As the car pulled away from the hospital, leaving behind the chaos of reporters and buzzing media, Jessica let out a deep, quiet breath, her eyes closing for a moment, the fleeting darkness offering brief solace. Her thoughts drifted to the dinner meeting set for the next day and her brows subtly creased in concern.
Davis, seated beside her, noticed the tension in her shoulders. He gently pulled her into his arms, pressing a soft kiss to her lips."You’ve been worrying a lot lately," he murmured. "Thinking about too many things more than you used to."
Though they’d only been married for a little over a year, they’d weathered enough storms to understand the unspoken. He could tell when something was weighing heavily on her heart.
Jessica turned to him, her voice soft. "Do you really think so?"
Davis nodded lightly, his gaze warm as he gently stroked her arm. "In the past, you didn’t stress over gains or losses. You took things as they came and made your decisions based on the situation. But now..."
His voice trailed off into the hum of the car’s silence.
Jessica sighed. She had noticed the shift in herself too, her growing hesitance, the creeping doubt, the wavering certainty and sometimes the overthinking. She never took it seriously before, often brushing it aside. But now, with Davis pointing it out, she made a mental note to address it.
But come to think of it, she hadn’t really changed her way of thinking. It was just that he was beginning to notice and understand every nuance of her mood and unspoken actions—things he hadn’t truly paid attention to in the past.
Jessica sighed. "Maybe I’m not actually second-guessing myself. Perhaps he’s just becoming more worried about my affairs than he should be," she mused.
"Why did you suddenly decide we should return to our old home?" she asked.
Davis inhaled deeply, his mind already made up. "I’ve thought about it. We’re under public scrutiny, and with the spotlight on us right now, exposing your residence could bring unnecessary attention. It’s not supposed to be public knowledge—if the media finds out, your privacy and our safety could be compromised. So, it’s better to stay somewhere that’s already known to them."
Jessica’s lips curled slightly. "You’re being cautious."
He nodded, serious now. "I’m being realistic," Davis replied. ""Think about it. Today we managed to dodge the press, but what if someone had followed us? That house was a sanctuary. Let’s not turn it into a trap.
His shoulders slagged lightly, his gaze in the spaces with a thoughtful expression "That place was meant to remain hidden. All the while, no one expected me to be in town, let alone listening to the news and still not being found."
Jessica chuckled. "Were you even searched for?" she teased.
She would bet her most treasured possession that Desmond never really searched for Davis.
The thought of him caused her breath to hitch. She had thought that Desmond visit on the hospital as Grandpa Allen had requested, would ease tensions but instead, it had made things worse.
Now, Desmond was unpredictable—trained in the Allen family, and aware of so many of their secrets. That made him dangerous.
Noticing her silence, Davis looked down at her. "Babe, what are you thinking about?"
Without hesitation, she whispered, "Desmond."
The name hit Davis like a punch. His fists curled, and his expression turned cold and unreadable.
"What about him?" he asked quietly.
"I just feel... things might spiral out of control."
Davis let out a soft laugh. "Why?"
"Because," she explained slowly, "he’s not an Allen by blood—but he was trained like one. Don’t you think that kind of knowledge can cause a lot of damage?"
Davis shook his head, a soft smirk playing on his lips as he stared into space.
"No damage at all. In fact, if he wasn’t trained like an Allen, how else would he make the one mistake that brings him down?"
Jessica blinked, analyzing his words quickly. Her eyes widened as realization hit her.
"You’re wicked," she breathed.
He chuckled. "I haven’t done anything wrong. Just playing by the rules. What goes around, comes around. Would you blame me?"


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