Page 92 of Beautiful Scars

"We need to talk about the club," Z says, his voice tight. "About what needs to happen to make this believable enough to draw him out."

"Garrett's been content to watch from the shadows for years," Z continues, his eyes meeting mine briefly before shifting to Levi. "Until you showed up."

"What are you suggesting?" Jade asks.

My breath catches. I already know where this is going.

Z's jaw tightens. "If we want to force his hand, we need to give him what he's waiting for. The thing that's always made him act—Levi and Sunny together."

Levi pushes off the wall, taking a step closer. He runs his hand roughly through his hair. "Us, together?"

"I think," Z says carefully, "Sunny was right. Garrett's entire pattern revolves around keeping you two apart. The threats started when he found out you had seen Sunny. He's escalating because he sees history repeating itself."

"And you think us being together will make him snap?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

"I think it's our best shot," Z admits, though I can see how much it costs him to say it.

Levi's eyes find mine across the room, and suddenly I'm seventeen again, feeling that same electric pull that used to exist between us. Maybe it never really went away.

Jade clears her throat. "So, what exactly are we talking about here? Howtogetherare they supposed to be?"

"Enough to be convincing," Colt answers, his usual playfulness absent. "Enough to make him believe it's real."

I force myself to look away from Levi, catching the new tension in Z's shoulders as he outlines the rest of the plan. He's right—it all makes tactical sense. But watching him deliberately avoid looking at either me or Levi as he speaks, I realize that logical doesn't mean painless.

"We'll start tomorrow night," Z concludes. "Levi and I will both be at the club. Colt will run all of the surveillance from the van."

As everyone files out of the office, Levi catches my arm gently. The contact sends a jolt through my system that I'm not prepared for. When our eyes meet again, I know he felt it too.

"Are you going to be okay with this?" he asks softly.

"Does it matter?" I counter, but there's no bite in my words. Just the weight of everything we once were, everything we lost, and everything we might have to pretend to be again.

The tension lingers after everyone else leaves Z's office. I'm still caught in that strange space between Levi's touch and Z's carefully controlled expression.

"There's one more thing," Z says, making both Levi and me turn back. "You two look like you're about to break out in hives at the thought of touching each other. That's not going to work."

I feel the heat rise in my cheeks, but Z continues, his voice professional. "You've got eighteen hours before we put this plan in motion. Use them. Get comfortable with each other again. If you flinch every time he reaches for you, Sunny, or if you hesitate before touching her, Levi— Garrett will see right through it."

"What exactly are you suggesting?" Levi asks, and I hear the edge in his voice.

"I'm suggesting you figure out how to act like two people who were in love with each other and are working on rekindling things," Z replies bluntly, his voice tightly controlled. "Because that's what will get his attention. That's what will make him act."

Z's words settles over us. He's right, of course. The awkward distance between Levi and me might be real, might be earned, but it won't serve the purpose we need it to.

I catch Levi's eye and see my own resignation mirrored there. We both know what needs to be done, even if neither of us is quite ready to admit how dangerous this game might be—and not just because of Garrett.

Everyoneelsehasgoneto bed, but I can't sleep. I find myself in the kitchen, sitting on one of the barstools with a mug of hot tea in my hands, when Levi makes an appearance. He hesitates in the doorway, and I wonder if he'll leave when he sees me. Instead, he leans against the counter opposite me.

"Couldn't sleep either?" he asks softly.

I shake my head. The moonlight through the window casts long shadows that seem to fit the mood. We sit in the awkward silence between us, until I can't stand it anymore.

"I don't know how to do this," I admit. "How to pretend that everything that happened... didn't."

"I don't think we need to," Levi says, his voice gentle in a way I haven't heard since before. "We just need to find a way to exist in the same space without the pain of it standing between us."

"You think that's possible?"

---