Page 103 of Discretion at Its Finest

“I can hear it in your voice when you call in the mornings,” he muttered, hands moving to my calf, kneading slowly, deliberately.

“Reid, I said I’m fine,” I said for the millionth time. “I’m worried about you. You’re still in here. I don’t want to talk about me.”

“I do.” He was closer now, breathing in my space, touching me, making me all hot and bothered. “I want to know how you’re holding up. How your days look. What you’re eating. What Eugene is obsessing over this week.”

“But I tell you those things every day,” I whispered.

“And I still listen,” he countered, tone gravelly. “Because it’s the only thing that keeps me sane in this fucking place.”

“I thought you said to limit my calls.” I raised an eyebrow and he glared up at me, watching as I tried to hide a giggle that wanted to surface. A sad smile graced my lips as he continued massaging my legs, his hands feeling like magic on my nerves.

“You still haven’t heard anything.” I whispered.

Something dark flashed across his face. Something that made me feel a pit in my stomach.

He let out a breath. “Nothing’s going to change, Vieve.”

I frowned, confused, my heart thudding. “How do you know that?”

“Because I know what kind of situation I’m in. And I’ve accepted it.”

I swallowed. “Reid… what does that mean?”

He let out a quiet breath, hands moving up my thighs, pressing into my skin gently. “Vieve. I’m not being let out. For a long time,” he began, and my heart clenched in my chest as I fought back tears. “There will be no trial, no lawyers, no trace of me being put away. Then at some point… there will be no trace of me left at all.”

“Why?” I said, my voice cracking.

“Because that’s just how things are going to be. There’s nothing I can do to stop it, Vieve.”

“Did you know this would happen?”

Reid’s jaw flexed again. “…I knew something was coming.” His gaze dragged over my face like he was memorizing it. “But I didn’t expect it to be this. Or… for you to be this involved.”

“I’m involved because I love you,” I whispered before I could stop myself.

His breath hitched, his hands tightening on my thighs.

“This is exactly why I wanted you to limit the calls, limit the visits,” he practically growled. “Because every time you do, every time I see you, hear your voice, I’m reminded of what I can’t have.”

My lips parted, shaking. “But you can have me,” I whispered. “You can haveus.”

“I can’t, baby. Not like this.” His hand slid to my waist, fingers curling in the fabric of my dress.

“I can’t protect you or give you a life from in here. And the men who put me in this cell will consider you leverage the second they know you matter to me.”

Tears fell down my face at his words, and he lifted my chin with two fingers, forcing me to meet his eyes.

“They’re going to move me,” he said quietly. “Soon. Somewhere no one can reach me… Off-grid. You won’t know where. And I need you to be ready for that.”

“Ready?” My heart skipped another beat. “B-but your companies,” I murmured. “Your board. Silicon Valley’s new ventures—how can you—”

“I’ll still be working.” His tone didn’t change. His fingers drifted back down the side of my neck, warming my skin. “Alexander will handle the physical side of things, be the face of the company. I handle everything else. Phone approvals. Transfers. Contracts. Decisions.”

“You’ll still call the shots?” I whispered.

“I never stopped.”

“But what about us?” The words broke out of me before I could hold them back.