Hardin arrived at Lauren’s house at exactly 7:59 p.m.She’d been checking the clock since forever, getting increasingly irritated that he still wasn’t there. She’d almost called to lash out at him—did he not know it was already evening? What time, exactly, did he think “evening” was supposed to be?When the doorbell finally rang, a wave of relief washed through her—relief she didn’t even realize she’d been holding onto.She smoothed her expression into her usual mask of nonchalance and opened the door.“I was busy with something and didn’t notice how late it got,” she lied immediately.“Same here. Got caught up too,” he replied.She crossed her arms. “How long are you planning to keep working for Sadie? Until you get the revenge you want? Or are you actually okay working with her after that?”Hardin smirked. “Are you okay with that?”Ugh. He always knew how to flip things back on her. And damn it, that look he g

“I guess you really do have a weird way of saying thank you,” Charles muttered.“How did you know—”“I didn’t expect us to be having this kind of conversation,” Charles cut her off, glancing at her briefly. “Not this soon, Sadie. We’ve spent over a month together.”“Pull the car over,” she demanded suddenly.“Check the rearview mirror,” he said quietly.She did—and froze. A car was tailing them at an insane speed. Only then did she realize just how fast Charles was driving.Panic gripped her chest. A harsh, cold kind. She hated how helpless she felt. If Charles hadn’t shown up at the airport, she had no idea what would’ve happened to her. She was terrified—of the attack, of the unknown, and of the fact that she didn’t really know who Charles was. She’d been planning to leave to clear her head… but now? She buried her face in her palms, breathing unevenly.She didn’t know how long she stayed like that. But when she finall

Charles watched, amused, as Sadie hyped herself up. Of course, she couldn’t just be here without acting like a kid. Within minutes, the whole place was filled with her laughter.Secretly, when she wasn’t looking, Charles snapped a few pictures. He didn’t know why—he wasn’t usually the type—but he couldn’t let this moment slip by.Minutes later, they were driving away from the beach. Charles noticed her lips again and her face, and his chest tightened at the memory of what those men had done to her yesterday.“Do you have any plans for the rest of today?” he asked.“Umm… no. I was supposed to be back tomorrow evening.”“Can we go on a date, then? I don’t think we’ve done that since we met.”“We’re not kids, Charles. Dates are for high schoolers.”“Really? Babe?”“Yeah… I mean…” she laughed. “And I’m not a baby. Babe is like baby.”“You know, when a man calls you ‘babe,’ you’ve won a lottery to his heart.

It was 3 p.m. when Charles and Sadie finally stepped into the restaurant for their first proper meal of the day. Ironically, Charles had been the one to suggest the date, the manicure, and all those girly detours Sadie loved—but he was the one regretting it now.He caught a glimpse of his reflection in the glass door and winced.The makeup artist had almost turned him into a beauty-pageant contestant before he’d begged for mercy. Even now… yeah, this wasn’t his proudest look.“My favorite chef just started working here,” Sadie said as they walked through the reception.“He’s that good?” Charles asked, scanning the place. It was quiet—few diners, soft music, no chaos.“I love that he moved here,” Sadie said. “People here respect privacy. If this were his old place, I’d have been mobbed for autographs by now.”And true to her words, when they passed a couple, they simply smiled at her and moved on.Inside, there was only one ot