Page 28 of Billionaire’s Heartbreak

“No,” Squirrel repeated, his jaw locked. “It makes us look bad. Weak.”

“He’s a person, not a reputation,” I shouted.

Kai stood abruptly, already pulling out his phone. “I’m calling.”

Squirrel turned, eyes blazing. “Don’t⁠—”

Kai ignored him. “Emergency⁠—”

Squirrel’s fist connected with his face. The crack of the punch cut through the noise. Kai stumbled backward, his phone dropping from his hand.

6

Kai

“Ring. Ring. Ring.”

Wrong sound. Wrong timing.

The old-fashioned alarm ringtone I’d chosen months ago sliced through the chaos. For a split second, everything inside my head went still. June’s head snapped toward me, her eyes blazing before I even reached for the phone.

I bent down and picked it up from the floor.

I answered. The second I lifted it to my ear, I knew it was a mistake. June’s stare hit me like a slap—cold, disbelieving, accusing. She looked like I’d just been caught doing something wrong in front of the headmistress.

“Hello,” I said and knew instantly that I’d pissed her off.

“Are you serious?” June snapped.

She leaned closer to Dannie, checking for any sign of breath. Her fingers trembled against his throat, searching for a pulse.

My heart started pounding. The room was unbearably loud. Men arguing. Voices overlapping. Orders being shouted from every direction. No one knew what to do with their boss lying unconscious on the floor. Laura was yelling somewhere behind me, trying to take control.

“It’s your brother,” I said to June, though she hadn’t asked.

It was supposed to sound like a comeback. It didn’t.

The mention of Lincoln didn’t soften her glare. I knew what Lincoln meant to her. He wasn’t just her brother. He was the wall around her—the guard dog, the overprotective, intimidating man who scared the hell out of anyone who got too close.

Which was exactly why I had to answer. Because June wouldn’t listen to me anymore. To be honest, if I were her, I wouldn’t want anything to do with me either. Not now that she was officially the wife of a Triad boss.

And possibly my sister-in-law. The thought sat in my stomach like poison.

“What does he want?” June demanded without looking at me.

“I just picked up the phone,” I shot back. “It’s been two seconds.”

“I cannot deal with him right now.”

Her fingers remained pressed against Dannie’s neck, her whole body leaning over him as if she could wake him by force.

I let out a frustrated sigh. “He called me,” I said flatly. “Not you.”

“Shut the fuck up!”

June’s voice cut through the room like a gunshot. Everyone froze. The sound hit me straight in the chest.

“I can’t hear…” she said, shaky now. She pressed two fingers harder against Dannie’s neck, then leaned closer, watching his lips, his chest. Waiting.