Page 60 of The Billionaire’s Contract Bride

“At first, I believed your father left you material capable of dismantling Blackthorne Logistics.”

“And when you realized he hadn’t?”

Damien stood motionless in the low light. “I continued.”

“Why?”

“Because not knowing where you were became intolerable.”

The confession didn’t sound like romance. It sounded like a trap.

Aria looked around the illuminated room. “This isn’t protection, Damien. It’s an obsession.”

“I never called it anything else.”

“What do you call it?”

“Necessary.”

“To whom?”

“To me.”

Aria turned the tablet screen toward him, displaying the photograph of her mother and Augustus. “What did your grandfather give her four years ago?”

For the first time, a flicker of genuine surprise crossed Damien’s face. He stepped forward and took the tablet. “I have never seen this record.”

“It was stored in your primary directory.”

“The corresponding field report has been erased,” Damien said, tapping the screen. “Executive deletion log. Only two credentials could execute that override.”

“Yours and Augustus’s.”

“Yes.”

“And you expect me to believe you didn’t delete it yourself?”

“I expect you to maintain your suspicion until facts prove otherwise,” he said, setting the tablet down. “Ask your mother when she wakes.”

“Assuming whoever accessed her room allows her to wake.”

The words landed like a physical blow. Damien’s hand reached toward her, then stopped inches short of her face.

“I will keep her alive, Aria.”

“You can’t promise that.”

“I can promise what will happen to anyone who attempts otherwise.”

Aria pulled the signet ring from her thumb and threw it directly at his chest. “You are sick.”

Damien caught the ring cleanly in his palm. “Yes.”

“You violated every private moment of my life.”

“Yes.”

“And you still expect me to stay beside you?” Her voice was beginning to lose the calm she fought for.