His Contract Star: The CEO's Fake Lover ✨

Chapter 17 – The Wolves in the Spotlight

The next day dawned heavy with expectation. Even before the sun had crept above the horizon, the city was already bristling with chatter, the buzz of a thousand hungry voices rising to a roar. Screens blazed with anticipation of the noon press conference that Veronica Stone and Mira Celina had promised—a “truth reveal” the networks were branding as The Scandal of the Century.

Cezy hadn’t slept. She sat by the window of Nathan’s penthouse, wrapped in one of his shirts, staring down at the restless city far below. A cold dread weighed on her chest. The night before, she had felt brave, buoyed by Nathan’s words and the fragile hope of having shown the world her truth. But in the harsh light of day, that hope felt like glass in her hands—already cracking.

Nathan entered quietly, his suit sharp, his expression harder than steel. He had barely slept either, though it didn’t show in the precision of his movements, the deliberate power in his stance. His blue eyes found her at once, softening for a fleeting second before resuming their icy edge.

“They’re moving quickly,” he said, adjusting his cufflinks. “Dalia’s been tracking the chatter. Half the networks have already lined up sponsorships to air Veronica and Mira’s spectacle live. They want ratings. They don’t care what gets destroyed in the process.”

Cezy pulled her knees tighter against her chest. “And people will believe them. They’ll believe anything if it’s packaged with enough glitter and venom.”

Nathan crossed the room, kneeling beside her. He took her chin in his hand, tilting her face toward his. His gaze locked onto hers, fierce, unyielding. “Look at me. They may speak, they may shout, but truth doesn’t die just because lies are louder. You’ve already made them feel something. That doesn’t go away overnight. Whatever happens today, you’re not alone in this. I’ll take every bullet before they touch you.”

Her breath hitched. She wanted to believe him, to anchor herself in the steel of his voice. But fear gnawed at her edges. “And if they don’t just come after me? If they come after you, your empire, everything you’ve built?”

A dangerous smile tugged at Nathan’s lips. “Then they’ll learn the cost of war.”

---

Noon arrived like a thunderclap. The grand ballroom of the Imperial Hotel glittered with flashing lights and gilded excess. Rows of cameras lined the space, reporters crammed shoulder-to-shoulder, microphones pointed like weapons. The air was thick with the scent of perfume, ambition, and blood in the water.

Veronica Stone entered first, radiant in crimson silk that clung to her curves like molten fire. She wore victory like a crown, lips painted in a smirk that promised destruction. Beside her, Mira Celina glowed in pale silver, her beauty icy and sharp, her smile a dagger disguised as grace. Together they looked untouchable—an alliance forged in venom, dazzling enough to make the vultures lean closer.

Flashes erupted. The room buzzed with anticipation. The wolves had arrived.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Veronica purred into the microphone, her voice dripping with rehearsed charm, “thank you for joining us. Today we lift the curtain on a scandal that has tainted both our industry and the integrity of our art. We are here to expose a deception—a manipulation orchestrated by none other than Nathan Cross, with the willing compliance of his so-called starlet, Cezy Celina.”

A murmur rippled through the crowd. Reporters scribbled furiously. Screens flickered to life behind them, flashing images: Cezy in Nathan’s arms on a red carpet, Cezy stepping into his car, Cezy’s trembling interview from the night before. Out of context, each shot painted a different story—a story Veronica was only too eager to narrate.

“They call it romance,” Mira chimed in smoothly, her tone brittle-sweet. “But what it really is? A contract. A deal struck to catapult a nobody into the spotlight, to fabricate chemistry and sympathy. To trick audiences into falling in love with a lie.”

Gasps. Pens scratched faster. Cameras zoomed in. The feeding frenzy had begun.

But Veronica wasn’t finished. With a theatrical flourish, she held up a folder. “Inside here are documents—contracts, payments, proof that Cezy Celina’s entire rise has been bought and paid for by Nathan Cross. Not talent. Not hard work. Just manipulation. A pawn in a game of greed.”

The crowd erupted. Shouts flew. Questions were hurled like stones: “Can we see the documents?” “Did Nathan coerce her?” “Was she sleeping her way to the top?”

