I wake up the next day and head down for breakfast, where Grandfather is already seated. He doesn't say anything to me, and I just sat down. A maid brings coffee and sets a meal before me, and I set to eat it immediately, when Grandfather's cough brings me back to reality.
"So," Grandfather says, "you and Chaos, huh.... since when has this been going on?" he says with a smirk.
"Grandfather....." I groan.
Grandfather James chuckled, that deep gravelly laugh of his, and leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms.
"Don't give me that tone, girl," he said, eyes glinting. "The whole damn country is talking about it, and you sit there acting like it was nothing?" He raised his brows, smirk tugging at his lips. "The Riegrow brat calls you his woman in front of every vulture in high society, drags you out by the hand, and you think I won't ask questions?"
Zarri strolled in just then, still in a silk robe, hair a beautiful mess from sleeping late. She plopped into the chair beside me with a wicked grin. "Mi encanto, I nearly spit out my wine when I saw the headlines again this morning. 'Chaos Riegrow Declares His Woman' ay dios mío, the look on Natalie's face!" Zarri laughed, clapping her hands. "Priceless."
Grandfather shook his head, but the smirk never left. "I'll admit, I didn't expect it. But if you're going to have a man in your corner, at least you picked the devil himself." He leaned forward now, his tone sharpening just a touch. "Question is, Kashi... are you going to use this, or run from it?"
Frank, who had been standing discreetly by the wall, finally spoke up. "Miss Saints, with respect, the damage, or opportunity, will depend on how you respond. If you deny him, it will raise more questions. If you say nothing... it leaves room for speculation. But if you claim it..." He trailed off, his eyes flicking toward grandfather.
"Then the world shifts," Grandfather finished for him, voice heavy. He leaned his elbows on the table, staring at me with that familiar mix of pride and challenge. "So, girl... what's it going to be?"
I bite into a bread and while chewing it I mutter "I'm... not his woman, he's an asshole and a teaser" I say between bites
I drop the spoon in my hand "can we all just have breakfast like a normal family, without the talk of business this, reputation that, cmon man" I grab Frank by the hand and sit him down "let's eat pleaseeeeeee" I groan
Zarri burst out laughing, clapping her hands. "¡Eso! Finally, someone says it. Enough doom and gloom. Pass me the butter, Frankito," she teased, reaching across the table.
Frank looked caught between scandalized and bewildered as i tugged him into the chair. "M... Miss Saints, I.... "
"Frank, if you don't pick up that fork, I'll fire you myself," Grandfather cut in dryly, rolling his eyes. "The girl's right. Let's have breakfast."
Frank blinked, then slowly reached for a slice of bread, his face pink but a reluctant smile tugging at his mouth.
Zarri leaned against me with a grin. "See? This is nice. Like a sitcom family, but with money and drama." She wagged her finger dramatically. "And hot men fighting over mi encanto."
Grandfather groaned, covering his face with one hand. "God save me from women."
And for the first time since the party, laughter filled the dining hall, not whispers, not strategy, not scandal. Just family.
The next few days were filled with avoiding reporters and work. Our shares went up by a lot since the thing with Chaos and me. We've gotten more profits and sales and more insight due to the whole scandal, which got me thinking that sometimes scandals aren't so bad, but I quickly whipped it out of my mind as I sat in my office.
Soon my thoughts were interrupted when my secretary entered my office to announce I had a guest. Who could it be?
Before I could ask, Zach, the figure walked in - it was none other than Chaos, and all his grace and might. "Mr. X," I say, surprised. "What brings you to Saints Company?"
He was dressed in a black tailored suit, as always immaculate, his gloves perfectly fitted, his eyes like shards of ice as they swept across my office. He didn't bother with pleasantries
"Miss Saints," he said smoothly, his voice calm but heavy, filling the space like it belonged to him. "You seem surprised."
Zach, stiff and cautious, glanced between the two of us, waiting for a cue. Chaos barely acknowledged him. Instead, he moved closer, each step deliberate, until he stood before my desk.
"You've been busy," he continued, gesturing vaguely toward the stack of reports, the glowing figures of rising shares on the screen behind me. "Your numbers are soaring. Investors buzzing. The Saints name back in every headline." His lips curved faintly, not a smile, but something sharper. "All because of me."
He leaned forward slightly, resting one gloved hand on the edge of my desk, lowering his voice. "And yet, you hide from me. Avoid me. Pretend my words were empty." His gaze darkened, unwavering. "So tell me, Kashi... how long do you plan to deny what the world already believes?"
