Page 140 of Check & Chase
“And how did that go?”
“About as well as you’d expect.” He scrubs a hand down his face, looking older than his years. “She laughed in my face. Told me I deserved everything coming to me—and that you were just collateral damage.”
“Great. So you accomplished nothing except making her more determined.” I shake my head, exhaustion settling into my bones. “This is exactly why I asked you not to confront her. You can’t bully your way out of every situation.”
“I know that,” he mutters. “But you don’t understand what it’s like for me, sitting on the sidelines while someone tries to destroy what matters most to me.”
“What matters most to you?”
“You. Us. Your happiness.”
The raw honesty breaks through some of my anger, revealing the fear and love underneath his reckless actions.
“My career is part of my happiness, Chase. A big part. And right now, it’s in jeopardy because of our relationship.”
“Are you saying you regret it?” His voice drops, fear flickering in his eyes. “Being with me?”
“No.” I hold his gaze, needing him to understand. “But I am saying we need to be smarter. No more rogue missions. We do this together, by the book.”
He nods slowly, something settling in his expression. “Okay. Together.”
“Promise me.” I need to hear the words, need something concrete to hold onto. “Promise you won’t go off on your own again.”
“I promise,” he says, steady and sure. “No more solo crusades.”
I study his face, searching for any hesitation. When I find none, I finally exhale, the tension easing just a little.
“She won’t stop,” I murmur, the reality of our situation settling over me. “Carina. She’s determined to hurt us.”
“I know.” He reaches for my hand, and this time I let him take it. “But we’ll face her. The right way.”
A tear slips down my cheek as the weight of everything catches up to me. “What if I lose my job? What if she succeeds?”
“She won’t,” he replies with fierce conviction. “The truth is on our side, Emma. And even if the worst happens—we’ll figure it out. Together.”
I lean into him, allowing myself to draw strength from his certainty despite my lingering anger about his impulsive confrontation.
“I’m scared,” I admit in a whisper. “Everything I’ve worked for since the accident… it could all disappear because of one spiteful person’s lies.”
He wraps his arms around me, pulling me close against his chest where I can hear his heartbeat, steady and strong. “I won’t let that happen,” he murmurs into my hair. “I swear to you, Emma. We’ll get through this.”
I want to believe him. More than anything, I want to believe that love conquers all, that the good guys win in the end, that our story will have a happy ending.
But as I sit in his arms, the reality settles over me. This isn’t a fairy tale with clear winners and losers. This is my life, my career, hanging in the balance because I dared to fall in love with the right man at the wrong time.
And for the first time since we decided to make our relationship real, I wonder if we’ve made a terrible mistake.
Chase
Chapter Thirty-One
Emma’s sleeping beside me, her breathing slow and even, but I haven’t closed my eyes all night. I can’t stop my brain from spinning through worst-case scenarios, looking for a way out of this mess. A way to protect her.
Everything I touch turns to shit. That’s the thought that keeps circling back. I try to make things better and only make them worse.
The bedside clock reads 5:17 a.m. Too early to get up, but too late to hope for any meaningful sleep.
Emma shifts slightly, her arm tightening around my waist. Even in sleep, she seeks me out, trusts me. The weight of that trust is crushing when I know how badly I’ve failed her.
