“No,” he said, jaw tight. “But I know what it looks like on you. And it’s not peace.”
That landed like a slap.
“You think I don’t see it?” he continued. “You’re brilliant, Portia. But you’re scared. You’re trying to pretend it’s just sex, just secrecy, just fun—but it’s not. You don’t sneak around with someone unless it means something. And you don’t look like someone who feels safe.”
“I don’t,” I said before I could stop myself. “I don’t feel safe. Not with what he’s involved in. Not with the things I don’t know.”
Monte’s expression didn’t change. But something in his eyes softened.
I swallowed, my hands curling into the fabric of my dress. “There was something … at Magnolia Plantation tonight. A ribbon with a message.” I forced myself to meet his gaze. “Red silk, tucked into Silas’s pocket. I thought it was a joke, something stupid one of his brothers left there. But then I looked closer.”
Monte stilled. “What did it say?”
“‘My Silas. Soon.’” I didn’t even recognize my own voice—how small it had become. “It was etched in, like a threat dressed up as sentiment.”
Monte’s jaw ticked. “Jesus.”
“He said it was probably a prank. That Marcus or Charlie planted it. But his face—” I exhaled shakily. “He was lying. Or maybe not lying, but hiding something. I don’t think he has a clue where it came from. And I don’t think it was meant for me to see.”
Monte stepped closer, his brows knitting. “What do you mean—what he’s involved in?”
I hesitated. Then exhaled slowly, letting the words surface like bruises.
“He told me once … not much. Just a hint. Back when we were still dancing around each other. Said his mother had something to do with it.” I paused. “He called her a ghost.”
Monte stilled. “His mother?”
“Yeah.” I wrapped my arms around myself. “It wasn’t just what he said—it was how he said it. Like he’d spent years trying to forget her, but never really could. Like whatever she was ... it left something in him. Something that still hurts.”
Monte looked unsettled now, his voice low. “I didn’t know. None of the Danes talk about her.”
“Silas doesn’t want to. And now the message with the ribbon. It was tucked in his pocket. Like a message meant to remind him that he doesn’t get to outrun whatever it is he’s running from.”
Monte’s mouth pressed into a thin line. “You think it was her?”
“I don’t know. But someone out there wants him afraid. What if they want me afraid?” I met his eyes, throat tight. “What does that mean for me?”
Monte didn’t answer. He didn’t need to.
Because we both knew the answer.
Silas Dane wasn’t just dangerous because of what he might do. He was dangerous because of what was coming for him. And I was standing too close.
“It scares me,” I said, barely above a whisper. “He scares me.”
Silence stretched.
Finally, Monte spoke. “Then why are you still there?”
Because he makes me feel alive. Because I want to be undone. Because when I’m with him, I forget how lonely it feels to always be the strong one.
But I didn’t say any of that.
“I don’t know,” I said instead.
Monte nodded once. “Then figure it out before it costs you more than your pride.”
And just like that, he turned and walked out, closing the door with the kind of quiet grace only someone deeply wounded could muster.
