Elena heard the knock as she came down the stairs—a sharp, impatient triple-beat against the iron door that echoed through the grand hall. She was halfway down, one hand resting on the polished banister, when Victor looked up from where he stood near the window. His broad shoulders shifted as he glanced toward the entrance, his expression sharpening before he crossed the hall to answer it.

She knew that knock. Lisa had never been one for gentle knocks, especially when she could make an entrance instead.

Victor pulled the door open, and there she was—Lisa Chen, rain-damp and grinning, a ragged bag slung over one shoulder and a paper bag of something that smelled suspiciously like takeout in her other hand. Her black hair was streaked with fresh blue and purple, the color bleeding into the wet strands plastered against her forehead.

"Well, hello there," Lisa said, her eyes traveling the full length of Victor's six-foot-three frame with open appreciation. She tilted her head, a slow smile spreading across her face. "You're not Liam."

Victor's expression didn't change. "No, ma'am."

"Ma'am." Lisa laughed, stepping through the doorway and letting the rain drip off her jacket onto the marble floor. "I like that. Very respectful. Very—" she waved a hand vaguely at his chest, at the breadth of his shoulders, at the way he filled the doorframe, "—solid."

"Lisa." Elena reached the bottom of the stairs, unable to keep the amusement from her voice. "You haven't even been here thirty seconds."

"I'm making an impression." Lisa swung her duffel bag onto the floor and crossed the hall in three quick strides, pulling Elena into a fierce hug. "It's important to establish these things early."

Elena hugged her back, breathing in the familiar scent of rain and Lisa's perfume—something floral, like jasmine cut with lemon. For a moment, the weight in her chest eased. "You're impossible."

"And you're a sight for sore eyes." Lisa pulled back, holding Elena at arm's length, her gaze sharp despite the easy grin. "Look at you. All manor-house and mysterious. You look—" she paused, searching for the word, "—different."

Elena felt heat creep up her neck. "I don't know what you mean."

"Sure you don't." Lisa's grin widened. She glanced back at Victor, who had closed the door and was standing with his hands clasped behind his back, watching them with the patient stillness of a man used to waiting. "Hey, big guy. You going to carry my bag up, or am I supposed to do everything myself?"

Victor's mouth twitched—the barest suggestion of a smile, there and gone. "I'm sure you'll manage."

"Ooh, he's got a sense of humor." Lisa winked at Elena. "I like him. Can we keep him?"

"He's not a pet."

"He could be." Lisa bent to grab her duffel, then straightened and fixed Victor with another long look. "If you ever get tired of the security thing, you know where to find me. I'm a graphic designer. Very flexible hours. Flexible in other ways too, if you're—"

"Lisa." Elena grabbed her arm and started pulling her toward the stairs. "Come on. Let’s go to my room."

"But I wasn't finished negotiating—"

"You were."

Lisa laughed, allowing herself to be dragged up the staircase, but she twisted around at the top of the landing to call down to Victor. "Don't worry! I'll be back!"

Victor inclined his head, the ghost of that smile returning. "I'll be around."

Elena pulled Lisa into the bedroom and shut the door behind them, leaning against it for a moment as Lisa dropped her bag on the floor.

She dropped onto the bed beside Elena, the mattress dipping under their combined weight. For a long moment, she said nothing, just studied Elena's face with that piercing attention she'd always had, the one that made it impossible to hide anything.

"So," Lisa said finally. "Spill."

Elena blinked. "Spill what?"

"Everything." Lisa gestured broadly at the room. "You've been here—what, a month? Two? You've been on a boat, you've been to a gala, you've been—" she leaned in, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper, "—definitely not sleeping alone."

Elena's face went hot. "I—what makes you say that?"

"Oh, please." Lisa rolled her eyes. "You've got that look."

"What look?"

"The look." Lisa waggled her fingers. "The 'I've been thoroughly and repeatedly satisfied' look. The 'I know something the rest of the world doesn't' look. The—" she snapped her fingers, "—' I finally popped the cherry' look."

Elena opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.

Lisa's eyes went wide. "No way. No fucking way."

"Lisa—"

"You did." Lisa grabbed Elena's shoulders, shaking her gently. "You actually did. Oh my god. Tell me everything. Right now. Start from the beginning and don't leave out a single detail."

"I—" Elena looked away, her cheeks burning. "It's not—I mean, it's—"

"It's what?" Lisa demanded. "It's amazing? Is it awkward? Is it life-changing? Come on, Elena, I've known you since we were seven years old. You can't hide from me."

Elena took a breath. The words felt strange on her tongue, like something that belonged to someone else's life. "We traveled on his boat. The Briar Rose. We went to this island his family owns, and—"

"And?"

