It hit the internet like a grenade.

A leaked photo. Pixel-perfect. Framed for impact. And just damaging enough to raise doubt.

Dominic.

On a rooftop. Alone.

No tie. Shirt sleeves rolled.
Standing very close to Vivian Hale.
His hand on her back.
Her mouth near his ear.

No timestamp. No context.

Just a headline stamped across social media like a brand:

“Dominic Blackwood: Sleeping With the Enemy?”

Aria saw it from her office, mid-call with her lawyer. The words blurred. Her stomach didn’t sink—it dropped.

She didn’t text Dominic.

She didn’t call Sloane.

She walked out.

Straight into the Blackwood Capital building.

The receptionist stood. “Ms. Vale—”

Aria didn’t stop.

She found Dominic in his private conference room, phone buzzing off the table, his expression unreadable.

“Don’t,” he said as soon as she opened the door.

Aria stood in the doorway, arms crossed. “She’s your informant, not your alibi.”

Dominic took a step forward. “It’s not what it looks like.”

“It never is, Dominic. Until it is.”

“Vivian set that meeting up with a whistleblower—someone inside Hale’s offshore firm. He bailed. She was trying to keep me from going after him alone.”

“Convenient timing.”

“It was four nights ago,” he said. “Before you dropped the counterclaim.”

Her arms dropped to her sides. “You didn’t think that was worth telling me?”

“I didn’t want to drag you into something if it didn’t lead anywhere.”

Aria stared at him, hard.

“You’re still protecting me from the truth, even now. Still deciding what I can and can’t handle.”

“Because every time I do tell you something hard,” Dominic snapped, “you walk out.”

That hit.

They stared at each other.

Then Aria shook her head. “I don’t need you to protect me. I need you to trust me.”

Dominic looked down. Silent. Guilty.

A beat passed.

Then Aria’s phone buzzed.

Message from Sloane:

Forget the photo. It’s bait. Hale just dropped a sealed affidavit with a judge. Something about your original company launch. This is his real move. He’s going for your license.

Aria looked up at Dominic.

“Playtime’s over,” she said.

He nodded. “Then let’s end him.”