Page 12

Ethan

The quiet of the Rivers estate settled around me as I made my final rounds for the night. The security upgrades were complete, the team was in position, and everything was running smoothly. I should head to my quarters and get some sleep.

Yet here I was, walking the marble corridors one more time, telling myself it was due diligence. Who was I kidding? I was hoping to run into Mel.

“Get it fucking together, Cross,” I muttered to myself, checking another door lock.

This was becoming a problem. When I’d taken this job, I’d promised myself I’d maintain professional distance. Mel might not be the primary client—a line I wouldn’t cross—but she was still off-limits.

But hell if I could get her off my mind. For the five days we’d been here, I found myself always half looking for her.

I’d spent years compartmentalizing, keeping emotions separate from work. It was what made me good at my job. So why couldn’t I get those green eyes out of my head?

I redirected my path toward the communications room. Might as well check in there before calling it a night. The door was ajar, blue light from the monitors spilling into the hallway.

“I sent Williams on an extended break,” Jace said without looking up when I entered. His fingers flew across the keyboard as he monitored the feeds. “Wanted some quality time with my beauties. These are the only women who don’t talk back.”

I snorted, dropping into the chair beside him. “You’re not scheduled for another four hours.”

“Sleep’s overrated.” He gestured toward a coffee mug that looked like it had been refilled multiple times. “Besides, I’m tweaking the motion detection algorithm. Some false positives on the east fence.”

Five days had passed since we’d moved in, and things had been quiet. Almost too quiet. The stalker had gone to ground, which either meant they’d been scared off or they were planning something bigger.

“Nova giving you any trouble?” Jace asked, switching to a different camera feed.

“Nothing I can’t handle.” I leaned back in the chair. “She’s used to getting her way.”

“They all are.” Jace chuckled. “You know celebrities. Same DNA, different packaging.”

The tour was due to start in just over a week. Security for a moving target was always more complicated than a fixed location. We’d have multiple venues to secure, transportation routes to plan, hotel rooms to sweep. The entire team was already shifting focus to those preparations.

“How’s Mel handling the social media leak?” Jace asked, eyes still on the screens.

I frowned. “What leak? ”

Jace spun in his chair to face me. “You haven’t seen it? Some insider source posted that Nova might be postponing or canceling her tour. It’s spreading like wildfire. Nova’s been blowing up Mel’s phone all day about it—the app couldn’t help much with that.”

That explained Mel’s tense expression when I’d passed her in the hallway earlier. Nova would be beside herself over something like this—especially now, a week before the tour was set to begin.

“At least Mel is level-headed,” Jace commented, turning back to the monitors. “Makes our job easier when someone in charge actually listens.”

A soft knock interrupted us. The door pushed open wider, and Mel stood in the doorway.

Speak of the devil.

“Sorry,” she said, hesitating at the threshold. “I saw the light. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“Perfect timing, actually,” Jace said, standing abruptly. “I need to grab some equipment from my room. Ethan can show you the system if you have questions.”

I shot Jace a look, which he returned with a barely suppressed grin before slipping out the door. Subtle as a sledgehammer. The guys had definitely noticed my…interest in Mel. I’d be hearing about this later.

“Don’t mind him,” I said as Mel entered. “He’s allergic to small talk.”

She smiled, and something in my chest tightened. Like the other night, she was in casual clothes—leggings and an oversized sweater that slipped off one shoulder. Her hair was loose around her face, and she wore no makeup. She looked comfortable. Real.

“I couldn’t sleep,” she admitted, moving closer to the bank of monitors. “Thought I’d check in, see how everything’s running. ”

“Take a seat,” I offered, gesturing to Jace’s vacated chair. “I can walk you through it.”

She slid into the chair, tucking one leg beneath her. I tried not to notice how the movement brought her knee closer to mine or how she smelled like vanilla and something floral.

“These are the main exterior cameras,” I explained, pointing to the top row of screens. “Full coverage, no blind spots. These monitor all entry points. And these—” I indicated the bottom row “—are the interior hallways and common areas.”

“No bedrooms, I hope?” She raised an eyebrow.

“Privacy ends at your door,” I confirmed. “Though we do recommend basic precautions in your private spaces. Curtains closed, that sort of thing.”

She nodded, studying the screens intently. “It’s impressive. I feel safer already.”

“That’s the goal.”

She turned toward me, those green eyes catching mine. “The tour starts next week. Are we ready?”

“We will be.” I shifted to pull up the tour schedule on another screen. “My team is already coordinating with venue security, mapping transportation routes, securing hotel floors.” I hesitated, then added, “Jace mentioned the social media leak. About the tour possibly being canceled.”

Mel exhaled heavily, running a hand through her hair. “Nova’s been in a tailspin all day about it. Her publicist has been trying to squash the rumors, but it’s not so easy.”

“Any idea who leaked it?”

“Could be anyone. Someone in the production team, venue staff, even one of the backup dancers.” She massaged her temples. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is Nova’s freaking out because ticket sales have slowed, and sponsors are getting nervous. Just what we needed on top of everything else. ”

“Are you excited about it?” I asked, steering the conversation away from the leak. “The tour, I mean.”

She laughed softly. “For Nova, yes. This is what she’s always wanted.” Her fingers traced an invisible pattern on the armrest. “For me? Tours are stressful. A million moving parts, endless problem-solving, and a lot of…”

“Babysitting?” I supplied when she trailed off.

“I was going to say personality management , but yes.” Her smile turned wry. “Nova in close quarters with her entourage for weeks on end can be…challenging.”

I studied her profile in the blue glow of the monitors. “Can I ask you a personal question?”

