Sophie didn't sleep. Couldn't sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw her mother's terrified face. Heard her voice on the phone. Imagined what Marcus was doing to her.
Seventy-two hours had become sixty hours. Then forty-eight. Now thirty-six.
Time was running out.
Adrian had mobilized every resource he had. Private investigators. Hackers. Contacts in law enforcement. They'd traced the call to a warehouse in Red Hook. But by the time Adrian's team arrived, it was empty. Marcus had moved her mother. Erased the trail.
He was too smart to make it easy.
Brandon was also missing. He'd disappeared after posting the video. Adrian's people couldn't find him. Couldn't track him. It was like he'd vanished.
Sophie knew where he was. With Marcus. Planning their next move. Using Sophie's mother as leverage to destroy the Ashford family.
And it was working.
Sophie sat in Adrian's office staring at a laptop. On the screen were files. Ashford family operations. Client lists. Financial records. Everything Marcus wanted. Everything that would destroy Adrian's empire if it fell into the wrong hands.
All Sophie had to do was copy them. Send them to Marcus. Save her mother.
Betray the man she loved.
"You're thinking about it."
Sophie looked up. Adrian stood in the doorway. He looked exhausted. Haunted. Like he hadn't slept either.
"Thinking about what?" Sophie asked.
"Giving Marcus the files. Sacrificing me to save your mother." Adrian walked into the office. Sat down beside her. "I can see it on your face. You're running calculations. Trying to figure out which choice you can live with."
"My mother is innocent. She doesn't deserve to die because I made stupid choices."
"You didn't make stupid choices. You tried to do the right thing. Marcus destroyed you for it. Brandon betrayed you. None of this is your fault."
"It is my fault. I brought this into your home. I let Brandon see us together. I should have been more careful."
"Sophie, look at me." Adrian waited until she met his eyes. "If you give Marcus those files, he'll use them to destroy my family. My father will go to prison. Our operations will collapse. Everything I've built will disappear. But your mother will live. And I understand if you make that choice. I understand if you choose her over me."
"You understand?" Sophie's voice broke. "How can you understand? I'm about to betray you. I'm about to destroy everything you've worked for. How can you sit there and tell me you understand?"
"Because I love you. And love means putting someone else's needs above your own. Your mother matters more to you than I do. That's okay. That's human. I won't hate you for it."
Sophie started crying. Big, ugly sobs that came from somewhere deep inside her. "I can't do this. I can't choose. Please don't make me choose."
Adrian pulled her close. Held her while she broke apart. "Then don't choose. Let me make the choice for you."
"What?"
"Give Marcus the files. Save your mother. I'll handle the fallout."
"Adrian, no. Your family—"
"Will survive or won't. But your mother is innocent. She deserves to live. And I won't let you sacrifice her for me. I won't let you live with that guilt."
Sophie pulled back. Stared at him. "You're telling me to betray you?"
"I'm telling you to save your mother. There's a difference."
"You'll go to prison. Your father will too. Everyone you care about will be destroyed."
"Maybe. Or maybe I'll find a way to minimize the damage. Maybe I'll disappear. Maybe I'll rebuild somewhere else." Adrian touched her face gently. "But I know one thing for certain. If your mother dies because I wouldn't let you save her, you'll never forgive yourself. You'll hate yourself. And eventually, you'll hate me for making you choose. I can't live with that."
"I can't live with betraying you."
"Then we're at an impasse." Adrian smiled slightly. It didn't reach his eyes. "But we have thirty-six hours left. Let's use them to find another way. A way that saves your mother and doesn't destroy my family. It's impossible. But you're brilliant. And I'm ruthless. Together we might be able to pull off impossible."
Sophie wanted to believe him. Wanted to think they could find a solution. But she'd been looking for one for days. There wasn't one. Marcus had designed this trap perfectly.
Someone had to lose. The only question was who.
Twenty-four hours left.
Adrian's investigators found a lead. One of Marcus's associates had been spotted in Brooklyn. Near a warehouse that had recently been rented under a shell company. It was thin. Barely anything. But it was all they had.
Adrian assembled a team. James. Four security personnel. All of them armed. All of them ready for violence.
"I'm coming with you," Sophie said.
"Absolutely not."
"That's my mother. I'm not sitting here while you risk your life for her."
