The Maybach moved smoothly through the Manhattan night. The city lights blurred into streaks of gold and red outside the tinted windows. Evelena sat in the back seat, her fingers clamped so tightly around the thick manila folder bearing the Santiago Corporation crest that her knuckles turned white. Inside were her new identity documents and official onboarding contracts. This was her ticket out of hell.
Palmer turned around in the front passenger seat. He held out a small, dark blue velvet box. His expression was perfectly neutral, professional.
"Mr. Santiago asked me to give this to you," Palmer said.
Evelena set the folder down on the leather seat beside her. She took the box. Her thumb brushed the soft velvet as she flipped the lid open.
Inside, resting on a bed of black silk, sat a brand-new United States passport and a Social Security card. Both bore the name Evelena Valenzuela.
Her breath hitched. A sharp, stinging sensation hit the back of her eyes. She traced the printed letters with her fingertip. It was real. It was legal. She was no longer that helpless girl named Tina who got beaten and thrown into the mud. She was officially Evelena Valenzuela, a citizen with rights and a future.
A massive wave of joy rushed through her veins, completely overriding the logical part of her brain. She didn't think. She just moved.
She turned to her left and lunged toward Ingram.
Instead of a full embrace, she grabbed the lapels of his expensive suit jacket. Her arms wrapped around nothing but air, but her hands held on tight as she pressed her forehead into the solid wall of his chest. She squeezed the fabric, pouring every ounce of gratitude and overwhelming relief into that one desperate, anchoring point.
Ingram's entire body turned to stone the second the crown of her head made contact with his chest. Every muscle locked up. His hands hovered in the air for a second, his instincts screaming at him to shove her away. He had a severe aversion to physical contact. He couldn't stand people breathing the same air as him, let alone touching him.
But then he felt her shoulders shaking against his side. He smelled the faint, clean scent of her shampoo. It smelled like vanilla and rain.
His hands slowly lowered. He forced his fingers to relax. He didn't push her away.
He awkwardly lifted one hand and patted her back exactly twice. The movement was stiff, completely unpracticed, like a man trying to pet a wild animal without getting bitten.
"You're welcome," he said in a low voice.
In the front seat, Palmer glanced in the rearview mirror. His eyes nearly popped out of his head. He saw the ice-cold CEO allowing a girl to cling to him. Palmer immediately looked down at the dashboard, pretending to adjust the climate controls, his heart hammering against his ribs.
Fifteen minutes later, the Maybach pulled into the private underground garage of the penthouse. The elevator shot them up to the top floor.
The doors slid open to the warm, inviting smell of food. Mrs. Wallace stood in the foyer, smiling warmly. She had set out a spread of hot milk, fresh fruit, and grilled chicken on the kitchen island.
Ingram stepped out of the elevator. He reached up and pulled his tie loose, undoing the top button of his shirt. The harsh lines of his face softened slightly in the comfort of his own home.
"Get some rest," he told Evelena, his voice deep and commanding. "You start at the corporation tomorrow. Don't be late."
He turned and walked down the long hallway toward his study. "I have a global video conference regarding a ten-billion-dollar merger. Do not disturb me."
Evelena nodded, watching his broad back disappear behind the heavy sandalwood door. She ate a little bit of the chicken, but her stomach was too tied up in knots to handle much. She felt restless. The adrenaline from the new identity still buzzed under her skin.
An hour later, she stepped out of the bathroom. She wore a thin, cream-colored silk slip nightgown that Mrs. Wallace had bought for her. The water had washed away the exhaustion, but her mind was still racing.
She realized she hadn't formally thanked him for the passport. She hadn't really thanked him for any of this. She walked over to the kitchen island and poured a glass of warm milk.
She padded barefoot down the cold marble hallway toward the study. The heavy sandalwood door was left slightly ajar. A sliver of warm light spilled out onto the floor.
She didn't hear any voices. Usually, when Ingram was on a call, his deep, commanding tone echoed through the door. She figured the meeting must have ended early.
She pushed the door open with her hip, holding the glass of milk in both hands.
