Chapter Fifteen: Pulled Closer, Pushed Under
Celia didn't have time to process Prince's cryptic phone call before his car showed up outside her gate the next morning.
She opened the door in pajamas, hair sticking out like a haystack. "Do billionaires not sleep? Or text first? Or respect beauty rest?"
Prince didn't even blink. "Get dressed. You're coming with me."
Celia blinked back. "Excuse me? Are you kidnapping me now? Because I left my ransom note templates in my other reincarnation."
But ten minutes later, she was in his car anyway, grumbling into her coffee while he scrolled through his phone like she wasn't actively plotting his downfall.
⸻
He took her to his office — a sleek skyscraper where the floor-to-ceiling windows screamed I own half the city.
Celia whistled low. "Nice place. Very 'Bond villain chic.'"
Prince gave her a look. "You'll be safer here until this blows over."
"Safer? From Vanessa? Please. The only weapon she has is her fake eyelashes."
He set his phone down with a sharp click. "Don't underestimate her. The documents she hinted at? They're real."
Celia's stomach flipped. "And they connect to… your family?"
His jaw tightened. "Yes. And that's all you need to know."
Celia wanted to scream. That's all I need to know? Buddy, I died choking on noodles, woke up in someone else's life, and now your stalker-ex-nemesis is trying to cancel me with Wall Street receipts. I NEED TO KNOW EVERYTHING.
Instead, she crossed her arms. "Fine. Be mysterious. But if I get dragged into an FBI raid, I'm blaming you."
For the first time all morning, his mouth twitched. Just barely. "You're impossible."
Celia grinned. "Took you this long to notice?"
⸻
Their banter was interrupted by Lila bursting into the office, face pale. "Darling—terrible news! Vanessa has posted the first document!"
Celia's blood went cold. "What document?"
Lila shoved her phone forward. On the screen was a blurry scan of an old contract. The caption read:
"Proof Beverly's father worked with shell companies tied to fraud. How much did she know? #BeverlyExposed"
The internet was on fire.
ScandalWatch: OMG IT'S REAL???
Vanessa4Life: Told you Beverly's family was dirty!
PrinceDefenseSquad: Why does this look connected to HIS company tho 👀
Celia nearly fell out of her chair. "She really went full expose mode! Vanessa out here playing Nancy Drew on steroids."
Prince's face was unreadable. "She's poking the bear."
Celia threw her hands up. "Yeah, well, the bear is eating me right now!"
⸻
By evening, paparazzi were swarming outside Prince's building. The headlines were merciless:
"Heiress Beverly Shielding Corrupt Father?"
"Beverly Using Prince as Cover?"
Celia groaned. "I didn't ask for this plotline. I wanted a funny reincarnation story, not Succession season seven!"
Prince stood beside her, arms crossed, watching the chaos below. "You can't fight this the way you fought Vanessa before. This isn't memes or snarky captions. This is blood."
Celia swallowed hard. "Then why keep me here? I'm just making things worse for you."
For the first time, Prince turned fully to face her. His voice was low, certain. "Because whether you admit it or not… you're in danger. And I don't intend to let Vanessa win."
Celia blinked. The world outside was screaming for her downfall, Vanessa was playing chess with her life, but here was Prince — infuriating, suspicious, broody Prince — standing like a shield she hadn't asked for but suddenly needed.
Her chest tightened. She looked away quickly, mumbling, "You're really bad for my sarcasm quota, you know that?"
He almost smiled. "And you're bad for my patience."
⸻
That night, as she lay in the guest room of Prince's penthouse, sleep tugging at her, a thought crept in.
Maybe Beverly's warning dreams were right. Maybe this secret was bigger than her.
But Vanessa had just made one thing clear:
If Celia didn't figure out the truth fast, she'd drown in it.