character 2
914 Words
Yuna had expected Nash to say, Let’s just pretend none of this ever happened.
Calm. Decisive. Efficient. That was always his style.
She stood there silently, watching the sharp line of his profile.
Strangely enough, the guilt she’d felt for last night’s mistake began to fade without her even realizing it.
She had devoted herself entirely to Gergo—heart and soul, eyes only for him.
How had she never noticed Nash before? A face like that wasn’t something you simply overlooked…
“What if we get married?”
Might as well make the mistake count.
The wedding invitations had already been sent out. Calling it off now would cost her more than just money.
“Are you still drunk?”
Nash turned to look at her, something unreadable flickering across his expression.
Surprise, perhaps.
His deep, emotion-laced eyes held hers, waiting for an explanation.
Oh. So that was a no.
Yuna gave a small shrug.
“You could think of it as… a partnership.”
They ran into each other often at work.
If she framed it as a business arrangement, maybe it would sit better with him.
“My wedding is in two days, and my fiancé ran off to be with another woman. I suppose I need someone else to stand beside me.”
Her voice grew softer toward the end. Even she wasn’t confident in what she was proposing.
What on earth was she thinking?
Nash and George had been rivals for years, clashing at every opportunity.
They likely despised each other.
And she had been George’s girlfriend. Nash probably disliked her too. A one-night stand wasn’t about to change that.
The man who had been standing by the window finally moved.
Tall and imposing, he crossed the distance between them in a few long strides and stopped in front of her, looking down at her from above.
His Adam’s apple shifted as if he meant to speak, yet no words came.
She caught the faint scent of cedarwood from him—the same scent that had brushed her senses last night when his breath had grazed her ear.
Almost involuntarily, she looked up.
Their eyes met.
It was different from the cold indifference he wore at work.
For a fleeting second, she thought she saw something softer there.
Her heart skipped.
Then reality snapped back into place. He was going to refuse. Of course he was.
She turned quickly, grabbed her phone, and began stuffing her things into her bag.
“Forget I said anything.”
She kept her head down, pretending to search for something to hide her embarrassment.
“Let’s just pretend none of this—”
“Why me?”
Nash’s hand came down against the wall behind her, effectively caging her in as he leaned closer. The proximity made her pulse quicken.
Why him?
Yuna swallowed. Her wide, clear eyes flickered with uncertainty. “Because you’re George’s rival.”
If George found out the truth… how would he feel?
Nash smiled.
The slight curve of his lips suggested he found that answer oddly satisfying.
“I do have a condition,” he said.
“Perhaps we can negotiate.”
He lifted a hand, long fingers threading lightly through her golden hair, twining a strand around his knuckles.
“Come with me to meet my parents. I don’t want them interfering in my marriage.”
His parents?
The name alone carried weight—Nash Black of the powerful Black family, a dynasty with fingers in countless industries.
Nash had taken over company operations at a young age, proving just as capable as the generation before him.
What kind of people had raised a man like that?
A flicker of unease passed through her, but the image of her impending wedding pushed her forward. She had to decide.
“Of course,” she said quietly.
“I’m sure they’ll understand.”
Even though her own parents had never quite understood her.
Her phone rang.
“Dad.”
She answered quickly, only to be met with her father’s furious voice on the other end.
“What happened between you and George? Come home. Now.”
The volume alone made her head throb.
So he knew.
George canceling the engagement hadn’t stayed quiet for long.
“Need a ride?”
Nash had clearly overheard.
He lifted his wrist as if checking the time, though it felt more like he was giving her space to think.
“Thank you.”
For the first time, someone was offering her a hand instead of letting her fall.
The black sedan moved smoothly through the streets.
Yuna absentmindedly touched the ring on her finger, staring out at the passing city.
It was her engagement ring with Gergo. She had chosen it herself.
There had been no surprise. No romance. No ceremony.
She still remembered the day she’d suggested marriage.
George had paused for barely a second before telling her to pick out a ring she liked that weekend—and grab one for him while she was at it.
“Having second thoughts?”
In the quiet car, Nash’s voice broke the silence. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye.
“No.”
Yuna inhaled deeply. Her gaze sharpened, steady and clear.
What was done was done. It was time to turn the page.
Without hesitation, she slid the ring off her finger.
She rolled down the window and, without a traee of regret, tossed it out into the wind.
- Writer
