Page 136 of What Comes Around

Knox stepped forward, placing himself slightly between us, not blocking my view but making the boundary unmistakable.

“You’re done here,” Knox said. “You’ve said your piece. She listened. She said her piece. Now leave.”

Nick stared at him, then at me, like he was trying to memorize something he’d just lost. He nodded once, shoulders sagging as the fight drained out of him. He looked defeated.

Then he turned and walked out.

When the door clicked shut behind him, Knox turned toward me. His eyes swept over my face, checking me, assessing me. The possessiveness from moments earlier hadn’t faded. If anything, it had sharpened.

“Are you alright,” he asked quietly as he crouched in front of me.

I nodded, though my pulse was still uneven.

Knox’s gaze softened just a fraction. “Come here.”

He pulled me into his chest, one arm around my waist, the other settling at the back of my neck.

“He thought he had a chance with you,” Knox said, voice low. “He thought he could walk in here and take something that isn’t his.”

I slid my hands up his shoulders, grounding myself in the solid warmth of him.

“He was wrong,” I said softly.

Knox’s grip tightened just a little.

“I chose you,” I continued. “Not because you claimed me. Not because you’re… you. But because I want you. Because I feel safe with you. Because you’re the one I want in my life.”

His breath hitched, barely noticeable unless you were pressed against him like I was.

“I’m not going anywhere,” I said. “Not because you won’t let me. Because I don’t want to.”

Knox leaned back just enough to look at me, his eyes darker, something fierce and vulnerable flickering beneath the surface.

“You mean that,” he said quietly.

“I do.”

His thumb brushed my jaw, slow and reverent, like he was memorizing the moment.

“Good,” he murmured. “Because I’m not losing you. Not to him. Not to anyone.”

Chapter 42: Right on Schedule

On Monday, Apple’s lawyer sent an envelope to Knox. It arrived mid-morning, hand-delivered by courier. Linda brought it in without comment, but her eyes flicked briefly to me before she set it on Knox’s desk.

Titan stirred in his dog bed near the window the moment Linda stepped inside. When he recognized her, his posture relaxed again, though he remained awake, his dark eyes tracking the envelope as she placed it on the desk.

Knox opened it immediately, scanning the contents in silence, one page after another. His expression gave nothing away.

“What is it?” I asked.

He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he set the papers down in front of me and slid them across the desk.

“Read it.”

A quiet unease settled in my chest as I picked them up.

Legal documents.