Someone wanted the world to think I belonged to Adrian Cole.That was the thought rattling in my skull as the elevator rose.
The doors shut behind us with a soft hiss.
Adrian stood beside me—tall, controlled, not touching me, but the air around him felt electrified.
"What does that even mean?" I finally managed. "Who wants that? Why?"
He didn't answer.
"You said I needed to 'prepare myself.' Prepare for what?"
Still nothing.
Panic crawled up my throat.
"I swear, if this is some billionaire version of 'it's complicated—'"
"Lena."
His voice cut clean through my spiraling.
"You're not in trouble," he said quietly. "But you are being used."
"Great," I muttered. "Love when that happens before I've even qualified for dental."
The elevator reached the executive floor. The doors opened onto the dim, empty hallway.
Adrian led me to the same warm-toned private lounge from my first day.
He motioned to a seat.
I sat.
He didn't.
He poured two glasses of water, set one in front of me, then braced his hands on the table like containing something volatile.
"Tomorrow morning," he said, "the board has a strategy session."
I nodded slowly. "And that… is relevant to me how?"
"It wasn't," he said. "Until someone made it relevant."
My stomach twisted.
"Adrian. You're scaring me."
His eyes flicked up, met mine, held.
"You were never supposed to be involved," he said. "The partner agreement was meant to be handled quietly. With someone outside the company. Someone I chose."
"That sounds… worse."
"It's the opposite," he said. "It would've protected you. But someone had other plans."
"Which is why my name ended up in the file," I whispered.
"Yes."
"And why Markus keeps texting me."
"Yes."
"And why we're having a cryptic almost-midnight meeting like spies."
A faint exhale. Almost a smile. Gone instantly.
Adrian picked up a sleek tablet, tapped once, and turned it toward me.
"I had the latest board briefing pulled," he said. "It was updated four hours ago."
I leaned forward.
The slide was clean. Corporate.
Heading: KEY MESSAGING: EXECUTIVE STABILITY
Bullet points.
Financial projections.
Investor sentiment.
And then—
My breath vanished.
• Introduce Adrian Cole's Partner — Lena Hart
My name.Bold. Unavoidable.
"No," I whispered. "No, no. They didn't—"
Adrian watched me with terrifying stillness. "Now you understand why Markus called you a shield."
My hands shook. "They put my name in the board packet. Without telling you?"
"Yes."
"Without telling me?"
"Also yes."
I pressed a hand to my forehead. "I'm a marketing assistant. I don't even have full-floor access yet."
"They don't care," Adrian said. "They only care how you look beside me."
"That's—insane."
"That's power," he corrected. "And Grace knows how to use it."
I stared at the glowing bullet point.
The letters swam.
"What do they expect you to do tomorrow?" I asked. "Just stroll in with… me?"
Adrian didn't blink. "Yes."
Dread hollowed out my ribs.
"No," I breathed. "You're not actually going to do this."
"I didn't say that."
"Then what are you going to do?"
He sat across from me, leaning forward, intensity sharp enough to cut air.
"I'm going to find out who did this," he said. "And why they chose you."
"That's comforting and terrifying," I muttered.
His jaw flexed. "I won't allow them to use you."
Heat pricked my skin. "You say that like you can stop them."
His gaze locked on mine.
"I can," he said softly. "But you need to trust me."
I stared at him.
At the steel.The control.The quiet protectiveness he'd never admit out loud.
"I still have no idea why my name is there," I whispered.
"No," he said. "But we're going to find out."
Silence buzzed between us—thick, charged.
Then—A vibration.
My phone.
I jumped.
Adrian's attention snapped to it instantly. "Who is that."
I dug it from my bag.
Blocked number.
A new text.
He saw the slide.Get out of the building.Now.
My throat closed.
Adrian saw my expression pale. "Lena. What is it."
I turned the phone toward him—
But before he could read it, the lounge door clicked.
Not open.
Just… tested.
Like someone on the other side was checking the handle.
Someone who shouldn't be there.
Adrian stood instantly.
His voice dropped to a lethal whisper.
"Stay behind me."