Don’t Fall for the Billionaire Lover

Chloe looked at him, her eyes asking, Okay, so what's the plan?

Connor didn't answer out loud. Instead, he traced three letters into her palm: G-R- A-N-T.

She met his gaze again, and right away, it clicked. Grant was watching them. Every move they made-he had eyes on them the whole time. If they wanted to do anything, first they'd have to lose his surveillance. But how?

Chloe's lips curled into a sly smile as an idea popped into her head. Without hesitating, she cupped Connor's face and kissed him.

Connor froze, completely caught off guard. His mind went blank-he just stared at her, so close, her familiar scent filling the air between them. It was something he hadn't realized he missed until now, something that haunted his dreams every night.

She didn't remember any of it-Chloe had lost her memory. He couldn't get close to her, not really, no matter how much he wanted to. He'd always held back, wanting her to come to him on her own.

But now, all that longing he'd kept locked away broke free, wild and overwhelming. He shook all over.

Chloe saw him shiver and gave a little smirk, then swung her leg over and straddled him. Her kiss deepened, her tongue slipping out to tangle with his.

After a second, Connor caught on. This was how they'd get Grant to turn off the cameras-make him see something he definitely didn't want to watch.

He kissed her back, knowing it was all for show. But the taste of her, the feel of her, made it hard to remember what was real and what was pretend.

Meanwhile, in the CEO's office at QUEEN Group, Grant was watching the whole thing on his laptop. His face went stone cold. His hand. curled into a tight fist. After a few tense seconds, he lost it and threw the laptop across his desk.

Back in the hidden room, Chloe finally pulled away, catching her breath. Connor's hands stayed on her waist, his voice rough. "Grant's still watching," he muttered.

Chloe slid off his lap, rolling her eyes. "So, what's your big idea?"

Connor was still a little breathless, but he pulled himself together. Whatever they did next could mean life or death.

"I found a tunnel underwater," he said. "Your mentor might've escaped that way." Chloe's expression turned sharp, focused.noveldrama

"When I was under, I saw bubbles coming from the east wall of the pool," he explained. "Solid walls don't have bubbles. And there was a weird symbol on the stone. I think there's a hidden passage there."

Chloe nodded. "Then let's go."

Together, they dove into the water. The stone wall was all the way at the bottom-nobody would notice it unless they went looking. Sure enough, tiny bubbles slipped out

through the cracks. Most people

wouldn't even see them.

Chloe hadn't noticed anything before, but now, swimming side by side, she saw the strange symbol Connor had mentioned. It was just a number: 23. Almost invisible, blended into the lines of the rock.

Neither of them had a clue what “23” meant, but there was no time to figure it out. They started searching for a way to open the hidden passage.