I lean back, running a hand through my hair. “Yeah. I like her. Maybe too much.”
Ryan’s gaze doesn’t waver for once. “You’re falling for her.”
I let out a humorless laugh. “Maybe. Shit. No. I’m not. I can’t… Not yet… It’s too soon. She’s not there. She might never be.”
I don’t tell him how I can’t stop thinking about her. About how she looks in the morning, her hair messy, wearing one of my T-shirts. Or the fire in her eyes when she argues with me, like I’m both her greatest enemy and the only person who can keep up with her. She’s under my skin. And yeah, it’s too soon to feel the way I do. But I can’t help it. Don’t want to help it.
Ryan interrupts my thoughts. “Don’t worry. The new transactions will have them chasing shadows, and her fund’s covered.”
“Good,” I say. “If we need to set up additional leaks, we’ll do it. Taryn doesn’t need her fund anyway. She doesn’t need her money. My wife can depend on me.”
Ryan shoots me a look. “You sound like Da when you say that.”
I tense. “This isn’t about control. It’s about protecting her.”
“Protecting her by lying to her?” Ryan says, raising a brow.
“Don’t,” I warn. “I’mnotlying to her.”
He shrugs. “I think we just differ in our definitions. Regardless, you care about her. That makes you reckless.”
“I’m always reckless,” I grin. “It’s part of my charm.”
Ryan shakes his head and returns to his screen. “Charm is overrated. Data engineering is the answer to this particular problem.”
“And between the two of us, we have both,” I quip.
He ignores me, already lost in the code again. Watching Ryan work is like watching someone speak a language I don’t know—and somehow, I still trust every word.
The door clicks open. I look up, grinning, but the expression on my wife’s face stops me cold. Taryn is in jeans and a pale sweater, her hair pulled up in a messy bun, but her shoulders are tight, her jaw set.
“Hey, beauty,” I say gently. “We were just—”
“I’m going to spend the night at Elizabeth’s,” she says abruptly. “I can’t go to dinner tonight.”
I blink. “Spend the night? Everything okay?”
“No, everything is not okay.” Her teeth clench before she takes a breath. “She’s going through something. Needs me.”
Her voice is clipped. Guarded.
“Alright,” I say carefully. “Text me when you get there.”
She nods but doesn’t look me in the eye. I start to get up, but she’s out the door before I can say anything else.
Ryan glances at me. “She’s upset.”
“Yeah,” I mutter. “I just don’t know why.”
I know she cares about her friends, but this is different. I stare at the door long after she’s gone, an uneasy weight settling in my chest. Something’s wrong. I can feel it.
TARYN
Fuck him. Seriously. Just…fuck him. Or better yet, maybe I shouldstopfucking him. Obviously, too many orgasms this past week have interfered with my ability to suss out bullshit. God. I knew better than this.
There I was, practically skipping up the stairs to meet my new husband. I was humming. Happy. Jesus. I cringe when I think about my dumb self.
When I heard voices from Ryan’s room, I didn’t mean to listen. Don’t misunderstand. I’m not above eavesdropping. I hadn’t considered that I’d need to. That’s how stupid this man has made me. But, then I heard it. Ryan imploring Liam not to lie to me. I stopped in my tracks. Listened. They were talking about my fund. About isolatingmymoney. About me becoming dependent on Liam for everything.
