CHAPTER 21. The Glimpse Behind His Secrets
Eva didn't plan to overhear anything.
She had only followed Derek out of the gala hall because she needed air—real air, not the heavily perfumed, suffocating blend floating inside the ballroom. Her nerves were already frayed after their private dinner, after the way he had leaned close enough to brush her ear with his breath. After the way she'd felt him watching her mouth more than the menu.
She just needed space.
But space was impossible around a man like Derek Hale.
As soon as she stepped into the quiet hallway, she heard it—his voice. Low. Sharp. Controlled in a way that made her freeze mid-step.
"—I told you not to contact me here," he hissed into his phone.
Eva stopped. Her hand hovered near the marble pillar, her heartbeat suddenly too loud in her ears.
She shouldn't listen.
She absolutely shouldn't listen.
But her curiosity—her weakness where Derek was concerned—won.
She leaned slightly, just enough to catch the next words.
"I don't care what they offered," Derek said. "Pull out. If they move without my approval, I'll shut everything down myself."
What? Who was they?
His voice dropped lower, furious, dangerous. "You tell him that if he comes near her, there will be consequences. I don't repeat myself."
Her?
Eva's stomach clenched.
Was he talking about her?
A door creaked, and Eva's breath caught—she ducked behind the pillar just as Derek ended the call. She waited, breathing shallowly, praying he wouldn't notice her.
But fate apparently hated her.
"Eva."
Her entire body jerked.
Derek stood a few feet away, shadowed by the dim corridor lights, suit jacket loose around his shoulders, tie undone. His expression—God, his expression—was unreadable. Part irritated, part amused, part something far darker.
"How long," he asked, "have you been standing there?"
Her throat tightened. "I wasn't listening."
He arched a brow.
She immediately corrected herself. "Okay, maybe… a little."
He stepped closer, slow and deliberate, like a man approaching prey he fully intended to claim.
"Curious kitten," he murmured. "You never stay where I put you."
"That's not— I wasn't trying to—" she stammered.
"Then why are you trembling?" he asked softly.
His fingers brushed her wrist. Just a touch, nothing more. But it sent a bolt of heat shooting straight through her.
"I'm not trembling," she whispered.
"You are."
And she was. Not out of fear. Out of the intoxicating mix of desire and confusion Derek always managed to stir inside her.
He tilted her chin up with a single finger, forcing her to look at him. "You heard something you shouldn't have."
"Then tell me what it means." Her voice surprised even her—quiet, but not weak.
Derek's gaze flickered, something unguarded flashing in his eyes. He didn't answer immediately. Instead, he leaned against the opposite wall, crossing his arms. A cold distance settled over his features—the kind he used when he wanted to shut the world out.
"You don't need to be involved," he said.
"That's not an explanation."
"It's all you're getting."
Her frustration surged. "Derek, why are you always like this? Hot one moment, distant the next? Why act like you care—like you're protecting me—then refuse to tell me anything?"
His jaw tightened. "Because knowing too much puts you at risk."
She blinked. "Risk from what?"
He didn't answer.
"From who?" she pressed.
Still nothing.
"Derek."
Finally, he exhaled sharply, dragging a hand through his hair. "Eva… my life is complicated."
"Everyone's life is complicated."
"Not like mine."
He stepped toward her again, each footstep echoing with a controlled tension that prickled along her spine. "You think you want honesty, but if I tell you the truth, you won't look at me the same way."
Something in his voice—raw, almost vulnerable—hit her unexpectedly hard.
"Try me," she whispered.
He stared at her for a long moment, weighing something in his mind.
Then he reached into the inner pocket of his suit jacket.
Eva's breath caught.
He pulled out a sleek black access card—nothing decorative, nothing labeled, but ominously blank except for a raised symbol: a silver "V" carved into the surface. Sharp edges. Beautiful. Intimidating.
"What's that?" she asked.
"Something you shouldn't have seen," he replied.
She stepped closer. "Derek… what is it?"
His eyes locked onto hers, and for the first time, he didn't hide behind charm or dominance. For the first time, he looked… haunted.
"It's authorization," he said. "For one of my private facilities."
"Private facilities?" she echoed. "Like a company building?"
His silence was not comforting.
"Eva," he finally said, "there are parts of my life that have nothing to do with business, or reputation, or money. Parts I keep hidden because they attract the wrong sort of attention. Because if the wrong people find a weakness…"
He reached out, his fingers brushing her cheek.
"You could be used against me."
Her heart stuttered.
"Used?" she whispered. "By who?"
His voice dropped to a whisper. "People who don't care about rules. Or consequences."
The corridor felt colder suddenly.
Fuelled by a mixture of fear and stubborn courage, she asked, "And that call? Was it about me?"
His silence was answer enough.
She swallowed. "Why?"
His hand slid to the back of her neck, warm, protective, too intimate.
"Because they noticed me watching you," he murmured. "Noticed the way you look at me. Noticed that you matter."
Her breath hitched. "And that's dangerous?"
"Yes."
"But why do I matter?" she asked softly.
His thumb brushed the sensitive spot behind her ear. "Eva… you know why."
She did.
She absolutely did.
But hearing it from him mattered.
"Say it," she whispered.
His eyes darkened. "If I say it, I won't be able to stop. You understand that, don't you?"
Her pulse hammered. "Derek—"
A noise cut her off.
A sharp metallic click.
Both of them froze.
Derek's hand dropped instantly, and the warmth vanished like it had never been there. His expression shifted into something cold, dangerous, lethal.
"Stay behind me," he murmured.
Eva's breath caught. "Derek—"
"Now."
She obeyed.
He moved forward slowly, eyes sharp, body tense, every part of him shifting from seductive billionaire to something she had never seen before—something trained, controlled, and frighteningly capable.
He reached the end of the corridor and—
Another click.
Then silence.
He waited. Listened. Assessed.
Only after several long seconds did he relax slightly, though not fully. "False alarm," he said. "But we're going back inside."
She hesitated. "Wait—Derek—what does the 'V' stand for?"
He turned his head slightly, just enough for her to catch the chilling glint in his eye.
"Something you're not ready to know."
"Will I ever be?" she asked.
He paused.
"Depends," he said quietly. "On whether you stay close… or decide I'm too dangerous to want."
The lights flickered overhead.
And Eva suddenly knew—whatever Derek was hiding wasn't small. It wasn't mild. It wasn't something she could ignore or walk away from.
It was a world.
A world she was already stepping into.
Whether she meant to or not.