Heath Vaughn's voice sliced through the tension like frozen steel, "I'd never let my child take another man's surname."
Kiera, seething with frustration, released the handrail and clenched her fists. "Can you both just stop?" she snapped, her voice cracking. "What's the point of dredging up the past now?!"
Before her words faded, the elevator plunged several feet with a sickening jolt. A deafening alarm blared through the confined space.
Kiera stumbled forward—but Heath's muscular arms shot out, locking around her waist as he yanked her flush against his chest in one fluid motion.
"Anyone alive in there?" came a muffled shout from outside.
"Three people!" Dylan called back urgently.
"Hold tight! We're prying the doors open—just hang on!"
Dylan exhaled in relief, his shoulders saggin
