Dominic’s office was a fortress of quiet menace.
Dark wood. Sleek steel. A skyline that made men feel untouchable.

But Aria wasn’t here to be impressed.

She was here for blood.

She slammed the printed photo—Dominic and Hale, bourbon between them—onto his desk.

“You should’ve told me everything the second I walked back in.”

Dominic didn’t flinch. “I knew what you’d think if you saw that out of context.”

“No. You knew I’d ask questions you didn’t want to answer.”

He looked tired. Not weak—just worn down in a way she hadn’t seen before. Like he’d been holding up a house that was already on fire.

“I was trying to keep you out of it,” he said again.

“You keep saying that, but I was never out of it, Dominic. I was just blind.”

He rose and came around the desk, slower than usual. No sharp movements. No charm.

Just truth.

“Hale cornered me that night. He didn’t ask me to partner—he told me I would. Said if I didn’t, he’d use you. He already had eyes in your firm. Leverage I didn’t see coming. So I cut ties. With you. With everything.”

Aria stared at him, jaw tight. “And you really thought pushing me away would protect me?”

“I thought it would hurt less than what he planned.”

Before she could fire back, the door opened.

Dominic’s assistant poked her head in. “Sorry to interrupt, sir. There’s someone here demanding to see you. Says it’s urgent.”

Dominic frowned. “Who?”

But before she could answer, a woman strode into the room.

Mid-thirties. Smartly dressed. Eyes like razors.

“Hello, Dominic,” she said, voice clipped. “Still screwing up good things for bad reasons?”

He blinked. “Sloane?”

Aria’s gaze snapped between them.

Dominic’s silence confirmed it.

Sloane Maddox. Former cybercrimes investigator. Ex-employee of Blackwood Capital. And—if the rumors were true—Dominic’s one real mistake before Aria.

Sloane turned to Aria. “Nice to meet you. I’m the woman who almost married him before you did.”

Aria arched an eyebrow. “Almost?”

“Because I walked away when I realized secrets were more important than people.”

Sloane looked at both of them.

Then said, cool and clear:

“Marcus Hale is planning to move against both of you. And you’ve got less than 48 hours before it hits.”