"Ingram," she said softly, stepping onto the thick Persian rug. "I just wanted to-"
The words died in her throat.
The study was dead silent. The massive, wall-sized projection screen at the front of the room was lit up like a football stadium. On the screen, divided into twelve neat squares, sat twelve senior executives from the European branches of the Santiago Corporation.
They were all dressed in sharp suits. They were all sitting ramrod straight. And every single one of them had their eyes locked directly on the door.
On Evelena.
Evelena froze. Her bare toes curled into the rug. The heat drained from her face, only to rush back a second later in a violent, burning blush that spread from her chest up to her hairline.
The glass of milk trembled in her grip. She looked like a deer caught in the headlights of a speeding train.
On the screen, the executives looked absolutely stunned. Their jaws had literally dropped. They were staring at the half-dressed, barefoot girl who had just waltzed into the CEO's private study calling him by his first name.
Ingram sat in his leather chair at the head of the long table. The muscles in his jaw were clenched so tight they looked like they were going to snap. A dark, stormy shadow fell over his face. His eyes were like chips of black ice as he glared at the screen.
He didn't say a word to her. His long fingers moved across the keyboard with lightning speed.
Click.
The video feeds for all twelve executives vanished instantly. The screen went completely black, leaving only the audio connection active.
Ingram stood up. The legs of his chair scraped loudly against the floor. He stalked toward the door, his long strides eating up the distance in seconds.
He reached out and grabbed Evelena's arm, pulling her fully into the study. He kicked the door shut behind her with his foot.
He positioned himself directly in front of her, using his wide shoulders and broad back to completely block the webcam sitting on the desk. He trapped her against the door, his body a solid wall of heat and muscle.
He looked down at her. His eyes were dark, dangerous, and intensely focused. The air between them felt thick enough to choke on.
Evelena's heart hammered against her ribs like a trapped bird. She clutched the glass of milk so hard she was surprised it didn't shatter. She stuttered, trying to force the words out.
"I... I didn't know you were still... I thought the meeting was over."
Ingram's gaze dropped. He looked at her hands, which were clutching the glass of milk so tightly that her knuckles had turned bone-white. He saw the faint tremor in her fingers. A muscle in his jaw ticked. His throat moved as he swallowed hard. A heavy, restless energy radiated off him. He forced himself to look back up at her face.
"Knock next time," he said. His voice was rough, like gravel scraping against glass. "This isn't a college dorm."
Evelena wanted the floor to open up and swallow her whole. The embarrassment was a physical pain in her chest. She shoved the glass of milk toward him, her hand shaking.
"Here. I brought you milk. I'm going to bed."
She didn't wait for him to take it. She dropped her hands, spun around, and fumbled with the door handle. She yanked it open and fled down the hallway.
She slammed her bedroom door shut and leaned against it. She buried her face into the pillow on her bed and let out a muffled, agonizing groan. She had just flashed the CEO's entire European board in her nightie. She was going to die of shame.
Back in the study, Ingram stood staring at the closed door for a long moment. He could still smell the vanilla scent of her hair. He took a deep breath, trying to cool the fire burning in his gut, and walked back to his desk.
He sat down. He tapped the keyboard, turning the video feeds back on.
The twelve executives reappeared on the screen. Not a single one of them was speaking. They all sat in absolute, terrified silence, staring at their desks or their hands, too scared to even look at the camera.
Ingram leaned forward. His eyes were cold and lethal.
"Tonight," he said, his voice echoing through the speakers in Europe, "you saw nothing. You heard nothing. If a single word about what just happened leaves this call, I will personally ensure you never work in this industry again."
Twelve heads nodded frantically in unison.
Ingram cut the feed.
Down the hall, Evelena lay in her bed. The sheets were tangled around her legs. She tossed and turned, but sleep refused to come. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Ingram's face. She saw the way he had moved to block the camera with his body. She felt the heat of his chest hovering just inches from hers.
She pressed her hand against her racing heart. The rhythm was wild and uneven.
She realized, with a sudden jolt of panic, that her feelings for the cold, untouchable man who had saved her were shifting into something far more dangerous.
