Page 37 of Falling for the Grump Billionaire

His hands settle on his hips, his voice dropping to a low, deliberate tone. “You think running away is going to make you safer? It won’t. Separating will make us easier targets. They want us isolated and afraid, Eva. Don’t give them what they want.”

I cross my arms, refusing to be swayed by his logic—or the frustrating certainty in his voice. “You don’t get it. These people aren’t just after you anymore. They’re after me too. What if they come for you because of me? What if—”

He steps closer, his gaze locking onto mine, his voice low and steady. “Then I’ll handle it. Like I always do.”

I hate how his words ease some of the tension in my chest. I hate the certainty in his tone, the unwavering confidence. “You can’t control everything, Dominic. You’re not invincible, no matter how much you act like you are.”

“And you’re not disposable,” he shoots back, his voice sharp. “So stop acting like running will fix this.”

The room falls into a tense silence, the air between us crackling with unspoken words. I want to yell at him, to push him away and pull him closer all at once. Instead, I fold my arms tighterand whisper, “Why are you doing this? Why do you care so much?”

His jaw works, and for a moment, I think he won’t answer. But then his voice softens. “Because I know what it’s like to feel hunted. And I’ll be damned if I let them win by taking you out of this fight.”

The sincerity in his tone catches me off guard, and I hate how much it affects me. I sink onto the edge of the couch, my resolve wavering. “I don’t know if I can do this, Dominic.”

He sits beside me, close enough that our knees touch. His presence feels like a shield, steady and unyielding. “You can. We’ll do it together.”

After a few moments of silence, we both pull out our laptops. The hacker’s message looms over us like a storm cloud, demanding answers.

“We need to trace the origin,” Dominic says, his fingers flying over the keyboard. “Even if they’ve covered their tracks, there’s always a trail.”

I glance at him, surprised by the ease with which he navigates the digital maze. “You’re not bad at this for a billionaire.”

He smirks, though it doesn’t reach his eyes. “I wasn’t always a billionaire.”

The words hang in the air, but I don’t press. Instead, I focus on the message. Years of investigative journalism have taught mehow to dig beneath the surface, and if there’s one thing I know, it’s that nothing is ever truly erased online.

After what feels like an eternity, I lean forward, my heart racing. “Got something.”

Dominic slides his chair closer, his blue eyes scanning the screen. “An offshore server?”

I nod, pointing to the IP address I’ve traced. “It’s linked to a shell company based in the Cayman Islands. But look at this—it’s been accessed recently from a location in Chicago.”

His brows knit together. “Chicago? That’s too close to be a coincidence.”

“It gets better,” I say, pulling up another tab. “The shell company is connected to a tech firm that went under five years ago—one that used to be a direct competitor to Kane Enterprises.”

Dominic’s jaw tightens. “Blackwell Industries.”

“You know them?”

“More than I’d like to,” he mutters, leaning back in his chair. “Jeremy Blackwell, the CEO, had a personal vendetta against me. When his company collapsed, he blamed me for it. But he’s been out of the picture for years. Disgraced, bankrupt. If he’s involved in this…”

“Then he’s had plenty of time to nurse a grudge,” I finish for him.

Dominic nods, his expression grim. “We need to dig deeper. If Blackwell is behind this, we’ll need proof before we make a move.”

As we comb through the data, the hours tick by, but the tension never fades. Dominic works with a quiet intensity that I can’t help but admire, and despite the weight of everything, I feel a strange sense of camaraderie between us.

“You’re good at this,” he says suddenly, breaking the silence.

I glance at him, surprised. “What?”

“Your instincts,” he clarifies. “You see connections most people would miss. That lead on Blackwell—most of my team wouldn’t have found that.”

The unexpected praise catches me off guard, and I find myself smiling despite the circumstances. “Well, don’t get used to it. I’m not signing up for a job at Kane Enterprises.”

His lips twitch into a faint smile, but the moment is fleeting. His expression turns serious again, and he leans closer. “I mean it, Eva. Your intuition—it’s the missing piece I didn’t know I needed. But it also makes you a target.”

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