Zach shifted uncomfortably at the intensity, clearing his throat. "Should I, leave, Miss Saints?" Zach froze, waiting only for my word.
"I'm alright zach, you can leave" I say to him and then turn to chaos "sit" I say sternly
Chaos's icy gaze lingered on me for a moment, sharp and unreadable, as though weighing whether to obey.
Then, without a word, he lowered himself into the chair opposite my desk, moving with unhurried confidence. Even seated, his presence filled the room, commanding, deliberate, as if the office itself bowed to him.
He leaned back slightly, crossing one leg over the other, his gloved hands resting easily on the armrests. His head tilted just enough to study me, the faintest trace of a smirk tugging at his lips.
"You've grown bolder," he remarked, his voice low and steady, almost amused. "Ordering me to sit like one of your employees." His eyes glinted, cold fire meeting yours. "Careful, Kashi. I might start to enjoy it."
"What are you doing here Mr X, I don't remember having an appointment with X holding in my schedule" I say without removing my eyes from the file i was holding
"You're right. I'm not here as X Holdings," he said, his tone carrying the weight of something more personal, more dangerous. He leaned forward, resting one elbow on the armrest, his icy eyes never leaving me. "I'm here as me."
He tapped a gloved finger once against my desk, deliberate, like a gavel striking judgment. "The world thinks you're mine, Kashi. And I don't correct them. I don't want to. You've seen the results, your shares climbing, your name louder than ever."
His voice dropped lower, threading with something sharper. "So you tell me, why do you keep pretending you don't benefit from this?"
He leaned in just slightly, close enough that his presence pulled at the edges of my composure. "Or is it that you're afraid you might actually want it to be true?"
"You're right" I close the file and look up to meet his gaze "my company has benefited the exposure of what you did. Telling the world I was your woman, when we don't even know each other.... and right now I'd like for you to release a press statement and tell everyone the truth"
Chaos's smirk vanished.
For the first time since stepping into my office, he looked at me without amusement, without the teasing edge. His blue eyes hardened, sharp as ice under sunlight.
"Release a press statement?" he repeated slowly, his tone cold, deliberate. He straightened to his full height, towering over the desk, his presence pressing down like gravity. "Do you have any idea what you're asking, Kashi?"
He stepped closer, his voice lowering, each word measured. "If I tell the world it was a lie, do you know what happens? You go back to being the woman Gray humiliated. The heiress they mocked. The flame they thought they extinguished." His jaw clenched, his gloved hand curling against the desk. "Everything you've rebuilt, the respect, the power, the fire, gone. They'll laugh louder than they ever did before."
Silence fell, thick and heavy, until he leaned down, his face inches from mine, his voice cutting like a blade.
"You think you want me to undo this, but you don't. Because deep down, you know..." his eyes glinted dangerously, "...you burn brighter standing next to me than you ever did chasing Gray."
He straightened, adjusting his cuff like the conversation was already over. "No press statement, Kashi. Not now. Not ever."
I stood up, anger surging inside me. "You sound like this is what you wanted, to see me fold and break!" I spat out the words. "Is that what you want.... is that why you've been around me all this while, you want me? But you want me broken so I'd have nowhere else to run to but to you.... well, listen to me... Chaos!!" I said his name out loud for the first time since we'd met.
"I won't let any man break me again, not Gray, not anyone, and definitely not you, so whatever plan you've spun and whatever things you hope to benefit from this, go to hell with it," I said without faltering.
"Zach," I called out, "Mr. X has overstayed his welcome, see him out."
Chaos froze when his name fell from my lips.
For a flicker of a second, something dangerous flashed in his eyes, not anger, not hurt, but hunger. As though hearing me say Chaos had only sealed something he already believed.
He turned his head slightly toward Zach, icy eyes slicing through him, then back to me. The corner of his lips curved, not in a smirk, not in mockery, but in something darker, softly, his voice low, vibrating with control. "No, Kashi. I want you exactly like this."
He stepped back from the desk, his presence still heavy, refusing to be diminished even as Zach waited nervously at the door. Chaos adjusted his cuff, his tone sharp enough to carve itself into the walls.
"Burning. Fighting. Spitting in my face if you must. Because whether you admit it or not..." His gaze locked on me one last time, searing. "...you've already chosen me the moment you said my name."
Without waiting for Zach's cue, Chaos turned and walked toward the door himself, every stride unhurried, deliberate.
As he passed Zach, the poor man stiffened like prey under a predator's shadow. Chaos didn't so much as glance at him, just pushed the door open and left, leaving behind silence that rang louder than any shout.