Sylvia finally turned back, taking a deep breath as her gaze met Reese’s. "I need to go see someone," she said quietly, "but you cannot tell my brother."

Reese’s eyes narrowed slightly, just enough to make her heart skip a beat. "Evans Everest?" he asked.

She nodded, biting her lip. Her pulse quickened as she realized the gravity of confiding in him. It was risky.

"Why?" Reese pressed, leaning a little closer. His presence alone made her forget the logical, rational part of her brain, the part that knew she should be angry, exasperated, and plotting her escape.

"I cannot tell you," Sylvia replied, shaking her head. Her eyes flicked away briefly. "But I am trying to help my brother. And you... you are fiercely loyal to him. I don’t want to put you in a position where you have to lie to him."

"Are you going to do anything dangerous there?"

Sylvia shook her head. "No," she said.

"I will wait right outside the door," Reese said. "Wherever you are, I won’t inform Mr. Kane. And I won’t ask questions."

Sylvia’s heart softened, and a small smile tugged at her lips. Without thinking, she stepped forward and hugged him. The warmth of his body pressed against hers. Reese remained rigid, his arms stiff at his sides.

"You didn’t have to spank my ass, though," she murmured.

"I apologize for that too," he said evenly.

For reasons she couldn’t explain — a momentary lapse of logic fueled by adrenaline, proximity, and a reckless streak that had always gotten her into trouble — Sylvia leaned in.

Her lips brushed against his in a fleeting kiss, just enough to make her pulse surge and her mind whirl.

Reese stiffened immediately, stepping back in a reflex that was half shock, half self-preservation. "That’s a terrible idea, Miss Kane," he said.

"Why? Because I’m Winn’s sister?" Sylvia challenged. She tilted her chin up, trying to mask the sudden rush of embarrassment that colored her cheeks.

"No," he said. "Because you have no idea what you’ll be in for."

He turned and strode toward the door. Sylvia stood frozen for a heartbeat, watching the play of light on his shoulders, the easy way he commanded the space even as he exited it.

"What does that even mean?" she muttered, scrunching her nose in confusion as he disappeared out the door. "You talk in riddles, soldier."

*****

Evans Everest didn’t need his secretary to say much; the moment she uttered the words "Miss Sylvia Kane is here to see you," he knew trouble had arrived.

He let out a low curse under his breath.

"Send her in," he said at last. The secretary left, and Evans leaned back in his chair, rubbing his jaw.

His mind wandered back to last night. Ivy had finally joined the Everest family for dinner.

The atmosphere had been thick with awkward smiles, but all of that shattered the second she’d announced her pregnancy to those who didn’t already know, namely her mother and grandfather.

Evans still remembered the silence that followed.

Ivy had wanted to tell Winn first. But the news of his marriage had gutted her. And after her disappearance, after everything she’d endured, finding out he’d moved on so swiftly had broken her so much that Evans wasn’t sure she could ever be repaired.

Now Sylvia was here. Which could only mean one thing—Winn either knew about Ivy or was about to.

Evans straightened as the door opened. Sylvia stepped in, poised yet anxious. She looked nothing like her brother—her energy was softer.

"Mr Everest," she greeted.

"Miss Kane," he replied, gesturing toward the chair across from him. "To what do I owe this... unexpected visit?"

She hesitated before sitting, crossing one leg over the other. "You already know," she said softly.

"I’m guessing you were on the receiving end of my... outburst yesterday."

Sylvia crossed her arms. "Yes," she said curtly. "Where is Ivy?"

He let out a slow exhale. "She’s with me," he said finally. "Now run along and tell your brother. But I’m not going to let him see her. Not after what he’s done."

"You mentioned she was pregnant," Sylvia said after a tense silence.

Evans’ jaw flexed. He rubbed his temple. "Yes," he said quietly. "She’s pregnant."

"Then I cannot tell him," she said at last.

Evans’s brows knitted together. "I don’t get it," he said. "You came here demanding answers, and now you want to keep secrets from him? What the hell are you trying to do, Miss Kane?"

"What happened to her? And why didn’t you notify Winn immediately—or any member of her family?"

"Because, I am her family."

Sylvia frowned. "I don’t get it."

"She’s my niece," Evans interrupted. "And she was attacked." His eyes darkened, haunted. "Left for dead when I found her. So no, I wasn’t ready to instantly notify the man who was the reason for her suffering."

Sylvia’s vision blurred. "She’s really your niece?"

He nodded. "My sister’s daughter."

"You’re Ivy’s uncle?" Sylvia said with a startled laugh. "Oh... this is delicious."

"Why can you not inform your brother?" he asked. "I thought Winn would already be breaking down my door this morning."

"Trust me," she said. "The first thing I want to do is tell him. He’s miserable, sad, heartbroken—I don’t even have the words. But everything is so... complicated."

"I believe you when you say Ivy was hurt because of him," Sylvia continued. "But I also believe that the two of them, with the kind of love they have for each other... they can withstand anything."

Evans’s hands clenched on the edge of his desk. "He got married almost immediately!" he snapped.

"Because..." She exhaled, her lips trembling slightly. "Because House of Kane is drowning. And he needed Grandpa’s will read."

Evans blinked, momentarily disarmed. "So you know who hurt her?" he asked quietly.

"Yes. And he will try again. And again. And again in different ways. He doesn’t stop. He never stops."

Evans’s eyes narrowed. "Who is it?"

She looked up at him then. "My father."