Page 80 of Bind Me
Bea’s heart thundered in her chest as she picked it up and pulled out two glossy prints. The first was her, smiling up at Jaxon Dao in the doorway of a hotel room. The second caught her stepping inside as he began to close the door.
Channing stiffened.
Her fingers went numb. Heat rushed through her, then cold, her stomach turning so hard she thought she might vomit. She knew this corridor; remembered that night. But in these photos, she wasn’t in office clothing. She was in a hotel robe, bare-legged, the hem high enough to suggest a story she’d never lived. She hated that anyone might believe it.
“This isn’t real,” she said hoarsely. “We were working.”
“I assumed,” he said quietly. “Your security would have been present.”
“Yes.”
“So nothing could’ve happened.”
Bea’s pulse hammered. “And Iwasn’tdressed like that.”
“I believe you,” Oliver said at once.
The edges creased under her grip. She caught herself, smoothed them straight, and slid them back into the envelope.
“Are these the only copies?”
He shook his head. “I wanted you to have the physical ones, so you know what might be circulating. But I was emailed the same pair. And if I got them, it’s likely others have, too.”
“Did you see who delivered them?”
“No. They were already there when I came back.”
“Who would do this?” she asked.
“If I had suspicions, it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to name them,” Oliver said carefully. “You know your world. You’ll have a better sense of who carries grudges.”
Bea closed her eyes. It wasn’t long ago that her biggest problem had been forgetting to reapply sunscreen after four hours.
“If it makes you feel better, they’re notterrible.” Oliver was clearly trying to be comforting. “They’re…suggestive and embarrassing, but you’re not actually mid-act.”
“It’s enough,” Bea said. She took in another shaky breath. “What are my options?”
“Realistically? Ignore it and hope it dies. Or get ahead of it.”
The urge to laugh felt hysterical. She forced it down.
“So far you and Griffin have kept things very private. Which is completely understandable.” He glanced at the envelope, then back to her. “The trade-off is, the public has no baseline. So when something ugly like this appears, there’s no counter-narrative.”
“Are you going to run them?” she asked.
He shook his head. “No. But I can’t promise you I’m the only person holding them.”
RAFAEL
The gym changed the second Bea stepped inside.
Her gaze swept, searching in a way that put him on alert. He racked the weight and rose so she could find him. Bea was already crossing the space.
He wrapped himself around her and felt the frantic rhythm under her ribs. “What’s wrong?”
She rubbed her nose back and forth against his chest. “I need your help.”
“Always.”
