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“Thanks for the insight,” I snap, then immediately regret my tone. It’s not Eli’s fault I’m in this mess. He’s just doing his job, even if that job involves being my unwanted shadow.

He chuckles, a low rumble that somehow makes him seem less intimidating despite his imposing size. “For what it’s worth, I’ve seen worse arrangements.”

“Worse than being forced to marry a man who thinks he can dictate my entire life?” The words come out bitter and sharp.

“Could be raining.” He deadpans, and despite myself, the corner of my mouth twitches.

The light ahead turns yellow, and Eli eases the SUV to a stop. I watch a group of pigeons waddle across the crosswalk, taking their sweet time while my mind circles back to Zeke’s words.We marry in one week.No discussion, no compromise, just another command from the all-powerful Ezekiel King.

“You’re doing it again.” Eli observes, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel.

“Doing what?”

“That thing where you’re plotting someone’s murder in your head. Your jaw gets all tight.”

I force my clenched teeth to relax, not realizing how tense I’d become. “I don’t plot murders. I solve them, remember?”

I shift in my seat, studying Eli’s profile. His jaw is set in that perpetual serious expression, but there’s something approachable about him despite his intimidating size. Maybe it’s the way his eyes crinkle slightly at the corners when he speaks, or how he seems to radiate calmness.

“So,” I begin, aiming for casual but the tension comes out in my own voice, “you’ve known Zeke a long time?”

Eli’s expression doesn’t change, but I catch a slight tightening around his eyes. “Long enough.”

“And in all that time, has he always been this,” I wave my hand, searching for the right word, “controlling?”

“Protective.” Eli smoothly changing lanes. “There’s a difference.”

I snort, crossing my arms. “Is there? Because from where I’m sitting, it feels pretty damn similar.”

Eli remains quiet for a moment, and I wonder if I’ve pushed too far. But then he speaks, his voice thoughtful. “You want to know what he’s been up to since he disappeared on you?”

Heat creeps up my neck at being so transparent. “I’m just trying to understand how someone goes from ghosting me to deciding we’re getting married in a week.”

“A lot can happen in a year,” Eli says carefully.

“Like what?” I press, turning in my seat to face him better. “Because the Zeke I knew…” I pause because it sounds ridiculous. Did I ever really know him at all? “The Zeke I thought I knew wasn’t like this.”

“Maybe you should ask him yourself.”

“Right, because he’s so forthcoming with information,” I mutter. “Every time I try to talk to him, he just issues more commands.”

“He was different after you,” Eli says quietly, almost to himself. “Harder. More focused.”

My heart stutters. “Different how?”

But Eli just shakes his head, his expression closing off. “Like I said, you should talk to him.”

Always riddles and vague responses with these people. I’m starting to think I’ll never get answers.

I’m staring out the window again when Eli’s deep voice cuts through my thoughts.

“You know what I see when I look at Zeke?” His knuckles whiten on the steering wheel. “I see a man who’s carried the weight of responsibility since he was just a kid. Lost his parents, had to protect his little brother, and navigate a system that didn’t give a damn about either of them.”

My chest tightens.

“He did what he had to do to survive.” Eli’s voice grows more passionate. “Made choices that haunt him, sure. But everything—everything—he does is about protecting the people he cares about.”

“By controlling them?” I challenge, my voice lacking the bite it had earlier.