Chapter Twenty-Three Dylan
I saw her before I heard her.
Sunny—small, frozen—backed against the brick wall of the preschool she loves more than oxygen. And him—Trevor—leaning forward like a shadow trained to follow her wherever she tries to stand alone.
Then headlights exploded across the asphalt. My car.
I don’t remember telling the driver to stop. I don’t remember my feet hitting the pavement. All I remember is the sound she makes when she’s afraid—
A sound I have sworn my life against.
“Sunny.”
She turns toward me—eyes wide, stunned—like she can’t believe I came.
Trevor doesn’t flinch.
“You again,” he mutters.
“Walk away,” I tell him, voice low, steady.
“I’m talking to my girlfriend.”
“She’s not yours. "My jaw tightens. "She was never yours.”
He smiles—ugly and satisfied. “But she looked at me first. Not you. She ran to me first. And I bet she’ll run again.”
Sunny stiffens.
That’s all it takes for the darkness in me to break loose.
I close the distance—grab his shirt in my fist—and slam him against the brick wall.
He gasps, wind knocked out of him. “You think she’s safe with you? You think having money makes you a hero?”
“No,” I say. “I think not touching her without permission makes you a human. And you failed.”
For one terrifying moment—I want to hit him.
I want to destroy something that has destroyed her for years.
But she is here. She is watching. And I refuse to let her learn violence is the only language men speak.
I release him—just enough that he stumbles away, swearing.
He spits at the ground near my shoes. “She’ll never be free of me.”
Then he disappears around the corner.
“Dylan—”
Sunny reaches for me—but a shout cuts through the air.
“THAT’S THEM! GET THE SHOT!”
Flashbulbs erupt like lightning. Voices chant like war drums.
“DYLAN! HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN TOGETHER?”
“SUNNY, DID YOU CHEAT ON YOUR EX WITH HIM?”
“ARE YOU SLEEPING WITH HIM FOR MONEY?”
Her body folds in on itself—small, overwhelmed.
I step in front of her.
“Back up,” I bark.
Phones lift. Cameras zoom. Someone laughs: “Look! Billionaire Daddy guarding his toy!”
Sunny’s breath breaks. Like glass.
I grab her hand.
“Come with me.”
We run through the lot, shoving through the crowd. Security meets us at the car—doors swing open—and then—
silence.
Inside: only our ragged breaths and the echo of everything unsaid.
The Fear That Won’t Let Go
She’s shaking. Her hands. Her shoulders. Her voice when she finally whispers:
“I can’t breathe.”
I take her hand gently—not to claim—to steady.
“Look at me,” I say softly. She does.
“You’re safe.”
Her voice cracks. “No, I’m not.”
She pulls away—pressing her palms to her eyes—like she’s trying to rub her life off her skin.
“I keep losing everything,” she whispers. “My job. My brother. My name. And now—now I’ve become content. A headline. A spectacle because I let myself feel something for you.”
Her words slice—because they’re true.
She takes a shaking breath.
“Loving you costs too much.”
The car feels smaller suddenly. Crushing.
I want to promise her she’ll never lose again—but I’ve already taken enough.
So I stay quiet.
Her phone buzzes.
She looks at the screen—eyes widening.
“It’s Mrs. Markham,” she whispers.
She answers. Voice trembling.
“Mrs. Markham… yes… I understand… yes, I know.”
Her silence stretches. Long. Too long.
Finally she speaks, voice hollow:
“What deal?”
My stomach freezes.
A long pause. Then:
“So… if I publicly end things with Dylan Knight… my license will be reinstated. And the board will restore my job.”
She lowers the phone. Hands limp in her lap.
I stare at her. She stares at nothing.
Marcus Blake—my rival—did this. He used her dream as the knife. And I am the handle.
“Sunny,” I say—slow, careful—because I already feel her slipping.
“I don’t want to make this choice,” she whispers.
“You don’t have to,” I start—
She cuts me off.
“Yes. I do. "Her voice breaks. "Because you’re the only thing in my life I chose for me. And now… choosing you means losing everything else.”
She finally looks at me.
And I recognize the expression—because I’ve seen it in mirrors.
It’s the face you make right before you walk away to save yourself.