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Scarlett Lane was worth the risk. And for the first time in my life, I wanted to take it.
V
V had never been the type to seethe in silence. No, she preferred action—calculated, ruthless action.
But as she stood in the dimly lit hallway just outside Amélie’s kitchen, listening to Scarlett Lane’s effortless flirtation with Christian Valen, something hot and bitter curled in her stomach.
Scarlett Lane. The golden girl.
The one everyone adored, the one critics raved about, the one who, despite starting with nothing, had somehow built a name for herself in the culinary world.
And now, apparently, she’d caught the attention ofChristian Valen.
V clenched her jaw, her manicured nails digging into her palm.
She’d come here tonight under the pretense of dining, a silent reconnaissance mission to observe her competition firsthand.
But she hadn’t expected to stumble upon this.
Christian Valen wasn’t just some billionaire looking to play restaurant investor for fun.
He was the name. A Valen partnership meant expansion, prestige, and power—things Scarlett Lane did not deserve.
V had worked twice as hard for half as much.
She had trained under the best, clawed her way up, and yet, she was still constantly overlooked.
Scarlett?
She waltzed onto the scene with her perfect smiles and down-to-earth charm, and people ate it up like one of her overpriced entrées.
And now Christian was offering her the kind of deal that could turn a boutique restaurant into a global empire.
A slow burn of fury pulsed beneath V’s cool exterior.
Scarlett’s voice carried down the hallway, light and teasing.
"Fine. One dinner. But don’t expect any promises."
V smirked. That was Scarlett’s first mistake.
A woman like her, naïve and far too trusting, wouldn’t know how to handle a man like Christian Valen.
And her second mistake? Thinking this opportunity was hers alone.
V turned on her heel, her mind already racing. If Scarlett thought she could waltz into the big leagues uncontested, she was about to get a very rude awakening.
Because V had spent too long in the shadows, waiting for her moment. And she wasn’t about to let Scarlett steal it.
4
SCARLETT
I’d beenon dates before. Plenty of them, in fact.
But none of them had ever left me this nervous.
As I got ready, I kept telling myself I had no reason to be this anxious. It was just dinner. Just Christian.