Chapter 13 : The Line Between Hate and Desire

The atmosphere in Ethan’s penthouse was charged with an unfamiliar tension. He sat at his desk, staring at the city skyline, but his mind wasn’t on business. It was on her. Lena. The woman who had been nothing but trouble since the moment she infiltrated his world. The woman who, despite his best efforts, refused to be easily dismissed.

Ethan clenched his jaw, rubbing his temples. It had been days since their last confrontation, yet her words still echoed in his head.

“You don’t seem like what people say about you.”

Why the hell did that bother him? He had built an empire on indifference, on pushing people away before they could ever get close enough to matter. And yet, this woman—this reckless, infuriating journalist—was slowly prying her way into his thoughts.

A knock at the door snapped him out of his trance.

“Sir, the board members have arrived,” one of his assistants announced.

Ethan inhaled sharply, brushing aside his thoughts. Business first. Always.

But as he stood and buttoned his suit jacket, he realized something troubling.

He hadn’t thought about Victoria, his own fiancée, in days.

*******************************************

Lena sat in a quiet corner of a coffee shop disguised,her black shades on and a cap , flipping through the documents she had managed to pull on Victoria . With each piece of information she uncovered, the woman’s pristine socialite image began to crack.

Victoria had married before—briefly. Her ex-husband, a wealthy investor, had gone bankrupt shortly before their divorce. The pattern was eerily familiar.

“Using men as stepping stones,” Lena muttered under her breath.

She tapped her fingers on the table, lost in thought. There was something bigger here, something Ethan was blind to. Victoria wasn’t just a manipulator; she was dangerous.

A shadow loomed over her table.

Lena’s pulse quickened as she looked up, only to see a man in a dark suit with sharp blue eyes staring at her.

“You should stop digging where you don’t belong,” he said in a voice so calm it sent chills down her spine.

Lena’s fingers curled around her phone under the table. “Who are you?”

The man smirked but didn’t answer. Instead, he slid an envelope onto the table and tapped it twice before walking away.

Lena hesitated before opening it. Inside was a single message written in perfect cursive.

“Stay away from Ethan Montgomery. This is your only warning.”

Her stomach twisted. She had expected pushback—but not this.

Lena swallowed hard. This wasn’t just about a scandal anymore. She had just stepped into a game far more dangerous than she anticipated.

And Ethan was at the center of it.

Later that evening, Lena found herself outside Ethan’s penthouse, her heart pounding against her ribs.

What was she even doing here? She should be running in the opposite direction. But instead, she had come straight to him.

Before she could overthink it, she knocked.

The door swung open, and there he was—Ethan Montgomery, shirtless, a towel slung around his neck, his dark hair damp from a shower.

Lena’s breath hitched, but she quickly masked it. “We need to talk.”

Ethan raised an eyebrow. “You have an issue with boundaries.”

“And you have an issue with being played.”

That got his attention. His gaze sharpened. “What are you talking about?”

Lena hesitated for a second. Telling him about the warning note meant revealing how deep she had been digging. But this wasn’t about her anymore.

She stepped forward. “Victoria. She’s not who you think she is.”

Ethan exhaled through his nose, his expression unreadable. “I’m aware of who I’m marrying, Lena.”

“No, you’re not.” Lena’s voice softened, frustration laced with something deeper. “She’s using you, Ethan. And someone just threatened me to keep quiet about it.”

Ethan’s entire demeanor shifted. His casual stance stiffened, his jaw ticking.

“Who threatened you?” His voice was dangerously low, controlled in a way that made Lena’s skin prickle.

Lena hesitated. “I don’t know. But it means I’m onto something.”

Ethan studied her, his stormy gaze never leaving hers. He didn’t trust people easily. He didn’t let people in. But something about the way Lena stood before him, defiant and unwavering, made his walls crack—just a little.

She wasn’t afraid of him. She wasn’t trying to manipulate him.

She was trying to protect him.

And for the first time in a long time, Ethan wasn’t sure if he wanted to push her away.

Ethan finally steps closer, his voice barely above a whisper.

“You should have never gotten involved in this, Lena.”

Lena doesn’t back down. “Maybe not. But I’m here now.”

Their eyes lock, the air between them thick with something unspoken.

And for the first time, Ethan feels something he hasn’t felt in years—fear.

Not for himself.

For her.