Chapter 4 - Ryan Finally Came to See Me—But Adrian Was Sitting in the Shadows When My Fiancé Lied to My FaceRyan arrived that evening.
He looked worried.
Guilty.
Almost exactly as he had looked the night before our engagement.
“Emily.”
I wanted to run into his arms.
Instead, I stood still.
“Where were you?”
“Working.”
“You told me you were out with friends.”
He hesitated.
“Both.”
“Ryan.”
He sighed.
“You know how stressful work has been.”
I looked at him.
“You never answered my calls.”
“My phone died.”
“You texted me.”
His face changed.
“You said your phone died.”
“I used another phone.”
The lie came too quickly.
I knew.
He knew I knew.
Then Adrian stepped out of the shadows.
Ryan went pale.
“Who the hell are you?”
Adrian walked toward him.
“Adrian Duca.”
Ryan's face lost all color.
He knew the name.
Everyone did.
“You're…”
“Yes.”
Ryan looked at me.
“Emily, what is happening?”
I folded my arms.
“That's what I'm trying to figure out.”
Adrian placed the photograph on the table.
Ryan stared at it.
“I don't know him.”
“You met him three weeks ago,” Adrian said.
“No.”
“You're lying.”
Ryan stood.
“Who do you think you are?”
Adrian's eyes became ice.
“The man keeping your lies from killing her.”
Ryan looked at me.
“Emily, you can't trust him.”
“Why?”
“Because he's a criminal.”
Adrian smiled faintly.
“That part is true.”
Ryan stepped closer.
“Emily, come with me.”
I didn't move.
He reached for my hand.
Adrian stepped between us.
“Don't touch her.”
Ryan glared.
“You don't own her.”
“No.”
Adrian's voice was calm.
“She owns herself.”
Something about those words broke through me.
Ryan had spent months acting as though my feelings were an inconvenience.
Adrian had known me for barely two days.
Yet he understood something Ryan had forgotten.
I was allowed to choose.
Ryan looked at me.
“Do you really trust him?”
“No.”
Adrian looked at me.
“Good.”
Ryan stared.
I whispered:
“But I don't trust you either.”
His face crumbled.
He left without another word.
After the door closed, I turned toward Adrian.
“You didn't have to do that.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because you were afraid.”
I looked at him.
“I was.”
He nodded.
“Then I did.”
That night, I realized something terrifying.
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Adrian Duca wasn't simply protecting me.
He was beginning to care.
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