Theodore

"What do you mean the investors are backing out?" I demand with my voice low and even.

My grip on the phone tightens as I listen to the anxious voice on the other end of the line. "Unfortunately sir, the latest projections indicate--"

My patience is wearing thin so I cut off the associate, speaking through my teeth. "I don't pay you to tell me what's going wrong. I pay you to fix problems."

I pace behind the desk, watching the city below as my mind races with thoughts of solutions and damage control.

"I want a revised proposal on my desk by tomorrow morning. And Harrison?"

"Yes sir."

"Make it work."

I end the call and collapse into my desk with my jaws clenched. The timing couldn't be worse. I might have to fly out once again to handle it all myself.

Just as I am about to call my team and assemble an emergency meeting, the voice of my personal assistant comes through the intercom.

"Mr Thompson, your guest has arrived."

My expression softens a little as a fleeting distraction from chaos arrives.

"Send her in," I say as I compose myself.

Seconds later, the door opens and the security guards walk in with an uncooperative Nova Patel.

I watch her every movement closely.

As they enter, she struggles in the guard's grip trying to free herself, but when she notices me, she goes limp as shock flashes in her eyes. A wicked smile plays on my lips when her expression changes to distrust.

"Leave," I say to the guards without breaking eye contact and we both wait quietly until we hear the sound of the door click close.

For a moment, she stares at me defiantly in the silence the guards left behind.

"Why am I here?" she finally says.

"Can't an employer request the presence of his latest employee?" I ask casually.

She sighs lightly. "About that. Thank you for the opportunity, but I have to apologize to you Mr Thompson..."

I raise an eyebrow at the way she addresses me but she continues, telling me her reasons for resigning.

As she speaks, my gaze drifts over her from head to toe, taking in all the things that have changed since I last saw her.

She's dressed casually, in a fitted tee that hugs her body and a pair of joggers that does nothing to hide her soft curves. Her dark hair falls loosely around her soft face and I can't help but think about my hand running through it.

She has grown. Gone is the awkward young adult I once knew. Now, as her body screams out, now she is a woman.

As she finishes speaking, I am distracted by the sudden downward rush of blood.

"...and so once again thank you for this opportunity. I will have my things out of your house by the end of the week," she concludes politely, almost impersonally.

"You're not wearing your glasses," I remark. "You switched to contact lenses."

She raises an eyebrow as confusion flickers on her face. "Pardon me?"

"I like the glasses. They made you look...vulnerable. Innocent." My voice drops to a low murmur. "Like a lamb waiting to be devoured."

I pay attention as the shock dances on her face, followed by a deep blush. Just like before, her face turns red at the smallest innuendo.

"I see no reason why we should talk about that," she says flustered as she tries to compose herself. But I'm not ready to let the moment pass.

"Do you still have that birthmark? The one near your-"

Before I can finish, she cuts me off with embarrassment and annoyance flashing in her eyes.

"Excuse me! Can you please maintain a professional image?" she says with a firm voice, but her cheeks are still burning with colour.

"Professional?" I say as my tone becomes grave. "Are you being professional? You're here in my office, dressed casually, when you're supposed to start your duties as nanny today."

"I'm here to resign-"

I pull out a contract from my desk drawer and hold it up, my eyes locked on hers.

"Do you remember signing this?" I ask as I slide it across the desk to her.

She picks it up and nods her head as she scans the document. "Yes, I did. The day I accepted the job offer."

"You might want to take a closer look at section 5, subsection 2."

A small smile graces my lips as she reads to herself and her eyes widen in disbelief. Years ago I was forced to let her go. Last night, I was too shocked at seeing Nova Patel standing in my house to stop her from leaving. But now, she won't be going anywhere.

"I'm required to work a minimum of one year?" she asks in disbelief.

I nod firmly. "I won't have my children go through a frequent change of nannies. Stability is crucial for their development," I say as I lean back into my chair, my eyes never leaving hers.

"I could have sworn I went through this contract twice before signing," she says as she flips page after page. "Is there no way to negotiate this clause? I haven't even started working yet."

I shrug absentmindedly. "If you want to leave so badly you can pay the penalty clause. It's there on the last page."

I watch as she frantically turns pages and her eyes widen at the number of zeroes.

There's a moment of silence as she comes to terms with the arrangement. Or so I thought until she speaks..

"Mr Thompson...please. Let me resign," she pleads.

I feel a pang of surprise, followed by a hint of hurt at the desperation in her voice. Why is she so desperate to get away from me?