Cezy, watching the live stream from the penthouse, felt her stomach lurch. Her face blanched. “They forged it,” she whispered, voice breaking. “I never signed anything like that—Nathan, I swear—”

Nathan’s hand clenched around hers, steady, anchoring. “I know. And the world will know. But they’re not just after you anymore. They’re after me. My empire. They want to tear it down piece by piece.”

On the screen, Veronica leaned closer to the microphone, delivering the final blow with serpentine precision. “We will release these documents to the public tomorrow morning. And when we do, you’ll see just how deep the deception runs. This isn’t just scandal—it’s corruption. It’s fraud. And it ends today.”

The ballroom dissolved into chaos. Reporters surged forward, cameras flashing, microphones thrusting. Veronica and Mira basked in the storm like queens on a burning throne, their smiles wide and venomous.

---

Back in the penthouse, silence reigned once the feed ended. Cezy shook her head violently, tears streaking her cheeks. “They’ll ruin me. They’ll ruin you. How can we fight forged documents? People will believe it—they’ll eat it up. And once it’s out there, it won’t matter what the truth is!”

Nathan paced like a predator caged, his fury simmering beneath the surface. He pulled out his phone, speaking in clipped tones to his legal team, his PR team, his investigators. “Get me every shred of digital metadata on those documents. Find the trail, trace the forgery, expose the hands that touched it. I don’t care if you have to burn through a hundred firewalls—bring me the proof.” He ended the call, his voice shaking with controlled rage.

Dalia entered, her expression grim. “It’s worse than we thought. While the press conference was happening, Veronica’s people were busy. They’ve been seeding stories to our investors, whispering about fraud, planting doubts. Two of your biggest partners have already pulled out of pending deals. The board is panicking.”

Nathan’s jaw tightened. “So it’s not just public. It’s private. They’re hitting the foundation.”

Cezy looked between them, heart pounding. “This is my fault. If I hadn’t—”

“Don’t.” Nathan’s voice cut like a blade. He crossed the room in three strides, seizing her shoulders. His eyes blazed into hers, blue fire meeting storm. “This is not your fault. Do you understand me? This is war, Cezy. They chose this battlefield. But I swear to you—they’ll regret it.”

Her breath trembled. His hands on her shoulders, his fire burning into her soul—it steadied her, even as fear gnawed her edges. She nodded slowly, swallowing the lump in her throat.

For a moment, the rage between them softened into something else. Something raw, unspoken. His thumb brushed her cheek, lingering against her tear-stained skin. She leaned into the touch without meaning to, without resisting. The silence thickened, charged, fragile.

But before the spark could ignite, Dalia cleared her throat, her eyes darting away with tact. “We need to prepare. If those documents go public tomorrow, we need a counterstrike ready. Something bigger. Something undeniable.”

Nathan dropped his hand, his expression hardening once more. “Then we’ll give them a show they won’t forget. If they want war in the spotlight, we’ll meet them there. But behind closed doors, I’ll burn their empire to ash.”

Cezy inhaled sharply. There was something terrifying, something exhilarating in his promise. For the first time, she realized that Nathan Cross was not just a shield—he was a weapon. And when he unleashed himself, nothing could stand in his path.

She only prayed they could survive the fire.

---

The night fell heavy and breathless. Outside, the city buzzed with speculation, every screen alive with fragments of the day’s spectacle. Hashtags multiplied, alliances fractured, opinions flew like sparks from a bonfire. Cezy’s name trended alongside Nathan’s, Veronica’s, and Mira’s—a four-way battlefield for hearts, headlines, and power.

But inside the penthouse, beneath the glittering skyline, Nathan and Cezy sat together in the quiet after the storm. For a long while, neither spoke. Their hands brushed once, then lingered, fingers intertwining slowly, as if the simple act could anchor them against the tidal wave crashing toward them.

Nathan finally broke the silence, his voice a vow carved in steel. “They think they’ve cornered us. They think forged papers and poison words will break us. But tomorrow, Cezy, we stop playing defense. Tomorrow, we fight back. Not as pawn and king, not as contract and star—but as something more. Something they can’t control.”

Cezy turned her face to him, heart hammering. For the first time, despite the storm, she saw the truth burning in his eyes. And she realized she wasn’t just a dreamer lost in someone else’s world. She was part of his fire now.

And together, they were about to set the stage ablaze.