"Why do you keep staring at me?"
Julian smiled. "I'm thinking you might be in danger."
I put down my burger, eyeing this weird guy suspiciously.
"What do you mean?"
Instead of answering, Julian pulled out his phone, scrolled, then handed it to me.
"Look at this."
I took the phone, looked down—
My face.
My photo on a wanted poster with a lineunderneath.
"Seeking Harper Evans Orlov. One million dollars for credible information."
My blood turned to ice.
"This is..."
"A bounty Kirill Orlov posted," Julian said calmly. "Started circulating nationwide three days ago. Cops, private investigators, bounty hunters—everyone's looking for you."
My hands started shaking. Nearly dropped the phone.
Why? To keep humiliating me in front of Genevie? To punish me for something I didn't even do?
"How do you know about this?"
Julian took back his phone and pocketed it. His expression turned complicated, like he was weighing whether to tell me something.
"I'm mafia too, I guess," he said slowly. "The very fringe kind."
My brain buzzed.
"What?"
"Don't be scared," Julian's mouth curved slightly. "I'm not connected to Kirill."
"I don't understand," my voice came out like sandpaper. "Why are you telling me this?"
Julian looked at me, something unreadable flickering in those blue eyes.
"Because I want to help you."
"Help me?" I almost laughed. "Why would you help me? We don't even know each other."
"Because of Aiden," Julian said. "He asked me to take care of you."
Something dangerous in his words.
But right now, I was past caring what was safe and what wasn't. All I knew was Kirill was hunting me. A million-dollar bounty meant nowhere to run.
And I had his child inside me.
"How would you help me?"
