Chapter 2: Tangled Lies

Lily's heart pounded as Claire's shriek echoed down the hall-"Ethan! Who the hell is she?" Each word a nail in the coffin of her new job.

She stood frozen in Ethan's study, the mysterious photo of a woman who looked like her late mother still burning in her mind.

Ethan's gray eyes pinned her, his jaw tight, a storm brewing behind his chiseled features.

The air crackled with unspoken questions, but Claire's voice was closing in like a predator.

"Linens," Lily blurted, gesturing to the folded stack on the desk, her voice too high. "I was just…delivering them." She stepped back, her sneakers squeaking on the polished floor, desperate to escape Ethan's gaze and the photo's pull.

Ethan's eyes flicked to the desk, to the book that barely hid the photograph. A shadow crossed his face—anger, or something deeper?

"You don't touch what's mine," he said, low and dangerous, stepping closer. His cedar and sweat scent hit her again, dizzying, pulling her back to the changing room where his stare had stripped her bare.

Before she could answer, the study door flew open. Claire Donovan stormed in, her blonde hair a furious halo, green eyes blazing. Her designer heels clicked like gunfire. "So this is the slut sneaking around?" she spat, pointing a manicured nail at Lily. "Caught her twice now, first half-naked, now snooping in your study!"

Lily's stomach dropped. Someone had seen her in the changing room. Her job—Noah's scholarship, flashed before her eyes. "I wasn't…" she started, clutching the linens like a shield.

"Enough." Ethan's voice cut through, cold as steel. He turned to Claire, his broad shoulders blocking Lily from her venom. "You're making a scene, Claire. Again." His tone was dismissive, but his fists clenched, betraying a flicker of rage.

Claire's lips parted, stunned, then twisted into a sneer. "You're defending her? A maid?" She stepped closer, her perfume sharp and cloying. "Your mother will love hearing about this. Victoria's already on her way to clean up your messes."

Ethan's eyes darkened, but he didn't flinch.

"Get out, Claire. Now."

Claire's gaze darted to Lily, promising war.

"You're nothing," she hissed, then spun on her heel, slamming the door so hard the chandelier rattled. Silence fell, heavy and suffocating.

Lily's knees trembled, but she forced herself to stand tall. "I didn't mean to…any of this," she said, hating how small she sounded. Ethan turned, his face unreadable, but his eyes lingered on her, searching. For what? Guilt? Truth?

"Why were you near my desk?" he asked, voice quieter now, but no less intense. He stepped closer, close enough that she felt the heat of him, the same reckless pull from before. Her pulse raced, traitorously alive.

"I wasn't snooping," she lied, her hazel eyes meeting his. "I set the linens down. That's all." She couldn't mention the photo, not yet. Not when it might tie her to something bigger, something that made her skin prickle with unease.

Ethan studied her, his gaze stripping away her defenses. "You're not like the others," he said, almost to himself. "Most maids don't stare back." His lips twitched, that half-smirk from the gym, and for a moment, the air felt too warm, too charged.

Her phone buzzed in her apron pocket, shattering the moment. She fumbled for it, glancing at the screen: Noah. "I have to take this," she mumbled, stepping toward the door, her heart lurching. Ethan didn't stop her, but his eyes followed, heavy with suspicion.

In the hallway, Lily pressed the phone to her ear, her brother's voice crackling through. "Lil, I bombed the practice exam," Noah said, his voice tight with panic. "If I don't pass the real one, I'm out. You still got that job?"

Her throat tightened. Noah, seventeen and brilliant, was her everything. "I've got it," she said, forcing calm. "Just study, okay? I'll handle the rest." But as she hung up, Claire's threat and Ethan's questions loomed. One wrong move, and she'd lose everything.

She needed to clear her head, finish her shift, stay invisible. But Mrs. Grayson had other plans. "Harper!" the housekeeper barked, appearing from nowhere. "You're needed in the study. Again. Linens weren't folded right." Her stern eyes narrowed. "And don't dawdle, Mr. Blackwood's in a mood."

Lily's stomach twisted. Back to the study? With Ethan still there? She nodded, hurrying down the gleaming corridor, her mind racing. The photo was it still on the desk? Could she glimpse it again, figure out why it felt like a key to something bigger?

The study door was ajar. Ethan stood by the window, his back to her, city lights casting shadows across his muscled frame. The desk was clear now, the photo gone. Her heart sank, but she stepped inside, clutching the linens she'd grabbed as an excuse. "Mrs. Grayson said the folds-"

"Close the door," Ethan said, not turning. His voice was low, commanding. She hesitated, then obeyed, the click loud in the quiet room.

He faced her, his gray eyes unreadable. "You saw it, didn't you? The photo."

Lily's breath caught. Denying it felt pointless, he'd seen her hesitation. "I... it looked like someone I knew," she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.

"But I didn't touch it." His jaw tightened, and he crossed the room in two strides, stopping inches from her. "You don't know what you're stepping into," he said, his voice a warning. "Stay away from things that don't concern you."

Her defiance flared, despite the fear. "Then tell me what it is," she shot back, meeting his gaze. "Why's it matter so much?"

For a moment, he looked almost human-torn, not the untouchable billionaire. Then his phone buzzed, and he glanced at it, his face hardening. "We're done here," he said, brushing past her. But as he opened the door, Mrs. Grayson stood there, her expression grim.

"Mr. Blackwood," she said, her voice tight.

"Your mother's arrived early. Victoria's waiting in the parlor. She wants to meet the new staff.

Now."

Ethan's eyes flicked to Lily, a storm of secrets behind them. Lily's heart raced, Victoria Blackwood, the matriarch who controlled Ethan's world, was here. And Lily, caught between a forbidden attraction, a mysterious photo, and Claire's wrath, was about to face her scrutiny. One misstep, and Noah's future and her own would shatter.