Chapter 6 6

Zoe stared at the phone. It vibrated aggressively, dancing across the marble countertop toward the edge.

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

Every vibration felt like Liam's hand shaking her shoulder, demanding attention.

She looked at Julian. He had stopped eating. He was cutting a strawberry with surgical precision, his eyes fixed on his plate, but the tension radiating off him was palpable.

Zoe reached out and swiped the green button.

"Hello?"

"Zoe! Finally!" Liam's voice was loud, frantic, and devoid of any apology. "Where are you? I had Marcus calling your dorm all night! He said you never came home."

Zoe felt a cold knot form in her stomach. "I... I couldn't get back. The storm."

"Where did you stay?" Liam demanded. The jealousy in his tone wasn't romantic; it was territorial. Like a child wondering who touched his toy.

"A hotel," Zoe lied. She glanced at Julian. He paused, his knife hovering over the plate. He looked up, his dark eyes locking onto hers.

"Whatever," Liam rushed on. "Listen, we have a problem. A big one. The press got wind of the arrest. Dad is furious. The board is freaking out."

"I paid the bail, Liam. I handled it."

"Yeah, but someone saw Jade," Liam hissed. "There are rumors. We need to kill them. The PR team has drafted a statement."

Zoe gripped the phone tighter. "A statement?"

"Yes. We need to say I was defending your honor. That the fight was about you. That we were together."

Zoe closed her eyes. "But you weren't defending me. You were defending her. You left me for her."

"Zoe, grow up," Liam snapped. "Jade can't be seen. My parents will cut me off if they find out I'm seeing her again. You know that. Do you want me to lose my trust fund?"

"So I'm just... what? Your shield?"

"You're my family, Zoe! We help each other. That's what we do." His voice shifted, becoming wheedling, manipulative. "Remember when I helped you with your dad's audit? Hmm? I need you on this."

Clang.

Julian slammed a glass of milk onto the counter. The sound was like a gunshot.

Zoe jumped. Liam stopped talking.

Julian didn't speak. He just stared at her. His eyes were cold, hard, furious. He shook his head once-a sharp, imperceptible movement. Don't do it.

Zoe looked at Julian. In his eyes, she saw a strength she didn't feel.

"I..." Zoe faltered. "I need to think about it."

"There's no time to think!" Liam shouted. "I'm sending the draft to your email. Just approve it. Do it for me, Z."

Zoe pulled the phone away from her ear. "I have to go."

"Zoe-"

She hung up.

The silence in the kitchen was heavy.

Zoe put the phone face down. She felt dirty. Used.

"You lied for him," Julian said. His voice was low, dangerous.

"I didn't lie for him. I lied to protect... everything."

"You lied about where you are," Julian corrected. "Why? Afraid he'll find out you spent the night with the 'bastard' brother?"

"No," Zoe whispered. "I just didn't want a fight."

"He's using you," Julian said, stabbing a piece of bacon. "He's using you to hide his trashy girlfriend so he can keep his Daddy's money. And you're letting him."

"It's not that simple," Zoe argued, her voice rising. "My dad's company... we have a deal pending with Sterling Corp. If I make Liam mad, if I blow this up, my dad loses the contract."

Julian looked at her, really looked at her. His expression softened from anger to something resembling pity. "The Vance family survival shouldn't be on your shoulders, Zoe."

"Well, it is."

They finished eating in silence. The food tasted like ash in Zoe's mouth.

When they were done, Julian stood up. "I'm taking you to campus."

He disappeared into the hallway and returned with a heavy coat. He opened a hall closet that looked like it hadn't been touched in years. He pulled out a heavy, dark wool coat. It was clearly a woman's cut, but the style was seasons old.

"Here," he tossed it to her. "Your coat is ruined. This was left here ages ago. It's clean."

Zoe caught it. It smelled faintly of lavender and dust. She put it on. It fit well enough. She shoved her hands into the pockets. Her fingers brushed against a small, cold metal tin. She pulled it out. Mints. Generic, strong peppermints.

She looked up at Julian. He shrugged, already turning toward the door. "Old habits. Keep them."

She popped one into her mouth. The sharp peppermint burned her tongue, grounding her.

They went down to the garage. The ride to Columbia was quiet. The city was digging itself out of the snow, the world bright and blindingly white.

When the car pulled up to the curb of her dorm, Julian didn't unlock the doors immediately.

He pulled out his phone. "QR code. Scan it."

He held the screen toward her. It was a Code for the Signal app.

"Why?"

"Signal," he said. "Encrypted. Self-destructing messages. Liam can't subpoena these logs, and your father can't audit them."

Zoe hesitated, then pulled out her phone and scanned it.

His profile popped up. A black square. Name: J.

"If you need anything," Julian said, looking straight ahead through the windshield. "If he pushes you too far. You message me. Don't call Liam. Call me."

Zoe felt a lump in her throat. "Why are you helping me?"

Julian turned his head. His eyes searched hers for a second, intense and guarded.

"Because someone has to," he said roughly.

The locks clicked open.

Zoe stepped out onto the slushy sidewalk. She watched the black Maybach merge into traffic and disappear.

She walked into her dorm room. Her roommate, Sarah, was still asleep, a lump under the covers.

Zoe sat at her desk and opened her laptop.

Ping.

A new email from "Sterling PR."

Subject: URGENT: Draft Statement for Approval.

She opened it. The headline glared at her:

STERLING HEIR DEFENDS CHILDHOOD SWEETHEART IN BAR BRAWL: A LOVE STORY.

Zoe read the first line. Liam Sterling, protecting his fiancée-to-be, Zoe Vance...

She felt sick. Physically nauseous.

He hadn't even waited for her to say yes. He had already written the script. And now, he expected her to play the part.