Tempted Trapped and Too Late to Run

She shot Simon a look and said, “Told you so. He did exactly what I said he would. Mr. Simon, let's face it—you and Clara are never going to happen."

Right now, Megan had no way to get close to anyone else in the Ferguson family. All she could do was keep poking at Simon, hoping he'd snap and do something reckless. If he did, she'd be right there to reap the rewards.

Simon sucked in a shaky breath, his hands tightening on the steering wheel. He wanted nothing more than to smash it to pieces.

How could Dylan pull something like this?

His jaw clenched tight. "Tara from the Warren family came back this morning. The Warrens are throwing her a welcome party-she's Grandpa's handpicked daughter-in-law. I'll wait to see what Grandpa says. Also, I've got a job for you: find out if Dylan's hiding a kid somewhere."

He'd meant to ask Eden about it, but Eden had been sent away before he got the chance.

Still, Simon was sure-Dylan definitely had a child, and Eden knew where the kid

was.

If he could track down the child and use them to threaten Dylan, Dylan would be completely trapped.

For a second, Megan's eyes widened in shock, but she quickly collected herself. At this point, nothing about Dylan surprised her anymore.

The first time she realized Dylan had feelings for Clara, she'd thought the world had lost its mind.

Years had passed, and she'd nearly gotten used to it. The only thing that hadn't faded was her jealousy toward Clara-it just kept growing.

"I'll take care of it," she said.

After hanging up, Simon scrolled through his contacts and found Tara's number.

In the city's upper crust, everyone knew Tara. If Dylan was the most impressive guy around, Tara was the queen of the socialites. Her family background spoke for itself, and everyone remembered how she'd once openly chased after Dylan- only to be turned down flat.

A calm, confident voice picked up on the other end. "Simon?"

Simon forced a smile. "Tara, long time no see. I heard you're back-have you reached out to Dylan yet?"

Tara glanced at the documents in her hand, a little amused. "Not yet. He should show up at the family party tonight."

"Don't count on it. Have you seen what he's been up to lately? He's completely obsessed with some woman now-he's even started going against Grandpa in public."

Tara's face didn't change. She'd been catching up on all the city drama since she got on the plane-her inbox was full of updates.

She'd already looked into Clara. Honestly, she didn't see her as any real competition. Even if Dylan married her, so what? People got divorced all the time.

Tara had plenty of confidence. After all, the reason Dylan turned her down years ago was because he said he liked someone else.

Back then, everyone assumed he was hung up on the late Shelly. Now that he was marrying Clara, it was probably because Clara reminded him of Shelly in some way.

Just a stand-in. Tara wasn't worried.

But she wasn't about to let herself become someone else's pawn, either. Everyone in their circle knew about Simon's messy history with Clara.

She let a small smile play at her lips. "I respect whatever choices Dylan makes. When I confessed to him a couple years ago, he actually told me, 'Ask me again in two years. Well it's been two years. I came back to see for myself if things have changed."

To see if he could finally fall for her.

As for that social media post, she'd already liked it. No big deal she wasn't threatened.

Simon felt a rush of satisfaction. Tara was tough at the very least, she'd keep Clara on her toes. Things in the city were about to get interesting.

He hung up, staring at the house in front of him, resentment burning in his chest. How could Dylan just take Clara away, like she belonged to him? It was insane. Simon headed home, but as soon as he pulled up, a housekeeper rushed out, breathless. “Sir, madam fainted! Please, come quickly!"

Annoyance flickered across his face. The last thing he wanted was to get dragged into more of his family's mess.

Still, he forced himself upstairs. He'd barely opened the bedroom door when something sprayed in his face.

He didn't even have time to react before he collapsed on the floor.

The housekeepers looked at each other, nervous.

"Madam, what if the young master is angry when he wakes up?”

Ada didn't care anymore. She'd already heard about Dylan posting his marriage certificate online-with Clara, no less. Most people didn't know it was Clara, but Ada had sources back at the old Ferguson house.

Her son had already lost his mind over Clara. If he found out she'd married Dylan, he'd go completely off the rails.

She had to get him out of here, fast-to the next city. Walter's transfer had already come through; Simon could start as vice president over there.

Ada oversaw getting Simon into thenoveldrama

ol.ne

car and told the staff, "Just tell Michael that Simon and I will be gone for at least a year. We won't be coming back anytime soon."

Better to stick with her only son than stay with that awful man.

The housekeepers nodded respectfully.

When Simon finally woke up, he saw scenery rushing past the window. The sky

was edging toward dusk, and they were already miles outside the city.

His expression darkened. He rubbed his aching head and glared at the woman beside him.

"Mom, what are you doing?"

Ada hadn't realized how serious things had gotten-or how much madness was flickering in her son's eyes.