"Mr Thompson..." I say frowning as I stand up from my chair. "I can't say I like the sound of that, Nova."

I notice a flicker of fear in her eyes and my frown deepens. I am surprised to realize how hurt I am that she would think of me as a threat.

"Do I scare you?" I ask quietly as I move closer to her. She takes a step back, her eyes darting around the room and I can sense her unease.

"Don't come any closer or I'll...I'll report you to HR," she warns and her voice trembles slightly.

I stop in my tracks, surprised by her threat and a low, rumbling laughter builds in my chest.

"You'll report me to HR?" I repeat as I get closer to her. Soon, she backs herself into a corner, leaving no room for her to escape from.

My eyes are locked on hers as I slowly approach and the air in the room thickens with tension. When I close the distance, all that is left is a hair's breadth to make physical contact. I can feel the weight of the space left between us and as her lips slightly part, I know she can feel it too.

Watching her like this, her chest falling in rapid breathes, my body responds.

"You're breathing faster, Nova," I say slowly, not wanting to break the spell we have on each other. "Are you scared...or aroused?"

Nova

I'm trapped. My back is pressed against the wall as Theodore's body towers over mine, radiating a potent, sexual energy. The closeness is suffocating, yet enticing, making my skin prickle with sensitivity and it takes everything in me not to reach out and touch him.

My arousal has me in a state of hyper awareness, so when he leans forward and my nipples graze against his body, I find it hard to keep my eyes open and I feel my juices oozing onto my panties.

"You're mine..." he says in a deep, husky voice. A baritone voice that has haunted my sex dreams for years.

"You're mine, Starlight."

And just like that, the spell that trapped me in his sensual web is broken.

Memories of him calling me his Starlight, memories of our past romance floods in, and with those memories come all the pain of his betrayal.

Anger courses through my veins and I push his wide chest, trying to create some distance between us. To my surprise, he allows himself to be pushed and takes a step back, his eyes never leaving me.

I stand tall and my chest is heaving with emotions as I glare at him.

"You have no right to call me that," I begin venomously. "No right at all!"

I take a step forward with eyes blazing in anger.

"You left and married your rich wife, didn't you? I was not good enough so you threw me away for her. And now what? You're tired of her?" I spit out the words, my tone dripping in disdain. "You're probably bored with her or maybe she's no longer pretty enough for you. Whatever the reason, you don't get to choose her over me and then use me for pleasure. Go back to your fucking wife, Theodore."

As I catch my breath after my outburst, I see a flicker of sadness in Theodore's eyes but he quickly turns away and slowly walks to his desk, leaving me feeling a mix of emotions.

I am still fuming and ready to say more, but the deep sadness in his eyes leaves me feeling unsettled.

Theodore's voice cuts through the silence. "There's a car downstairs to take you back to the house," he says as he sits down and turns to face the city skyline outside his window. "The twins are waiting for you."

It is clear that the conversation is over.

I huff and storm out of Theodore's office, slamming the door shut behind me. Only when I am alone in the elevator do I realize that, according to that contract I stupidly signed, I will have to deal with Theodore Thompson's presence even more and the thought makes my stomach twist in complicated ways.

At the ground floor, I wrap my arms around my midriff, feeling vulnerable and out of place among the sleek, suited business people rushing to and fro.

Just as I am about to exit the building a hand reaches out from behind and drags me away from the revolving doors.

I am yanked sideways and my feet stumble to keep up. When I finally regain my balance, I look up, ready to confront whoever it is but my eyes widen in surprise when I see Xander, or as she is more appropriately known in her workplace, Alexandria.

"Christ! What the fuck, Xander?" I say as I try to shake off her grip on my arm but she doesn't let go. Instead, her fingers dig deeper as she navigates me through the crowded lobby.

"Xander, where are we going?" I demand, trying to keep up with her pace but I am met with silence as she continues dragging me away.

It isn't until we stop in front of an unremarkable door marked 'storage locker' that she finally speaks up.

"I'm sorry Nova," she whispers. "I heard Mr Thompson sent those guards to bring you and I was worried so I called him. You can bitch about it later."

"Called who?" I ask, but before I can get an answer, Xander opens the storage locker and shoves me inside, making me stumble head first into mops and brooms.

"What the hell, Xander!" I shout as I regain my balance in the dark space. I turn around about to bang on the door to be let out when the small room is suddenly illuminated.

And there, standing surrounded by cleaning supplies, is my older brother, Kai.

"Xander you fucking snitch," I mutter.

