Chapter 63

"Nathaniel." Harrison's voice trembled slightly, laced with urgency. "Mr. Falcon, you've been poisoned!"

Nathaniel's jaw clenched. He'd already noticed the unnatural heat spreading through his limbs.

They'd been concealed behind heavy drapes, her curves molded against him, her delicate fingers silencing his lips. Fire pulsed through his veins, scattering his thoughts and hardening his body against his will.

The trap had snapped shut.

With iron grip, Nathaniel seized Harrison's wrist and dragged her through the chaotic scene. Outside, the Whitmore family's civil war raged, guests oblivious to their escape.

Dominic stood waiting by the sleek black Rolls-Royce. "Where to, sir?"

"Rosewood Manor." Nathaniel's reply came through gritted teeth.

•

Harrison had never stepped foot inside Nathaniel's private sanctuary before. The manor's understated opulence mirrored its owner - cool, controlled, intimidating.

Now she stood in his bedroom, heart pounding, after he'd inhaled that... substance.

"Stay." Nathaniel's command brooked no argument before vanishing into his study.

Alone, Harrison surveyed the masculine space. Dark woods, crisp linens, everything meticulously arranged. So different from their shared home at Emerald Heights.

In the study, Nathaniel shrugged off his jacket, muscles taut with restraint. Dominic's voice cut through the tension. "Victoria used aphrodisiac gas to lure Mrs. Falcon. She intended for Roland to compromise her, but Penelope got caught instead."

Nathaniel's lips curled. "No accident. Harrison turned Victoria's scheme against her. She orchestrated tonight's spectacle."

Dominic's eyes widened. "Remarkable."

Indeed. This fragile-looking woman had outmaneuvered the entire Whitmore clan. First exposing Isabella's schemes, then dismantling her alliance with Penelope with a single barb. Now turning Margaret's birthday into a battlefield.

Harrison was like ivy - delicate yet indestructible, thriving in adversity. Nathaniel had mistaken her for another socialite chasing his fortune. How wrong he'd been.

"Sir..." Dominic hesitated. "That Victoria would do this to her own daughter... Mrs. Falcon deserves better."

Nathaniel's chest constricted. Yes, she did.

Back in the bedroom, Harrison jumped when Nathaniel's voice rumbled behind her. "See anything you like?"

She whirled, losing her balance. The bed swallowed her in a tangle of limbs. Heat flooded her cheeks as Nathaniel loomed over her.

"Did you... find an antidote?" Her voice cracked. "I could help."