?Chapter 425:


    Now understanding the situation, Cole turned to Myles. “Leave. No one is to enter without my express permission.”


    After dismissing Myles, Cole quietly observed the Evans Group’s digital traffic, letting Quinn’s intrusion run unchecked.


    Elsewhere, Elliana moved quickly—Lance had been knocked out cold by her little trick, and she wasted no time diving into the Evans Group servers. The search for Jody came up empty, and with not a single rm raised as she sifted through the database, she was sure she’d finally cracked the puzzle. No doubt remained—Lance was indeed Jody. It was almostughable. Who would have guessed that, despite flopping in the world of AI, he’d make a name for himself as a hacker?


    Digging through every folder, she scoured the database for any trace of Cole’s personal details, but it was a total dead end.


    Right as her patience wore thin, the screen shed with a mocking note from Jody. “Searching for something, Mrs. Evans? Maybe I can lend a hand.”


    Elliana froze. Her gaze snapped to Lance—he hadn’t stirred, still sprawled out and oblivious. Realization dawned on her. She’d chased the wrong suspect again. Jody had addressed her as “Mrs. Evans,” meaning he’d seen through her disguise. Just who was this man, anyway?


    Another message from Jody popped up. “Honey, you only had to ask if you wanted ess to those files. As your husband, I’d have handed them over without all the cloak and dagger—no need for all this sneaking around.”


    He continued, “Tell me, if I hadn’t caught on today, would you have gone through everyst person at the Evans Group with your knockout routine just to flush me out?”


    A flush of embarrassment burned in her cheeks, but her eyes widened as the truth hit her. Cole was actually Jody. Every digital sparring, every trace she’d followed—it had been her own husband on the other end. The realization left her stunned. Worse, she’d lied about being a guy online. He’d never let her live it down. “Little liar” was definitely going to be his new favorite nickname.


    Right on cue, a message from Jody lit up her screen, saying, “Get your cute self over here. And bring food. I’m starving.”


    With a sigh, she replied with a simple “Okay” and closed out of the system.


    ga??????ν??????.k??n – ???????? ???????????????? ????


    After a nce at Lance—still knocked out cold—she slipped from the private room, grabbed some takeout, and returned to the Evans Group headquarters to face Cole. Inside the CEO’s office, she spotted Cole lounging on the couch like he owned the ce—because, well, he did. He nced up the moment he heard the door.


    Without a word, Elliana set the food down on the table and took the seat across from him, tension hanging thick in the air. Despite being married to him, the humiliation of being caught hacking into hispany—and blowing her own cover—made it nearly impossible to speak.


    Cole patted his thigh, a low chuckle escaping him. “Come sit.”


    Without protest, she rose and settled carefully on hisp.


    One arm wrapped around her, and his voice softened as he said, “So tell me, what were you hoping to find?”


    Her gaze stayed low as she answered, “I wasn’t afterpany secrets. I just wanted to see your personal files.”


    .


    .


    .