"Sophie—"
"I'm coming. Don't argue with me. I'm armed. I'm trained in self-defense. I'm not helpless. And I'm not letting you do this alone."
Adrian looked like he wanted to argue. Then he nodded. "Fine. But you stay behind me. You don't take risks. And if anything goes wrong, you run. Understood?"
"Understood."
They took two vehicles. Drove to Brooklyn in the dark. The warehouse was massive. Abandoned. Exactly the kind of place someone would use for a kidnapping.
Adrian's team surrounded the building. Checked for guards. Found none. That should have been reassuring.
Instead, it felt like a trap.
They entered through a side door. The warehouse was empty. Dark. Silent. Sophie's heart hammered so hard she thought everyone could hear it.
Then they found her.
Sophie's mother. Tied to a chair in the center of the empty space. Gagged. Terrified. But alive.
Sophie ran to her. Started untying the ropes. Her hands shook so badly she could barely work the knots. "Mom. Mom, it's okay. I'm here. You're safe."
Her mother was crying. Trying to talk through the gag. Sophie removed it.
"It's a trap," her mother gasped. "He said it's a trap. He said you'd come. He said—"
The doors slammed shut.
Lights flooded the warehouse. Blinding. Disorienting.
When Sophie's eyes adjusted, she saw them. Twenty men. Maybe more. All armed. All surrounding them.
And standing at the front was Marcus Webb. Smiling like he'd just won a game.
"Hello, Sophie. Thank you for delivering yourself so perfectly. I was worried you'd do something smart like send the files instead of coming personally. But you're sentimental. That's always been your weakness."
Adrian moved in front of Sophie. His gun was drawn. His team formed a protective circle. But they were outnumbered four to one.
"Let them go," Adrian said. His voice was deadly calm. "This is between you and me. Marcus. Let Sophie and her mother leave."
"I don't think so. You see, I've been planning this for months. Since Sophie first threatened to expose my firm. I knew she'd be a problem. I knew she'd need to be dealt with. And when Brandon told me she was working for you, I saw an opportunity."
"Brandon," Sophie breathed.
Marcus nodded toward the shadows. Brandon emerged. He looked terrible. Drunk. Angry. Broken.
"Hello, Sophie," Brandon said. His voice was bitter. "Enjoying my brother? I hope it was worth it."
"You did this," Sophie said. "You set this up. You recorded us. You contacted Marcus. You helped him kidnap my mother."
"You fucked my brother. What did you expect? That I'd just let you humiliate me? Let Adrian take everything from me again?" Brandon laughed. It sounded broken. "I gave Marcus everything. Files. Locations. Security protocols. Everything he needed to trap you both. And now you're going to pay for what you did."
Adrian's gun was still trained on Marcus. "Let them go. Take me instead."
"Why would I do that? I have all of you. I have leverage over the entire Ashford family. Your father will pay millions to get you back. Your competitors will pay millions for the information Sophie gathered. And when I'm done, I'll have enough money and power to disappear completely."
"You're going to ransom us," Sophie realized.
"I'm going to sell you. To the highest bidder. You, Adrian. Your files. Everything. By tomorrow, the Ashford family will be destroyed. And I'll be rich enough to disappear."
Marcus gestured to his men. "Take them."
What happened next was chaos.
Adrian's team opened fire. Marcus's men returned fire. The warehouse exploded into violence. Sophie grabbed her mother and ran for cover. Bullets punched through walls. Bodies fell.
Sophie saw James go down. Saw two of Adrian's security team collapse. Saw Adrian fighting with lethal precision.
But they were outnumbered. Outgunned. They were going to lose.
Sophie pulled her mother toward an exit. They were almost there. Almost safe.
Then Brandon appeared in front of them. He had a gun. His hands shook.
"You ruined everything," he said. "You and Adrian. You destroyed my life."
"Brandon, please," Sophie begged. "Let my mother go. She's innocent. She didn't do anything."
"Neither did I!" Brandon's voice broke. "I didn't do anything except exist in Adrian's shadow. Except be the son my father didn't love. Except watch you fall for my brother instead of me. I didn't do anything wrong and I lost everything."
He raised the gun.
Sophie moved in front of her mother. If Brandon was going to shoot someone, it would be her.
