“Yes,” Bree confirmed, nodding quickly. “He even told me to name my price.”
Isla’s arms fell to her sides, her expression shifting from confusion to something sharper. “And what did you say?”
Bree swallowed hard, her nerves clearly fraying. “I told him no,” she said quickly. “I said I couldn’t do it, that I already had a mate, which was a lie, obviously, but I panicked. I thought it was the only way out without making things worse.”
Isla’s eyes narrowed further. “And?”
“And he saw right through it,” Bree admitted, her voice shaking slightly. “He called me out on the lie, told me he could sense my heart rate when I said it. Then he... he warned me not to tell anyone.”
Isla’s heart pounded her emotions a chaotic swirl of disbelief, anger, and something she couldn’t quite name. “And yet,
