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I lift my head slowly. “I’m not promising to succeed.”

“I’m just asking you to show up.”

I nod once. “Fine. I’ll do it.”

Nova exhales like she’s just won a war. “Thank you,” she says. “Truly.”

“I haven’t even started yet,” I reply, arms crossed. “You said you want me to help him find someone. I’ll need to observe him. Learn what he’s actually like, not what the public thinks he is.”

“That makes sense.”

“But I can’t do that here,” I add. “This… this isn’t my environment. I do things best when I’m home.”

Nova frowns slightly. “Home?”

“Bardstown,” I say. “Kentucky.”

She straightens at that. “You want him to go to Bardstown?”

“If you want me to help him, then he needs to be in his most honest environment. And this”—I gesture around the luxury office, the glimmering city skyline behind her—“isn’t it. I know real people in my town. Good people. People who don’t care about his fame. If there’s a chance for him to build something authentic, it’s there. We had a literal prince in Bardstown for eight years and no one knew.”

Nova thinks for a second, then nods slowly. “Honestly, that might be a great idea. The team’s already trying to keep everything low-profile. A small-town setup could keep the paparazzi off our backs.”

“I’ll need him to actually live there, at least temporarily.”

“I’ll do my best to convince him.”

“And the women I match him with?” I raise a brow. “They’ll be from Bardstown. My town. No wannabe influencers or Hollywood hopefuls.”

“I wouldn’t want them to be,” she says. “I don’t need anyone looking for attention. I want someone who won’t stress him out. Someone with a quiet, grounded life.”

I eye her skeptically. “You make it sound like he’s a golden retriever.”

She laughs. “He’s honestly a retriever who thinks and acts like he’s a tiger. Trust me.”

I’m still not convinced, but there’s something in her tone—some genuine affection beneath all the business-speak. “You actually believe he’s a good guy?”

Nova’s smile softens. “I do. Deep down, Jack’s… kind. He’s just spent so long building walls with women that he doesn’t know how to drop them anymore.”

I tap my fingers against my thigh, the edge of sympathy creeping in despite myself.

“And one more thing,” she adds, leaning in. “Can we keep this private? Just between us? If word gets out, this whole thing becomes a circus. I don’t want the media tearing into every woman you introduce him to, and I certainly don’t want anyone exploiting you for it.”

“I wasn’t planning on posting it to Instagram,” I say dryly, but I nod. “Yeah. I can keep it quiet.”

Just then, the door opens.

Jack strolls in, coffee in hand, looking far too casual for someone whose career is hanging by a thread. “Are we still talking about me like I’m not in the building?”

JACK

Nova slices me a glance, but Mia doesn’t. She keeps her gaze firmly on Nova while acting like I’m not in the room. I expect to see Mia hurling a flower pot at someone’s head. Instead, she’s seated calmly, legs crossed, arms folded, and wearing an expression that screamsI already regret agreeing to this.

Which surprises me. I don’t know whether I’m relieved or disappointed to see that she’s accepted the job. Nova seems to think this is great for my image, and I’m willing to see how that will play out. But Mia carried herself like she was different, like she couldn’t be bought or swayed by fame. But they’re all the same… she’s the same. No way I thought she was different.

“Jack, can you sit?” Nova nods at the chair next to Mia.

I’d rather sit on the floor than be so close to her. There’s something about Mia that just makes me itch.