I nod, clutching Bean, my heart pounding with purpose.
We’re a team, and today, we take down the man who betrayed me, who threatened my life.
This ends. And I’m going to play my part making sure it ends the right way…
The sedan hums along the winding forest road, the safehouse fading into the pines behind us as Travis steers us back toward the city.
Early evening paints the sky in streaks of orange and pink, the light filtering through the trees and glinting off the windshield.
I’m curled up in the passenger seat, Bean clutched in my lap, some warmth left in his tummy after I heated him up just before we left.
The flash drive’s secrets—those damning files linking Kyle Knox to Obsidian Ventures and the Los Lobos cartel—sit heavy in my chest.
I don’t know for sure if Knox orchestrated the break-in at my apartment or the death threat scrawled on that note, but my gut screams he’s connected, at least on some level. The thought twists my stomach, and I stare out the window, the passing trees a blur.
I curse myself silently, my fingers tightening around Bean.
How could I have been so blind?
Knox & Rain was my purpose, my way to fight for justice, to honor my grandfather’s memory after Horizon Agro stole his land.
But it was all a front—Knox’s sleek office, his yacht photos, his greasy charm hiding a money-hungry traitor.
I fell for it, poured years of my life into a lie, and the betrayal stings like a slap.
I’m angry, ashamed, and scared, the weight of it all pressing down as the city looms closer, where tomorrow we’ll put our plan into action to take him down.
Travis’s quiet beside me, his hands steady on the wheel, his jaw tight. I glance at him, his profile sharp in the fading light, andmy heart aches in a different way. He’s been my rock through this—his Daddy voice, his protective grip, the way he trusted me in the study last night, valuing my perspective.
The flash drive is in his pocket now, our ticket to ending this, and I know he’s carrying the same weight I am, maybe more with Mr. G’s warning hanging over him.
But there’s something else between us, unspoken but tangible, like a current humming in the air.
I’m falling for him,hard, and the way his eyes soften when they meet mine tells me he feels it too.
I want to say it, to tell him I’m in love, but the words stick in my throat, too big, too soon.
Travis glances over, catching the furrow in my brow, and his voice breaks the silence, low and gentle.
“Hey, boy,” Travis says, his voice clam. “Whatever’s going on in that head of yours, don’t let it eat you up. Nothing changes the good work you’ve done at Knox & Rain. You fought for people who needed it, made a difference. That’sreal, no matter what Knox was hiding.”
My Daddy’s words are a balm, soothing the raw edges of my guilt, and I feel my shoulders relax.
“Thanks, Daddy,” I say, my voice soft, a smile tugging at my lips. “You always know what to say. You’re… the perfect Daddy.”
I watch his eyes spark, a mix of pride and something deeper, and for a moment, the air between us thickens, charged with that unspoken love.
I want to reach for his hand, to tell him everything, but I hold back, my heart pounding.
Travis feels it too—I can see it in the way his grip tightens on the wheel, the way his gaze lingers. We’re falling, both of us, and it’s thrilling and terrifying all at once.
Suddenly, Travis clears his throat, breaking the ice with a grin.
“How about a pit stop? There’s a diner just off the next exit,” he says. “One last moment to relax before we dive into the shitstorm tomorrow. Pancakes sound good?”
My eyes light up, and I giggle, the tension easing.
“Yes, please!” I hum happily. “But only if we can get extra pancakes. Like, a stack so tall it blocks the sun.”
