Page 76 of Theirs to Hunt
“Heart attack,” he says. “Trying to save the company while it bled out. Most of the money was going to keep my stepmother happy in the lifestyle she decided she deserved.”
His jaw ticks. No dramatics. Just hard truth.
“Part of him had to know she lied. That she came after me. He never said it. But he left the company to me.”
He holds my gaze.
“Maybe it was guilt. Maybe it was punishment. Either way, by the time I got it, it was barely standing. I had to scramble. I diversified. Backed military innovation. Built new brands. Got a defense contract. And I did it with a four-year-old to raise.”
His voice stays even, but there’s steel behind every word.
“I rebuilt it. All of it. No help. No excuses.”
Then, quiet but certain:
“I swore no woman would ever come between me and my son. And no man would ever shame him for doing the right thing.”
I go to him. How can I not?
He is rigid in his control, carved from expectation and consequence, and I am honored he bent enough to explain what he would probably still view as failure. Men like him don’t do that easily.
I slide into his space without hesitation and press a kiss to his temple, my fingers curling lightly at the back of his neck.
His eyes close for half a second. That’s all. But it’s enough. I feel the shudder go through his lean frame.
For now, this is enough.
At least on the distant past. They’ve answered everything I’ve asked so far. And I believe them. I believe they’ve been honest.
Glancing at both of them, I feel the pull, but I know I can’t settle for comfort just because it’s easy. I needto keep pushing forward, even if it means letting go of everything this moment might have been.
Chapter sixty-four
Reagan, Sunday 08:42 p.m.
“Okay. Genevieve. The plantation party. The bonus. I need the truth.”
Grayson doesn't blink.
“You heard the number. Five grand. That didn't come from us. She was paid off. We believe it came from someone else.”
“Why?”
He pauses, jaw tight.
“Genevieve had access because Brooks asked her to report back. Instead, she used it for herself. Someone else saw an opening and paid her to exploit it.”
My throat goes dry.
“She knew I mattered to him.”
“She did. And someone else saw a way to use that. Whoever paid her had a reason to keep us looking in the wrong direction. Putting you in danger was the easiest way to shift our focus.”
My stomach turns.
“She sold you out,” he says quietly. “For money. And to protect something that still needs rooting out. That’ll be your first assignment.”
My voice drops.
