah, we would have to circle back around to that eventually. “If I have to move into your place, I’m not cooking for you. Or cleaning up after you. Or doing your laundry.”

“I’m capable of doing all that myself. As for cleaning, I have a housekeeper who comes in once a week.”

“Just shows that I was right with my first assessment.”

He locked gazes with me, and I felt the heat like the three feet between us didn’t exist. I leaned back an inch. Didn’t matter. I planned to keep him on his toes and physically as far away from me as possible.

“Spoiled rich kid.”

The air felt charged, but he didn’t rise to my bait. “My lawyer will draw up the contract with the terms we’ve agreed to here. There’ll be a prenup and a payout guarantee once the divorce is final.”

“And how much will that be?”

“Fifty grand.”

That could get me out of the country and living somewhere Dayton’s reach didn’t extend. “If you’re using a lawyer, I’m guessing he’s from dear old Dad. How do you expect to keep our arrangement a secret?”

“My lawyer isn’t associated with my dad. No one will ever know, so long as you do your part, sign the NDA, and don’t speak about our agreement.”

I nodded, exhaustion washing over me despite the short nap I’d taken earlier. It was the adrenaline from getting caught. It’d drained what little energy I’d managed to recoup. “Is there anything else?”

“If there is, we’ll amend the original contract. Add your signature on this one to keep the details between us. My lawyer will have everything prepared and ready to sign by tomorrow night. I’ll come find you when I have it.”

My heart thudded loudly in my ears, a fast-paced clock ticking down to a decision I couldn’t make lightly. If I went forward with our deal, I would be locked in. I pinched the pen tightly between my fingers, hesitating as I weighed my options. I didn’t have many, and what he proposed wasn’t to be taken lightly.

I dropped the pen like it was hot. “I need more time to think about this.”

Several seconds passed before he responded, adding to the frantic pounding of my pulse.

“Okay, I get it. Sleep on it.” He tapped the papers then stood and moved toward the door leading to the upper deck. “I’ll be back at six in the morning. I’ll need your decision then.”

The evening crawled as I waffled over what I should do—sign the document or run. The last thing I wanted was to put anyone at risk. Because if my asshole ex, Dayton, found out anyone was helping me, coming between him and who hethought belonged to him, there would be hell to pay—for all parties involved.

I flopped onto my stomach, glad the boat was docked once again. It was truly the safest place for me to stay. Dayton wouldn’t go anywhere near water—his one true kryptonite, since he couldn’t swim. That alone had almost been reason enough for me to sign Kylian’s terms.

Throughout the night and into the early-morning hours, I stalked Dayton online to ensure he wasn’t in pursuit. I liked knowing he was back where he belonged, which was far from me.

It wasn’t until three in the morning that I came across the article about a huge gala and noticed one photograph in particular. My hands shook as I held my phone, studying Dayton’s arm around Cynthia—the woman who used to chase him shamelessly whenever we ran into her at the society events like the one they were at.

Could he have moved on?

It took reading the article three times to find the small notice about Cynthia Thompson attending a high-society gala with my ex. We had been together for a year, and for the past six months, I’d been on the run.Could it finally be over?

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