CHAPTER 25-The Aftermath
He didn't move toward her. He just stood there, breathing slightly unevenly, staring at her as if she'd spontaneously combusted.
"You could have blown our cover," he finally said.
"We don't have a cover," she said, crawling out. "We're married."
"They don't know that. They think it's a business arrangement."
"Is it?"
He didn't answer. He walked to the window, running a hand through his hair—a rare gesture of agitation. "What you did was reckless. Immature. Dangerous."
"It was a reminder," she said, standing. "That I'm not just a piece on your board. I'm in the game with you."
He turned. "That wasn't a game. Those men could destroy everything we're building."
"They won't." She walked toward him. "Because they're scared of you. And now they're scared of me too."
A flicker of something in his eyes—not anger. Respect. "You're learning."
"I have a good teacher."
They stood in silence for a moment, the tension shifting from confrontation to something else.
"My father," Luna said quietly. "He was part of the data leak investigation."
"Yes."
"Do you think he's involved?"
"I think everyone is a suspect until proven otherwise." Leo moved to his desk, tapping a screen to life. "Including your friend Jett."
On the screen was security footage from the Montegreco gallery. Jett, standing in a shadowed corner, talking urgently on his phone.
"Who is he talking to?" Luna asked.
"We don't know. The audio is scrambled. But he was agitated." Leo looked at her. "Your loyalty to him is a vulnerability."
"He's my friend."
"Friendship doesn't exist in our world. Only alliances and transactions."
"Is that what we are? A transaction?"
He met her gaze. "We started as one." He came around the desk, stopping close to her. "But transactions don't make your heart race when you're under a desk. Transactions don't make you want to…" He trailed off, his eyes dropping to her lips.
"To what?" she whispered.
He leaned in, so close she could feel his breath. "To rewrite the terms."
The intercom buzzed, shattering the moment.
"Mr. Wǎngshā, your 3 PM is here."
Leo closed his eyes briefly, then stepped back. "Duty calls."
"Always."
He paused at the door. "Tonight. Dinner. Just us. My study. We'll… talk about terms."
He left.
Luna stood alone in the command center, surrounded by data streams and secrets. She touched her lips, still feeling the ghost of his closeness.
She had started the day as a partner in a business arrangement.
She was ending it as something far more dangerous.
A woman who had gotten under the skin of Leo Wǎngshā.
And maybe, just maybe, into his heart.