"And it just happened." Elena's voice came out softer than she'd intended. "He was—gentle. At first. He made sure I was okay. He—" she paused, remembering the feel of his hands on her, the careful way he'd guided her, the command in his voice when he'd told her to look at him. "He was patient."

Lisa was watching her with an expression Elena couldn't quite read. "Patient."

"Yes." Elena's fingers twisted in the fabric of her dress. "He knew it was my first time. He—" she swallowed, "—he made it good."

Lisa was quiet for a moment. Then she let out a low whistle. "Well, shit. I didn't expect that."

"What did you expect?"

"I don't know. Something dramatic. Something angsty. Not..." Lisa waved a hand. "—actually sweet?"

Elena felt her lips twitch. "He can be sweet. When he wants to be."

"And when he doesn't want to be?"

"He's..." Elena searched for the right word. "Commanding."

Lisa's eyebrows shot up. "Commanding."

"It's not—" Elena flushed. "It's not a bad thing. He just—he knows what he wants. And he's not afraid to ask for it."

Lisa's mouth curled into a slow, knowing smile. "Oh, I bet."

Elena's eyes narrowed. "Lisa."

"What?" Lisa held up her hands, though the grin only widened. "I'm just saying, 'commanding' is a very interesting word to choose."

Elena shook her head, fighting the heat rising in her cheeks.

Lisa studied her for a long moment before her expression softened into something almost triumphant. "Oh, my god. You're in love with him."

Elena's heart stuttered. "I—"

"You're in love with him!" Lisa repeated, delighted. "You're actually in love with the scary billionaire. That's—" she shook her head, still laughing, "—that's the most Elena thing I've ever heard."

"It's not like that." But even as she said it, Elena knew it wasn't true. It was exactly like that. She loved him. She'd told him. And he hadn't said it back.

Lisa's laughter faded, replaced by something sharper. "Wait. Did he—did you tell him? Did he say it back?"

Elena looked away. "I told him."

"And?"

"He didn't." The words came out flat. "He just—held me. Kissed my forehead. Didn't say anything."

Lisa was quiet for a long moment. Then she reached out and took Elena's hand, squeezing it. "That's rough."

"It's fine." Elena forced a small smile. "It's complicated. Liam doesn't exactly make it easy to understand what he's thinking."

Lisa's expression shifted, her curiosity sharpening. "Meaning?"

Elena hesitated. She thought about the things she'd learned about him—the pieces of his past he'd let slip, the moments when he'd suddenly pull away, the way there always seemed to be something he wasn't quite ready to say.

"I don't know," she admitted. "Sometimes I think I understand him, and then he does something that makes me realize I don't."

Lisa studied her for a moment. "And you want to?"

Elena's fingers curled loosely against the edge of the mattress.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "I think I do."

Lisa studied her for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Okay. I trust you. But if he hurts you—"

"I know." Elena managed a real smile. "You'll make him regret it."

"Damn right I will." Lisa squeezed her hand once more, then let go and flopped back on the bed, staring up at the canopy. "So. Details."

"What?"

"The sex. I need details. How was it? Was he good? Was he—" she wiggled her eyebrows, "—generous?"

Elena groaned. "Lisa—"

"Don't you dare try to change the subject. I've been waiting for this moment for years. You, finally getting laid? This is a historic event. I need to live vicariously through you."

Elena buried her face in her hands. "It was..."

"It was what?"

"It was incredible." The words came out muffled through her fingers. "I didn't know it could be like that."

Lisa let out a whoop of laughter. "Yes! That's what I'm talking about! Details, Elena. Was he big?"

"Lisa—"

"I need to know. Was he big? Was he thick? Did he know what he was doing?"

Elena's face was on fire. "He—yes. He knew exactly what he was doing."

"And?"

"And he was—" She dropped her hands, staring at the ceiling, remembering, "—he was in control. The whole time. He told me what to do. How to move. When to—" She trailed off.

"When to what?" Lisa leaned in, hungry for details.

"When to come." Elena's voice was barely a whisper. "He told me I couldn't come until he said I could. And I—" she shook her head, still marveling at it, "—I didn't. I waited. And when he finally said it, it was—"

"It was what?"

"It was like my whole body just—let go. I didn't know it could feel like that."

Lisa stared at her for a long moment. Then a wicked grin spread across her face, and she let out a low whistle. “Okay. I take it back. Maybe the scary billionaire has a few redeeming qualities after all.”

Elena smiled despite herself, but the amusement faded as another thought surfaced. “He was—” She paused, searching for the right words. “He was careful with me. At first. He made sure I was ready. And then he was—”

"Rough?"

"Not rough. Just—" Elena's fingers twisted in her lap. "Commanding. Like he knew exactly what I needed before I knew it myself."

