Page 99 of Duty Unbound

I couldn’t help but smile as I buried my nose in the bouquet, inhaling deeply.

The scent was odd—too sweet, almost chemical. Before I could process that thought, the world started tilting sideways. My vision blurred at the edges, darkness creeping in like spilled ink.

Something was wrong. Very wrong.

“Ethan,” I tried to say, but my tongue felt heavy and useless in my mouth.

The roses fell from my hands as I slumped against the steering wheel. My last conscious thought was that I should have listened to the security guard after all.

Then everything went black.

Chapter 32

Ethan

I checked my watch for the third time in five minutes. Fifty-two minutes. That’s how long Mel had been gone on what should have been a simple coffee run. The afternoon sun beat down on the back of my neck as I stared across the winding driveway toward the gate, willing her car to appear.

“Any movement at the gate?” I asked into my radio.

“Negative,” came Ty’s immediate response. “No sign of Mel returning.”

Something didn’t feel right. I pulled out my phone and sent a quick text:

Everything okay?

The message showed as sent but not delivered. Probably just bad reception. I pocketed my phone and continued my security rounds, tamping down the nagging worry that was starting to build. Mel was a grown woman who’d been taking care ofherself—and her high-maintenance sister—long before I came along. Still, with an active stalker situation, even one fixated on Nova, no one should be going out alone.

I’d have a serious conversation with her when she got back. And I’d have an even more serious talk with Davis, the guard who’d let her leave without an escort. Security measures were worthless if people simply ignored them when convenient. He’d be lucky if he had a job at the end of the day.

As I rounded the corner toward Nova’s wing of the house, the pop star herself came striding down the hallway, tablet in hand, deep in conversation with her choreographer.

“I don’t care if they’ve been practicing for weeks, Dexter. It’s not working,” she said, gesturing dramatically. “The whole sequence needs to be simplified.”

Dexter spotted me first and gave a quick nod. Nova turned, her expression shifting from irritation to something more calculated.

“Well, if it isn’t our head of security.” She flashed that megawatt smile she used on everyone from fans to record executives. “Everything safe and sound out there in the big bad world?”

“Nova,” I acknowledged with a nod. “Everything’s secure on the property.”

Her eyes flicked to Dexter. “Give me five minutes? I need to talk to Captain America here about a few things.”

Dexter rolled his eyes but headed back down the hall. “Don’t forget we still need to finalize the lighting cues if we’re changing choreography.”

Nova shook her head as Dexter left. “He can be such a diva.”

I nearly swallowed my tongue trying not to state the obvious.

“Did you and Mel have a good time on your little vacay?”

The memory of Mel at my ranch flashed through my mind—her face lit with wonder as she fed apples to the horses, herlaughter around the fire pit with my parents, the way she looked at the mountains like she’d found a piece of herself there.

“We did,” I said, keeping my tone neutral. “She seemed to enjoy the break. Speaking of Mel, did she talk to you when she got back?”

Nova’s perfectly shaped eyebrows drew together in confusion. “Talk to me about what?”

Shit. I’d stepped right into it. “Nothing important. Just some…logistics she mentioned wanting to discuss with you.”

“Oh.” Nova waved a dismissive hand. “We haven’t had time for any real conversations. It’s been nonstop preparation for Phoenix. Where is she anyway? She went for coffee forever ago, and I’m dying for caffeine.”

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