"The lovebirds were having a moment. Ms. Harding, you had us worried over nothing!"
Julie's tears streamed freely. "I'm so sorry, sis. I was just worried about you..."
Piers saw right through her jealousy, and he couldn't hide his satisfaction. "That's enough. Don't cause a scene next time."
Before he could finish, Julie's eyes rolled back and she collapsed.
"Julie!" His pupils contracted. The cold indifference he'd worn while using me vanished in an instant, replaced by raw panic and desperate tenderness.
He didn't hesitate for a single second. He dropped me, scooped Julie into his arms, and charged out of the banquet hall. "Call an ambulance!"
The moment he let go, my gown slipped free and pooled around me. Bare skin flashed under the chandelier light.
I grabbed for the fabric, but it was already too late.
Camera flashes erupted like a hailstorm, so blinding I couldn't keep my eyes open.
"Stop! Don't!" I shielded myself uselessly. "Stop taking pictures!"
No one listened. I clutched the gown to my body, fingernails digging through the fabric and into my palms.
Through the relentless storm of shutter clicks, I stared in the direction Piers had disappeared, and the hatred inside me grew like thorned vines wrapping around every rib.
Piers Stephens. Everything you did to me tonight, I will repay tenfold in three days.
The whispers and camera shutters wove together into a suffocating net, tightening around me until I could barely breathe.
"That's enough!" A cool, commanding male voice cut through the chaos and tore the net wide open.
I turned toward the sound. "Joseph Simmons?"
He stood tall in a perfectly tailored suit, every line of him sharp and composed, his features carrying an air of cold refinement.
His bodyguards cleared the crowd in seconds. He slipped off his jacket and draped it over my shoulders. "Let me get you out of here."
I blinked, then nodded.
He swept me up in his arms and carried me all the way to his car.
Warm air flooded the interior, chasing the chill from my skin. He handed me a bottle of water, his voice low and gentle. "Those photos won't see the light of day, Ms. Harding. You have my word."
My throat was raw. "Thank you."
He let out a quiet laugh. "Don't mention it. I simply couldn't stand watching someone who once beat me fall this low."