"Because—" Cixi stopped at that single word. Her mouth hung open, but nothing followed. She had just realised, with a horror that turned her blood cold, that she had never told Cassian about the monstrous lie she had spat to gain entry into the Crown Palace.

The silence on the line stretched. And Cassian, who had been drifting back toward sleep, noticed the sudden quietness from the other end. "Because?" he repeated questioningly.

Cixi squeezed her eyes shut. She cursed herself viciously inside her own skull. She cursed the day she opened her mouth at those Palace gates. She cursed the desperate attempt to gain access to the Palace that made her blurt out the most catastrophic fabrication of her entire life.

Mustering every scrap of courage left in her exhausted body, Cixi spoke. "Your family will find out that I lied." 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"What did you lie about?" Cassian’s voice held amusement.

"That — that — that..." She cleared her throat, taking her moment. "That you are going to become a father in three months."

Cixi bit down on her lower lip so hard that the skin split and the metallic taste of blood flooded her mouth. She squeezed her eyes shut and clenched her free hand into a white-knuckled fist at her side, silently cursing herself in a language that had no words foul enough.

On the other end of the line, Cassian’s eyes snapped open. Sleep abandoned him instantly and completely. He sat upright on the edge of his bed, his phone pressed firmly against his ear.

"What?"

Cixi could not bring herself to repeat those words. Not again. Never again in front of Cassian. "You heard me already. Now you need to do your magic and make sure they do not find out. Also, we need to make sure the DNA matches yours. Tomorrow they are taking me to get a DNA test." She fired the words so fast that half the syllables crashed into each other, and she immediately ended the call before Cassian could utter a single response.

She held the dead phone against her chest and stared at the ceiling, her heart hammering so violently she could feel her pulse throbbing in her temples, her throat, and her fingertips.

One reason she felt confident he would handle it was that staying inside the Palace had been Cassian’s requirement, not hers. He needed her there. If her cover were exposed, his entire arrangement would collapse with it.

After several minutes of deep, controlled breathing, Cixi managed to wrestle her heartbeat back to something resembling normalcy.

Then a new problem crashed into her mind.

She needed to leave for work. She glanced at her phone, and another curse left her lips. She was going to be late. And worse, she had no idea how she was supposed to travel from a Palace located an hour in the city to her job.

Her eyes widened as the full weight of her oversight hit her. She had not once considered how she would commute from the Crown Estate.

She immediately dialled Emily. The phone rang. And rang... And rang... No answer... She tried again, and Emily refused to pick up.

Left with no other option, Cixi decided to find Michael Crown and ask for a car.

Before leaving Cassian’s quarters, she grabbed a can of soda from the refrigerator and a protein bar from the counter nearby. She tore into both while walking, chewing and swallowing rapidly to fuel herself for whatever argument awaited downstairs.

She took the elevator to the ground floor. The doors slid open with a soft chime, and Cixi stepped out, turning right toward the main corridor.

She nearly collided with Rafael Crown.

"Easy there." Rafael smiled, his eyes flickering with genuine interest. His gaze dropped briefly to the scarf wrapped around her head before rising to meet her pale grey eyes. "You look like you are in a hurry."

"Yes." Cixi was already stepping around him. "I need to go out. I need a car." She had taken five steps past him when his voice reached her from behind.

"You can come with me. I am heading out anyway."

Cixi’s steps halted before she turned slowly and looked at Rafael, studying his face with suspicion. "If you are heading out, then what are you doing here? I am certain this corridor does not lead to the Palace entrance."

To which Rafael laughed softly. "Looks like you memorised the Palace pretty quickly." He walked a few steps closer until he stood barely an arm’s length from her. "I was actually coming to find you. I wanted to ask if you needed breakfast or any help to settle in."

Cixi stared at him in stunned silence for long seconds before the question clawed its way out of her mouth. "Why? Why do you want to help me? Why do you care when every other member of your family despises and wants to do nothing with me?" The memory of those three women and their threats echoed in her head. "You need to stay away from me, or you will lose your share of the property."

And Rafael laughed once again at the blunt way Cixi delivered the warning. "So you were already informed."

"Yes. Your mother made sure of it."

"You sound angry."

"Who would not be?" Cixi shot him a pointed look, her brows pulling together.

"Hmmm," Rafael nodded slowly, conceding the point. "True." A genuine smile broke across his handsome face. "I do not care what they say. I am a grown adult. I make my own decisions."

"And your decisions can make you a beggar, you realise that."

"My mother would never let that happen. I am her only surviving son." The confidence in his voice rested on unshakable ground. After losing her eldest, Tamara had wrapped her remaining son in a cocoon of protectiveness. Rafael knew with absolute certainty that no matter what he did, his mother had no choice but to forgive him. "And for the record, my father said nothing about it. The warning came from my mother and my aunts alone. So, shall we go? Or would you prefer to wait until evening when my father returns?"

Cixi frowned. "He left?"

"Yes. He went to play golf with his friends."

"Your family wakes up remarkably early. I assumed the rich slept until noon, having nothing to worry about."

Rafael started walking toward the Palace entrance and gestured for Cixi to fall in step beside him. She hesitated for only a moment before following.

"Everyone in this family cares deeply about their health and appearance," Rafael explained as they walked side by side through the grand corridor. "They follow strict routines to stay fit and live long."

"They?" Cixi caught the distinction immediately. "That does not include you."

"I am still young for all that." Rafael grinned. "I want to do what I actually enjoy doing."