I Was Hoping She Would Notice but again Now When She Did... Im Tired

After three hours

Avey sat inside a fancy restaurant, trying her hardest not to cry again. No she had cried enough.

What was the use of crying, anyway?

“What happened now? Why did you invite me?” The man’s voice cut through the low hum of the restaurant, laced with a frown. “Didn’t you kick me out last time?”

“I’m sorry about that… I had no other choice,” Avey said, her voice soft. “Please, forgive all my earlier mistakes. I’ll give you a major tender for your company. I’ll even invest 300 million dollars.” She tried to smile, to add a sense of reassurance, but her eyes were a little too wet on the edge of breaking down again.

Her gaze stayed on Victor’s face the same face that once held bruises and cuts. Now healed, but still unreadable, etched with suspicion. What had changed her so suddenly? This was the same woman who had kicked him out of her house party, cold as ice.

He couldn’t make sense of her. First, she was casual. Then, she got too close to that Lucian guy. Then came the disgust, the hate clear as day. And now this? A sudden dinner invitation?

Weird.

“Just get to the point,” Victor said flatly. “What do you want now? We don’t exactly have a good relationship. What are you planning?”

His tone was cold as ever. He didn’t even touch the coffee cup on the table half-suspecting there might be poison in it.

“There’s nothing like that… I just want to help you,” Avey said, her voice calm, eyes deliberately avoiding Victor’s.

“Oh? Help me?” Victor scoffed. “And why would that be? As I recall, Miss Kane made it clear we had no relationship.” He emphasized the name Kane with a wicked smile, sharp enough to sting.

“Please… don’t joke,” Avey murmured. “I have nothing to do with Lucian anymore…”

Her voice faltered as she corrected herself, “It’s Avey Starline.” Her body trembled slightly, and her throat felt like it was being cut open from the inside.

“Oh really?” Victor leaned back, stirring the untouched coffee in front of him with a spoon, the metal clinking softly against the cup. “Funny… I could’ve sworn I heard someone announce they were pregnant with Lucian Kane’s child.”

Avey flinched. “That was a lie… just to escape marrying the prince,” she whispered. “Please don’t misunderstand. There’s nothing going on between us.”

She said the words, but her heart was pounding violently. Even her breath broke rhythm, struggling beneath the weight of her own truth.

Victor tilted his head, amused by her unraveling. “Alright… if you say so,” he shrugged, his expression unreadable, but his eyes glinting with something between curiosity and disbelief.

“Can we finally get to the point?” he asked. “What is it you want from me? You’ve gone so far offering investments, speaking sweet words. What could a lowly man like me possibly offer Miss Starline?”

His eyes met hers, unwavering.

Avey inhaled deeply. The silence between them stretched long thick with tension. After nearly two full minutes, her lips parted, her voice barely a whisper.

“I… I want you to become my boyfriend…” Her hands trembled beneath the table, and her voice shook with vulnerability. The weight of her request sat heavy in the air.

Cough cough cough! Victor nearly fell out of his chair, coughing violently. “What… again?” he gasped, struggling to process what he just heard.

He grabbed the coffee cup off the table and downed it in one go. Poison? Who cared at this point? After that kind of bombshell, the air itself felt poisonous.

“Miss, with all due respect have you lost your mind?” he said, setting the cup down with a loud thud.

“I’m very serious about this, Victor… please… I’m begging you,” Avey said softly. She looked genuinely pitiful, her words soaked in desperation.

Victor didn’t respond. He just stared, blinking slowly.

For some reason, all he could think about now was Lucian’s punches fists slamming into his face not long ago. He absently touched his nose, still tender and bruised beneath the surface, even if healed on the outside.

Did she just come here so lunatic and I can throw fists again? Is that the plan?

Women really were cruel sometimes.

Just days ago, she was parading Lucian around like he was her everything. Public announcements, grand proposals, smiles. And now this?

Victor sat in silence, watching her, thinking.

Unbelievable.

“Are you serious about this?” he finally asked after what felt like an eternity.

Avey nodded, her expression hollow, voice gone quiet.

“What about Lucian?” Victor leaned back, crossing one leg over the other, clasping his hands together as he rested his chin on them. His eyes narrowed with curiosity.

