Ava stared at the glowing message on Jace's phone screen, her heart thudding against her ribs like a warning drum.
> "Tick tock, Jace. She's going to find out soon enough."
Her fingers trembled slightly as she handed the phone back to him. "What's that about?"
Jace swallowed hard. "It's nothing. Just someone stirring up trouble."
"You're a terrible liar."
He ran a hand through his hair. "Ava, please. Not now."
She stepped away. "No. We've had too many 'not nows.' You said you'd be honest. So talk."
He hesitated, his jaw flexing. "It's not just my secret. It involves your father."
That stopped her cold. "My father?"
Jace exhaled and sat down on the edge of the bed, looking exhausted. "The contract… the reason this marriage happened… wasn't just for appearances. Your father owed money. A lot of it. To people who don't forget."
Ava blinked. "You paid his debts?"
"I absorbed them under one condition—that you and I get married. Publicly. Legally. So the business arrangement would appear legitimate."
She stepped back as if slapped. "So I was a debt payment?"
"No! You were a lifeline. I wanted to help you. But… I also wanted you. From the moment I met you, Ava."
Tears gathered in her eyes. "That doesn't make it better."
"I know," he said quietly. "That's why I didn't tell you. I didn't want to lose you."
Ava turned and walked out of the room, the door slamming behind her.
---
The next few days passed in a blur.
Jace gave her space. He didn't try to chase her down or force explanations. And that made it worse. She wanted to scream. To hit him. To be held. She didn't know which part of her was louder.
She moved into the guest suite. The bed was cold and unfamiliar. Her mind kept replaying that message.
Tick tock.
Why now?
Why expose the truth after all this time?
---
Three nights later, Ava got a call from an unknown number.
She answered out of instinct.
"Hello?"
The voice on the other end was low, male, and familiar.
"You don't know the whole story. But I can tell you. Meet me tomorrow. Café Verde. 11 a.m."
"Who is this?" she asked, but the line went dead.
She almost didn't go. But something—curiosity, anger, fear—drove her.
At 10:59 a.m., Ava sat at a corner table, her coat wrapped tightly around her. At 11:04, a man in a grey coat and cap sat across from her.
He pulled off his cap.
Ava's breath caught. "Uncle Richard?"
Her father's younger brother. The one who'd vanished after her mother disappeared.
He looked older, worn by time and guilt. "I didn't think you'd come."
"Why now?"
"Because you deserve to know why this marriage really happened. Your father didn't just owe money. He was involved with people who were using your family name to launder millions. When he couldn't pay, they came for you."
Ava's mouth went dry. "Me?"
"They threatened to ruin you. Jace stepped in. He negotiated your safety. The contract wasn't just about business. It was about protection."
She sat back, reeling.
"I know you feel betrayed," Richard said. "But Jace kept you alive, Ava. And he risked everything doing it."
---
That night, Ava returned to the mansion.
Jace was in his office, sleeves rolled up, papers scattered everywhere.
She stood at the doorway, silent.
He looked up, startled. "Ava."
"I met with Richard," she said.
Jace set his pen down. "I didn't want you to find out like this."
"But I had to," she replied. "You were protecting me."
"I was falling in love with you," he said. "That made everything more dangerous."
Ava stepped forward. "I don't know how to feel."
"Let me earn your trust again. No more secrets. No more silence."
She nodded slowly. "One condition."
"Anything."
"You tell me everything. Every ugly, hidden piece."
He nodded. "Deal."
---
They talked until sunrise.
He told her everything—about the threats, the bribes, the pressure to keep her unaware. He opened every door he'd kept locked.
And Ava listened.
And somewhere between confessions and forgiveness, they found each other again.
Jace cupped her face, eyes searching. "Can we start over?"
She kissed him. "No. We keep going. Together."
---
But peace wouldn't last.
Because Lena wasn't done.
A new article surfaced the next day: *"Fake Marriage or Real Scandal? The Carter Deal Uncovered."*
Accompanying it was a photo—Ava and Jace, in bed, taken from outside their window.
Ava's hands shook as she held the magazine.
She looked at Jace. "Did you know?"
He paled. "No. I swear."
She dropped the magazine. "Then it's war."
Jace's eyes darkened. "Let's show them what a real couple looks like."
He took her hand. "You in?"
Ava smiled through her rage. "Let's burn it down."