Chapter 145

Jeffrey seemed momentarily taken aback by my exclamation. Then his jaw set, and he squared his shoulders. He lifted his chin at me.

“I’m sorry, Ms. Blanchard, but I’m afraid that this is something that I have to do,” he said before charging past me and down the hall.

“Jeffrey, where are you going?” I called after him. “Jeffrey?”

I ran after him, and soon we were walking side-by-side.

“What are you doing, Jeffrey?” I asked. I tried to catch his eye, but he wouldn’t even glance my way.

“I’m going to tell Andrew about what’s happening.”

“What? You can’t!”

“It’s my duty to protect you, and I would be failing in my duty if I didn’t inform him of what’s going on. He’s the only one who can ensure your safety now.”

“No one can protect me from this—”

“Andrew can. The Alpha King can.”

Jeffrey stopped in front of the doors to Andrew’s home office. He bowed his head to each of the guards stationed there, and they returned the gesture. I tried to grab Jeffrey’s hand, but he tore it away from my grasp and knocked on the door.

“Come in!” Andrew’s voice called from the other side.

Jeffrey opened the door and walked in without announcing himself or me.

“Hello Crystal, Jeffrey,” Andrew said as we came to a halt in front of his desk. “What can I do for you? Crystal, weren’t you going to check in on Ever After Weddings?”

“I…well…something came up,” I said, not meeting Andrew’s eyes.

“What came up?” Andrew asked, his voice a mixture of curiosity and concern.

I could feel Jeffrey’s eyes burning a hole in the side of my face. The heat rose in my cheeks, but I didn’t say anything.

“What Crystal wants to tell you,” Jeffrey interjected, “is that I found this in her car.”

He dropped the defused bomb onto Andrew’s desk.

Andrew’s eyes widened. He leaned forward and picked up the bomb to examine it. Like Jeffrey, he turned the bomb over in his hands, causing me to shift anxiously.

The muscles in Andrew’s arms tensed as he gripped the bomb tightly.

“Is this true, Crystal?” he asked through gritted teeth.

Hesitantly, I nodded.

“Were you going to tell me about this?” he asked, raising his voice slightly.

I flinched.

“No,” I muttered.

“Why not?”

When I didn’t respond, Jeffrey stepped in.

“Because she’s worried about who we think left the bomb,” he said.

“Jeffrey, please, don’t,” I said.

“No, Jeffrey, please do.”

Jeffrey looked from Andrew to me and back again.

“We both think that Bob left it,” he said.

Andrew’s nostrils flared. His knuckles turned white as his grip on the bomb grew impossibly strong. I was surprised that the metal hadn’t even cracked yet.

“Crystal, is that what you think?”

I wrung my hands as Andrew and Jeffrey stared expectantly at me.

“Yes,” I muttered.

“And why is that?” Andrew asked.

“I…Jeffrey and I planted cameras in his apartment,” I admitted sheepishly, “and he might have found them.”

Andrew stared at me intently, scrutinizing every inch of me. I squirmed where I stood, but I otherwise did not react.

“I believe you,” he said.

I looked up at Andrew. He was telling the truth. He really did believe me.

“There’s more,” Jeffrey said. “We think that Bob might have planted the bomb in Lisa’s car as well.”

Andrew slammed the bomb back on his desk. He stood up and stormed toward the doors.

“Andrew, what are you doing?” I asked as I took off after him. Jeffrey followed close behind me.

“I’m going to have a little chat with Bob,” Andrew said over his shoulder.

“Don’t, it’s not worth it,” I replied.

“Of course, your life is worth it. I’m not going to let this monster harass the people I love anymore.”

Andrew charged into the home theater like a man on a mission. He found Bob and Lisa cuddling in the front row, eating popcorn as they watched some stupid romcom. Grabbing the remote, Andrew paused the movie and stood directly in front of them.

“Bob, I am going to ask you one question, and you are going to answer honestly,” Andrew commanded. “Did you put a silver bomb in Lisa’s and Crystal’s cars?”

“What are you talking about?” Bob asked. “There was a bomb in Crystal’s car?”

“Don’t pretend that you don’t know what I’m talking about.”

“Dad,” Lisa said, interlocking her arm in Bob’s, “Bob would never do anything like that. He wouldn’t hurt a soul, let alone me.”

“I promise that I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Bob insisted.

“I don’t want to hear any more of your lies,” Andrew growled. “I want you away from me and away from my family. For good.”

Bob shot up and stared straight into Andrew’s eyes. The anger that sparked between them was palpable. Neither of them looked away, both refusing to lose their dominance.

“Fine,” Bob said. He walked toward the door without breaking eye contact with Andrew. “If you want me gone, I’ll leave.”

“Bob, no, wait!”

Lisa leapt to her feet and ran to Bob’s side. She turned to face Andrew, her eyes imploring.

“Father, please, don’t do this,” she cried. “He hasn’t done anything, I promise.”

Andrew narrowed his eyes at Bob.

“I’m sorry, Lisa, but I’ve made up my mind,” he said.

“Why? Is there even any evidence against him?”

“I don’t need physical evidence. I have my reasons for thinking what I do, and you don’t need to know them.”

I wondered if Andrew had seen anything in Bob’s mind to confirm my and Jeffrey’s suspicions of him. Perhaps he didn’t even need that to know that we were right.

“Father, you can’t just keep me away from Bob,” Lisa said as she wrapped her arms around Bob’s waist. “I love him.”

Andrew finally looked away from Bob and directed his gaze at Lisa. His expression softened, and I could almost feel how much this was tearing him up inside. It warmed my heart that he would go to these lengths to protect me, but I felt horrible that it was coming between him and his daughter again.

“Lisa, you know that I love you and only want your happiness,” Andrew said, his tone much gentler than before, “but I can’t let you be with someone so dangerous.”

“But he’s not dangerous!”

“Please, listen to me and trust me that he is.”

Lisa shook her head, her eyes glistening with tears.

“Father, why can’t you trust me and my judgment?”

“You’re too young to understand—”

“I am not too young! I am 21 years old, and I can make my own decisions. I want to be with Bob, and you can’t separate us.”

I glared at Bob as a smug grin spread across his face. Andrew must have seen it, too, because he curled his hand into a fist and took a menacing step toward the other man. He stopped when Lisa put herself in front of Bob.

“Lisa, I just want you to be safe.”

Andrew took a deep breath.

“Since you won’t let me protect you, I have no choice but to make you choose for yourself. Who do you want in your life, Bob…or me?”