Bea cleared her throat. She rubbed her sleeve unnecessarily at the screen, as if it were the thing that was blurry, not her eyes. “Don’t get sentimental. You’ll ruin our brand.”
“Right. Sorry,” Claire said. “I’ll drop by this weekend, Imo. I have your Tupperware.”
“You kept it three years already. It is yours now. My dowry gift.”
“Okay. But what will you put my kimchi in when I come?”
Bea giggled.
Umma smiled. “I have many containers. I’ll find one.”
GAGE
The doors whispered shut behind Nate as he stepped into Gage’s office.
It was 10 p.m. Northgate’s skyline burned in the glass behind him.
Gage stood at the far end of the room, one hand braced on the edge of his desk, the other wrapped around a glass he hadn’t touched. The ice was half melted.
“He moved early,” Gage said, still facing the window. “Before the panel.”
Nate dropped into one of the chairs, ankle resting over his knee, the picture of ease. “Montenegro?”
A clipped nod. “He didn’t come for me directly. He came for Walker.”
Nate swore under his breath. “What did he hit him with?”
“Conflict of interest from a prior fund structure. It was resolved years ago, but now there’s concern about disclosure.” Gage’s voice was dry. “Convenient timing.”
Classic Cassian Montenegro. Never the blow. Just the bruise that blooms on a Monday morning.
Nate exhaled through his nose. “He doesn’t even want the deal yet. He just wants to slow you down.”
“He wants to make me look messy,” Gage said, finally lifting the glass to his lips. “Preoccupied. Unfocused.”
“Which is easier to do since we’re here, and not in London.”
It wasn’t a complaint. Wasn’t even a dig. Just the truth.
Nate was loyal. Their destinies were in lockstep for over a decade now. He liked Bea; had since the beginning.
But he also knew, as Gage did, the potential ramifications of staying in the UR for one more year—when there were a hundred reasons to be in London. And only one reason to stay.
Cassian had no one to protect, no one to choose. Only his name, and the freedom to serve it alone. That used to be Gage. Not anymore. Not when every move now had her in the equation.
Bea was the risk. And the reason.
Gage looked back toward the city, a faint edge in his voice. “Let’s pay them another visit.”
Chapter Thirteen
GAGE
Gage arrived just past seven.
He had planned to go to the restaurant they’d agreed on, but her text had made him change direction.
BEA: Come here first please.
