A Caged Songbird's Escape: Into the Arms of a Predator novel Chapter 438

She could count on one hand the people who would go to such lengths to target her. The first was Marcia, but she lacked the resources to manipulate public opinion on this scale. The second was Finn.

Years ago, DK Group had built its reputation abroad through sensationalist marketing; they were masters of using the media. And if Finn was truly connected to Orion Stone, then this attack was aimed at her, with the Murphy Group likely caught in the crossfire as collateral damage.

Elissa had clearly just woken up. Her silky black hair was tousled around her shoulders, her eyes still heavy with sleep, and her cheeks were flushed. She looked incredibly gentle.

Rowan’s gaze traveled down and settled on her bare feet. His brow furrowed. "Aren’t you cold?"

"Huh?" Elissa had braced herself for a barrage of accusations, her excuses already on the tip of her tongue. She never expected him to say something so completely unrelated.

Ignoring the crisis, Rowan walked past her into the room, picked up the slippers from beside the bed, and placed them at her feet. "Cold starts from your feet. Put these on."

His words brought back a rush of memories. She used to love icy drinks as a child, which led to debilitating menstrual cramps once she hit puberty. Aaron Blaine had treated her, but his primary instruction was to avoid cold food and keep her feet warm. She had never paid it much mind, but Rowan had enforced the rule religiously. No cold drinks in the winter, a strict limit in the summer, and absolutely no walking barefoot on the tiled floors.

For a moment, Elissa felt a sense of disorientation. She obediently slipped on the slippers, murmuring, "You don’t get your period when you’re pregnant." Besides, without him around, she had long since abandoned those habits. If the pain got bad, she’d just give herself an acupuncture treatment or brew some herbal tea, which always did the trick.

Rowan could see her mind was elsewhere and guessed the reason. "You saw what’s online?" he asked, his voice low.

"...Yes." Elissa took a deep breath, about to apologize, but he spoke first. "Don’t worry about it. The legal and PR departments are already handling it."

His lips thinned as he studied her for a long moment before finally conceding. "The pregnancy… is it tiring?"

Rowan made a sound of impatience. "Sounds like the baby takes after Frank, then." It was unclear whether the words were meant as a jab or self-deprecation.

An idea came to her, and she looked up at him. "Rowan, can I ask you a question?"