After lunch, Nathaniel held the door open for Victoria as they stepped out of the fine dining restaurant, the soft chime of the glass door fading behind them. Victoria turned to him, her gaze cold and distant.

 “Well, thank you for the lunch, Nathaniel. I’ll see you at the press conference,” her tone wrapped in the same polished professionalism she always carried. She turned on her heel, ready to walk away.

“Victoria.”

His voice, casual but edged with amusement, stopped her mid-step. She turned, her gaze calm, a hint of impatience flickering beneath her composed mask.

“What?”

Nathaniel’s expression was smug, almost boyishly shameless, though there was nothing innocent in his tone.

“Where’s my goodbye kiss?”

Her brow arched high, disbelief flickering across her features.

“Seriously?” The word left her lips like a dry laugh. “Let’s be clear—our engagement is purely business. Let’s keep it that way.”

But Nathaniel stepped forward, closing the distance between them with deliberate ease. His presence loomed, his smirk never faltering.

“Purely business?” he echoed, as though tasting the words. “Strange. I don’t remember our history being all that… professional. You dated me, you kissed me—don’t tell me you’ve forgotten. What’s wrong with doing it again?”

Victoria’s brows knit, just slightly, the tiniest crack forming in her carefully maintained wall. She hadn’t thought that possible. Her voice, however, stayed level.

“We broke up, Nathaniel. We’re strangers now. I’m not the same girl you knew.”

"Strangers, huh?" He leaned closer, his voice low, laced with quiet amusement. "Then why are you blushing?"

Her breath hitched, the air between them tightening. "I... did not," she said quickly, but the faint color blooming on her cheeks betrayed her.

Nathaniel’s smirk deepened. Cute. Some things never change, he mused, eyes glinting with knowing satisfaction.

"See?" he murmured, voice dropping softer, almost intimate. "You’ve never been a good liar with me. You’re blushing."

She groaned, exasperated. “It’s because you’re too close to me.”

Nathaniel’s lips curved into a slow, knowing smirk. “Oh? So I still have that effect on you?” His voice dipped lower, rich with amusement. “And here I thought I was just a stranger.”

Her breath caught, his words disarming her more than she’d like. She forced herself to meet his gaze, trying to steady her voice.

“Whatever you say, I’m not going to kiss you.”

Nathaniel arched a brow, his tone casual yet laced with teasing amusement.

“But we’re engaged now.”

“Not yet,” she cut in, correcting him with cool precision. “We haven’t even signed the engagement papers.”

He hummed thoughtfully, lips curving into a faint smirk. “So… once we’re officially engaged, you’ll kiss me then?”

Her eyes narrowed. “Dream on. That will never happen.”

“Is that a challenge?” His voice dropped low, threaded with playful mischief and flirtatious intent. “Don’t dare me, Victoria. I can make it happen.”

His gaze flicked to her soft lips, lingering just long enough to make her pulse skip. “And when it does, you’ll be the one asking for more.” A faint, knowing smirk curved his mouth. “You have no idea what these lips can do.”

Victoria looked at him again, her expression cold and composed. She refused to take his bait—she wouldn’t fall for his game, let alone his kiss.

“Whatever. I’m leaving.”

She spun on her heels and walked away, the sharp click of her stilettos striking against the pavement with cutting finality.

Nathaniel’s gaze followed her, his smirk still plastered on his lips—smug, controlled, and faintly amused.

Keeping things strictly business, are we? Strangers now? She was drawing boundaries between them, neat and deliberate lines she thought would hold.

He scoffed softly. Who are you trying to fool, Victoria?

The higher she built her walls, the more it thrilled him to tear them apart—slowly, piece by piece. Her walls were made of ice, but he’d always liked the burn of cold things. But there was something dangerously satisfying about the thought of watching her walls crumble beneath his touch.

Every wall has its weak point, he mused. It’s only a matter of time before I find yours.

He paused, the word kiss threading through his thoughts—uninvited but persistent. The way she kept denying him only made him want it more—to see her lose that perfect composure, to take that kiss she swore would never happen.

A slow smile curved his lips, dark and deliberate, as if another game had just begun.

Victoria’s laptop screen glowed in front of her, a spreadsheet open, the cursor blinking like an impatient reminder. Yet her mind was far from numbers and cells. With a soft sigh, she leaned back in her chair, fingers raking through her hair as if to untangle the thoughts she couldn’t control.

Nathaniel.

She couldn’t shake the way he had pressed against her walls earlier. Brazen—that was the only word for him. To ask her for a kiss, as though eleven years of silence and pain had never existed.

Kiss.

The very thought of it lingered, unwelcome. She had long since forgotten what that felt like, though the memory of their first one—his room, the innocence of youth—slipped unbidden into her mind. She shook her head, hard, banishing it. That was past. What remained from those years was not sweetness, but pain, remorse, and guilt.

Her fingers pressed to her temple. If this engagement were only business, it would have been simple. Clean. But Nathaniel didn’t treat it as such. He had asked for that kiss like nothing had broken between them. As though she might simply lean forward and fall back into him just because they were reunited.

Not going to happen.

If this arrangement were to succeed, she had to draw boundaries. Clear ones.

Pushing away from her desk, she stood and crossed to the window, staring out at the skyline. This was the second time her father had used her as a bargaining chip, and the truth burned. She thought of the contract she had signed earlier—the alliance hinging on two conditions. First, that she did not break the engagement, and that the wedding would take place. Second, that Project Revival would succeed.

She had lived this before. Her last engagement—to Marcus, the governor of Orin seeking re-election—had been nothing more than leverage. A way for her Dad to secure the continuation of Project Revival after it had been suspended. And now, here it was again, only with Nathaniel.

Her Dad was determined. His vision would be realized at any cost. This time, he was using Nathaniel’s youth and brilliance, and her… as the seal to bind it all.

Victoria swallowed hard. A bargaining chip. That was all she was.

But Nathaniel’s terms were different. He wanted marriage.

Marriage.

She nearly laughed at the absurdity of it. Out of all the women in the world, why her?

Love.

The word drifted through her mind like a whisper. She shook it off instantly.

No. It couldn’t be. Not after she had broken his heart. If he felt anything, it would be hatred. And yet…

Her hand curled at her chest, a faint sting there.

What is his real intention with this engagement? she wondered. Does he truly want to be tied to her forever? Does he actually mean to marry her?

She sighed, frustration quietly building beneath her composure. There were too many questions she wanted to ask him—too many things left unsaid. She needed clarity, if only to know what to expect from all of this.

Returning to her chair, she reminded herself, once again, that this was business.

All of this was for business. Nothing more. Nothing less.

“This is business,” she whispered under her breath, as though repeating the phrase could make it true.

Straightening her back, she set her hands on the keyboard once more. The cursor still blinked, waiting, as though mocking her. With a quiet, painful resolve tightening in her chest, Victoria forced herself back into work.