"Smile for the cameras, Loren." Jasper's fingers dug into the fabric of my waist.

I forced the corners of my mouth up. Flashbulbs popped from behind the dining room's floor-to-ceiling windows.

"Perfect," Jasper murmured. He released his grip the second the photographers moved to the next pane of glass.

I grabbed my water goblet. My hand shook, rattling the ice cubes against the crystal.

"Are you cold?" Kael asked.

His deep voice carried across the long mahogany table. I flinched.

"She's fine, brother," Jasper answered for me, slicing into his steak. "Just overwhelmed by the attention. It is her first time in the Hawthorne spotlight."

I risked a glance upward. Kael sat directly opposite me. He wore a charcoal suit that fit his broad shoulders flawlessly, projecting total authority. The small, jagged scar on his chin caught the chandelier’s light, a harsh reminder of the face resting on the pillow beside me this morning.

He wasn't looking at Jasper. His dark eyes locked entirely on me.

There was no mockery in his expression. No triumph. Instead, a heavy, quiet ache settled in his gaze. He looked at me like I was a tragedy he desperately wanted to fix.

I snapped my eyes back to my plate. The roasted pheasant tasted like ash.

If he spoke up right now, the two-million-dollar deal would vanish. Jasper would throw me out on the street. The Hawthorne family would crush my parents for the scandal. Sleeping with the older brother hours after signing a contract with the younger one was corporate suicide.

"Loren hasn't touched her food," Kael pointed out.

"Nerves," Jasper said smoothly. He reached over and covered my trembling hand with his. "She wants everything to be perfect for the press tour tomorrow."

Kael’s eyes dropped to Jasper’s hand. A sharp muscle flexed in Kael’s neck.

"Is that right, Loren?" Kael asked.

"Yes," I forced the word out. My throat felt tight.

Kael set his silver fork down. The metallic clink echoed in the massive room. "A marriage built on a business arrangement rarely brings an appetite."

Jasper chuckled, a cold, hollow sound. "Always the romantic, Kael. We are building an empire. Romance is for the poor."

"And what are you building, Loren?" Kael pressed.

I stared at the white tablecloth. "A future."

"At what cost?" Kael murmured.

Jasper frowned, finally sensing the shift in the room. "Enough interrogations. She is my fiancée, not a hostile takeover target."

I pushed my chair back. The wooden legs scraped loudly against the marble floor.

"Excuse me," I said, my voice thin and wavering. "I need to use the powder room."

I didn't wait for Jasper's permission. I turned and practically ran out of the dining hall.

The hallway was dim, illuminated only by small wall sconces. I hurried toward the east wing, desperate to reach the safety of my locked bedroom.

A tall shadow detached itself from the alcove ahead.

"Running away won't solve the problem."

I halted. Kael blocked the corridor. He had abandoned his suit jacket, leaving him in a crisp white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms.

"Please let me pass," I said, keeping a wide distance between us.

"You looked terrified in there," he noted.

"Because you keep staring at me!" I snapped, dropping my voice to a harsh whisper. "Jasper is going to notice."

Kael took a step forward. I instantly took a step back, my spine hitting the cold wall.

"I don't care what Jasper notices," Kael said.

"I do! That contract is the only thing keeping my parents out of federal prison."

He closed the distance between us. He didn't touch me, but his towering frame trapped me against the floral wallpaper. The scent of rain and mint wrapped around me, violently yanking my memory back to the dark guest room.

"Two million dollars," Kael said softly. "That is what he bought you for."

"You know about the debt."

"I run the Hawthorne empire, Loren. I know everything." His dark eyes searched my face. The hardness I expected from a ruthless CEO was entirely absent. "You don't have to do this."

"I don't have a choice."

"You do." He raised a hand, his knuckles grazing the wood paneling right next to my cheek. "Don't ruin your life for a man who views you as a press release."

"It's just a fake marriage. I can survive it."

"Can you?" Kael’s voice dropped, raw and heavy. "Can you survive living in this house, pretending to love him, while I am right down the hall?"

Panic clawed at my chest. He was going to use this. He was going to hold last night over my head like a guillotine.

"What do you want, Kael?" I demanded. "Money? A confession? Are you going to tell the press I slept with you?"

He recoiled slightly. The accusation struck him like a physical blow.

"You think I would expose you?" he asked.

"You hold all the power! If you tell Jasper, the deal is dead. My family is ruined. The scandal will destroy us."

"I would never hurt you, Loren."

"You already did!" I shoved his chest. He didn't budge. "You took advantage of me in the dark. I thought you were him."

A muscle feathered in his jaw. "You screamed his name."

"Because I was drunk and angry!"

"And today?" Kael asked. "Are you angry today?"

"I am terrified." I wrapped my arms around myself, creating a barrier. "If anyone finds out about last night, my life is over."

Kael stared at me for a long time. His hands dropped to his sides.

"I have watched you for three years," Kael said.

The admission froze the blood in my veins.

"What?" I whispered.

"Three years, Loren. At the charity galas. At the country club. I watched you smile, I watched you help your father's failing company, and I watched Jasper swoop in with a predatory loan."

My mouth fell open. I couldn't form a single word.

"I didn't take you into that room to ruin you," Kael continued, his tone laced with a quiet, fierce devotion. "I took you because I couldn't stand hearing you pledge your life to a man you despise."

"You..." I shook my head, my mind spinning. "You knew who I was."

"Always."

"But Jasper—"

"Jasper is a fool." Kael stepped back, giving me space to breathe. "I am offering you a way out. Let me pay the debt. Walk away from him tonight."

He wasn't threatening me. He was offering a rescue.

But the Hawthorne brothers didn't do favors. They made acquisitions.

"If you pay the debt," I said, my voice shaking, "what do I owe you?"

"Nothing."

"Liars," I spat. "Both of you. Jasper wants a prop. What do you want?"

Kael held my gaze. "I want you to stop hurting."

I squeezed my eyes shut. This was a trap. A different kind of snare. If I accepted Kael's money, the scandal would be inevitable. Jasper would find out. The media would tear me apart as the gold-digger who played two billionaire brothers against each other.

"Keep your money," I told him, opening my eyes. "And keep your mouth shut about last night. If you really care about me, you will stay away."

I pushed past him, marching toward my bedroom.

"Loren," Kael called out.

I didn't stop walking.

"Jasper didn't draft that marriage contract to save your father," Kael's voice chased me down the hall. "He drafted it to steal the final shares of your family's company."

I stopped dead in my tracks.

Before I could turn around to demand an explanation, the heavy oak doors of the dining hall swung open.

"There you are," Jasper announced, stepping into the corridor. His cold eyes darted between Kael and me. "Am I interrupting something?"