Chapter 45 Chapter 45

Chapter 45 Chapter 45
Lucien

I slipped my phone out of my pocket and sent a quick text to Kade something mundane about a meeting reschedule, just to keep the world outside from pressing in. I had to fight the urge to glance back at Valentina. She was moving slowly around the cabin, running her fingers over the frames and the trinkets my mother had kept, asking a string of questions I wasn't always prepared to answer.

"Where was this taken?" she asked, pointing to a small, faded photograph of me as a boy.

I leaned against the worn couch, pretending to focus on the coffee maker, but my mind was a tangle. I hadn't planned to bring her here or maybe I had. I just didn't know why I needed her to see this. She was my father's wife. That should have made everything off-limits. But around her... I felt safe. I felt like I could breathe. Maybe I could even tell her everything someday.

"Here," I said handing her the cup of coffee I managed to brew from the coffee maker. "My mother took this one. I think it was during summer... before all the... complications."

She tilted her head, squinting at the frame. "Complications?" she asked, curiosity ringing in her voice.

My parents weren't the fairy tale everyone believed. They'd divorced when I was small no one knew. Not my siblings, whom i later found out I had one after my father's affair. It had been ugly. My father... he had a temper, a darkness my mother couldn't bear. She had to leave, and somehow she'd taken me here, to this cabin, a place my father would never find.

I rubbed my forehead. I didn't know how they reconciled later, or how she ended up back in his life. My mother had passed away months into their remarriage—heart failure, though I sometimes wondered if it hadn't been broken by the weight of my father's cruelty all along.

"I... you look like a very stubborn boy here," Valentina said, pointing to a smaller picture of me. 

I smirked, forcing the weight of memory down. "I bet you're more stubborn than me."

She laughed. "I'm not stubborn when I was a kid. If it's my twin sisters, precisely Violeta. But I was... innocent. Smart too."

I settled onto the couch beside her, the warmth from the coffee cup between her hands radiating just enough to make me linger. I studied her carefully, the way she leaned back, comfortable.

"I beg to differ," I said, letting a smirk play across my lips. "You're innocent, yes—but there has to be something. Something mischievous, something stubborn..."

She lifted a brow at me. "I swear I'm innocent. If you don't believe me, I can call Violetta right now to confirm."

I laughed. There it was again—the way she trusted the world enough to joke like that, even around me. My fingers twitched, wanting to challenge her, wanting to see just how far her innocence stretched. "Okay," I said, leaning back casually. "Do call."

She took out her phone from her blazer. And dialled her sister's number , set it on loudspeaker, and I watched as she fumbled slightly, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"Hello?" Her sister's voice came through. "Oh, Valentina... I just caught—oh, wait, I was doing something important. I'm trying to go through a lottery—"

She snorted. "Lottery?" She murmured. "When you have a rich father?"

"Please don't start on that old man," Violetta said, half laughing, half exasperated. "Anyway, why are you calling?"

Valentina straightened, a playful gleam in her eyes. "I have something to ask you, Violetta." She adjusted her sitting position, settling more upright, placing one arm over the back of the couch. "I want something. Me and... someone," she glanced at me, smirk tugging her lips, "we're arguing about whether I was stubborn as a little kid. I know you might not really remember, because I'm way older than you guys, but Mom used to tell the stories of our childhood. I want you to say it out loud because I'm on speaker. Was I stubborn or not?"

There was a pause on the line. Then Violetta's chuckle floated over. "Oh my God, Val... you? Stubborn? That's a first. Are you serious?"

I couldn't help but grin, feeling a warmth creep into my chest at the playful sound of her voice at the way she was completely herself here. I watched Valentina, eyes bright, waiting for the verdict.

"Valentina, you were... sometimes," Violetta said slowly, "okay, most of the time, stubborn. Especially when you wanted something."

I watched her, amusement tugging at the corners of my mouth, as she frowned at the phone. "What? Are you kidding me? Why are you trying to change the statement?"

She shot me a glare that could have frozen fire, hands gripping the edge of the couch. "You are of no help," she spat, though there was a flicker of a smile in her eyes despite the frown. "I should have called Viviana. She could have said the truth. But you? You're just—" She cut herself off, shaking her head. "Anyways... bye."

She hung up, the little click echoing like a punctuation to her frustration. I leaned back, letting my laughter slip out in a quiet, controlled chuckle.

"Oh, I see," I said. "You said you're not stubborn, but it turns out... you are."

Her eyes narrowed again, half annoyed, half exasperated. "You're impossible," she muttered.

"Maybe," I said, letting the grin stretch just a little wider. "But the point was..." I tapped her arm lightly, forcing her to look at me. "...Valentina, you were trying to prove you weren't stubborn. And yet, stubbornness is clearly your specialty."

She crossed her arms, leaning back, pretending to pout. "I am not stubborn!"

I snorted, shaking my head, my fingers drumming lightly on my leg. "Sure. Keep telling yourself that, darling. It makes it even more adorable."

Her glare softened just a fraction, though she wouldn't admit it. I could tell she was amused she always was. “Well…it doesn’t change the fact that I’m smart,” She grinned. And damn if that doesn’t make me fall deeper. 



We pulled up to the company entrance. Valentina unbuckled her seatbelt,  a frown on her face."Still sulking over earlier?" I teased, catching her glare out of the corner of my eye.

"Seriously?" she shot back, rolling her eyes.

I laughed, shaking my head. "We were just playing around."

"But you were laughing at me." She glared. 

I smirked, letting the silence stretch for a second. Then I said, "Anyway... if I know you, you enjoyed yourself."

Her expression softened, a small, genuine smile tugging at her lips. "I did enjoy it. Let me get back to work. I'm sure Leah has a ton of documents on my table."

She swung the door open, ready to leave. I reached out and lightly held her hand. "Valentina," 

She turned, arching a brow. "Hmm?"

I wanted to say something more but the words got caught in my throat. I shook my head lightly. "See you later... at home."

Her smile deepened, the kind that made everything else fade. "See you," she said, and then she was gone.

The moment she disappeared inside, my phone buzzed on the seat beside me. I picked it up.

"Sir," Kade's voice was crisp and respectful. "I have an update on the recent transaction. One of the transfers has cleared, but there's a discrepancy in the audit logs. It might require your attention."

I ran a hand through my hair, letting out a quiet sigh. "Thanks, Kade. Keep monitoring it closely. Let me know immediately if anything else comes up."

"Yes, sir," He replied.

I ended the call, staring at the building before me. Valentina was inside now, immersed in her world, and I had mine always a step behind, always protective, always calculating.

I sat in the car for a long moment, staring at the building. The city noise drifted around me, but my mind was elsewhere on spreadsheets I hadn't yet seen, on Kade's call, on Valentina. That flicker of ease she had in the cabin.

I sighed. Logic told me to head straight inside, up to my office, check the audits Kade had flagged, cross-check the transactions, and make sure my father didn't have a single reason to question me. But another part of me... wanted to chill first. 

I glanced at the driver's side mirror. My hand hovered over the door handle. Decision time. Either I go in, take care of the office, and keep up the façade... or I take a detour for a few minutes.

I let out a low chuckle. "Control, Lucien. Always control," I muttered to myself. But control didn't mean I couldn't pick my battles.

I pulled my phone out, scanning Kade's messages again. The flagged transaction was high-priority, and the window for oversight was narrow. I couldn't ignore it.

Decision made. I stepped out of the car, straightened my coat, and walked toward the building's revolving doors.