The ride home was silent.
Anna sat by the window, watching the city lights blur past, but her mind wasn't on the road. Ethan's words kept echoing in her head, mixing with Oliver's silence.
Beside her, Oliver didn't speak either. His hands were steady on the steering wheel, his expression unreadable—but the tension around him was impossible to ignore.
Anna finally broke the silence.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Oliver didn't look at her. "Because it wasn't necessary."
Anna turned to him, disbelief flashing in her eyes. "Not necessary? It involves you. It involves someone who is now trying to interfere in our lives."
Oliver's jaw tightened. "I was going to handle it."
"That's not the point," she said, her voice rising slightly. "You keep deciding what I should and shouldn't know."
The car came to a stop at a red light.
For a moment, everything was still.
Then Oliver looked at her.
"I was protecting you."
Anna let out a quiet, frustrated laugh. "By hiding things from me?"
"Yes."
The directness of his answer caught her off guard.
"I didn't want you dragged into something ugly," he continued, his voice lower now. "That past… it's not something I'm proud of."
Anna's anger softened slightly, but the hurt remained. "Then tell me the truth now."
The light turned green, but Oliver didn't move immediately.
"There was a deal," he said finally. "A major one. My company and his father's company were both involved."
Anna listened carefully.
"It went wrong," Oliver continued. "Bad decisions were made. Not just by us—by them too. But in the end… their company collapsed."
"And yours didn't," Anna said quietly.
"No."
She swallowed. "So he blames you."
"Yes."
Anna leaned back, processing everything.
"And you never thought I deserved to know this?" she asked softly.
Oliver exhaled. "I didn't think it would come back."
"But it did," she said.
Silence filled the car again.
This time heavier.
Back at the penthouse, the distance between them didn't fade.
Anna walked in first, placing her bag down without a word. Oliver followed, watching her carefully.
She turned to face him.
"You should have trusted me enough to tell me," she said.
Oliver stepped closer. "I do trust you."
"Then act like it."
The words hit harder than she intended.
For a moment, Oliver didn't respond.
Then he moved closer until there was barely any space between them.
"I trust you with everything that matters," he said quietly.
Anna held his gaze. "This matters."
A pause.
Something shifted in his expression.
Not anger.
Not control.
Something more raw.
"I didn't want you to look at me differently," he admitted.
Anna's breath caught slightly.
That wasn't what she expected.
"I don't," she said softly.
"Not yet," he replied.
The honesty in his voice made her chest tighten.
Before she could say anything, his phone buzzed.
Oliver glanced at it, and immediately his expression changed again—back to sharp, controlled.
He stepped aside and answered.
Anna didn't mean to listen.
But she heard enough.
"…keep an eye on him."
"…if he contacts her again, tell me immediately."
"…no mistakes."
Her heart started racing.
When Oliver ended the call and turned back, she was already watching him.
"You're still hiding things," she said quietly.
Oliver didn't deny it this time.
"I'm trying to fix this before it gets worse," he replied.
Anna shook her head slightly. "You can't fix everything alone."
"I have to."
"No, you don't," she said, stepping closer. "We're supposed to face things together."
For a moment, their eyes locked.
The tension between them wasn't just about anger anymore.
It was about trust.
About fear.
About everything they hadn't said.
Then—
Anna's phone buzzed.
Both of them froze.
Slowly, she picked it up.
Unknown number.
Her fingers hesitated for a second before opening it.
He still hasn't told you everything.
Anna's breath hitched.
She showed the screen to Oliver.
His expression darkened instantly.
"That's not Ethan," he said immediately.
Anna looked at him. "Then who?"
For the first time—
Oliver didn't have an answer.
And that was far more dangerous than anything else.
Because now it was clear.
Ethan wasn't the only problem.
Someone else knew the truth.
And they were getting closer.