"Is that really your reaction to seeing your older brother Nova?" he asks amusingly.

"Maybe I'd be happier if I knew you weren't coming to lecture me about something," I say casually, hoping to sidestep the main issue.

"Maybe I'd be happier if I didn't get a call telling me my younger sister has been kidnapped by the rich fucker who owns this company." His tone is light, but even in the low lighting from his phone, I can see the anger in his eyes.

When I found out about the contract, one of the most prominent things on my mind was how Kai would take the news. I at least thought I would have time to prepare him for it, but instead, now I have to face his disappointment in a cramped storage room, in the company of the man Kai blames for everything.

"I wasn't kidnapped, Kai." My voice voice drops to a whisper when I say, "I was employed by the CEO and he wanted to see me."

Kai's eyes narrows and he stares at me in disbelief. "Employed by Theodore Thompson? The Theodore Thompson who bankrupted our family business and sent our parents to an early grave? That man?"

His words are a stark reminder of who the man who was making my underwear a dripping mess minutes ago really is. Shame washes me as I realise what I was close to doing with the person that did so much harm to my family.

"I didn't know he was the fucking employer," I say defensively.

"Watch your fucking language, Nova."

I take a deep breath to calm myself. "I didn't know he was the employer, Kai. I had no idea."

For a moment, the small room falls silent as Kai stares at me skeptically. "Have you sent in your resignation?"

I steel myself for his reaction, taking a deep breath again. "I-I can't resign. I signed a contract and breaking it comes with a penalty.

"How much?"

I hesitate, knowing the answer will only make things worse. "More than we can afford definitely."

"Fucking hell Nova."

"Language," I say under my breathe.

"I guess there's just one option left," Kai says resolutely as he begins to walk out of the storage room but I quickly grab his hand to stop him.

"You're not going to ambush or beat up Theodore Thompson, Kai," I say firmly, trying to reason with him. "You can't keep going through life using your fists to solve problems."

Kai's face darkens in a way that would have been scary if he wasn't my brother. "If you didn't keep getting yourself into trouble, I wouldn't have to," he replies calmly.

Guilt pricks at me but I decide to ignore his reply and focus on stopping him from doing what he's planning on.

"He's a CEO. If you hurt him, no matter what I do I won't be able to keep you out of jail again, Kai. It's not worth it."

We stand there in silence for moments, both of us lost in thoughts until a sly glint appears in Kai's eyes. "What is your role?"

I raise an eyebrow, wary about where this is going. "I'm the nanny."

"So you have access to the house?"

"I live there."

Kai's face twists in distaste when he hears my reply, but he says nothing about my new living arrangements and outlines his plan.

"You'll be my spy, Nova. You'll gather any information you can find on Theodore Thompson's business dealings, and we'll sell it to his rivals and people who want to see him taken down.

My eyes widen after I listen to his plan. "Kai, I'm not sure I can do that," I say hesitantly.

"We'll take Theodore Thompson down together, Nova. We will get revenge for our parents."

Nova

"I want you to lay low and gather intel," Kai says, his voice low and urgent. "The bastard is getting a kick from forcing you to work under him after all he's done to you, to us. Use that to our advantage while I make some...arrangements. My contacts will help us bring him down."

I stare at Kai, hoping desperately that he is not serious, but the determination in his eyes tells me otherwise.

"Can you do this?" I can see the question in his eyes. And the hint of doubt. "Can you make sure not to be caught?"

For a moment, I hesitate. Kai's doubt makes me want to prove him wrong. I want to scream 'yes', to show him I am worthy of his trust and validation. But the faces of those I will be betraying flashes through my mind.

Mrs Jenkins is the sweetest old woman and the twins need a caretaker who has no ulterior motives.

My gaze locks onto the floor in shame as I realize I can't go through with this plan.

The door bangs from the outside, and Xander's hushed voice comes through. "Guys, you might want to finish up soon. I have a job to get back to and I fucking love you Nova, but I don't want to lose it."

"That's our cue," Kai says as he turns to the door. "Call me when you have information."

"I can't." My voice is barely a whisper and my gaze remains on the floor.

Silence fills the small room.

"What do you mean you can't," he asks calmly, but I can feel the questioning look he gives me even without seeing it.

I avoid his eyes, my eyes darting around, looking for a distraction. A part of me wants to back down and blindly agree to his proposal but instead, I steel myself and stand my ground.

