It had been a week since the incident with Oliver, and Kate had buried it like it never happened. She didn't have time for personal drama, so she threw herself back into Sienna's case. That morning, she was sitting behind her desk with a cup of cold coffee beside her and her eyes locked on the marriage contract between Julian and Sienna. She'd read that document a thousand times, but something still felt off. She flipped through the annexes again, and finally, there it was. A paragraph buried in the fine print, practically invisible. She leaned in, heart skipping a beat. "In the event that either party engages in an extramarital relationship, and it is proven with solid evidence, the offending party shall pay the other party the sum of…" "You've got to be kidding me..." she muttered, reading it again. A hundred thousand dollars. None of that had been in the version Julian sent to the lawyers. She leaned back in her chair and let out a sharp exhale. "Asshole." Suddenl

Grayson didn't move. Kate was standing just a few feet away, like a scene from a movie he wasn't supposed to be in. Ethan had one hand hovering near her back, and Kate hadn't fully stepped away yet. Grayson clenched his fists so hard his nails dug into his palms. "Mr. Maxwell, are you alright?" Alan, his attorney, had agreed to meet him here to go over the lawsuit filed against him. But Grayson didn't want to talk. He didn't want to move. He barely wanted to breathe. "Yeah," he said curtly. "All good." Alan nodded, then glanced toward where the couple stood and gave a slight smile. "Cute couple, huh?" he commented. "Very romantic." Grayson raised an eyebrow, and the look he shot him could've frozen hell over. Then he turned back to Kate. She hadn't seen him. But Ethan had. And he held his gaze like he was saying, She's not yours anymore. Grayson had to fight the urge to cross the distance, grab him by the collar, and wipe that smug half-smile off his face with a pun

His lips crashed into hers, and even though her mind was screaming, her skin remembered—the one night that man had made her feel alive. That same kiss had been her undoing once. Still, she kept her lips tightly closed. But her traitorous body shivered when Grayson's tongue brushed her bottom lip. His fingers tangled deeper into her hair, tilting her head to deepen the kiss. Her knees were shaking, and every part of her betrayed her, aching for the familiar heat of Grayson's touch. But her pride—her pride was stronger. With a sharp push, she shoved him back. Her hand slapped across his cheek, echoing through the room. "Don't you dare touch me!" she hissed, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "You think you can kiss me whenever the hell you want?" Grayson reached up and touched his reddened cheek. His eyes burned with a mix of pain and barely contained rage, yet a bitter smile curled his lips. His fingers brushed her neck, where she kept her wedding ring on a hidden cha

"Let her go," Grayson said again, voice low and sharp. Julian hesitated for a beat, then finally loosened his grip and released Kate's arm. She stepped back, clutching the sore spot, but didn't take her eyes off him for a second. "Well, well… the great Grayson Maxwell. The dark knight swooping in to save the lawyer." Grayson didn't respond. He just stood there, still and focused, watching him like a predator sizing up its prey. Julian slowly turned his gaze back to Kate, and his expression twisted into something cruel. "Or should we call her by another title?" he sneered, savoring every word. "I wonder… does Sienna know her lover's getting cozy with another woman? Funny, isn't it? The same woman fighting to give her her freedom." Kate's jaw clenched, but Julian kept going, clearly enjoying every second. "Of course she doesn't know. But let me give you a little advice—don't get your hopes up. Grayson has a thing for Sienna. Sure, there've been others, but he'll never leave

Kate's heart slammed violently against her ribs. Her face didn't flinch—not a single muscle moved. But inside, it felt like the ground had cracked wide open beneath her feet. "Excuse me?" she said, even though she'd heard her perfectly. Sienna tilted her head, studying her like she already had every piece of the puzzle laid out. "You know," she said smoothly, "I looked into your past. And after finding out your father went bankrupt, something else caught my attention. Your sister, Catherine, was supposed to marry Grayson. Funny, isn't it? That both you and Grayson claimed you didn't know each other…" A knot twisted hard in Kate's stomach, but Sienna didn't stop. "So I dug deeper. And deeper. And you know how it goes—with enough money, people talk. Your gardener, for instance, was very helpful. Told me you traveled to Scotland seven years ago." Sienna smirked. "Coincidence? The exact age of your son." Kate swallowed, unable to speak. But Sienna wasn't finished. "What reall