Tempted Trapped and Too Late to Run

Clara was running on empty. Just getting Dylan upstairs had wiped her out, and now she could barely catch her breath.

"What are you talking about?" she snapped.

Nicholas hovered at the edge of the bed, ready to yank her away. But before he could, Jackson stepped up and put a steady hand on Nicholas's shoulder.

Nicholas, already agitated, spun around. "Are you stopping me right now? Did you not see what Clara's up to? She's totally making a move on Dylan. The guy's ridiculously good-looking-she probably thinks he married her because he actually likes her."

Jackson didn't even bother arguing. He just grabbed a clean tissue from the nightstand and stuffed it straight into Nicholas's mouth.

"Enough. Give it a rest," he said.

Nicholas spat the tissue out, glaring. Something felt off-weren't he and Jackson supposed to be on the same side here? Why did it suddenly feel like Jackson was defending Clara?

Before he could say a word, Jackson dragged him away from the bed. Then, with an icy glance at Clara, he said, "Since you're so eager to take care of Dylan, have at it. But if anything goes wrong, you're taking the fall."

Clara stared at them in disbelief. "Seriously? A little help here would be nice! Changing bandages isn't exactly a one-person job."

Nicholas tried to step forward again, but Jackson yanked him back.

Nicholas finally lost it. "What is wrong with you? Have you lost your mind?"

Jackson rubbed his temples, clearly done with the whole scene. He shoved Nicholas out the door, tossed a quick, "We'll check on Dylan later," over his shoulder at Clara, and disappeared downstairs with Nicholas in tow.

Before Clara could even call after them, they were gone.

She looked down at Dylan, frustration and worry flickering across her face. His head had slumped quietly onto her shoulder, suddenly looking so peaceful and innocent.

Honestly, changing his bandages alone was exhausting. She'd thought having backup would help but apparently, she was on her own.

With a sigh, Clara picked up the gauze and got back to work. Her fingers brushed against Dylan's bare skin, sticky with blood and crisscrossed with fresh wounds. She noticed him flinch ever so slightly, and a wave of regret washed over her.

Why had she picked a fight while he was hurt? She could've just waited until he healed before bringing up anything about going home.

Downstairs, Nicholas paced back and forth, restless and uneasy. He was convinced Clara had it out for Dylan.

Clara had been head over heels for

Simon, everyone knew that. There

was no way she'd actually fall for Dylan. Dylan must have married her for revenge, that was the only explanation. Now that he was unconscious, was Clara trying to take advantage? She was even more scheming than he thought.

Jackson sprawled on the couch, stretching out until he was practically lying down.

Every few minutes, Nicholas glanced up at the stairs, worry etched all over his face. "Are we really not going to check on Dylan?"

Dylan might've been the quietest of all of them, but he was also the most reliable -the one everyone looked up to. Of course they were worried about him.noveldrama

Jackson grabbed an apple off the table, took a bite, and asked, "Have you seen Aiden?"

"No," Nicholas answered, frowning. Why wasn't Aiden here?

Aiden was usually on top of everything when it came to Dylan-he was the guy everyone trusted. But now, when Dylan actually needed him, he was nowhere to be found.

Jackson took another bite. "If Aiden's not worried, why are you? Dylan's going to be fine."

Honestly, if Dylan still had the energy to flirt earlier, he clearly wasn't on his deathbed.

Jackson couldn't shake the feeling that he'd just played wingman for someone else's little love drama upstairs-and he didn't love the role.

Nicholas, meanwhile, was totally oblivious, as usual. '

Still, Nicholas followed orders. Jackson said not to go upstairs, so he didn't.

Richard showed up last. He saw the two of them on the couch and sat down too.

Nicholas looked even more confused. "Dylan's getting punished by the family and you guys aren't worried at all?"

Richard, who'd always been the most levelheaded of the bunch, just closed his eyes and sighed. "It's

been chaos these past few days net

They put me in charge of the

shipping routes-so much cargo coming in, everyone's pulling strings and asking me to look the other

way."

The Warren family was always under scrutiny thanks to their connections, and as

the heir, Richard was constantly busy.

He kept his eyes closed, then changed the subject back to Dylan. "If Dylan doesn't want something, no one can force him. If he's willing, he'll handle it."

At least, when it came to anything except Clara.

Anyone at the top of this family knew better than to gamble with their life—unless Clara was involved.

In that case, even nine lives wouldn't be enough.