Page 92 of Cold Carnage

"What is it?" I asked, my voice sounding rougher than I'd intended.

"I have to go to the office," she said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Gideon wants to see me."

"Now?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer.

She nodded. "Yeah, now."

I wanted to argue, to tell her that it could wait or that she didn't need to go alone. But I knew better. This was her job—her responsibility—and she'd handle it just like she handled everything else: with grace and strength.

"All right," I said finally, exhaling slowly.

She headed into her bedroom without a word, probably to get dressed.

And I…

I hoped I hadn't fucked everything up for her.

Chapter 27

Paige

Igripped the steering wheel, knuckles white, as the city lights blurred into streaks. Everything was ruined. Every damn thing. My thoughts kept looping back to Ryker, his cold eyes, his dismissive tone. Why wasn’t I angrier at him?

The truth gnawed at me. I wasn’t mad at him; I was furious with myself. I should have seen it coming. His icy demeanor, the anger masked under a facade of indifference—it was a ticking time bomb, and I’d been too wrapped up in proving myself to defuse it.

My phone rang, breaking through the storm in my head. Mom’s name flashed on the screen. Great. Another thing to deal with.

I sighed, my breath fogging up in the chill of the car’s interior. “Might as well get this over with,” I muttered and pressed the answer button.

“Hi, Mom.”

“Paige, honey, I’ve seen the photos. What were you thinking?” My mother’s voice pierced through the static of my thoughts, dragging me back to reality.

“Photos? What photos, Mom?”

“The ones of you and Kane! Ryker Kane. Brendan's older brother, Paige? I thought you knew better than this. I knew this would happen. I told you, you couldn’t handle the pressure. You’re too emotional for this kind of work. And now look what happened."

My heart pounded as I pulled over to the side of the road. “Mom, slow down. What are you talking about?”

“They’re all over social media! You and him, looking very cozy. It’s scandalous, Paige!”

I fumbled for my phone, fingers trembling. My mother’s voice droned on, a mix of worry and disappointment coloring her words.

“You always dive headfirst into things without thinking. This is just like when you tried to take care of everything after your father?—”

“Mom, please!” I cut her off, the desperation in my voice sharper than intended. I navigated to a gossip site, praying she was exaggerating.

The screen loaded slowly, each second feeling like an eternity. When the images finally appeared, my stomach dropped. There we were: Ryker and I, from what looked like this morning, his head buried between my thighs… me on my knees… him on top of me… They were grainy but unmistakable—taken from outside through the cracks in my curtains.

My face burned with embarrassment as I stared at the pictures. How could this have happened? Had the paparazzi really gone this far?

“Paige? Are you listening to me?” My mother’s voice broke through again.

I switched back to the call, trying to keep my voice steady. “Yeah, Mom, I’m here.”

“You need to fix this. Now! Your career—your reputation—it’s all on the line!”

“I know,” I whispered, but she didn’t hear me over her own worried tirade.

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