Chapter Three : Trapped

The storm raged on, shaking the villa with every gust of wind. Rain pounded against the windows like a relentless drumbeat, and thunder cracked so loudly that Juniper swore she felt it in her bones.

  

She stood near the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, watching palm trees bend under the force of the hurricane. The dark ocean churned violently beyond the cliffs, waves crashing against the rocks with terrifying force.

  

Behind her, Adrian sat on the couch, his usual smug confidence replaced with something quieter, tenser. He had barely spoken since the power went out, and that alone was unsettling.

  

Juniper turned to him, crossing her arms. “So, is this where you admit that maybe, just maybe, you should have taken this storm more seriously?”

  

Adrian exhaled slowly, pinching the bridge of his nose. “If you are looking for an ‘I told you so,’ you are not getting one.”

  

She arched a brow. “I’ll take that as a silent confession.”

  

The candlelight flickered between them, casting long shadows across the room.

  

Another loud crack of thunder shook the villa.

  

Juniper glanced at Adrian again, this time noticing the tightness in his jaw, the way his fingers curled slightly against his knee. His usual air of control was slipping.

  

Her brows pulled together. “Are you… okay?”

  

Adrian’s head snapped up. His gaze met hers, sharp and defensive. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

  

Juniper hesitated. The wind howled outside, rattling the glass doors, and for the first time since arriving on this island, she saw something in him she hadn’t expected.

 

 Fear.

  

It was subtle. A flicker in his expression. The way his chest rose and fell a little too quickly.

  

Juniper took a slow step toward him. “You’re scared of storms, aren’t you?”

  

Adrian scoffed, but it was weaker than usual. “That is ridiculous.”

  

She tilted her head. “Is it?”

  

Silence stretched between them. The rain lashed harder against the windows.

  

Finally, Adrian leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “It’s not the storm itself,” he muttered. His voice was lower now, rougher. “It’s what they remind me of.”

  

Juniper’s chest tightened.

  

She sat down across from him, close enough to see the tension in his shoulders. “What happened?”

  

Adrian exhaled, rubbing his temple. “I was ten when my father took me out on his yacht during a storm. Said a Blackwood man had to be fearless. The boat nearly capsized.” His fingers curled into fists. “He locked me in a cabin below deck. Told me to ‘figure it out’ while the waves tossed the boat like a toy.”

 

Juniper stared at him, the weight of his words settling deep in her stomach.

 Adrian let out a dry laugh. “I spent hours in there, listening to the water crash against the hull, convinced I was going to drown. When we finally made it back, my father told me if I had been truly strong, I wouldn’t have been afraid at all.”

 

Juniper swallowed hard. She had spent so much time thinking of him as nothing more than an arrogant billionaire that she had never considered there might be cracks in his armor.

  

“Your father sounds like a real piece of work,” she said softly.

 

Adrian gave a humorless smile. “You have no idea.”

  

Another burst of wind slammed against the villa, making the candlelight flicker wildly.

  

Juniper hesitated, then reached out, placing a hand over his.

  

His fingers twitched beneath hers, as if he wasn’t used to being touched with anything other than expectation or demand.

  

“You are not that kid anymore,” she murmured. “And you are not trapped.”

  

Adrian’s gaze lifted to hers. For a moment, something unspoken passed between them. A shift in the air.

  

Juniper became hyper-aware of how close they were, the golden candlelight softening the sharp angles of his face. The usual arrogance in his eyes had been replaced by something else. Something raw.

  

Her heart pounded.

  

The tension between them was thick enough to drown in.

  

She should move. She should say something sarcastic to break the moment.

  

But she didn’t.

  

And neither did he.

  

A loud beep shattered the silence

The power surged back on, and the sudden brightness was almost jarring. Juniper blinked against the light, the spell between them breaking instantly.

  

Adrian exhaled, his expression snapping back to neutral as he pulled his hand away.

  

Juniper let out a breath, quickly standing. “Well. That was…”

  

Adrian cleared his throat. “Unexpected.”

  

She nodded. “Right. Exactly.”

  

The awkwardness lasted only a moment before Evelyn’s voice echoed through the villa’s intercom.

  

“Mr. Blackwood, you need to see this.”

  

Adrian frowned, standing as well. He grabbed the remote and turned on the large flat-screen television mounted on the wall.

  

The news channel flashed on, and Juniper’s stomach dropped at the headline plastered across the screen.

  

BLACKWOOD INDUSTRIES CEO UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR CORPORATE ESPIONAGE.

  

A reporter’s voice filled the room.

  

“Breaking news: Adrian Blackwood, CEO of Blackwood Industries, is currently under federal investigation for allegations of corporate espionage. Sources claim that confidential information from competing firms was accessed through an internal Blackwood Industries network. If proven true, this could result in serious legal repercussions…”

 

Juniper slowly turned to Adrian.

  

His face had gone completely blank, his jaw tight.

  

He was hiding something.

  

And she was going to find out what.

  

She crossed her arms. “Well, Blackwood. Looks like the storm outside isn’t the only one you need to worry about.”