Lisa nodded slowly. "That's a rare quality."

"It was..." Elena trailed off, remembering the feel of his hands on her hips, the low growl of his voice in her ear, the way he'd looked at her like she was the only thing in the world that mattered. "It was everything."

Lisa was quiet for a moment. Then she reached down and unzipped her duffel bag, pulling out a small white box. "Okay. Speaking of everything—did you two use protection?"

Elena blinked at the sudden subject change. "What?"

"Protection. Condoms. Did you use them?"

Elena felt heat creep up her neck again. "Yes. Of course we did."

Lisa nodded, turning the box over in her hands. "Good. That's good. But listen—" she held up the box, "—there's something better."

Elena squinted at the label. "Minipill?"

"Birth control." Lisa picked up the box and turned it over in her hands. "It's a pill. You take it every day, and it helps prevent pregnancy."

Elena made a face. "I don't really like taking pills."

"I know." Lisa gave her a look. "But this isn't about whether you like taking pills. It's about giving yourself another layer of protection. Condoms can fail, Elena. If you're going to keep sleeping with him, wouldn't you rather have something else between you and an unexpected pregnancy?"

Elena looked down at the box. That, at least, was harder to argue with. "I suppose."

"Exactly." Lisa tossed the box onto the bed between them. "And besides, if you're already using condoms, this is just extra insurance."

Elena picked it up again, turning it over in her hands. "So that's the only reason you're pushing this?"

Lisa's mouth curled into a grin. "Well..."

Elena narrowed her eyes. "Lisa."

"I mean, when you go without a condom, you feel everything." Lisa gave her a knowing look. "It's a completely different experience."

Elena's face went scarlet. "Lisa—"

"I'm serious. Condoms are fine, but raw is—" Lisa closed her eyes, as if savoring a memory. "It's a whole different experience. You feel him inside you. All of him. And when he comes—" she opened her eyes, fixing Elena with a knowing look, "—you feel that too. There's nothing like it."

Elena stared at the box in her hands. The idea of it—of being that close to someone, with nothing between them—sent a shiver down her spine. "I don't know."

"Trust me." Lisa reached over and closed Elena's fingers around the box. "Start taking it. Give it a few days. And then—" she winked, "—you'll thank me."

Elena looked at the box. The Minipill. A tiny white tablet that could change everything. She thought about Liam's hands on her hips, the weight of him pressing her into the mattress, the sound of his breath in her ear. She thought about what it would feel like to have him inside her with nothing between them.

The thought made her stomach flip.

"Okay," she said quietly. "I'll try it."

Lisa grinned, clearly delighted. "That's my girl." She flopped back on the bed, staring up at the canopy. "So. What else happened on this island? You said there was a cottage? A boat? Tell me everything."

Elena set the Minipill box aside, feeling the weight of it in her chest. She thought about the island, the cottage, the way Liam had taught her to cook, the way he'd held her hand at Iredessa's overlook. She thought about the journal hidden in the library, the pages she still hadn't finished reading. She thought about Alexander's warning, still burning in her ears.

"It's a long story," she said.

Lisa grinned. "I've got time."

And for the first time in days, Elena let herself talk. She told Lisa about the island, the games they had played, the snuba trip, and the quiet days they'd spent together. She told her about the cottage, about his parents, and the way he'd looked at her across the candlelit table. She told her about the gala, Sebastian Hart's card, the auction, and the young artist. She told her about Alexander's warning—the words she still couldn't shake: Liam planned your brother's debt. He trapped you.

Lisa listened without interrupting, her face growing more serious with each word. When Elena finally fell silent, Lisa was quiet for a long moment.

"So," Lisa said slowly. "This Alexander guy. You believe him?"

Elena shook her head. "I don't know. Liam denied it. But—"

"But?"

"But there are too many pieces that don't fit." Elena stood and moved toward the window, her gaze settling on the lake beyond the glass. "The coded notebook from his room. The shipping routes. The name Vexley. The missing Eros shipment. I keep trying to put them together, but none of it makes sense."

Lisa was quiet for a long moment. "So you don't just have doubts about him. You have questions."

"More than questions." Elena turned to face her. "He's—I don't know what he is. He's cold and warm at the same time. Ruthless and gentle. He's—" She shook her head, frustrated. "I don't know if I can trust him. But I can't stop loving him either."

Lisa reached out and took her hand. "Then maybe you don't have to decide right now."

Elena looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"I mean..." Lisa squeezed her hand. "You're here. You're alive. You're not trapped in a dungeon or chained to a wall. You have time. You have options." Her eyes flicked toward the door, and a faint smile touched her lips. "And, apparently, you have a very large security guard who, I would say, is objectively speaking, very easy on the eyes. So I think we'll manage."

