Tempted Trapped and Too Late to Run

Clara was never the type to just sit back and wait for things to fall apart.

Now that she knew she wasn't actually part of the Bradford family-and with Ryan's trust in her gone there was nothing left tying her here. That night, she packed a small suitcase, tossed in a few essentials, and decided to skip town for a while. She figured laying low in another city was her safest bet.

She knew exactly how much Eden meant to Dylan. The second he found out the truth, he'd come looking for her. No doubt about that.

But the moment she stepped into the airport and handed over her ID, she spotted a row of police officers heading straight toward her. They stopped at her side, telling her there was something suspicious in her luggage.

At first, Clara was too stunned to react. By the time it hit her what was happening, she was being marched off by the officers to a tiny, out-of-the-way room in the airport.

She stared at her suitcase, brows drawn tight.

"There's nothing in there but clothes. Seriously, check again if you need to."

The officers barely acknowledged her. They kept scanning her documents over and over before snapping cold metal cuffs around her wrists.

She was still trying to explain herself as they led her out to the car, but when they pulled up in front of Palm Bay, she finally went quiet.

Less than four hours ago, she'd started packing. She hadn't expected Dylan to move this fast.

The police brought her into the main hall and left her there. Her wrists still ached from the cuffs as she glanced over at Dylan, sitting right in the middle of the sofa, looking every bit like he owned the place.

Her suitcase was dropped at her feet. It was obvious to everyone: she'd tried to make a run for it.

Clara didn't bother feeling embarrassed. She just stood there, silent, waiting for him to speak first. She had no idea what was happening with Eden, and until she knew more, she wasn't about to say a word.

Her mind was spinning with worry when Dylan finally spoke up.

"So, you were just going to run? Not even say goodbye to your boyfriend?"

Clara froze, pressing her lips together. She hadn't told Z anything about her escape plan. She liked him-a lot-but she knew she couldn't drag him into this mess. The Fergusons would go after him in a heartbeat.

No one in the Capital's inner circle even knew what Z looked like, or his real name. Even if the Fergusons wanted payback, they wouldn't know where to start.

She dropped her gaze to the cuffs on her wrists, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I didn't have a choice. I knew you'd come for me, Mr. Dylan."

She hadn't expected him to be so quick about it. She'd almost made it onto that plane-if she'd had another forty minutes, she would've been in the air.

Too bad.

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Lately, her luck had been rotten.

Dylan sat there, a cup of coffee in front of him. The smell was strong and bitter, filling the room.

“Clara,” he said, "did you call anyone before you tried to leave?"noveldrama

She shook her head.

Nope. She wasn't about to drag Cole or Scarlette-or even Ryan-into this. If she vanished, Cole would probably go find Ryan, help him become the CEQ he was meant to be. The world would keep turning, with or without her. sŵnovel

She didn't say any of that out loud, but when she looked up, she caught his eyes —and was shocked by how angry he looked.

She'd never seen Dylan like this before. Not even close.

“Mr. Dylan, what happened with Eden is my responsibility. Just leave everyone else out of it."

She barely finished speaking before

he hurled his coffee cup at the floor right by her feet. Coffee splashed

over her shoes, and the cup

shattered, sending shards everywhere.

For Eden, Dylan was furious—really, truly losing it.

And if he was this angry, she was in more trouble than she'd thought.