Chapter 5
The red light countdown was thirty seconds. I thought Adam would wait it out.
Unexpectedly, he answered after just one second. "From the beginning, I only wanted to be your bodyguard. But you wouldn't take me."
Now it was my turn to be stunned. Adam's tone was flat, like he was recounting someone else's story. He continued bluntly, "Seven years ago, I took a bullet to my heart. Needed specialized equipment flown in from another country.
"Time was critical, but standard procedures would have taken at least two days.
"You took on all the pressure and risk, insisted on applying for a special flight, spent nearly ten times the cost to have it here in Harborton in two hours.
"You fought for my life.
"So I'm here to repay the debt."
Adam's words dragged the dusty memory from the depths of my mind.
I'd just joined the channel then. Because of that incident, I was suspended for three months. Emily even mocked me for risking my job for a stranger.
"Charlotte, since when did you become so irrational?" she once snarled.
Back then, I hadn't thought much about it. But if I had to do it over, I probably would again.
A life was a life.
I started the car again, smiling. "Really? Just repaying a debt? Not here to collect one?"
"No." Adam's tone was serious.
I smiled without replying.
I knew what Emily was like. Adam was capable. With her scheming mind, sending someone with sweet talk to infiltrate my inner circle wasn't beyond her.
After all, Emily and I were fighting for the Evening Spotlight.
Adam seemed to sense my disbelief, his brow furrowing. "If I'm lying, may I die a terrible death."
I was taken aback.
Meeting his earnest gaze, I couldn't help but laugh.
"Okay, I believe you," I said.
But Adam's expression didn't lighten.
He seemed harder to handle than Nathan.
*****
Emily didn't come to the channel in the afternoon. Nathan wasn't there either, but I knew exactly what they were up to.
At 3:10, Emily sent me a photo from Sevva, enjoying a drink.
Nathan sat across from her, a laptop on his knees, typing away, looking busy.
She leaned in. He looked up.
His lips brushed her cheek.
The angle of that shot was so sneaky, it had to be either staged or captured by someone with professional-level skills. There's no way a casual snap could achieve that.
Emily: [Charlotte, accidentally kissed your boyfriend. You're not mad, are you?]
I didn't reply. Was I angry?
Not really. But it was uncomfortable.
Like a plant I'd watered for years, but now it was taken by someone else.
At 4:27, Nathan sent her a bouquet of roses. It was cliché, but Emily couldn't help showing it off to me.
Emily: [Your boyfriend's taste is so basic.]
At 4:50, they hit the mall, and Emily picked out new clothes for Nathan, swapping out everything he wore, staking her claim on him.
When I did that, Nathan looked humiliated.
But in Emily's photos, while his expression was mostly neutral, the slight smile and the resignation in his eyes gave him away.
It seemed Nathan, away from me, could be gentle with anyone.
At 7:10, Emily chartered a boat at Victoria Harbour.
No matter what Emily did, Nathan just accepted it all without a word.
For a second, I honestly couldn't tell. Was there even a real difference between me and Emily?
Emily's messages kept coming. I stopped looking and tossed my phone to Adam. His expression didn't change.
He properly put the phone away, showing no curiosity about his employer's private affairs.
But his unwavering, direct stare was starting to annoy me.
I was about to speak.
Adam spoke first. "If you don't like it, I can change. But I probably can't change. I just don't want you out of my sight."
His voice held no inflection, completely flat, devoid of emotion. Suddenly, I wondered if Emily was trying to use Adam to seduce me.
Was she trying to create a second Nathan?
Too bad for her. That plan was doomed.