UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT Chapter 23

I stood there, mind wiped blank, like I’d been yanked out of hell and dropped back on earth.

I tested the words in my mouth. “Do I… do I need to go with you?”

The lead officer glanced at me, voice gentle. “Noah Lane, you don’t have to come with us. Someone’s here to take you.”

“Take me?” I froze, heartbeat spiking, confusion roaring through my skull. Who would come for me now?

The door swung open again. Chloe, Lisa, and Sophie walked in.

Chloe wore her usual knowing smile. Lisa’s red lips curled with a teasing tilt, while Sophie’s eyes were swollen and red, like she’d just cried, her face tangled with complicated emotion.

I went rigid, my brain short-circuiting, unable to parse what I was seeing.

Sophie suddenly rushed over and crushed me in a hug, squeezing like she could fold me into her body. Her voice broke, trembling. “Noah, you idiot! Why would you take that risk? Do you have any idea how scared I was?”

Her tears soaked through my shirt, heat seeping into my skin and jolting my heart. I tried to speak, but she only held me tighter. My throat clogged up; all I could do was pat her back in a stiff, useless rhythm.

Mr. Carter saw this and lost it completely. He thrashed against the people holding him and spat venom at Chloe and Lisa. “You two bitches! You plotted behind my back to betray me! Just wait—I’ll make you pay!”

Lisa gave a silvery laugh, her mouth curling into a razor-edged smirk. “Save it, Mr. Carter. Your lucky streak is over.”

Chloe cut him a cool look, voice calm but sharp as a blade. “Daniel Carter, did you really think Noah was the only one digging up your dirt? We’ve had our eyes on you for a long time.”

The officers didn’t let him rant any longer. They hauled him out. His curses echoed down the hallway, fading, like a caged animal making its last, useless struggle.

The office went quiet. It was just me and the three women. Sophie was still crying. She let me go, wiped her eyes, and spoke so softly it was almost to herself. “Noah, you’re too reckless. For me… was it worth it?”

I gave a cracked little laugh, my throat sand-dry. “Sophie, I just didn’t want you taking any more crap from those bastards. You stuck your neck out for me—I couldn’t just watch you walk into the fire.”

She froze, eyes complicated, as if a thousand words had nowhere to land.

Chloe stepped over and patted my shoulder, a trace of teasing in her tone. “Noah, you hotheaded kid, you’ve got some bite after all. But from here on out, wise up. This industry has more than one Mr. Carter.”

Lisa leaned against the desk, the hem of her dress sliding up her thigh, pale skin flashing as she smiled, sultry and wicked. “Sweetheart, I told you I’d come through, didn’t I? I did a lot of the heavy lifting on Mr. Carter’s dirt.”

I looked at the three of them, and the questions surged back like a tide. “How did you even link up? Why help me?”

Chloe lit a cigarette, exhaled a drifting ribbon of smoke, her gaze turning deep. “Noah, this scene is a pit, but not everyone wants to sink. A guy like Carter should’ve been dealt with ages ago. Lisa and I have our reasons. As for Sophie…”

She glanced at Sophie and smiled, meaning heavy. “She did it for you.”

Color flared across Sophie’s cheeks. She looked down and said nothing.

Heat pooled in my chest. I was about to speak when Lisa cut in. She crossed to me, trailing a finger across my chest, and my heart tripped hard. “Now that it’s handled, how are you going to thank me, sweetheart? As for last night at the bar—we’re not done.”

Leverage