“Sure.” She shrugged one creamy shoulder, and it was all I could do to drag my attention away from it.

“Do you like what you do? Or do you only do it because Nova’s your sister?”

The question seemed to catch her off guard. She was quiet for a long moment before answering.

“Nova’s success was our mother’s dream,” she said softly. “Mom put everything she had into making it happen—time, money, energy. She worked two jobs, went without sleep, ate cheap food so Nova could have the best vocal coaches, the best dance instructors.”

Her gaze drifted to the screens, but I could tell she wasn’t really seeing them. “It’s heartbreaking that she died just before Nova really made it big. She never got to see all her sacrifices pay off.”

“So, you stepped in.”

She nodded. “I grew up as part of it. I’m good at the job. And I love my sister, despite her…” She gestured vaguely. “Nova-ness.”

“But if you hadn’t grown up in it? If you could choose anything? ”

Something flickered across her face—longing, maybe. Or regret. “I don’t know. I haven’t really thought about it.”

I didn’t believe that for a second. “What about art? You clearly enjoy painting.”

“Oh, that’s just for my own sanity,” she said quickly. Too quickly. “It’s not something I’d ever do professionally.”

“Then what? What would Mel Rivers do if she weren’t managing Nova Rivers?”

She glanced away, biting her lower lip. “What I really want…” She stopped herself, shaking her head. “It doesn’t matter. Nova needs me. That’s reality.”

I wanted to press further, to understand what she’d been about to say, but she changed the subject with practiced ease.

“What about you?” she asked. “Were you born a superhero, or did you morph into one as you got older?”

I huffed out a laugh. I had pat answers for questions like this—polished responses that satisfied curiosity without revealing too much. But something about the quiet of the room, the late hour, the genuine interest in her eyes made me want to give her more.

“I grew up on my family’s ranch in the San Luis Valley of Colorado,” I found myself saying. “Both my parents still live there. Good people. Hardworking.”

“Brothers or sisters?”

“One younger sister. She’s married, lives in Chicago with her husband and son. They’re happy.” I shifted in my chair. “I did things backward. Got a degree in forensics, then decided to join the Army. Spent just over ten years in, most of it in special operations.”

“And when you got out?”

“Security work was a natural fit. I had the skills, the training. Started Citadel with my savings and built it from there.”

She studied me, head tilted. “What do you like about it? Your job? ”

That used to be easier to answer. “I like putting my skills to work. Having a team I trust. Keeping people safe.” All true, but not complete. I’d been using the dangerous, high-risk missions as an excuse not to sit still long enough to take stock of my life since my breakup with Samantha.

It was time to stop doing that.

“Plus, most days don’t involve grenades,” I added with a half smile.

She laughed, the sound warming something inside me. “I would hope not.”

A comfortable silence settled between us. I was hyperaware of her presence—the way she tucked her hair behind her ear, the slight rise and fall of her chest as she breathed.

“It must be hard,” she said after a while, “meeting people in your line of work. Dating, I mean.”

The question surprised me. “It has its challenges. The travel, the unpredictable schedule. The secrecy about what I do, sometimes.”

“No Mrs. Cross in the picture, then?”

“No. Almost, once.” I hadn’t intended to share this, but it felt right. “I was engaged, but we broke it off. Realized we weren’t compatible before we made it official.”

“That’s rough. But better to find out before, I guess.”

“Much better.” I glanced at her. “What about you? Boyfriend hiding somewhere I should know about? Security concerns and all.”

She shook her head, smiling. “No time to date, really. Not since Nova’s career took off. I’ve been out with exactly two guys in the last eighteen months.”

“Only two? Their loss.”

Her cheeks flushed slightly at the compliment. “One was with a man named Tommy I met at a coffee shop here outside Dallas. We went out twice, and he was nice enough, but there just wasn’t any spark, you know? ”

I nodded, trying to ignore the relief I felt at hearing there was no spark.

“The other was a setup from Dexter. A friend of his named Benedict.” She rolled her eyes dramatically. “Total disaster.”

“How so?”

“Well, for starters, he showed up forty-five minutes late wearing what I can only describe as a cape.”

“A cape?” I couldn’t help laughing.

“Not a superhero cape. Like a fashion cape. With sequins.” She was laughing now too. “He then proceeded to order for me without asking what I wanted, lectured the sommelier about wine, despite knowing nothing about it, and spent the entire meal talking about his craft .”

“Which was?”

“Apparently, he’s a sound healer who specializes in vibrational realignment through crystal bowls .” She made air quotes with her fingers. “He insisted on demonstrating at the table. The manager asked us to leave.”

I was full-on grinning now. “That does sound like a disaster.”

“Sometimes staying single is just easier,” she said, still smiling.

“Easier, yes. But not always better.” The words slipped out before I could stop them.

Our eyes met, and something electric passed between us. The air in the room seemed to thicken. She was close enough that I could see the faint freckles across her nose, the flecks of gold in her green eyes.

“I should probably get to bed,” she said softly, but she didn’t move.

“I’ve enjoyed this,” I admitted. “Talking with you.”

“Even without my business attire?” There was a teasing note in her voice, but something vulnerable beneath it.

“Especially without it.” I held her gaze. “I like you like this. Comfortable. Real. ”

Her lips parted slightly, and for a wild moment, I thought about leaning forward, closing the distance between us. The urge was so strong it startled me. I hadn’t felt this kind of pull toward anyone in a long time—maybe ever.

But a movement caught my eye just as I was about to do something stupid. On the monitor behind Mel’s head, a shadow moved along the eastern perimeter. A figure dressed in dark clothing, moving with purpose toward the house.

“Shit,” I muttered, straightening up instantly. “We’ve got an intruder.”