The First Night Under His Protection
Selena did not sleep easily.
Even in a guarded room.
Even with two locked doors.
Even with Don Dawn's people outside.
Her body lay on the bed.
Her mind stayed awake.
Every time she closed her eyes, she saw a white dress stained with blood.
She saw Adrian.
She saw the Vale family standing over her while she died.
Then the image changed.
Ethan at the door.
Helena smiling.
Don saying one word—
Yes.
Selena opened her eyes again.
Darkness covered the room, soft and expensive, but not gentle. Dawn Estate did not feel gentle anywhere. Even its silence felt deliberate.
She turned slightly and looked toward the connecting door to Don's study.
A thin line of light still shone beneath it.
He was still awake.
Working.
Because of her.
That thought should have made her uneasy.
Instead, it made her strangely alert.
The system flickered in front of her.
Side Objective Updated:
Secure position beside male lead.
Current status: protection granted, trust unstable.
Selena frowned.
"Secure position" sounded simple.
It wasn't.
Don was not a man someone stood beside by accident. Everything around him had conditions.
Power had conditions.
Protection had conditions.
Interest had conditions.
And if she misstepped, she had no doubt he would cut her loose without regret.
A soft knock came from the outer door.
Selena sat up immediately, one hand already reaching toward the bedside lamp.
The guard's voice came through.
"Miss Laurent. Rowan is here."
At this hour?
"Come in," she said.
The door opened.
Rowan stepped in alone, neat as ever, holding a slim black folder.
His face looked calm.
Too calm.
That was rarely a good sign.
Selena swung her legs off the bed. "Something happened."
"Yes."
He handed her the folder.
Inside were printed images from security footage.
Upper corridor.
Service stairwell.
Private suite entrance.
Then one final image.
Selena's fingers tightened.
It showed Helena speaking to a maid she did not recognize.
The timestamp was just minutes before Selena had arrived upstairs.
"Who is she?" Selena asked.
"Temporary event staff," Rowan said. "Except she wasn't hired through Dawn Estate."
Selena looked up sharply.
"Meaning?"
"Meaning someone placed her inside the house."
The room went colder.
Selena looked back at the photo.
The maid's head was lowered, but Helena's face was clear.
Calm.
Elegant.
Conspiratorial.
No panic.
No surprise.
This was not a misunderstanding.
This was planning.
"Don has this?" Selena asked.
Rowan's expression did not change. "Mr. Dawn saw it first."
Of course he did.
"And?"
"He wants to know if you recognize the maid."
Selena studied the image again.
Then froze.
A fragment of Seraphina's memory surfaced.
A tray.
A lowered voice.
A hand offering a drink with perfect politeness.
Her pulse quickened.
"Yes," Selena said. "She brought the glass."
Rowan nodded once, as if confirming the last piece of a pattern.
Then he reached into his inner pocket and placed a second item on the bed.
A keycard.
Silver-edged.
Heavy.
Unmarked.
Selena stared at it. "What is this?"
"Access."
"To where?"
"The east archive hall, the private library, and this floor."
Selena looked at him in disbelief.
"That seems excessive for a woman your employer met tonight."
Rowan's gaze was neutral. "Mr. Dawn dislikes inefficiency. If you are going to remain useful, he prefers you able to move when necessary."
Useful.
Of course that was how it was phrased.
But Selena was not blind.
Access like this was not small.
It meant trust, or the beginning of trust.
It meant visibility.
It meant status.
It meant everyone in the house would notice.
Selena picked up the keycard slowly. "Does Vera know he gave me this?"
A pause.
Interesting.
"Not yet," Rowan said.
Selena almost smiled.
So Don had made the decision quickly.
Without committee.
Without discussion.
Without waiting for morning.
That told her more than Rowan intended.
"What else?" she asked.
Rowan looked at her for a moment.
Then he said, "Mr. Dawn also wants you downstairs at eight."
Selena blinked. "For what?"
"This house eats breakfast with enemies very well," Rowan said dryly. "He'd like to see how you do."
And just like that, Selena understood.
It was another test.
Not a conversation in private.
Not safety hidden behind closed doors.
A public positioning.
In Don's house.
At his table.
Her lips curved faintly. "He really doesn't believe in making things easy."
"No," Rowan said. "He doesn't."
He turned to leave.
Selena stopped him.
"Rowan."
He looked back.
"Why are you helping me?"
He considered the question just long enough to make the answer matter.
"I'm helping him," he said.
Then he left.
Selena sat still after the door shut, the folder in one hand and the silver keycard in the other.
The line of light still showed beneath the study door.
Don was awake.
Don had seen the evidence.
Don had given her access no one expected her to have.
And tomorrow morning, he wanted her seen at his table.
The system flashed.
Male Lead Interest Increased.
New status unlocked:
Protected Guest
Warning:
Public visibility will trigger enemy response.
Selena looked toward the study door.
Then down at the keycard.
A protected guest?
No.
That was too soft.
This was something else.
Something sharper.
Because if Don Dawn was willing to let the house see her at breakfast, then by tomorrow, everyone would know one thing:
The woman her family tried to ruin had not fallen.
She had landed somewhere far more dangerous.