Avey stayed silent for a moment. Then slowly, she shook her head.

“That was all me being forced… by my family,” she said. “And the Kane family Lucian’s side they pressured mine too. I had no choice. All those stunts, the public displays… they were just for business. We gained a lot from it.”

This time, her voice had a cold, flat tone. Detached. Like it wasn’t her life she was talking about.

Victor nodded slowly, arms crossed now. “I see. I see…” But deep down, he didn’t believe a damn word of it.

“I have some conditions,” Victor said, his tone calm too calm. “If you want to be my girlfriend.”

Avey’s lips parted slightly. “What… are those?” she asked, her voice quiet, but her gaze locked on him, searching.

Victor leaned forward just a bit, resting his elbows on the table. “The Starline family will support me fully. In business, in influence. I want full backing deals, access, connections. I want opportunities opened up for me like never before.”

He laid it all out, shamelessly, not even pretending to hide his intentions. It was all bullshit, and he knew it.

Girlfriend? He didn’t give a damn about that.

Women didn’t excite him anymore. Not their smiles, not their tears. All he cared about now was profit and crushing the royal family beneath his heel.

And what better tools to use than powerful women?

They were the perfect weapons beautiful, high-ranking, and often underestimated. The more influence they had, the more use he could get out of them. And Avey Starline? She was practically a goldmine wrapped in silk.

So he threw out the most outrageous demands, without hesitation.

If she was bluffing, if this was some trick she’d walk away.

But if she stayed? and accepted?

Then even if it was all a setup, it would be worth it. He’d bleed the entire Starline family dry, piece by piece.

Let’s see how far she’s willing to go, he thought.

And really, what could a woman even plan? He didn’t believe they had the stomach for real power games.

Always wasting time daydreaming about love, princes on white horses or worse, about being the horse.

Victor didn’t care. He had already decided: he would win, and he’d use anyone he had to.

Even her.

“Mmm…” Avey’s response was barely a whisper, her lips trembling slightly, the weight of the moment pressing down on her.

Victor raised his eyebrows. Wait, what?

He hadn’t expected that. Not even a little.

Hah! What the hell did this dumb woman eat this morning? Is she on something? His thoughts spiraled into cruel amusement. I swear, I’d pay to see that lunatic Lucian’s face when he sees the woman he worships in the arms of the man he hates most.

The memory hit him how Lucian’s expression would sour every time Avey used to invite Victor to dinner.

Ah, those were the days.

A slow, wicked smirk crept onto Victor’s face, and he let out a low chuckle. “Alright then… girlfriend,” he said mockingly. “So what’s next? A movie? Or maybe… a nice motel?”

He burst out laughing, clearly testing her. Pushing to see how far she was really willing to go.

If she accepts this? Damn. That’d be terrifying. Just what is she planning to go that far?

Suddenly, Avey lifted her head. Her shoulders, already trembling, now shook harder. Her red-rimmed eyes stared at him sharp, dangerous.

“You’ve just become the boyfriend,” she said coldly, voice cutting like ice. “Stay in your limits. Or do you want the Starline family as your enemy?”

Victor froze for a beat, blinking.

“Hey hey, I was just joking!” he said quickly, throwing both hands up in defense. “Just a joke, don’t take it so seriously!”

But the air had already changed. The table felt heavier now, and for the first time in a while…

Victor wasn’t sure who was playing who.

“At least I can hold your hand, right?” Victor coughed lightly as he stood from his chair, extending his hand toward her with a casual smirk.

Avey stared at the hand in front of her, her gaze distant, almost dazed.

She didn’t move.

Not? Victor thought, slightly raising an eyebrow. Tch, maybe I was overthinking this

He had just begun to pull his hand back when suddenly

Avey grabbed it.

“It’s… alright,” she said, her voice cold. Measured.

But her hand trembled in his. Her eyes shimmered again, betraying a pain she couldn’t hide.

Victor didn’t notice or more likely, didn’t care. He simply chuckled under his breath, satisfied for now.

Inside, Avey was breaking.

Sorry, Lucian… it’s all for you, she thought, her heart twisting violently in her chest.

She had never even held Lucian’s hand since… Since their child.

—

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