The baby kicked at the exact moment I heard his heavy, deliberate footsteps outside the restroom door.

By 2:00 AM, the estate had transformed into a fortress under full lockdown.

Extra tactical teams in unmarked black uniforms secured the perimeter walls, while heavy iron storm shutters descended over every window of the estate, sealing the interior into an impenetrable vault.

I had been moved down to the subterranean floor—a luxurious, panic-proof bunker beneath the main house equipped with its own generator, medical bay, and living quarters. Mrs. Gable had brought me a soft cashmere sweater, warm soup, and a mug of chamomile tea, but my appetite was completely gone.

Cassian stood at a long steel conference table in the central war room adjoining my quarters. Lev and four of his most trusted lieutenants sat around the glowing digital display maps of Chicago, while a captive interrogation was being conducted three floors below in the estate's cellar.

"The assassin was identified as Marcus Kane," Lev reported, tapping the digital table. "Former special forces, hired by Dimitri Markov two weeks ago. He bought a security clearance code from someone high up in our logistics division."

Cassian stood at the head of the table, his white shirt replaced by a dark tactical sweater. His face was carved out of pure stone. "Who sold the code, Lev?"

"We're running the digital footprints now, boss," Lev replied nervously. "It came from an encrypted terminal inside Meridian Tower. Only six people have access to that level."

"Find them," Cassian ordered, his voice dropping into a chilling register. "I want them in front of me before sunrise. No one hurts my family and lives to see the next day."

My heart gave a sudden, violent leap against my ribs.

My family.

He had said it so naturally, without hesitation.

I stood in the doorway of the war room, clutching my mug of tea, staring at the man who commanded this dark, violent world. He was dangerous—there was zero doubt about that now. The rumors in the newspapers weren't fabrications; Cassian Rowe operated in a realm of shadow and absolute power where mistakes were paid for in blood.

Yet, when he turned his head and saw me standing in the doorway, the lethal coldness in his eyes instantly dissolved.

He walked away from his lieutenants, striding across the polished floor until he stood directly in front of me.

"You should be sleeping, Clara," he said gently, taking the heavy mug from my trembling hands and setting it on a side table.

"How can I sleep, Cassian?" I whispered, looking up at him. "A man tried to shoot us in our bedroom. You're talking about hunting people down before sunrise. I used to worry about late fees on my library books, and now I'm living in a subterranean bunker under guard!"

Cassian sighed, placing a warm hand on the back of my neck, his thumb soothingly stroking my hairline.

"I know this world terrifies you," he admitted softly. "I never wanted you to see this side of my life. That night at the Drake... I was just a man who fell completely under the spell of a woman who didn't care about my money or my reputation. But now you carry my child. Markov knows you exist. I cannot undo the danger, Clara. I can only crush it."

"And what happens after you crush it?" I asked, searching his gray eyes. "Do I get to go back to my life? Or am I your prisoner forever?"

Cassian leaned down, his forehead resting gently against mine. His breath was warm, smelling of dark coffee and mint.

"You were never my prisoner, Clara," he whispered, his hand sliding down to lightly rest over our baby bump. "You are the only thing in this world that makes me want to be a better man. But I will not lie to you—I am never letting you go again."

Before I could process the terrifying, beautiful weight of his words, a loud alarm chimed on the war room display table.

Lev looked up from his screen, his face pale. "Boss... we have a hit on the terminal trace. The leak didn't come from your logistics lieutenants."

Cassian turned slowly. "Who was it?"