Chapter 68: Hidden in Plain Sight

At first, I think I must have misheard him.

But when I look at Lawrence’s face and see how calm and certain those ice-cold green eyes are, my blood runs cold.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, sir,” Jay replies with a scoff, glancing nervously at me.

“Sure you do,” Lawrence says again. He shifts his coffee mug to the center of the table so his hand doesn’t knock it over.

“Listen, I don’t know how you managed to slip into the parking garage that evening without triggering the main cameras,” he continues, his voice dangerously calm.

“But the photo was taken on your device. I traced the metadata, the MAC address, even the faint watermark from your personal editing software.” He explains. “You covered your tracks well… I’ll give you that. But don’t insult my intelligence by denying it, Jason. Save us both the time.”

I remain frozen in my seat, staring at Jay, way too shocked to speak.

A huge part of me wants to jump in and defend him, to tell Lawrence he’s mistaken. But the words won't come.

This was the same thing that happened with Kieran. I had refused to believe it at first, and I’d been wrong.

“Why’d you do it?” Lawrence asks again. “Or better still… why'd you do it knowing it'd hurt Scarlett?”

Jay’s jaw clenches. He doesn't answer for a long moment, but when he does, his voice is tight. “Let’s talk someplace else.”

My stomach sinks.

He doesn’t deny it anymore.

He doesn't say all this is a misunderstanding.

“Jay?” I whisper, my voice cracking.

His eyes dart to me for a brief second, filled with guilt, before returning to Lawrence. “We could talk in your office.”

“Or you could talk from behind bars,” Lawrence hisses, the temperature at the table dropping instantly.

"No," I whisper, touching Lawrence's arm. I feel him turn to look at me, but I don't take my eyes off Jay. “I want to hear what he has to say.”

I clear my throat so my voice comes out less hoarse. “Let's go to your office.”

Lawrence's face softens and he nods before he looks back at Jay, his expression growing hard once again.

“You heard her, asshole, move it.”

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We get the office, ignoring the curious looks people shoot us, especially Lawrence since they've not seen him since before the scandal even broke out.

And also because all three of us—Jay, him, and I—head straight to Lawrence’s office.

It's looking quite serious to them, but no one can question what's happening.

Once inside the soundproofed walls of the luxurious office, Jay pulls a chair and sits, facing us.

He doesn't even look sorry.

“I did it for you, Scar," he says, finally breaking the silence. His eyes stay on me. Not Lawrence. Me. “I needed you to see the truth.”

My chest tightens. “The truth about what?”

“That men like him don’t stay,” Jay says flatly. “They take what they want and leave. They always do.”

Lawrence guffaws aloud.

“You were already too far gone,” Jay continues. “If I’d warned you, you wouldn’t have listened. So I had to show you.” His mouth twists. “Even if that meant you getting hurt.”

I laugh shortly in utter disbelief. “You leaked my life to the world.”

“I forced reality into the open.”

“You humiliated me.”

“I protected you.”

I shake my head slowly. “Do you hear yourself, Jay? Protected me in what way, for fucks sake?!”

He sits forward. "You fell for someone who nearly killed you. And when he was gone, what did you do? You ran straight into the arms of another billionaire! What were you thinking trading one monster for another?”

“It was none of your business!” I yell in frustration.

“I leaked those photos because someone had to show you. Someone had to prove that when the world turned on you, when the media tore you apart, when it wasn't just a fun secret anymore… he'd run. He'd leave you like they all leave you.”

Jay's voice drops. "I was going to be there when he abandoned you; I was going to be right there to pick up the pieces. To finally…" He stops.

I cannot believe what I'm hearing. How could Jay do this to me?

"Well, you were wrong," I snap. "About all of it.” I take Lawrence's hand in mine. “He didn't leave.”

“Still doesn't make him a good person," he snaps.

Before I can fire back, Lawrence interrupts, his voice calm but icy.

“How did you find out we were together?” he asks. “We were very careful.”

Jay lets out a bitter scoff and crosses his arms, his eyes moving between us with resentment.

“Apparently not careful enough.”

He turns to me, pain flashing across his face. “Remember that night we had dinner? When I had to leave because of the server alarm?” His jaw tightened. “Turned out Luke was still at the office, so I just asked him to handle it for me. I was rushing back when I saw you getting into his car.” He jerked his chin toward Lawrence. “Nothing about the way you looked at him was professional.”

The day comes back to me immediately, but I still cannot make sense of the reason for his betrayal.

Jay’s voice grows quieter, but the hurt in his voice reflects. “I still needed proof. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. So… I followed you.”

He pauses before continuing.

“When you got to his hotel, I waited. I knew I couldn’t get past the main security, so I subtly hung around the entrance.” He explains. “I didn't even have to wait long when I saw a delivery van coming in. That was my only chance; so I took it. I slipped in behind while the guard was distracted checking the driver’s paperwork.”

“From there, I made it down to the underground garage. It wasn’t easy, but once I was inside, the rest was simple.” Jay shrugs. “I know how to avoid cameras… I’ve done enough security audits for this company to understand the blind spots.”

He shakes his head, looking almost ashamed for a second. “And then I saw you two right there in the garage, heading up to his penthouse, looking every bit the couple.”

His eyes grow hard. “And even after that, I was still in denial.”

Lawrence and I are listening to Jay, hanging on to his every word.

“So when I managed to make it out of the garage, I was too restless and shocked to return home. I went back to the office and started digging through the feeds for anything that could further prove what I'd just seen.”

He continues. “Being in IT granted me the access I needed to the security feeds, the access logs… everything. No one usually bothers going through that stuff unless need be, but I did. In my desperation, I did.”

Jay's eyes hold mine. “I dug for hours, and

I pulled every angle I could find until I got what I was looking for.”

He smiled bitterly. “You two were kissing after everyone had left. It was smart of you to avoid the cameras, but your reflections showed on the glass panel near the elevator.” His smile drops. “And that was all the confirmation I needed.”

“You're sick," Lawrence says.

Jay sneers. “How dare you think he’s any different, Scar?” He looks straight at me. “He isn’t. He’s just better at hiding it.”

“He is different,” I whisper.

“Why?” Jay snaps, his voice rising with frustration. “Because he caught Kieran? That doesn’t make him any less dangerous, Scarlett!”

“What the hell are you talking about? ” I burst out, my patience finally snapping. “What’s all this talk about him being dangerous? For God’s sake, Jay!”

Jay’s eyes slowly shift to Lawrence. There’s something dark and satisfied in his expression before he looks back at me.

“You don’t know, do you?” he asks, almost pityingly.

“Know what?” My voice wavers as I glance at Lawrence. He has gone stiff beside me, his jaw locked tight.

I look between them, my heart pounding. “What are you talking about?”

A slow, wicked smile of disbelief curls on Jay’s lips, like he can’t believe how naive I am.

“Your boyfriend has been stalking you," he replies. “He's obsessed.”