My Safest Danger

A Marriage in Progress

Damien's POV

I squeezed my eyes shut, remembering the hatred in her eyes. She hated me so much, and I didn’t even understand it.

Her eyes were never like that with that other bastard, even after he broke her heart and had already been planning with her uncle’s lawyer regarding her inheritance.

I’d been keeping tabs on him, and that was how I found out. Why f*****g me?

“Boss, your PA is at the door,” Marco whispered as he made his way to me.

“What’s the time?” I asked, lifting my head from the back of the couch.

He glanced at his watch for a few seconds. “It's almost nine pm. Should I let her in?”

“Nine p.m.” I repeated, pulling the loose sides of my robe to cover my chest. “Let her in.”

The sound of heels against the floor made me glance over my shoulder. She flashed me a smile and ran a finger through her hair, moving toward me.

“Sir, I'm sorry for being late.” She lowered herself into a squat in front of me, leaning closer as she brought a file from her bag. “I had a lot on my plate, but it's prepared already.”

I grabbed the file from her, scanning through the pages. “I asked for it a day ago, and you're just bringing it now?” My fingers tapped against the file. “You could have sent it as a document if you were so busy. Do you know what time it is?”

“That didn't cross my mind.” She twirled her hair. “The way you said it, I figured it must be something important and had to bring it privately.”

My eyes remained on the file, turning the pages.

“Sir.” She adjusted her blouse, her gaze shifting to Marco before returning to mine. “My skin is very sensitive to the cold. I don't know if we can get inside while I explain it to you.”

I snapped the file shut. “Are you implying that I'm an illiterate who can't read?”

“No, that's not it. I…” She stammered, pressing her lips together. “You look worn out, I just wanted to save you the stress.”

“Get out.” I thrust the file back to her.

She slowly rose from her squat, taking it from me. “Should I leave it on your desk at the office, then?”

“Yes.” My gaze dropped to the file in her hands. “On top of your resignation letter.”

She lowered her gaze to the file, then turned on her heel.

Everything I wanted to know was already stated in the file. Jace’s company was in worse shape than I’d expected. His debts were piling up, and he’d already approached several investors for help. Every investor he’s counting on next week is in that file. Let's see how far it goes.

My phone vibrated beside me. Damon’s name appeared on it. I answered, leaning back against the couch. “What!”

“You don't have to burst my eardrum,”he hissed from the other end.

I rubbed my jaw. “What do you want? Be fast.”

“It's about Matteo. He’s already won over several key players here. That man is growing really strong.”

My gaze lifted toward the sky. “Any information about his VIP client?”

“He has several VIP clients, of course. Is there a particular one you're looking for?”

“Matteo and Skylar are like the moon and the sun.” I tapped my fingers against the armrest. “They have nothing to do with each other.”

“So you're trying to say Matteo isn't the one who wants her dead?” He paused for a moment. “Did she offend any of his clients, or what?”

I shook my head. “Not that I know of. Whether it's her life or her company, I don't even know what they're after.”

“You don't even know what they want?” he asked, sounding stunned.

“I told you already, a contract came in to get rid of her in exchange for help finding…” I trailed off. “I didn’t even know who it was at first.” An exhale followed. “It has to be his VIP client. Matteo treasured this person enough for him to hand it over to me.”

Damon went quiet. I pulled the phone away from my ear to see if the call was still connected. “Are you listening?”

“Still looking for her?” he finally answered.

My fingers stilled against the armrest. “Either she truly offended someone, or someone close to her wants her gone. So, in all, the VIP client I’ve been looking for all this while, the one sponsoring Matteo, knows Skylar.” I rubbed my forehead. “Which doesn’t even make sense to me.”

There was a movement on his end.”You’re avoiding my question.” He let out a sigh. “If someone close wants her gone. Might be that bitch.”

“That bastard’s little company is almost down.” My fingers drummed against the armrest. “Just a small touch on it, and it’s already crumbling. He doesn't have the funds to sponsor Matteo.”

“Don't forget he came from a rich family. You can’t rule him out just because he’s struggling right now.”

I rubbed my thumb across my lower lip. “He’s still ruled out. The timing isn't adding up, and Skylar is making this hard. She doesn’t even trust me. She thinks I’m lying about her life being in danger.”

“How can she trust you when you bugged her phone?” He scoffed. “You don't even give her breathing space. Shouldn’t you just sit her down and tell her everything?”

“I’m keeping her alive, Damon.”

“My brother has got to be the most stupid human on earth. Are you actually following her around because you love her? No, not even love, because that's a strong word.” He cleared his throat. “Or you just don’t want Matteo to have his way?”

“It's none of your business.” I lowered the phone as one of my men walked into the compound, dragging two men behind him. Marco hurried over, taking hold of the men to restrain them.

Their eyes darted around the compound and landed on me. I ended the call and slipped the phone into my pocket. The moment they were released in front of me, both men dropped to their knees, their hands clasped together.

“Please, sir…” one of them pleaded. “Don't do anything to us, s-sir.”

I crouched beside him, lifting his face by the chin. “Don’t do anything, you say?”

“They were caught just before they could leave the country, boss.” Robert, the second head of my security, stepped closer. “The two had already gotten themselves fake identities.”

“The first man I saw lay his hands on her still has that arm wrapped and supported around his neck. Maybe a month before he recovers. And the second and third men?” I studied his frightened face before releasing his chin. “Locked where no one can find them. And you two?” My eyes moved between them. “You were supposed to be her guards, but you left her alone for some chicken change.”

“We didn’t receive anything, sir.” The other man shook his head. “We were threatened. Please, we aren’t lying.”

I tilted my head. “Threatened? Spill right now.”

“Someone told us to get rid of Miss Skylar, or they’d kill our families.” His voice trembled.

The other guard nodded quickly. “They told us if we couldn’t do it, we should turn a blind eye to what they were about to do to her.”

“We went upstairs that day,” the first man continued. “We were waiting to tell Miss Skylar everything when an anonymous call came in.”

“What did they say?”

He swallowed. “They knew we were going to tell her. It was like they were watching us.”

“The person told us to check under the couch,” the other guard added. “That there was a note under it. And truly, when we did, we found one.”

My brows lifted. “What was written on it?”

“Your time is numbered.” He stammered, lowering his head. “We love Miss Skylar. I swear, we would never harm her.”

“We took the letter and left,” the first man whispered. “We were frightened. If anything happened to Miss Skylar, we’d be the ones held responsible. So we decided to escape the next day.”

“There are cameras all over her house. You didn’t plant them?”

They exchanged a glance. I watched them for a second before pacing toward the swimming pool.

She is a private person. Her cook, who also works as her cleaner, has been thoroughly investigated. Her two friends, secretary, and Jace are the only people who regularly have access to her house.

“Boss.” Robert’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. “What should we do about them?”

I glanced over at the men. “Keep them safe.”

He frowned and reached into his pocket, handing me a paper.

My fingers closed around the paper, pulling it toward me. I scanned every line to make sure everything was typed correctly.

Our marriage certificate was ready.