I was more excited than anyone to see him showing up safe and sound. I quickly went to hug him, and his warmth was proof that I wasn’t hallucinating. “You’re okay.” I was relieved.
“What brings you here anyway?” Ashton patted my head to calm me down. “Leave us, Joseph,” he said coolly.
Joseph left the room and closed the door on the way out. I let Ashton go and frowned at him. “Where were you? Why didn’t you take my call?”
Ashton asked me to sit down first and handed me a glass of water. “Here, calm your nerves.”
Obviously, I couldn’t. I put the glass of water aside and went back to my questions. “You’re hiding something, aren’t you? What didn’t you tell me?”
Ashton stared down in silence. His eyes seemed to darken a lot, keeping his secrets in the depths of his heart. I knew it. I knew I was right. Ashton was in big trouble.
I held his hand. “We’re a couple.” In sickness and in health, till death do us part. That was the vow we took, and I intended to see it through.
He held my hand by reflex. “Herman wanted me to sign the papers along with Thora,” he said solemnly.
I knew what that meant since I had been handling the firm for quite a while. If Ashton were to sign it, he and the company would have to face the consequences if Pitcoin were to run into any trouble, including any kind of criminal case.
I thought our fake feud could lower Herman’s guard, but he was a sly old fox after all. He would trust nothing but a contract, since that was the most effective way to guarantee their profits.
“And you’re going with it?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No. You’re still sick. I can’t make any missteps, so I won’t sign it.”
“That’s a relief.” I would object to it if he had gone with it. “You should stop if it’s too risky. Ezra wouldn’t do anything either, since he’d prefer to maintain the status quo. Don’t push yourself.”
“I can’t. Not when I finally managed to get rid of Armond. The fewer the competition, the better my chances, so I have to pick up the pace.” Ashton was considering his options carefully.
I knew I couldn’t change his mind once he was set on it, so I merely sighed. All I could do then was face the crisis with him. A moment ago I felt safe with him around. However, for some reason, he felt like an illusion, as if he’d slip away if I took my eyes off him for a second, and my heart sank.
Ashton was starting to get uncomfortable getting stared at, so he looked up and met my gaze. They said eyes were the windows to the soul, and that split second was enough for me to ascertain that he was hiding something else from me—something he didn’t want me to know.
I was surprised, but I knew I couldn’t press him for answers anyway. Dwelling on something like that was pointless, so I had to go with the flow.
In the end, I decided to leave him alone. “Don’t push yourself too much. Take it slow. I have to go now, or Ezra’s and Thora’s men are going to find out that I’m gone.”
I went outside, and he sent me off. “I’ll get Joseph to take you back.”
“It’s fine. Millie’s with me. She can take me back.” I refused his offer and stood on tiptoe to peck his lips, then I left the office.
