Adam shut the door behind him with a quiet thud and turned to face Logan Hayes, who stood near the firece, hands casually in his pockets. The same man who had charmed the entire family less than an hour ago now looked like apletely different creature.
Adam crossed the room slowly, poured himself a drink, and took a seat behind his desk.
“I never expected my daughter to get herself engaged this quickly,” Adam said, eyes fixed on Logan. “Let alone to a man like you.”
Logan didn’t respond. He didn’t even blink. He just stared at the firece for a few more seconds.
Adam leaned back in his chair. “I looked into you.”
That got something. Logan’s head turned slightly.
Adam continued. “What I found wasn’t simple. Or ordinary. Your namees up in sealed contracts, shadowpanies, and offshore holdings. No interviews. No photos. No public appearances. You don’t just avoid the spotlight-you erase it.”
“You’ve been busy,” Logan said.
“I care about my daughter,” Adam replied.
Logan walked forward slowly, stopping just a few feet from the desk. “Then maybe you should’ve shown that when you were trying to marry her off to someone twice her age.”
Adam’s jaw flexed. “Carl was the better match. Known family. Strongwork. He is strong.”
“Are people who killed their previous wife strong?” Logan lifted an eyebrow.” He is not a better match,” Logan said. “Just a safer one. For you.”
Adam leaned forward. “What’s your real motive?”
Logan tilted his head, studying him. “You think I need something from your family?”
“You’re thinking too much,” Logan added.
Adam’s grip tightened around the ss. “Maybe. But I’ve seen men like you. The way you operate. You walk into a room, and people leave before they ask questions. That’s not something you learn from running hotels.”
Still, Logan didn’t flinch.
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“Whatever it is you’re doing-whatever your motives are-just know that I’m watching.”
Logan stood now. Smoothly. Not rushed.
“You really think Emery’s naive, don’t you?” he said.
Adam said nothing.
“She isn’t,” Logan continued. “She’s stubborn. Sharp. And far too loyal to people who don’t deserve it.”
Adam narrowed his eyes. “Meaning me?”
“I’ve seen a lot of fathers,” Logan said. “Politicians. CEOs. Diplomats. Even a warlord once, in Yemen.
But I’ve never seen a man so determined to belittle his own daughter in front of strangers.”
Adam moved away from the cab, the ss still in his hand. “Don’t preach to me about parenting.
You’ve known her for what? A month?”
“Long enough to see the damage,” Logan said.
There it was. That shift again. His voice hadn’t changed, but the air in the room had. Adam felt it-like a switch being flipped. Logan no longer looked like a guest. He looked like a man ustomed to making decisions no one questioned.
And that made Adam pause.
Still, he didn’t back down.
“You think this little disy is going to scare me?” Adam asked, taking a step closer. “A few words and
a cold stare?”
Logan tilted his head slightly.
“Why would I try to intimidate my future father-inw?” he asked.
Adam gritted his teeth. “You tell me?
Logan stepped forward now, close enough for Adam to notice just how quiet the man moved.
“I don’t need to intimidate you,” Logan said. “I already have your daughter’s trust. And unlike you, I don’t n to break it.”
Adam didn’t move. His jaw clenched, but he kept his stance.
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The silence returned.
Logan nced at the ss in Adam’s hand, then back at his face.
“Careful,” he said. “You’re spilling it.”
Adam looked down. His drink had tilted, just slightly. He straightened it without a word.
Logan adjusted his cufflink again, then turned toward the door.
“My wife is waiting for me,” he said without looking back. “She must be really anxious knowing her husband is talking to her… father.”
Not long after Logan left, Deana quickly walked inside the room. Seeing her husband’s appearance, she asked, “What’s wrong? Did something happen? That man-”
“Is not so simple,” Adam said before he finished his ss. Logan Hayes. He thought talking to him would be simple.
“What does that mean?” Deana asked.
However, Adam simply added more alcohol to his ss.
“What do you mean, Adam?” Deana asked. She tried to grab the ss, but Adam was faster.
“Emery found herself a backer,” Adam said.
Adam suddenly let out a long sigh, shoulders dropping slightly. His grip on the ss rxed, and the tension in his jaw eased.
“It’s good,” he said.
Deana blinked. “What is?”
He turned toward her. “Logan. He’s strong. Stronger than most. And wealthy enough to protect her, if ites to that.”
Deana frowned. “You really think he’ll protect her?”
Adam gave a short nod. “With the kind of power he holds, he doesn’t need to impress anyone. And he’s not afraid. That means something.”
She let out a quiet breath and looked toward the door Logan had exited through. “So, that’s it?”
Adam didn’t answer immediately. He walked toward his desk, opened the top drawer, and pulled out
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an old, yellowed envelope. It was folded unevenly, worn along the edges, and sealed with a faded wax stamp. He held it for a moment before handing it to Deana.
She looked at it, then back at him.
Adam stared at the letter. “We’ve done it. Our part.”
“Did we? Really?” Deana asked. But she already knew.
“Our promise,” Adam said. “To the man who saved us. He asked one thing in return-that we keep her out of their world. That she’d never be dragged into the things we were involved in. We promised to protect her. No connections. No obligations.”
Deana stepped closer, her eyes never leaving the letter. “And now?”
“Now, she’s marrying someone not from their world,” Adam said. “She’ll be safe. Far from this family. From their enemies. From what they did.”
Deana clenched her jaw and nodded. Her hand rested lightly on the envelope, but she didn’t open it.
“Everything will be alright now,” she said.
Adam looked down at the half-empty ss in his hand, then toward the firece. For the first time in years, he believed it.
“Mother is waiting for everyone in the back garden,” Deana suddenly said. “Shall we go now?”