Page 16 of Protect Thy Enemy

We’re crouched in the shadows, waiting for Harris’s signal. Leo’s breathing is steady, but there’s something in his eyes, something I don’t recognize until later.

“Grant,” he says, his tone quieter than usual. “There’s something I need you to promise me.”

I glance at him, frowning. “Now’s not the time for this.”

“Just listen,” he insists, his voice firm. “If something happens to me, I need you to look after her.”

Her?I narrow my eyes. “Who’s her?”

Leo’s lips twitch, almost like a smile, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “My daughter.”

The weight of his words takes a moment to sink in. I didn’t know much about Leo’s personal life because he kept it separate from the job. But the way he says daughter makes something tighten in my chest.

“You’re not dying today,” I say gruffly, trying to push the thought away.

“Maybe not,” he replies, his voice soft. “But just in case... promise me, Grant. You’re one of the few people I trust.”

I hesitate, my instincts screaming at me to shut this down. But something in his gaze won’t let me refuse.

“Fine,” I mutter. “But it won’t matter. We’re both walking out of here.”

Leo doesn’t respond. He just nods, his expression unreadable.

I wake with a start, the memory lingering like a phantom.

The seriousness of Leo’s request settled quietly in the back of my mind until the day Arden Williams’s name came across my desk. At first, I thought it was a coincidence. Just another name.

But when I saw her, the fire in her eyes, and I knew.

It wasn’t a coincidence.

It was her.

Leo’s daughter, standing in front of me with his determination in her eyes and his recklessness in her blood.

I scrub a hand down my face, the lingering haze of the dream making it harder to think clearly.

I told myself I could handle this. That I’d keep that stupid promise I had no business making without letting it interfere with the job. But I didn’t count on her getting under my skin like this. Not this soon.

She’s not her father. Yet every time I see her, I feel the same weight in my chest, the same fear that history will repeat itself.

And I won’t let that happen.

Not again.

Chapter Six

Holden

Temptation wears many faces.

Some slip in quietly, settling into the cracks of your defenses. Others burst through like a battering ram, disrupting everything in their wake.

Arden Williams? She’s the latter. A forced presence I didn’t ask for, pulling at the carefully controlled order I’ve built over the years. She doesn’t just step into a room. She disrupts it, making me take notice whether I want to or not.

And the worst part? She has no idea, and I have no idea why she does.

I’ve spent years trying to forget that promise I made to a man who looked death in the eyes, and just when I thought I did, a mirror was delivered right onto my lap.

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