TITLE:RUNAWAY BRIDE

Chapter 11: THE CONFRONTATION

3am.

The alarm went off.

Red lights. Sirens. Guards shouting.

"Mr. Smith! Breach at the east entrance!"

I shot up in bed. My heart was in my throat.

Alex burst into my room before I could move. No shirt. Just black trousers and fury in his eyes.

"Get up. Now," he said. He grabbed my hand and pulled me to the safe room behind his office.

"Is it him?" I asked.

Alex didn’t answer. He was on the phone. "Find him. I don’t care how."

Then the power cut.

Darkness.

Only the emergency lights. And Alex’s breathing next to me.

A crash from down the hall.

Footsteps.

The safe room door handle jiggled.

"Lily!" Daniel’s voice. Drunk. Angry. "I know you’re in there! Open the door!"

My blood went cold.

Alex stepped in front of me. His whole body was a wall.

"Daniel," Alex’s voice was low. Deadly. "You have 3 seconds to leave my house."

"She’s mine!" Daniel screamed. "You stole her!"

"She was never yours," Alex said. "And if you touch her, I will end you."

Silence.

Then a gunshot.

I screamed. Alex pulled me to the floor, covering me with his body.

Guards rushed in seconds later. Daniel was tackled, screaming.

When it was over, Alex let go of me. His hands were shaking.

"Are you hurt?" he asked. His eyes were scanning me like I might break.

"I’m... I’m okay," I whispered.

Alex let out a breath he’d been holding. Then he did something I didn’t expect.

He pulled me into a hug.

Tight. Real.

Not for cameras. Not for contracts.

"I’ve got you," he muttered into my hair. "I’ve got you."

For 10 seconds, the cold CEO was gone.

And all that was left was a man who was terrified of losing me.