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“Not to that file.”
“And apparently I don’t have access to the truth either, but I guess that doesn’t matter.”
“Right now, my only concern is finding you at my computer with confidential company files open.”
“And my only concern is finding out the man I love hired someone to follow me.”
Nate steps further into the room, shutting the door behind him with deliberate care. The quiet click sounds heavier than a slam.
“You had no right to access that system.”
“I had no right? You have a file on me like I'm some fucking suspect in a criminal investigation. You traced a damn phone call from my family, Nate.”
“It was an unknown number”
“It was my brother. If your fancy little PI had done a better job of digging, he would have seen the Louisiana area code.”
“How was I supposed to know that?”
“I would have told you if you asked.”
His mouth flattens. “Would you have answered honestly?”
I look at him and barely recognize the man standing across from me. “Do you hear yourself?”
“I hear someone trying to protect everything we’ve built.”
“From me?”
Nate hesitates, and I watch him struggle to find an answer that won't hurt me. Somehow, that hurts worse.
“Oh, I get it.” I motion toward the report. “You had me followed, dug through my private life, monitored my calls, because obviously this was all me playing the long game in a mission to dismantle your entire company.”
“Don’t act like I’m crazy. That file exists because someone used your access to compromise my company.”
“And you couldn’t talk to me about it?”
“And say what? That we suspected the woman sleeping in our home might be feeding information to Adrian Cross?”
“You think I’m some kind of fucking spy for Adrian? Are you serious, Nate?”
“I think you’ve had access to information most employees never see. I think Adrian has shown an unusual interest in you, and now our systems are being breached using your credentials.”
“Excuse me?” I step away from the desk, and the old walls go up. The ones Preston taught me to build. “You sat there and told me trust wasn’t automatic. You asked me to be honest. You asked me to let you take care of me. All while you were paying someone to watch me.”
“The investigator was necessary.”
“No. You just couldn’t stand not knowing every detail of my life. Because for once, your control couldn’t dictate the outcome, and you couldn’t handle it.”
A flicker of raw anger crosses his face before his eyes narrow into dangerous slits. “You don’t know a damn thing about what I can handle.”
“I know you’d rather put a stranger on my tail than ask me a question you couldn’t control the answer to.”
He lets out a harsh, humorless laugh.
“Contrary to what you believe, sweetheart, this isn’t about my control.” He steps closer, silver gaze cutting. “I have a company that employs thousands of people and a launch that could redefine an entire industry. I will not apologize for prioritizing the thing I spent years building over the comfort of some woman I’ve known for a few months.”
The words land like a slap before my hand ever moves.