"Do it," Sophie said. "Kill me. But let my mother go. Please. She's innocent."
Brandon stared at her. Tears ran down his face. The gun shook in his hands.
Then someone crashed into him from the side.
Adrian. Tackling his brother. They hit the ground hard. The gun skittered away.
"Run!" Adrian shouted. "Sophie, take your mother and run!"
Sophie grabbed her mother. Pulled her toward the exit. Behind them, she heard fighting. Shooting. Screaming.
They made it outside. Into the cold night air. Sophie saw police cars. Sirens. Someone had called the authorities.
Sophie's mother collapsed. Sophie held her. Told her she was safe. Told her everything would be okay.
But Sophie's eyes were on the warehouse. On the chaos inside. On Adrian who was still fighting.
Who might be dying.
"I have to go back," Sophie said.
"No," her mother grabbed her arm. "Sophie, no. It's not safe."
"Adrian is in there. He saved me. He saved you. I can't leave him."
"Sophie—"
But Sophie was already running. Back toward the warehouse. Back toward the danger. Back toward the man she loved.
She found him. Standing over Brandon's unconscious body. Blood on his face. His gun trained on Marcus who was cornered with nowhere to go.
Police flooded in. Started arresting people. Taking statements. Securing the scene.
Marcus was taken away in handcuffs. Brandon was arrested. Adrian's team was being treated for injuries.
Sophie ran to Adrian. He caught her. Held her. Neither of them spoke.
They didn't need to.
They'd survived. Barely. But they'd survived.
Later, much later, Sophie sat beside her mother in a hospital room. Her mother had been checked over. Treated for dehydration and minor injuries. She'd be fine.
Adrian appeared in the doorway. He looked exhausted. But alive.
"Can I talk to Sophie?" he asked.
Her mother nodded. Squeezed Sophie's hand. "Go. I'll be fine."
Sophie followed Adrian into the hallway. They stood in awkward silence.
"Brandon is being charged with kidnapping and conspiracy," Adrian said finally. "Marcus will go to prison for a long time. It's over."
"Is it?" Sophie asked. "The video Brandon posted. Everyone knows about us. About what we did. Your family's reputation—"
"Is damaged. But not destroyed. We'll survive." Adrian moved closer. "Sophie, I need to ask you something. And I need you to be honest."
"Okay."
"Do you regret it? Us. Everything that happened. Do you wish you'd never come here?"
Sophie thought about the last few weeks. The fear. The danger. The impossible choices. She should regret it. Should wish she'd never walked into the Ashford penthouse.
But she didn't.
"No," Sophie said. "I don't regret it. I don't regret meeting you. I don't regret falling in love with you. I just wish it hadn't cost so much."
"It's going to cost more. The scandal. The rumors. People will judge you. They'll say terrible things. Your reputation will suffer."
"My reputation was already destroyed. Marcus made sure of that. At least this time, I'm being judged for something I actually did. Something I chose. That's different."
Adrian pulled her close. Kissed her forehead. "I love you. I know it's fast. I know it's complicated. But I love you. And I want to be with you. Really be with you. Not as my brother's wife. Not as my employee. As my partner. My equal. My choice."
"What about Brandon?"
"Brandon made his choices. He'll live with the consequences. But I'm done letting him control my life. Done letting family expectations dictate what I can feel. I choose you. Completely. Absolutely. Forever."
Sophie looked at this man who'd given up everything for her. Who'd risked his life. His empire. His family. All for her.
"I choose you too," Sophie said. "Whatever comes next. Whatever people say. Whatever happens. I choose you."
They kissed in that hospital hallway like they had all the time in the world.
And for the first time since Sophie walked into Marcus Webb's office months ago, she felt free.
Free to choose. Free to love. Free to build a life on her own terms.
The Ashford family would recover or wouldn't. The scandal would fade or wouldn't. None of it mattered as much as this.
As choosing love over fear. As choosing happiness over reputation. As choosing the man who saw her at her most broken and loved her anyway.
Sophie Chen had come to the Ashford penthouse as a contract wife. A desperate woman with nothing left to lose.
She was leaving as something else entirely.
A woman who'd fought for what she wanted. A woman who'd survived impossible choices. A woman who'd learned that sometimes the most dangerous thing you can do is fall in love with the right person at the wrong time.
And somehow make it work anyway.