I stormed into my ex-wife's house on Christmas Eve ready to confront her new man… instead I found a newborn with my green eyes.

The next morning, my phone rang at seven.

Marcus.

"Gavin," he said, and I could hear the seriousness in his voice. "You need to hear what I found on Richard Carter."

I sat up, instantly alert. "Tell me."

"He's got a record. Nothing violent, but plenty of fraud. Credit card scams, insurance fraud, he even did six months for embezzling from a previous employer five years ago."

I closed my eyes. Emily's brother was a convicted criminal. And she'd been alone with him threatening her.

"There's more," Marcus continued. "His financials are a disaster. He owes money all over town—loan sharks, casinos, credit cards. Estimated total is close to half a million dollars. His demand for two hundred thousand? That's just the tip of the iceberg. He needs way more than that to keep his head above water."

Half a million.

Richard wasn't just greedy. He was desperate. And desperate men did desperate things.

"Can we prove he's been extorting Emily?" I asked.

"Not yet," Marcus said. "We need evidence. Text messages, emails, recordings of his threats. Something that shows he's been demanding money in exchange for silence."

I thought about Emily's phone. She'd been flinching every time it rang since I'd arrived.

"I'll get the evidence," I said. "What else?"

"I've already contacted a private investigator. He's going to keep an eye on Richard. See who he's talking to, what he's planning. And Gavin?"

"Yeah?"

"Be careful. A man who owes that much money to that many dangerous people? He's capable of anything."

The call ended.

I went to the kitchen where Emily was making breakfast. Noah was in his bouncer on the counter, watching her with wide eyes.

"Everything okay?" she asked, sensing my mood.

"Richard has a criminal record," I told her. "Fraud, embezzlement. He owes half a million dollars to loan sharks and casinos. His demand for two hundred thousand? That's not enough. He'll keep coming back for more. He'll never stop."

Emily paled. She leaned against the counter for support.

"I knew he was in trouble," she whispered. "But I didn't know it was that bad."

"We need evidence," I said. "Text messages, emails, anything where he threatened you or demanded money. My lawyer says that's what we need to build a case against him."

Emily hesitated. Then she picked up her phone from the counter and unlocked it.

"I didn't delete anything," she said, her voice trembling. "I was scared to. I thought... I thought if I had proof of what he was doing, maybe it would protect me somehow."

She handed me the phone.

I scrolled through the messages.

My blood ran cold.

Pay me or I tell Gavin everything.

You think a court will give a baby to a mother who hides him from his own father?

Fifteen thousand isn't enough. I need more. Or I go to the press.

I see you left the house today. Looked like you were alone. Next time, you might not be.

New Year's Day, Emily. Two hundred thousand. Or I take everything.

Message after message. Threat after threat. Months of fear, captured in cold, cruel text.

I looked at Emily. She was crying silently, her hand over her mouth.

"He sent these to you while you were pregnant?" I asked, my voice barely controlled.

She nodded.

I wanted to break something. I wanted to find Richard and make him pay for every moment of fear he'd caused this woman, this child.

But I couldn't let anger cloud my judgment. Not now.

"This is perfect," I said, forcing myself to stay calm. "This is exactly what we need. Marcus can use these to build a solid case for extortion, harassment, intimidation."

I handed her phone back to her.

"We need to make copies of these. Back them up. And we need to be ready for anything. Richard is desperate. When he realizes we're not going to pay, he might do something stupid."

Emily wiped her tears. "What do we do?"

"First," I said, "we're not staying here. It's not safe. Richard knows where you live. He's been watching you. I'm taking you and Noah to my penthouse. It's secure. Twenty-four-hour security. He won't be able to get within a hundred feet of you."

Emily hesitated. "Your penthouse? Gavin, that's... that's your space. I don't want to intrude."

"It's our space now," I said. "You and Noah are my family. And I'm going to keep you safe. That starts today."

She looked at Noah, then back at me.

"Okay," she said softly. "We'll go with you."

Three hours later, we walked into my Seattle penthouse.

Emily's eyes widened as she looked around. The floor-to-ceiling windows, the view of the city, the art, the space. It was everything her little blue house wasn't.

"It's... big," she said.

"It's too big," I admitted. "It's been too big since you left."

I showed her the guest suite. It was larger than her entire house. A king-sized bed, a sitting area, a private bathroom.

"Noah can have the room next to it," I said. "It's already being set up. I had my assistant order everything he needs—crib, changing table, clothes, bottles. Everything."

Emily looked at me, and I couldn't read her expression.

"You did all that already?"

"I told you," I said. "I'm serious about this. About being his father. About being... whatever you need me to be."

She nodded slowly.

"Thank you," she said. "For all of this."

Before I could respond, her phone rang.

She looked at the screen and froze.

"It's Richard," she whispered.

I held out my hand. "Give it to me."

She hesitated, then placed the phone in my palm.

I answered.

"Richard," I said.

Silence on the other end. Then, slowly, "Gavin. Where's Emily?"

"She's safe," I said. "And she's not giving you a dime. The threats stop now. The extortion stops now. Or you'll spend the next ten years in prison."

Richard laughed, but there was a nervous edge to it.

"Prison? For what? Asking my sister for a little financial help? You have no proof of anything, Rowan. And if you try to come after me, I'll make sure the whole world knows what kind of man you are. The kind who abandons his own child."

"I have the text messages, Richard," I said calmly. "All of them. Every threat. Every demand for money. My lawyer says they're more than enough to put you away for a very long time."

The line went quiet.

"You think you've won," Richard said, his voice low and dangerous. "You think money and lawyers make you untouchable. But I've got nothing left to lose, Rowan. And desperate men? We do desperate things."

The call ended.

I looked at Emily. She'd heard everything.

"He's going to come after us," she said, her voice trembling.

"Let him try," I said. "He's not going to hurt you. Not while I'm here."