A Caged Songbird's Escape: Into the Arms of a Predator novel Chapter 425

Rowan remained frozen in the same position for a long time, offering no response, as if the world around him had ceased to exist.

Rex couldn't stand it anymore and nudged him. "So what's the plan, man? Are you just going to cut ties with little Elissa for good?"

Cut ties. Rowan had done it once before, so it should have been easy this time. But why did the mere thought of it send a tidal wave of despair washing over him, drowning all reason?

He kept his head down, his eyes bloodshot, and his voice was so hoarse it was almost unrecognizable, tinged with self-mockery. "Cut ties? How?"

"It's too late for that... I can't live without her."

It was he, Rowan, who couldn't live without her. She, on the other hand, would be perfectly fine without him.

-

Downstairs, on a dance floor packed with writhing bodies, Maya Wilkinson was turning heads in a tight top and denim shorts that showed off her killer curves.

A girl ran up to her, shouting over the music, "Maya, I just heard from a waiter that Rex is in the VIP lounge upstairs! When did he get back to Cresthaven?"

Rex, desperate to escape the Wilkinson family's control, had moved to Vistapeak City years ago, eager to make it on his own. His return to Cresthaven was a rare event.

Maya stopped dancing, frowning as she tried to catch the words. "Rex is back?"

"You didn't know?" The girl looked surprised, pointing upstairs. "I heard that guy from Vistapeak City is with him. They're both in the lounge right now."

Maya didn't admit she had no idea; she and Rex had never really gotten along.

But the second part of the sentence made her pause, a slow smile spreading across her perfectly painted lips. "Rowan?"

"Yeah," the girl said, wiggling her eyebrows. "I remember you used to have a thing for him."

It had been years ago, when Rowan had come to Cresthaven on behalf of the Murphy family to celebrate Old Mr. Wilkinson's birthday. Back then, he was in his prime, not as cold and distant as he was now. Maya had been smitten at first sight.

But Rex, ever the killjoy, had noticed her interest and pulled her aside. "He's already in love with someone else. Don't waste your time or embarrass yourself."

Yet, all these years, there had never been a woman by Rowan's side, except for that researcher from the recent scandal—what was her name? Oh, right, Elissa Drummond.

But it was obvious. A man from a family like the Murphys would never end up with an orphan with no background. Their families were worlds apart. The media had probably blown their connection out of proportion simply because Elissa had been briefly fostered by Matriarch Paige Murphy.

Over the years, Maya had had plenty of admirers and a few boyfriends, but they all fell short. So far short.

Maya raised an eyebrow. "Who said it was just in the past? I still have a thing for him."

That was the only major event in Cresthaven that would require the Murphy family's presence.

Rex didn't deny it, giving a vague, "Yeah."

Rowan would definitely be at their grandfather's birthday banquet anyway, so it wasn't exactly a lie.

Maya felt a wave of relief. As they reached the entrance, she couldn't help but ask Rex, her cheeks flushing slightly, "He's… single right now, isn't he?"

"What if he is? What if he isn't?" Rex replied dismissively, clearly done with the conversation.

But to Maya, his words meant something else entirely.

She was right. Single or not, as long as there wasn't a ring on anyone's finger, it was all just a game. Nothing she needed to take seriously.

"Don't lie to me," Maya said, refusing to believe it. "If he really had someone, he'd be married by now."

A man like Rowan could have any woman he wanted.