Page 73 of Isabelle and the Beast

I pause. I have to be careful what I say to him, to avoid Adam getting into trouble for telling me the truth. I never found out if the contract meant he couldn’t speak about the incident publicly or if he wasn’t supposed to say anything at all.

“I’m doing the movie with Adam,” I finally say. “I’m not sure where you got the idea that you would be in it instead of him.”

“Adam Stone—” His name comes out like a growl, but Tristan stops himself and clears his throat, back to his cheerful tone. “Adam Stone is no longer their choice.”

“Not if I have anything to say about it,” I reply.

There’s silence for a couple of moments, and then he speaks again, his voice low and menacing. “Listen here. Adam Stone deserves nothing in this industry. Nothing! I’ve worked for everything I have, and no one can take that away from me.” He pauses. “Watch your back, Isabelle. You don’t want to get on my bad side.”

And then he hangs up.

My hands are shaking, my heart is racing, and I have to suppress the urge to shiver. Yeah, that was creepy. And not just the threat. I’m willing to take my chances with him. But theclear switch, the way he acted so sweet and charming and suddenly flipped it on its head—terrifying.

Poor Lily.

I can absolutely see how a woman would fall for his charms. How many women has he already done this to? There’s no way Lily was the first.

And there it is. My plan to save Adam is finally clear.

I take a steadying breath and dial Jen’s number on my phone.

“Isabelle?” Jen’s voice sounds through my speakers. “Where have you been? I haven’t heard from you in days!”

“Hey, girl. Yeah, I’m driving down the mountain now.”

“Everyone is buzzing about Adam and Tristan. You guys unleashed so much drama. Is Adam coming down, too?”

“No. He’s staying up at the castle. He’s…giving up.”

“Seriously? That doesn’t sound like Adam Stone.”

I huff a laugh. “You’d think so. But I think he’s tired of fighting. Tristan has hit him from every angle, and he doesn’t want to try anymore.” I straighten in my seat. “But I’m not giving up. I want to take Tristan down.”

“Seriously?Youwant to take Tristan Jackson down?” Jen laughs. “And how exactly do you plan to do that?”

“With your help.”

“What…what do you mean?”

I wish I could tell her everything. But I promised Adam I wouldn’t. “I need you to use your super tech skills to find a list of girls that Tristan has had contact with in the last five years. A lot of them might not be public. But if anyone can find out, you can.”

“Do I have your permission to use my illegal skills?”

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that.”

She pauses. “Wait. You’re serious about this?”

“Trust me, Jen. This is bigger than Adam and Tristan. If Ihave any idea what’s going on, we’re about to uncover a huge scandal with Tristan Jackson at the center. And in the process, we’re going to help a lot of women, too.”

Jen pauses, taking in my words, and I hope beyond hope that she will agree to help.

“Well, in that case, I’m in.”

Chapter

Thirty-Two

ADAM

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