"I mean I don't think I can lie to them," I admit, my voice rising in frustration. "Mama and Papa, they wouldn't want you taking revenge and I don't want you to go back to dealing with shady people to provide for us-"

Kai's voice cuts through my protest, laced with a hint of hurt. "And yet I have done exactly that, time and time again to keep you safe."

His words hit me like a cold slap, stripping me of all the confidence I just mustered. I retreat into myself, silenced by the weight of his statement. The accuracy of his words sting and we both know I am completely unable to respond to it.

Kai sighs loudly and pinches the bridge of his nose. Then, he steps closer, setting his hands on my shoulders. "Nova, look at me," he says with a much softer voice.

I hesitate, but eventually meet his gaze. Kai offers me a gentle smile that makes the corners of his lips crinkle. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. But you have to understand. You have always been...idealistic, trying to take the high road in life. And it would have worked." I hear the pride swell in his voice. "You would have had your degree, you would have opened that music studio you keep going on about, you would have been everything you wanted to be. No doubt about it."

A wide smile spreads across my face even as I try to hide it. Kai's opinion has always mattered to me. After our parents died and I dropped out of school, Kai became the only person I could depend on, my rock. As a new adult, fully responsible for his younger sister, he had to make sacrifices and do some questionable things to provide for us. Sometimes, I worry that he resents me for causing everything that went wrong, so the pride I hear in his voice now fills me with joy and my smile widens.

Kai sees my smile and rolls his eyes at my reaction to his praise, making my smile widen even further. For a second, I remember how much closer we were when we were younger.

The moment passes and Kai's smile disappears as he continues. "Unfortunately, that life was taken away from you. It kills me to think of everything you have lost just because of the whims of a spoiled rich boy, but I want to help you take back what's yours. It might not be the ideal solution for you, but let me help you get your life back on track."

As I stare into his eyes, I see the genuine concern and sincerity etched on his face. For the first time in a long while, I am reminded that my brother still cares very deeply about me.

However, a nagging doubt still lingers in my mind.

"I still don't think I can do this, Kai," I say as I remove myself from his grasp. "Destroying Theodore's life for my personal gain? No matter what he's done to us, think about his children, his wife..."

Kai flinches a little at my reply and I look down at the floor again. "I don't want to hurt people, Kai. I don't want to stoop down to that level."

The sound of Kai's quiet chuckle draws my attention away from the floor.

"Nova, if selling one or two corporate secrets is enough to topple Theodore Thompson's business empire, I would have done it years ago."

I stare at him in confusion as he continues. "These corporations are willing to spend billions, just to catch up to their counterparts. Selling business information can set us up for life, but to them, it's just a drop in the ocean. Maybe we shouldn't try to cripple Theodore but we should try to get our lives back on track."

Xander bangs the door again, but Kai's eyes remains fixed on mine.

"So?"

I bite my lips as I think about it, but the answer comes easily to me now that I know I won't be harming anybody. Theodore took away my choice in life, it is only fair I get that life back using him.

"Ok. I'll do it."

Kai's face immediately breaks into a genuine smile, and I realize he knew what my answer would be long before I did. "Good."

He quickly kisses my forehead and opens the door, strutting out.

"Alexandria." He says curtly.

"Kaiyan," she replies in a matching clipped tone and we both watch him walk away.

"Well...what happened?"

"You told my brother I was being kidnapped?!" I ask her incredulously.

"I didn't know what to think!" she replies in a high pitched voice and starts walking away. I roll my eyes and catch up to her, refusing to let the conversation die. "I mean why else would he send literal fucking guards to escort you here!"

"Well..." I sigh, telling her about the clause in the contract. He might not have kidnapped me, but that clause binds me to him anyways.

"Oh damn!" Xander's eyes widens in shock. "So you're stuck working with him."

Before I can respond, a sturdy man in a black suit and driver's cap approaches us, scanning me briefly before nodding. "Nova Patel?" he asks firmly. "I've been waiting for you. We need to leave."

My brows furrow in confusion and I glance at Xander, who raises an eyebrow. "Getting kidnapped again?" she asks with a hint of amusement.

I chuckle and shake my head as I remember a car was supposed to take me back. "I guess this is goodbye, X. I need to nanny the twins and possibly be a maid to their mother if necessary. Who knows? Maybe my salary will be doubled," I say with a taut smile and resigned shrug.

Xander's expression turns serious and she opens her mouth to say something but the driver starts walking away and I hurry after him, turning back to wave Xander goodbye.

Unspoken words linger at her lips and she looks at me with concern, but she quickly returns my wave as I step into the sleek black car waiting for me by the entrance.