Page 110 of Unguarded

He really loves me. He’d do anything to be with me, even this.

He starts to back away to give me access to the mic for my acceptance speech, but I grab his hand and pull him up to it with me.

“I don’t have much to say right now because I feel like I’m floating outside of my body and watching some other girl get everything she’s ever dreamed of.” I stare down at the trophy before looking up at Cash. “But I do want to say, for the record, this wouldn’t have happened without you. Without you, I might not even be here tonight.” My throat constricts, and I fight to hold back the desire to burst into tears of joy. “And I love you too.”

He tugs me into him, wrapping his strong, capable arms around my body. The roar of the applause is deafening. Ipull back just enough to wrap my arms around his neck, pressing a kiss to his lips. A hundred cameras flash around us.

He deepens the kiss, as if we aren’t in front of millions of viewers right now. His tongue swipes over my lips, and he groans into me. I pull back with a laugh.

“We are in public.”

He releases me, keeping one arm around my waist as we exit the stage. “I know, and I just need them all to get a good look and remember how verymineyou are.”

Later that night,we’re cuddled up in my hotel suite on the king-sized bed. We’ve made passionate love twice already, but we’re taking a much-needed break to rehydrate and snuggle.

“If I wasn’t the winner, what was your plan?”

“I considered lying and burning the envelope.”

I swat his chest.

“No, actually, I didn’t get that far. I just tore it open before walking out in hopes you were the one written on it. It would’ve been awkward to take over the entire presentation like I did if someone else was on there.”

“I can’t believe Zade just dipped out like that. He lives for being the center of attention.”

He stiffens, lifting his arm to scrape a hand over his hair. “Ah, he might not havevoluntarilyforfeited.”

I sit up, gaping at him. He grins, trailing his fingers down my exposed chest and circling one of my nipples.

“What did you do?”

“I found out what he and Ember did, and … after some persuasion, he told me that he was the one feeding Tony Ziggler insider information.”

He watches me closely as I absorb what he said. I open my mouth to respond, but words don’t come.

“I know.” He rubs a hand over my arm, chasing the goose bumps away. “You don’t have to worry about it anymore. He and Ember were in some twisted-up organization together that found call girls who looked like celebrities. I’m really sorry, baby. I took care of it. He won’t be a problem, but Ember …”

“She’s got to go.” I nod, a chill passing over me.

My best friend’s betrayal feels deeper now, somehow colder.

“I don’t get it. I don’t get why this happened. How did they benefit?”

He shakes his head. “For her, I think it was deep-rooted jealousy. She wanted what you had, even if it was just a piece of it. It started with just the satisfaction of knowing your man wanted her. She got in too deep and had to go further and further. He had ahold of her, manipulating her to think she’d get her own chance at fame instead of staying in the shadows as your assistant. He was just using her, but he convinced her they would be together, giving her the chance to make her own name. For him, it was all his reputation. Ziggler threatened to expose his involvement in the escortbusiness. Zade thanked me for taking care of the problem for him. That’s how I found out.”

“He knows you took care of Ziggler? What if he tells someone and exposes you?” My eyes widen in fear.

If anything happened to Cash, I couldn’t bear it.

He shakes his head. “Trust me, I scared the shit out of him. He’d be a lunatic to come after me. Right now, he’s got nothing to worry about. If he tries to get revenge, he’ll have to deal with the entire Redford family. I explained to him just how foolish that would be. Not to mention, I’d tell them about his little business venture. He’d lose too much.”

I shiver, snuggling deeper into Cash’s warmth. “Who knows what would have happened to me if I hadn’t hired you? He would’ve let that man just …” I shake my head, not wanting to finish the sentence.

The way I once trusted Zade brings on a wave of nausea.

He holds me closer, nuzzling my ear. “You are safe now. You’re safer with me than you’ve ever been before. And I’m not going anywhere, Princess.”

The last orderof business I have to take care of is dealing with my assistant. Confronting Ember is something I’d rather not deal with at all, but it must be done. She has access to so much of my life right now, and I can no longer trust her.

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