Caleb stared at Theresa's photo on his phone screen, her smile frozen in digital perfection. Three rings. Four. He could still hear Lucy and Tiana's hushed voices from the kitchen.
On the fifth ring, he swiped to accept.
"Hey baby, I was starting to think you were avoiding me," Theresa's voice was warm, affectionate.
"Never. Just had a long day." He walked toward the living room, away from the kitchen sounds. "How's New York?"
"Exhausting but amazing. The Vogue shoot went perfectly, and I just finished dinner with the director for that Netflix series I told you about. I think I'm going to get it."
"That's incredible. I'm proud of you."
"Are you? Because you sound distracted."
Caleb forced himself to focus. "The press conference today took more out of me than expected."
"Speaking of which, I saw the whole thing online. You were magnificent. Very sexy, Mr. CEO."
Heat crept up Caleb's neck. "Just doing what needed to be done."
"Is everyone safe now? The people who were targeted?"
"Yes. It's handled."
"Good. I hate thinking about you dealing with crazy people. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you the best part about today. Guess who's been fired from three projects because of the scandal her sister caused?"
Caleb frowned. "Who?"
"Jennifer Walsh. Apparently having a sister who commits federal crimes makes you unemployable in this town. Karma's a bitch, isn't it?"
"That seems harsh. Jennifer wasn't involved."
"Maybe not directly, but she should have known what kind of person her sister was. Anyway, enough about work drama. I miss you. Only two more days and I'll be home."
After they hung up, Caleb stood in silence, processing what Theresa had said. Jennifer Walsh had been nothing but professional and kind to Lucy. Now her career was destroyed because of her sister's jealousy.
"Food's ready," Lucy called softly from behind him.
He turned to find her in the kitchen doorway, wearing one of his old t-shirts over her jeans. The sight made his chest tight.
"Everything okay?" she asked.
"Fine."
In the dining room, Tiana had set the table with candles. The pasta smelled incredible, and for a moment, Caleb let himself pretend this was normal. That he came home to Lucy cooking dinner every night.
"This is amazing," he said after the first bite.
Lucy smiled but stayed quiet, letting Tiana carry most of the conversation. She seemed lost in thought, picking at her food more than eating it.
Halfway through dinner, Caleb's phone buzzed with a text from his assistant Sarah: "Jennifer Walsh is here. Says it's urgent and concerns Miss Martinez."
Caleb frowned. "I need to step out for a moment. Work call."
In his home office, he called Sarah back.
"Put her through to my office line."
Jennifer's voice was shaky when she came on. "Mr. Sinclair, I'm so sorry to bother you at home, but I didn't know who else to call."
"What's going on, Jennifer?"
"It's about Lucy. And about what my sister did. I've been blacklisted from every studio in town because of Amber, and now I'm hearing things. Dangerous things."
Caleb's attention sharpened. "What kind of things?"
"There's a group of casting directors and producers who are planning to make sure Lucy never works again. They're calling it protecting the industry from troublemakers. They blame her for exposing how dirty this business can get."
"That's ridiculous. She was the victim."
"I know that. You know that. But these people see her as a threat to their way of doing business. They're planning to sabotage any project she's attached to."
Caleb's jaw clenched. "Who specifically?"
"Robert Chen, David's father. He runs Chen Casting. Patricia Hoffman from Hoffman Entertainment. A few others. They're meeting tomorrow night to finalize their strategy."
"Where?"
"The Chateau Marmont, private dining room. Mr. Sinclair, they have serious influence. If they decide to bury Lucy's career, they can do it."
After hanging up, Caleb returned to the dining room to find Lucy and Tiana clearing dishes.
"Who was that?" Tiana asked suspiciously.
"Jennifer Walsh. She wanted to warn us about something."
Lucy looked up, concerned. "Is she okay? I heard she lost her job."
"She's fine. But there might be more complications with your situation."
"What kind of complications?" Tiana demanded.
Caleb hesitated. The smart thing would be to handle this quietly, use his influence to shut down the conspiracy before it could hurt Lucy. But looking at her trusting face, he realized she deserved to know what she was up against.
"Some people in the industry blame you for exposing how corrupt things can get. They see you as a threat."
Lucy went pale. "What does that mean?"
"It means they want to make sure you never work in Hollywood again."
The color drained completely from Lucy's face. Tiana immediately moved to her side, wrapping a protective arm around her shoulders.
"They can't do that," Tiana said fiercely. "She didn't do anything wrong."
"In this town, doing nothing wrong isn't always enough," Caleb said grimly. "But they're not going to succeed."
"How can you be sure?" Lucy asked quietly.
Caleb looked at her, sitting in his dining room wearing his shirt, vulnerable and scared but still beautiful. The urge to protect her was overwhelming, stronger than any business instinct.
"Because I won't let them."
His phone rang again. This time it was Marcus Rivera.
"Caleb, we've got a situation. Someone just broke into Lucy Martinez's apartment. Trashed the place completely."
Caleb's blood turned cold. "Any idea who?"
"Security cameras were disabled, but this wasn't random. They were looking for something specific. Went through all her personal documents, computer, everything."
"Looking for what?"
"That's what worries me. What could a struggling actress have that someone would want badly enough to commit breaking and entering?"
Caleb looked at Lucy, who was watching his face with growing alarm.
"I don't know, but I'm going to find out."
After he hung up, both women were staring at him.
"My apartment," Lucy said. It wasn't a question.
"Someone broke in. I'm sorry."
Lucy sank into her chair, looking overwhelmed. "I don't understand. What could they possibly want from me?"
"That's what we need to figure out," Caleb said. "But first, we need to make sure you're completely safe."
"She's safe here," Tiana said firmly.
Caleb nodded, but his mind was already racing ahead to tomorrow night's meeting at Chateau Marmont. Whatever these people were planning, he was going to stop it before it started.
His phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number: "Stop protecting her or everyone you care about will pay."
Caleb stared at the message, ice forming in his veins. This wasn't about Lucy's career anymore. Someone was threatening him directly, using her as leverage.
And that was a mistake they would regret making.
