Page 41 of Dirty Little Vow

“That feels right, though I wouldn’t put it past my father to send letters to the partners. I should have assumed as much, and I have to assume as much now, even if it’s not what happened.”

“Which translates to what?” I ask, shoving my plate aside and sipping from the glass of wine Tyler poured me.

“I need to think about that, and I’m too damn tired to do it objectively. And I think I’ll pay Withers another visit.”

I rotate to face him with a realization. “I forgot an important detail about my time with Oliver. I’m just tired and I think on overload.”

He goes stone still. “What does that mean, Bella?”

“Nothing bad,” I say, leaning over to kiss him. “But now that I’ve eaten and my adrenaline has settled down, my brain is focused on the details and one of them might be important. You already know he pushed me hard to convince you to give him that file. I told him you don’t have it…we don’t have it.”

“And yet he left you alone. That surprises me.”

“He pushed me hard but seemed to believe me, but the important part is where that led. When he found out that Withers would be the one to release the file to the public should you challenge the will, he was not pleased. He called him on speakerphone.”

“Oh, shit. And what happened?”

“Withers assured him he had no idea that what was in the press release he’s supposed to make public if you challenged the will.”

“Which is a lie. Withers knows exactly what is going on. He was either lying for show or lying to save his ass with the Allen family.”

“Whatever the case, Oliver reminded him how important loyalty to the Allen family must remain. Well, actually it was more like—they would be unhappy if you released that file, and you know what happens when they’re unhappy.”

“How did Withers respond?”

“Scared. He’s not going to cross them, Tyler. You don’t have to worry about that file being released. I believe that with every part of me. Once Oliver talks to the Allen family, this should be over. And you haven’t even told me about your meeting with them. How hard did they push?”

“It wasn’t the family but one man, Knox Allen.” He shifts the topic. “What did Oliver look like?”

“A tall, distinguished Black man.”

“He showed up and asked to talk to Knox in private. I don’t know what he said to him, but when Knox came back into the room, nothing had changed. He wanted my assurance the family was protected. He offered me a proposition, which was nothing but bullshit.” His energy shifts, darkens. He pushes off the ground to sit on the couch.

“What proposition?” I ask, uneasy enough to sit on the cushion next to him.

“He wanted me to record a confession about the trial that he could hold should I burn him. This in exchange for your safety.”

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Tyler

“No. No, no,” Bella declares, rotating to face me, her eyes alight with a mix of absolute panic and anger. “Tell me you said no. You don’t give that family anything to hold against you, Tyler.”

“Look, baby—”

“Oh my God,” she gushes. “You told them yes.” She pops to her feet.

I follow her and catch her hand, turning her to me yet again before she can escape, my hands settling on her shoulders. “No,” I say. “I did not tell that little prick yes, though for the record, if I thought it would truly protect you, I’d do about anything, no matter how stupid it might be.”

“You said no? Then how did the meeting end?”

“I told him that until I had you back and safely with me, there would be no negotiation. He took a potential ally and made me his worst nightmare. It was all a test, to evaluate how easily I could be bullied. Ultimately, he gave me a key to your hotel room, but you texted me before I even left his home. Because you, my beautiful, future bride, are resourceful as fuck.”

“I might not have been though, Tyler. This could have ended much worse. This isn’t over at all. How do we make it over?”

My jaw sets and I don’t know what she wants to hear, but there’s only one answer—the honest one—I can give her. “They took you, Bella. I can’t just let that go.”

She searches my face, her expression earnest. “What does that mean, Tyler?”