Guarded Truths
The door of Bellamy Gallery closed with a soft click, but Jason Jae’s presence lingered like the aftertaste of dark wine—rich, unsettling, impossible to shake off.
Gigi Jasmine drew in a breath and pressed her palms against the polished wood counter, grounding herself. She had stood her ground, hadn’t she? She’d faced him, dismissed him even, refused his dinner invitation. And yet her pulse still thrummed wildly, betraying her calm exterior.
She hated that.
Jason Jae was exactly the type of man she had vowed to keep at a distance—powerful, arrogant, used to taking what he wanted. Men like him left wreckage in their wake. She knew that truth better than most.
“Don’t let him get to you,” she muttered under her breath, as though scolding herself.
Still, she couldn’t ignor
