His Unveiled Passion

Stephen pulled himself out of his swirling emotions and said seriously, "Tess, there's something else I need to tell you."

Tessa straightened up when she saw the look on his face. "What is it?"

Stephen said, "My dad's illegitimate son is named James Fullerton. Back then, my grandparents refused to let him into the Jacobson family. He had a rough time on his own in Arcton until a powerful gang leader took him in. Over the years, he built a base and gathered his own men. Now, he even has a private armed force."

Tessa immediately said, "That sounds dangerous for you! Stephen, you have to be really careful dealing with him."

Her concern caught Stephen off guard, sending a warmth through his chest.

He pulled her into his arms. "I'll be fine, but I'm worried about you. You mean everything to me, and I'm afraid that he'll come after you just to get to me."

Tessa repeated, "Come after me?"

Stephen said, "Yeah. Taking me down won't be easy, but you're my biggest weakness. If he targets you, I—"

Tessa wrapped her arms tightly around him. "You don't have to worry about me. I can take care of myself. Plus, you've already assigned two extra bodyguards to me, so I'll be fine.

"Besides, we're in Orkford. James has no real power here, and he can't pull anything off."

Stephen frowned. "Jacqueline is his accomplice in Orkford."

Tessa's head snapped up, and her eyes filled with shock. "What? Jacqueline? But she's your sister! How could she-"

started working for James-I'm still looking into it. She has already

engagement party, did she?

incident. On the day of their engagement,

was missing. Susan had

gave her one last piece of advice.

Tessa nodded. "I will."

on the

up. "That

and asked, "When did you order it? The timing is

"Ten minutes before

"You've

know

had ordered the signature dishes from a

saw the logo on the bag, she gave Stephen a

and arranged the dishes neatly.

at him,

it hit her-the delivery was

prestigious people like Stephen.

her face, she sat

starving. She had overslept and missed breakfast. By the time she