Page 33 of The Innovator

What if she could adjust other parts of me without my knowledge? That frightened the hell out of me. I didn’t want anyone to have that kind of power over me.

Her phone buzzed, and she glanced at it. Fear splashed on her face, and all other thoughts in my head vanished.

“What’s wrong?”

She inhaled a breath, and her hand shook, but she didn’t reply.

I took the phone from her, glanced at the screen, and fumed at the threatening text message that came from an anonymous caller.

Come back to Paris or you’ll regret it.

I knew who it was. He’d pay for the terror on her face and the dismissal of my threat.

“Has Adonis reached out to you prior to today?”

She shook her head. “No.”

The muscles in my arms tensed. Perhaps a show of faith from me would prove how much he should heed my warning. I didn’t give out threats often, but when I did, I meant every word.

“Adonis needs a reminder.” I memorized the number to relay it to my PI.

Natalie grabbed her phone back. “It’s okay. Don’t make this thing into a big deal. It’s not your responsibility to intervene.”

I gripped her defiant chin and bore my eyes into her. “It ismybusiness. You’re working onmyproject. A threat to you is a threat to me. And thisthingis a big deal, Natalie. Men like Adonis or Rafael don’t take rejection well. They need to deal with someone who’s not afraid of them.” I stalked over to my desk, retrieved my phone, and sent the PI the number.

Grayson:Get me everything you know about this number.

A few seconds passed.

PI:Will do.

I looked at Natalie, who glared at me with her hands on her hips. She should be pissed at her ex, not at me.

“If you get another message from any unrecognizable number. I want to know.” I walked back to the miniature display. “Now, let’s resume our discussion on what you think belongs at the center of Three Point Park.”

I didn’t want any fuckers ruining my time with her. I had skipped out on my multimillion-dollar meeting forher—did they think I’d let this threat slide?

In the business arena, one didn’t succeed by being nice. I didn’t give a fuck how much money Rafael’s family had. I could influence Caputo Holdings and ensure they lost a huge chunk of wealth. A hole in their wallet would inject enough panic.

I preferred to stay in my lane because my enterprise took enough energy and dedication from me. But when assholes believed they could trespass into my territory and mess with me, they deserved all the panic and fear I could deliver. I didn’t give a damn who Natalie had dated, or who she’d been engaged to. Right now, she was mine. Period.

Perhaps I’d been repressing my pent-up anger, and this incident provoked my release. My moral compass was flexible, and these assholes just ensured I trained my direction on them.

“I don’t want you meddling in my business.” She huffed out an annoyed breath.

“I’m helping you.”

“If I ignore him, he’ll just go away.” She folded her arms, her lips thin with tension.

Not him.Them. But I didn’t correct her.

“People like Adonis and Rafael don’t just go away, Natalie.”

Indignation surrounded her and me. Her storm had become my storm.

How could she believe people like them followed society’s rules?They wouldn’t leave her alone.

Was there something else she didn’t want me to know? Did she owe Rafael something? Was that why he wanted her back? Whatever it was, I wanted to know.

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