Page 41 of The Billionaire’s Contract Bride

Aria stared at him, horror mounting in her chest. “Do you think I have it?”

“No.”

“Is that why you put me under surveillance?”

His hesitation was brief—barely a beat—but it was there.

“At first,” Damien admitted quietly.

“And afterward?”

His gaze drifted over her face with a raw, intense possession that made her blood run hot and cold all at once. “Afterward... the reason changed.”

Before Aria could demand he explain, Lucien appeared in the doorway, his face pale as he spoke urgently into Damien’s ear.

The shift in Damien was instantaneous. His entire body coiled like a weapon.

“What is it?” Aria asked, fear spiking in her chest.

Damien grabbed her arm, moving her rapidly toward the private exit. “We’re leaving.”

“Why? What happened?”

His grip tightened around her wrist—not in anger, but in fierce urgency.

“Someone just tried to break into your mother’s ICU room.”

Chapter Seven: The Woman Before Her

The Blackthorne hospital wing went into lockdown before Aria’s feet even touched the pavement outside the car.

She dialed the ICU nurses’ station three times during the desperate drive across the city. No one would give her any details beyond a repetitive, rehearsed confirmation that Evelyn remained stable.

“Who tried to get into her room?” Aria demanded, her voice cutting through the tense atmosphere inside the armored SUV.

Damien sat across from her, managing two encrypted phones simultaneously while Lucien coordinated with security teams from the front passenger seat.

“Damien!”

He ended one call, his expression grim. “A woman using stolen credentials.”

“Why would anyone target my mother?”

“To reach you.”

“No one even knew who I was yesterday!”

“They knew the moment I announced our marriage at six this morning.”

“Then this is because of you.”

“Yes.”

The immediate, unvarnished admission disarmed her anger, replacing it with a cold knot of dread.

“Who are these people?”

“Some want control of the company,” Damien said, his voice quiet and even. “Some want revenge. Some want to see what I will sacrifice to keep you safe.”