Hired to seduce him

chapter 5

Nathaniel had been in London for three days. During his absence, I had managed his chaotic Boston schedule flawlessly, ensuring every document was signed and every crisis averted. I could have gone home at five. Instead, knowing his transatlantic flight landed at ten, I waited.

I sat at my desk in the dimly lit reception area, the city lights flickering through the glass walls.

At exactly eleven forty-five, the private elevator chimed.

Nathaniel stepped out. He looked exhausted, the brutal jet lag evident in the slight tension around his eyes. His tie was loosened, his top button undone, and his jacket was draped over his forearm. He stopped when he saw me, his gray eyes narrowing in surprise.

"Miss Quinn," his voice was deeper than usual, rough from the flight. "What are you still doing here?"

"Making sure your return is as smooth as your departure, Mr. Cole," I said, rising smoothly from my chair. I picked up the glass of scotch I had prepared minutes before and walked toward him. "I thought you might need this."

Nathaniel stared at the amber liquid, then at me. For a second, his guard slipped. He took the glass, his fingers brushing mine.

"Thank you," he murmured, taking a slow sip.

The office was dark, illuminated only by the skyline outside. Nathaniel didn't sit behind his desk. Instead, he walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window, looking out over the city he ruled.

"You should be at home, Scarlett," he said, using my first name without realizing it.

"I wanted to make sure everything was handled," I said, stepping closer, halting just a couple of feet away. "You work too hard. Don't you ever stop to enjoy what you've built?"

Nathaniel let out a low, humorless laugh. He took another sip of his drink.

"When you come from nothing, you don't learn how to stop." He didn't look at me, his gaze fixed on the lights below. "I grew up in a rusted trailer in South Boston. No money, no connections, no safety net. I built every inch of Cole Enterprises myself, sacrifice by sacrifice. To get to the top, things like love and pleasure... I had to eliminate them from my life. They are distractions. Liabilities."

My chest tightened. The image of the untouchable billionaire was cracking, revealing a boy who had fought his way out of hell.

"And your marriage?" I asked softly, the words escaping before I could stop them. "Claire? Forgive me if I'm overstepping, but you two seem like a couple in love."

Nathaniel was silent for a long moment.

"Claire is what I need. Our marriage is a partnership. We don't love each other, we never have, but she understands the status, the expectations. It's stable. I don't need anyone else, and I have no interest in looking."

His message couldn't have been clearer. My looks, my perfume, and my subtle glances were supposed to mean nothing to him.

I decided to push.

I closed the remaining distance. The scent of my sandalwood and vanilla perfume filled the air between us. Slowly, deliberately, I reached out and rested my fingers over his on the window ledge. His skin was warm, his muscles instantly locking under my touch.

"But you're at the top now, Nathaniel," I whispered, my voice barely above a whisper. "You survived. You can have everything you want now. You can actually live."

Nathaniel didn't move. He didn't pull his hand away immediately, and for three agonizing heartbeats, his eyes burned into mine with a dark, primal intensity that made my knees weak.

I felt his pulse quicken beneath my fingertips.

Then, the shutter slammed closed.

Nathaniel pulled his hand back, stepping away from me. His face was a mask of perfect professionalism, completely ignoring the blatant flirtation.

"Once you reach the top, Miss Quinn, that's when you have to work the hardest," he said, his voice entirely devoid of emotion. "Everyone wants to pull you down. Everyone wants a piece of what you built. No one gave me a single thing in this life, and I will protect it with everything I have."

He walked over to his desk, setting the empty glass down with a sharp *clink*.

"Go home, Scarlett. Get some rest. I'll see you tomorrow at eight."

I stood there for a second, my hand still cold from where his warmth had left it. I forced a docile, professional smile.

"Goodnight, Mr. Cole."

As I walked out to the elevator, my heart was hammering against my ribs, but it wasn't just from the near-miss of his proximity. It was the guilt.

Claire had lied to me. Nathaniel wasn't a cold monster; he was a fiercely protective, self-made man trapped in a transactional marriage. And I was the one holding the match, ready to destroy the only thing this man lived for.

The job had never been about seducing Nathaniel. It had always been about destroying him.

Now, I wasn't sure I could