Page 84 of Falling for the Grump Billionaire

“No,” I reply, my voice cold. “They’re warning us. And I’m done playing by their rules.”

Tomorrow, this ends. One way or another.

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The car ride back to the penthouse is suffused with silence, though it’s not empty. It’s the kind of silence that carries a thousand unspoken words, each one sharp enough to draw blood. Eva sits beside me, her arms crossed, staring out the window. The glow of the city lights flickers across her face, but her expression is unreadable.

“You’re quiet,” I say finally, my voice cutting through the heavy stillness.

Her head turns slightly, her green eyes locking onto mine. “What am I supposed to say, Dominic? That this isn’t terrifying? That we’re not walking into something we can’t fully predict?”

I clench the steering wheel tighter, my jaw tightening. “You could say that you trust me.”

“I do,” she says, her tone softer now. “But trust doesn’t erase the risk. It doesn’t change the fact that Reyes and Conrad are playing a game we’re only half a step ahead of.”

Her words are true, and they sting because of it. “Then tell me what you’d have us do, Eva. Walk away? Let them destroy everything?”

Her gaze sharpens, and she leans forward slightly. “You know I’m not saying that. I’m saying we need to be smart. Every time we react instead of plan, we’re giving them the upper hand.”

The car pulls into the underground garage, and I kill the engine, turning to face her fully. “And you think I don’t know that? You think I don’t see every crack they’ve forced open, every angle they’re exploiting?”

Her expression softens slightly, and she reaches out, her hand brushing mine. “I know you do, Dominic. But we can’t let them back us into a corner. We need to control the narrative, not just respond to theirs.”

The weight of her words settles over me, heavy but grounding. She’s not just voicing doubts—she’s forcing me to think beyond the rage, the need to retaliate. And she’s right. If we’re going to win this, we can’t play their game. We need to force them into ours.

The elevator ride up to the penthouse feels longer than usual, the hum of the machinery filling the silence between us. Adrian’s already waiting when we step inside, his laptop open on the dining table and a coffee cup resting precariously close to the edge.

“Updates?” I ask, shrugging off my coat and tossing it over the back of a chair.

Adrian looks up, his eyes sharp with focus. “We’ve confirmed the location for tomorrow’s meeting. Conrad is sticking to the script—we’ll have eyes on every angle of the hotel and an exit strategy ready if things go south.”

“And Reyes?” Eva asks, her voice steady despite the undercurrent of tension.

Adrian sighs, running a hand through his hair. “Still in the wind, but his network activity has been quiet. Too quiet. It’s like he’s intentionally staying out of sight, letting Conrad take the fall if this collapses.”

“That’s because he knows what’s coming,” I mutter, pacing the length of the room. “Reyes doesn’t need to get his hands dirty—he’s got Conrad to do that for him. But he’ll be watching. If this meeting goes wrong, he’ll vanish before we can pin anything on him.”

Eva leans against the counter, her arms crossed. “Then we make sure it doesn’t go wrong.”

Her calm determination is like a steadying force, and for a moment, the storm inside me quiets. I nod, turning to Adrian. “Double the security detail. I want eyes not just on the hotel, but on every potential escape route. If Reyes or Conrad tries to run, we catch them.”

“Already on it,” Adrian replies, typing furiously. “And there’s one more thing.” He looks up, his expression serious. “That message you received—it wasn’t just sent to you.”

Eva stiffens beside me. “What do you mean?”

Adrian spins the laptop around, showing us a screen filled with text logs. “The same message was sent to several members of your board, Dominic. A calculated move to create internal doubt. If they think Eva is a liability, it could undermine your position even further.”

The realization hits like a punch to the gut. Reyes isn’t just attacking from the outside—he’s planting seeds of distrust within my own circle. “Do we know how they got access to the board members’ contact information?”

Adrian shakes his head. “Not yet, but it’s likely tied to Conrad’s earlier leaks. He’s been feeding Reyes information for months—this is just another layer of his strategy.”

I exhale sharply, running a hand through my hair. “Then we counter it. Eva and I will meet with the board tomorrow, before the hotel meeting. We’ll get ahead of the narrative.”

Eva’s brows furrow. “And how do we do that without tipping off Reyes or Conrad?”

I glance at her, my resolve hardening. “We tell them the truth. Or at least enough of it to keep them on our side.”

The night stretches on as Adrian, Eva, and I plan every detail. By the time the first rays of dawn filter through the penthouse windows, the tension has settled into a quiet resolve. Eva sits across from me at the dining table, her laptop glowing faintly as she reviews the board’s profiles.

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