CHAPTER 7 — WHEN THE WALLS CRACK
Ariel didn't realize how long she had been staring at the frozen screen until her eyes began to sting. The office was quiet—too quiet. Everyone else had gone home hours ago, yet she remained at her desk, fingers hovering uselessly over the keyboard.
Her mind wasn't on work.
It was on that voice from the elevator.
"His love is a lie. Stay away from him before it kills you."
The message replayed in her head in a loop she couldn't shut off. She barely knew Kade. He wasn't her lover. He wasn't someone she trusted. And yet… someone out there thought she needed warning.
Why?
Why her?
Why him?
A headache throbbed behind her eyes. She rubbed her temples and shut her laptop, unable to force her brain to function. Maybe she should just go home before she spiraled any deeper into panic.
She grabbed her bag and rose from her chair.
And froze.
Kade stood in the doorway—leaning on the frame, suit jacket gone, shirt sleeves rolled up, dark hair slightly mussed as if he'd run his hands through it in frustration. He looked nothing like the cold, untouchable CEO who signed contracts worth millions every week.
He looked… tired. Humans. Dangerous in a different way.
"How long have you been standing there?" Ariel whispered.
"Long enough to know you're not okay," he replied.
The low concern in his voice made her throat tighten.
He stepped into the office, his gaze scanning her face as if trying to read what she wasn't saying. "Why are you still here? It's past ten."
"I could ask you the same thing," she murmured.
"Fair." His jaw tightened, a sign she had learned meant he was troubled. "But you look like you've seen a ghost."
Ariel swallowed hard. She wanted to lie. To brush it off. To pretend she wasn't shaken to her bones.
But his steady stare made lying impossible.
"Kade… something happened earlier."
He stilled. "In the elevator?"
Her breath hitched. "How do you know?"
He exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. "I saw the camera footage."
Her heartbeat leaped painfully. "Then you saw—"
"Yes," he said quietly. "I saw someone grab you. I saw you try to get away. I saw the moment the lights went out." His voice hardened. "I should've been there. I should've—"
"You didn't know," she cut in quickly. "You can't blame yourself."
A muscle ticked in his jaw, but he didn't argue. He walked past her, stopped in front of the floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the city, and braced a hand against the glass.
"Kade… what did the security team say?" she asked softly.
"That it wasn't a random attack." He turned, his eyes sharp and unreadable. "Someone disabled the camera feed and used a masked stand-in to enter the elevator. This was planned."
Her knees felt weak.
Planned.
Not random. Not mistaken identity.
Planned.
Her voice trembled. "But planned why? I don't have enemies. I barely have friends."
He hesitated—only a fraction—but enough for her to notice.
"There's something you're not telling me," Ariel whispered.
Kade didn't move.
Didn't blink.
Didn't deny it.
Instead, he stepped closer to her—slow, deliberate, predatory in a way that made her heartbeat twist.
"Ariel," he murmured, "if someone wants to hurt you to get to me…"
She felt the world tilt. "Why would anyone try to get to you through me? We barely know each other."
His voice lowered. "Because you don't matter to them. That makes you the easiest target."
The words hit her like a physical blow.
But the intensity in his eyes—dark, possessive, furious—told her something else.
He cared. More than he should. More than he allowed himself to show.
"Kade…" she whispered, shaken.
He took another step, invading the small space between them. "You're trembling."
"I'm scared," she admitted quietly.
"Good," he said. "Fear keeps you alert." His jaw tightened again. "But you're not leaving here alone tonight."
Before she could argue, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, sleek key fob.
"I'll drive you home," he said. "And tomorrow, you get a security escort until we find who did this."
Her heart jumped. "Kade, that's too much—"
"It's not enough," he snapped—then stopped, closing his eyes as if reining himself in. When he opened them, his voice was gentler. "Ariel… someone tried to hurt you."
The softness of her name on his lips made her chest ache.
"But why me?" she whispered.
He hesitated.
And for the first time since she met him… Kade Blackwood looked unsure.
"I wish I knew," he murmured. "But trust me—this won't happen again."
He moved past her, offering his hand. Not forcefully. Not arrogantly. Just… steady. Waiting.
The city lights glowed behind him.
Ariel stared at his hand.
At the man who terrified her, protected her, confused her—all at the same time.
Slowly, she placed her hand in his.
It felt warm.
Safe.
Dangerously so.
And as he led
her out of the office, her heart whispered what her mind refused to believe.
Kade wasn't supposed to matter.
But somehow… he already did.