Susanna avoided Hull''s gaze, keeping her eyes glued to her te of mashed potatoes. She didn''t say a word, just kept pushing her food around with her fork.


    Hull raised an eyebrow. "Susie?"


    She squirmed in her seat. "I-it''s nothing. Just... thanks forst night."


    Hull let out a smallugh. “You''re thanking me by serving me soup? That''s your big gesture?"


    Susanna''s cheeks turned bright red. "!!"


    Hull leaned in a little, voice dropping, all teasing. "Trust me, that''s not exactly the kind of gratitude I had in mind."


    She understood exactly what he meant, and her blush deepened.


    Hull took a sip of the chicken noodle soup she''ddled for him. "By the way, don''t call Star over here for a while."


    "Huh?"


    Susanna looked up, confused. Did he really not want Star toe by? Honestly, she hadn''t nned on seeing Star anytime soon anyway. Considering everything going on... she was pregnant, and in thest few weeks, she''de to realize just how dangerous things around her had be.


    People were after her, hoping to use her as leverage against her mother. And if they could get to her, they could go after Star too. Star was Mr. Quinn''s pride and joy. If anything happened to Star because of her, there wasn''t a punishment harsh enough for her guilt.


    Hull added, "Don''t go see her either."


    "Yeah, I get it. I''m basically a walking disaster zone these days."


    She hadn''t understood it before, but now it was crystal clear.


    Hull watched her, catching the brief flicker of sadness in her eyes. He smirked. "Rx. You''re not nearly powerful enough to drag Star down with you." Susanna gaped at him. "!!"


    Hull shrugged. "No one in Ferrond would darey a finger on her."


    The Quinn family had dealt with more than enough trouble over the years. Anyone who knew anything knew that Star-Ste-was Ronald Quinn''s one weakness. But stil nobody dared touch her. It was an unspoken rule: as long as you left Ste alone, anything was negotiable. But if you crossed that line... well, even if you were prepared to die, you''d be taking your whole family down with you. Messing with Ronald''s one soft spot meant total annihtion for your bloodline.


    Susanna chewed her lip. "But what about ck Gate? Aren''t they crazy enough?"


    She''d heard stories-ck Gate''s boss was supposed to be utterly ruthless. Last night, seeing those twin sisters with their strange gear and weapons, she finally understood just how dangerous they really were.


    Hull snorted. "ck Gate? Please. They''re nothingpared to Mr. Quinn."


    No one really knew who ran ck Gate these days, but Hull was confident they''d never have the guts to go up against Ronald Quinn.


    Thinking about how tangled her connections were, Susanna could only sigh.


    "Wait, hang on. Didn''t you say the guyst night was called Dan-something, and those twins were Ivanna Nelson or whatever? Differentst names. Is that normal around here? Don''t kids usually take their dad''s name?"


    Hull grinned. "In the Murray family? Only the boys take their father''sst name."


    Susanna''s eyebrows shot up. "So... the girls just don''t count?"


    Hull''sment made her realize: that mistress, the twins'' mother, must have been a Nelson.


    When breakfast was over, Hull''s


    phone rang He answered, then


    stood up to leave. Before heet


    1.n


    he leaned down, whispering in Susanna''s ear: "I''ll be homete


    Take a shower and get to bed early, alright?"


    Susanna froze, her face burning so hot it felt like her ears were on fire. And the


    way Hull grinned at her as he walked out-well, it made her head feel like it was about to explode.