Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 262

Chapter 262

Nathaniel’s POV

I woke up with Annie’s voice still echoing in my mind, fragments of last night replaying on a loop. The way she moaned, the breathy edges of her words, every teasing sound cycling through my head like a scratched record.

No matter how hard I tried to focus on my morning routine-the shower, the coffee I made without even thinking-the weight of having crossed that line as Wanderer finally hit me full force. There was a huge difference between sending suggestive messages and actually having phone sex with her. It was an intimacy that changed everything, making the lie I was living feel even heavier.

“How long can I actually keep this up before she figures it out?” I thought, stirring sugar into my coffee with robotic movements. “What am I going to do when she wants more… for real?”

That’s when my phone buzzed on the kitchen counter. This time it wasn’t a notification from the app-it was a message sent directly to the number tied to the burner SIM I’d bought just for this.

Annie: Seventh question… Was it good for you?

That was followed by a bunch of laughing emojis.

I couldn’t help letting out a quiet laugh. Even after a night like that, Annie somehow managed to be bold and funny at the same time. But right alongside the desire her message sparked instantly, a wave of guilt slammed into me like a punch to the gut.

I replied: That doesn’t count as a question and you know it. And yes—it was incredible.

The exchange only deepened the conflict twisting inside my chest. Part of me wanted to shut everything down, tell her the truth, end this before it got even more tangled. But the other part-the one still hearing the echo of her voice from last night-wanted nothing more than to keep going, to explore whatever this connection was becoming.

I was still wrestling with that contradiction when the landline rang. Margaret’s voice came through more tense than usual.

“Mr. Carter, I need to speak with you urgently.”

“What happened?”

“It’s about Ms. Bennett and… well, about you as well. Alexandra Kensington is claiming Annabelle deleted evidence to cover up the leak. And she’s saying you’re protecting her and withholding information from the investigation.”

I felt the blood drain from my face.

“And the board?”

“They’re becoming increasingly willing to suspend you as well if you can’t prove you didn’t cover anything up. Mr. Carter, this situation is getting very serious.”

I hung up feeling like the ground had shifted beneath me. Alexandra was playing dirty, using every ounce of her influence to bring us down.

I knew I had to move fast. Not just to protect Annie, but to protect my own position-and with it, my ability to shield her. I got to the office with a kind of fierce determination, ready to build a rock-solid defense.

I spent the entire morning going through every piece of data from IT, putting together a dossier that would prove without any loopholes that the logins under Annie’s credentials happened at specific times, times when she was demonstrably nowhere near the office. I had security camera footage, building entry logs, even proof she was in external meetings when the documents were accessed.

“I’ll get straight to the point,” he said, ignoring every ounce of tension in the room. “I know our last encounter wasn’t exactly friendly, but we have that board meeting today, and we share one goal: clearing your name and Annie’s.”

He paused dramatically, clearly enjoying himself.

“I can do that. You can’t, not anymore-now that you’ve made the suspect list. So I have a proposal.”

I kept my expression flat, but every muscle in my body felt pulled tight, ready to snap.

“What proposal?”

Marcus’s smile widened, full of self-assured triumph.

“I’ll present all the evidence the IT team collected. I’ll speak on Christian’s behalf, which carries far more political weight than anything you say right now. With my credibility, they’ll stop investigating you, and Annie will be cleared to return to work.”

He leaned forward, and I caught the gleam of satisfaction in his eyes.

“But she’s not coming back. That’s my proposal: I clear your name and hers… and in exchange, you release Annie to Kensington Ascia.”