Despite herself, Elena laughed. "You're impossible."

"I'm practical." Lisa grinned. "And I'm hungry. That takeout in my bag is getting cold. You want to raid the kitchen?"

Elena looked at her friend, at the familiar spark of mischief in her eyes, at the way she always managed to make everything feel a little less impossible. She thought about the Minipill in its box, about Liam's hands on her hips, about the journal hidden in the library.

"Yeah," she said. "Let's raid the kitchen."

Lisa grabbed her paper bag of takeout, and they headed for the kitchen.

The kitchen smelled of onions and warm bread, the stone floor scrubbed pale, copper pots hanging in neat rows above the butcher-block island. Marta stood at the counter with her back to them, a knife in one hand, a heap of carrots and celery and thyme in front of her.

"Marta!" Lisa swept in ahead of Elena, dropping her takeout bag on the table. "The woman who feeds me better than my own mother."

Marta turned, and her face split into a wide, warm grin. She set the knife down and wiped her hands on her apron, crossing the kitchen in three quick steps to pull Lisa into a hug that lifted her off her feet. "You’re back. I was beginning to think you'd forgotten us."

"Forgotten you? I've been dreaming about your braised short ribs since I left." Lisa pulled back, holding Marta at arm's length. "You look good. Younger than last time. What's your secret?"

"Good food and no nonsense." Marta's eyes crinkled. "You want lunch? I was just starting a pot of stew. Takes a while, but it's worth the wait."

"Stew sounds perfect," Elena said, settling onto a stool at the island. "What do you have that's faster, though? Lisa showed up with takeout, but I'm guessing that's gone cold by now."

"Cold takeout is a crime." Marta waved a dismissive hand. "I've got leftover pasta from last night. Some fresh bread. A salad if you want something green."

Lisa's eyes brightened. "You had me at pasta."

Marta smiled and returned to her cutting board, the knife finding its steady rhythm again. "Then sit down. I'll have it ready in a minute."

Lisa hopped onto the stool beside Elena, folding her arms on the island. She glanced around the kitchen before turning back to Elena.

"So, I haven't seen that ridiculously serious butler yet. Where’s he been lurking?”

Marta's knife paused for a fraction of a second. "Presley? He's not here."

"Not here?" Lisa frowned. "I figured he'd be in a corner somewhere, waiting to materialize behind me the second I said something inappropriate."

"He left this morning." Marta resumed chopping, her voice even. "Went with Mr. Thorn. Something urgent came up in the city." She glanced at Elena. "I don't know when they'll be back."

Elena paused. "Liam?"

"Yes." Marta gave her a curious look. "He didn't tell you?"

Elena shook her head, forcing a small smile. "No. I didn't know he was leaving."

Marta's knife moved through a carrot with a clean, even stroke. "He was gone before the sun came up. I didn't see him either. Presley left a note on the counter—said not to expect them for meals."

"Huh." Lisa picked at the edge of her takeout bag, watching Elena from the corner of her eye. "That's odd. He just got back from the island, and now he's gone again?"

"Business never sleeps." Marta's voice carried a practiced neutrality, the tone of someone who had learned long ago not to question the comings and goings of the house's master. She scraped the chopped vegetables into a pot and reached for the chicken. "He'll be back when he's back. That's how it's always been."

Elena nodded, but something about the answer unsettled her. Maybe that was how it had always been for everyone here. Liam came and went, made decisions without explanation, and expected the people around him to simply accept it. She thought about the gala, the way he'd looked at her across the ballroom. The way he'd held her on the boat. The way he'd kissed her forehead after she'd told him she loved him.

Then her thoughts turned to the things she still couldn't make sense of—the notebook hidden in his room, the name Vexley, the shipping routes she couldn't decipher.

She knew Liam better than she had a few weeks ago.

But there was still so much she didn't know.

"Elena." Lisa's voice was soft, probing. "You okay?"

Elena stared at the cutting board, watching Marta's knife rise and fall through the carrots. "Yeah." The answer came too quickly. She forced a small smile. "I'm just surprised, that's all."

Liam had left without saying a word.

After everything that had happened between them on the island, she would have thought he might at least tell her he was going, or he'd at least kiss her before they departed. And yet, sometime after she'd gone upstairs, he'd simply disappeared.

She knew Liam had business. She knew he didn't owe anyone an explanation for every move he made.

But she had thought they were different now.

Or at least, she had hoped they were.

“Mmm.” Lisa had turned back toward Marta, her grin returned. “So, Marta. Tell me everything I missed while I was gone. Any scandals? Any drama? Any secret passages I should know about?”