Something moved behind his calm exterior then, nothing big or careless, just a tightening of his fingers against the armchair, a soft shift of breath, a subtle awareness he could no longer hide. Jennifer felt it. Jennifer leaned forward, her voice dropping. “Say it properly.” Steven’s eyes narrowed faintly. “You want the truth?” “I don’t like being lied to,” she said. He studied her for a moment, it was long, slow and deliberate, before answering. “I remember you,” he said, quietly but without hesitation. “Very clearly.” Jennifer’s breath caught. Luisa closed her eyes briefly, exhaling through her nose. “This is precisely the kind of situation that complicates things,” she muttered. Steven finally shifted, placing his hands lightly at Jennifer’s waist not to pull her closer, but to guide her off him. “Jennifer,” he said, gentler now, “move.” She stared at him a second, testing him actually, challenging him. Then she stood, though slightly slower than necessar

Meanwhile, upstairs in her room, Jennifer shut the door with her back and simply stood there, breathless. Every nerve in her body still hummed from the encounter she swore she’d imagined a thousand ways—none as intoxicating as the real thing. She pressed her hand over her racing heartbeat. She was twenty-five, mature and experienced. Far from naive but… yet she felt like a woman who had just stumbled into the center of something she didn’t understand but absolutely wanted. Kahuna. The name itself had weight. But the man… to her was like a storm dressed in calm. She walked to her mirror, staring at her own reflection—the flushed cheeks, the bright eyes, the slight tremble in her fingers. “You’re hopeless,” she whispered. Hopelessly gone. She moved toward her desk, pulling out the business card she had practically snatched from his hand. The embossed letters glimmered under her lamp. Of course he had a card like this—sleek, understated, powerful. And he handed

Jennifer didn’t sleep, not even a little. How could she? Her heart was pounding and filled with thousands of thoughts. She lay in bed with her phone clutched like a lifeline, staring at the screen long after her message had been sent. Every minute felt like a century. Every second stretched until it snapped. Her mind refused to rest as it was busy spinning, doubting, hoping, panicking all at once. What if he didn’t reply? What if she had made a fool of herself? What if he read it and decided she wasn’t worth the trouble? Her heart throbbed painfully at the thought. She rolled onto her stomach, burying her face into the pillow. “Why did I send that?” she groaned. “Why am I like this?” But something inside her whispered that she had done the right thing... that Steven wasn’t a man she could simply forget. And she didn’t want to. Not even a little. Sometime past 2 a.m., just when her eyelids began to grow heavy, her phone buzzed. Jennifer shot upright so fast

The room felt too quiet, too alive and charged. Jennifer could feel her heartbeat in her throat, her wrists, her fingertips. Every inch of her was aware of him standing so close… too close, like he existed in the very air she breathed. Steven studied her with a focus that made her stomach tighten. “You’re not afraid,” he said quietly. It wasn’t a question. It was an observation more like a realization. “I’m not,” she whispered. “Even though you should be.” She frowned slightly. “Should I?” Steven exhaled, slowly and deeply like someone fighting a war inside himself. “You don’t understand what you’re walking into, Jennifer. I’m not…” He looked away briefly, jaw tightening. “I’m not the safest man to get close to.” Jennifer lifted her chin. “Maybe I don’t want safe.” His gaze snapped back to her, sharp and dark, his expression unreadable. “Careful,” he warned again, voice dropping, “You don’t know the weight of what you’re saying.” “Then explain it,” Jennifer

Riverage City was buzzing about one thing—Leo Milton’s first birthday. Even though the Milton's were facing back lash, they still needed to celebrate their grandson's birthday. Two days left, Cakes were being ordered, decorations were taking place and of course invitations were being printed. This was not just a birthday, but also a strategy to know what people thought of them, or how many people would honour their invitation. Everyone was coming, everyone who was anyone or at least they hoped. Everyone except Jedro Guler, Diana’s older brother. To him, Jackson Milton who is Diana’s husband was nothing but a gold digger and an ambitious man, someone who wouldn't think twice to throw away everything for money. A boy who was picked up by the Miltons, with no real bloodline, no real history. Jedro never accepted him, he never approved of the marriage. And sadly even a year after they had given birth to Leo, he still held a grudge, he didn’t plan to attend Leo’s birthday. And t