4: Meeting Ethan Again

Ethan’s words?

Natalie had completely forgotten them.

It was just a fleeting affair—she never intended for anything more to come from it.

More importantly, she had no time to think about it.

Her focus was entirely on salvaging her career.

Ryan’s revenge was more insidious than she had anticipated. Instead of confronting her outright, he chose to sabotage her at work.

The Grand Regency Hotel was set to host a series of anniversary events and distributor conferences. Natalie had worked tirelessly on securing the deals. If she pulled it off, the administrative manager position would be hers.

The details were finalized, the groundwork laid, and yet—at the critical moment, everything started unraveling.

If Ryan wasn’t behind it, she would eat her own heels.

She was *this* close to her promotion. She refused to let it slip away.

Now, she stood outside a private suite at *Elysium Lounge*, the most exclusive club in New York City.

She took a deep breath, adjusted her smile, and knocked.

Inside, the atmosphere was lively—loud laughter, clinking glasses, expensive liquor poured freely. The club catered to the city’s elite, and the *hostesses* were dressed to impress.

In her crisp business attire, Natalie stood out like a sore thumb.

"Well, well, if it isn’t Ryan’s little sweetheart," someone drawled, a smirk in their voice. "For a second, I thought she was one of the new girls."

Natalie’s smile stiffened.

She *should* have known.

Harvey—the key decision-maker in this deal—had been dodging her calls, only to suddenly announce he was at Elysium tonight.

It wasn’t a coincidence.

Ryan was waiting for her.

Another voice chimed in. "Damn, Ryan, your girl’s got a hell of a body."

Of course she did.

Among a room full of women in barely-there dresses, Natalie’s blouse only had two buttons undone. And yet, even fully clothed, she commanded attention.

"That’s no girl of mine."

Ryan’s voice rang out from the corner.

Natalie turned toward him.

A woman sat on his lap, his hand slipping beneath her skirt.

It was the first time she had seen him like this.

Before, he always put on an act—playing the gentleman.

Now?

Now he was exactly what he had always been.

His words ignited the room.

Someone chuckled darkly. "Didn’t please Young Master Ryan last night, huh? Poor thing. You should go apologize to him properly."

Every gaze on her was unfriendly.

Natalie had known this was a setup.

But the situation was worse than she had expected.

Ryan shoved the woman off his lap and knocked on the marble tabletop with his knuckles.

"What’s wrong? Scared?"

He sneered.

"Get over here and drink all of this. Do it, and maybe—just maybe—I’ll consider letting you off the hook."

This wasn’t banter.

This was *humiliation*.

A few men in the room shifted uncomfortably, but Ryan just scoffed.

"You all think she’s so innocent, huh? She’s no angel."

Business was business. No one would risk offending Ryan over a woman.

The lively suite turned silent.

Even the music had stopped.

All eyes were on Natalie.

She tensed.

The bodyguards at the door hadn’t been there when she arrived.

So that was why she had been let in so easily.

She had walked right into a trap.

Natalie took a step forward.

Then another.

The short distance to Ryan suddenly felt like an endless stage.

But if they expected her to tremble, they were about to be disappointed.

She made *every* step count.

Even Ryan had to admit—no matter how much he despised her, she had always been the one woman who could *hook* him without even trying.

And that was why this betrayal burned so deeply.

He had invested in her.

And she had repaid him with a humiliation so severe, he couldn’t show his face in the city without people whispering behind his back.

"Natalie."

Her name rolled off his tongue, tainted with mockery and anger.

To him, she had always been *his*.

And yet, the moment Ethan entered the picture, she had turned into a seductress—a snake willing to wrap herself around another man without hesitation.

"Are you telling me that if I drink all this, you’ll let me go?"

Ryan clicked his tongue. "Drink first. We’ll see."

The men in the room started chanting.

"Drink! Drink! Drink!"

The hostesses fluttered around, lighting cigarettes for their clients.

Natalie glanced at the neatly arranged glasses filled with various liquors.

Her lips curved upward.

Then, she picked up the *decanter*.

No one stopped her.

They wanted to see what she was up to.

She poured *all* the liquor into the decanter, mixing them into a single, lethal concoction.

"One by one is too slow. Don’t you think, Young Master Ryan?"

Ryan smirked, clearly amused.

"Ryan, come on," someone muttered. "This is too much. She’ll end up in the hospital."

Ryan was riding too high on his ego to care.

"You can leave if you’re scared."

He was going to break her tonight.

Natalie turned to the man who had spoken up, flashing a small, almost grateful smile.

Then, she faced Ryan again.

Her smoky eyes shimmered with something unreadable—pure, unfiltered temptation.

Ryan *wanted* her.

Even now.

Even after everything.

But *wanting* her wasn’t the same as *owning* her.

"You’re right," she murmured. "You’ve always treated me so well."

The smile vanished.

Then, in one swift motion, she grabbed Ryan by the collar—

And *dumped* the entire decanter over his head.

The room erupted into chaos.

Before the guards could react, Natalie had already *slapped* him across the face.

"You *fucking* asshole. You cheat first, and you think you can lecture me?"

Ryan was stunned.

Natalie didn’t stop.

"You want to know how it felt? That night with Ethan?"

Her lips curled cruelly.

"I came. Over. And over again. Best night of my life. You could never."

The room *exploded*.

Ryan, humiliated beyond words, lunged for her—

*BANG!*

The door flew open.

Lucas stepped in.

He had *just* been about to say something—

Then he heard *that.*

He whistled lowly, his eyes flickering toward the man behind him.

"Ryan, you sure know how to throw a party. Why didn’t you invite us?"

The bodyguards were immediately subdued by Lucas’s men.

The energy in the room *shifted*.

Every guest fell silent.

Ethan stepped forward.

The multicolored lights from the bar cast deep shadows over his sharp, aristocratic features.

His suit was slightly rumpled, as if he had just come from another engagement. He pulled at his tie, exhaling slightly.

Then, he spoke.

"Come here."

His tone was calm.

But there was no mistaking *who* he was addressing.

Everyone turned to Natalie.

Ryan’s fingers clenched into fists.

His hatred toward her had reached its peak.

So this was why she had dared to come alone.

She hadn’t been *alone* at all.

Ethan had been waiting in the wings the entire time.