I never thought the first funeral I’d attend would be for my best friend, Yina Ford.

Her body wasn’t even cold on the ground yet, and somehow, I was already involved with her man.

The face in the black-and-white photo was far too young. The room was filled with quiet sobs and murmurs of grief. Holding a single white chrysanthemum, I slowly walked up to the front. Out of nowhere, Yina’s mother rushed at me, grabbing my hair and shouting.

Everything turned into chaos. Suddenly, I was pulled into a warm, protective embrace. Through my tear-filled eyes, I looked up and saw him, his face full of guilt and sorrow.

But to Yina’s mother, it must have looked like we were mocking her recently deceased daughter.

After all, everyone knew the man now holding me close, whispering soft reassurances, was Yina’s fiancé when she was alive.

I left the funeral feeling heavy and unsettled.

“I know you’re feeling down, but life goes on, right?” Cason Darken’s voice was gentle as he tried to comfort me. I looked up at him and nodded firmly.

These past few weeks, ever since Yina’s passing, the air had felt thick with grief. She suicided and looked terrible.

The Ford family couldn’t accept their daughter’s sudden, mysterious death. They reported it to the police and were determined to uncover the truth.

But after three months, there were still no answers.

I met Cason during that first week after Yina passed.

He was the kind of man you couldn’t help but notice, handsome, well-mannered, the kind that turns heads. No wonder Yina never introduced him to us, her close friends. She probably feared another woman might try to snatch him away.

But that day in the café, when my eyes met his intense gaze, I knew something was bound to happen between us.

Sure enough, after wrapping up a meeting, Cason walked right over to me.

“I’m Cason. I’ve seen you in Yina’s phone photos.”

I couldn’t believe how smooth and captivating his voice was. Now I understood why Yina kept him hidden.

“I’m so sorry about Yina…” I started, but before I could finish, Cason handed me his business card.

“You were her friend, so I’ll make sure to look after you. If you ever need anything, just call.”

He gave me a brief, charming smile, then walked away.

I held the business card in my hand. It was simple, matte black, with just a gold-embossed name and phone number in the center. A small, barely noticeable logo sat in the corner. Nothing else.

It was just like him, reserved, and mysterious, and the more understated it was, the more it made you want to know everything about him.

For days, Cason filled my thoughts.

His gentle smile from our first meeting began to twist in my dreams, turning into something darker. I woke up in a cold sweat, shaken by the nightmare. Staring out at the moonlit sky, my gaze hardened.

I glanced at the leather-bound journal still in my hand, the one I’d been holding before I fell asleep.

I tucked it away carefully, knowing there was no chance I’d get back to sleep. So I got up.

Suddenly, my phone lit up with a new message. It was just a list of names, all women. Nothing else.

I memorized the names and then deleted the message.

As I stared at those familiar names, I realized it was time to start.

I hadn’t met all these women personally, but growing up with Yina, I knew about them. One thing stood out they all worked in finance.

That clicked something into place.

Later that evening, as I was driving home, I asked my dad for a job at his company.

Yeah, I’m one of those girls who, if things don’t pan out, has a billion-dollar family business to fall back on.

But I was so well-hidden growing up that hardly anyone knew about me. My grandmother raised me, and I even took her last name, Light. My parents named me Wanda.

My distant relationship with them has always been their regret.

So when I finally asked for a job, they were thrilled. They said yes without a second thought.

Two days later, I stepped into Victory Group as the Inspiration Program Manager, directly liaising with the project lead.

When Cason walked into the conference room with the executives, his eyes lit up for a brief moment when he spotted me at the head of the table.

I pretended not to notice, keeping my gaze firmly away from him as if we were strangers.

After a few rounds of negotiations, it was clear that the representative from the Inspiration Program was struggling.

I mean, I was direct admitted to Harvard for my undergrad and was now on track for a master’s and PhD at Oxford in business. I had a few skills up my sleeve.

When it came to negotiation tactics, I knew how to play the game.

The lead negotiator was starting to sweat, looking increasingly uneasy. Just as it seemed we were about to finalize the deal, Cason suddenly called for a break.

I smiled, realizing I had him right where I wanted him.

My secretary led everyone else out of the room, leaving just Cason and me.

I stayed silent, watching him.

He’d have to make the first move.

“I didn’t expect you to be Mr. Carter’s daughter,” he said, breaking the silence.

“You figured it out pretty quickly, Mr. Darken. Impressive,” I replied, raising an eyebrow.

“It was a bit of a surprise. Yina never mentioned you,” he admitted.

I laughed softly. “What? You want me to go easy on you?”

“Not at all. Since you’re Yina’s friend, our bottom line is…” Cason leaned in and quietly shared a number with me. That “commitment” carried weight. He clearly wanted this deal.

I smiled back at him. “Well, thanks, Cason.”

Hearing me use his first name made him smile, too.

He got up and left, then returned shortly with the team from the Inspiration Program.

The next round of negotiations went surprisingly smoothly. I had no idea what Cason had whispered to the lead negotiator, but somehow, they raised the price by five percent on their own.

Half an hour later, everything was settled.

Cason didn’t leave with the Inspiration Program team.

Instead, he lingered by the door of the conference room, waiting for me.

“Want to grab a bite to eat?” he asked.

I agreed with a nod.

We ended up at a steakhouse, not my favorite cuisine, but it felt fitting for the moment.

As we sat down, I dropped my usual sharp demeanor from the negotiation table and let a softer, more vulnerable side show. I could tell he found it endearing.

“I heard you didn’t get involved with the company much before. What’s changed?” he asked, genuinely interested.

“I’m just helping my dad out, and…” I let my voice trail off, leaving him hanging.

He didn’t seem to mind my pause. If anything, it brightened his mood.

Throughout dinner, he was attentive, showcasing that charming side of him.

We shared a bottle of wine, and by the time we finished, I felt a pleasant buzz, and a slight blush on my cheeks.

When I leaned a little too far, Cason instinctively moved closer, wrapping an arm around my waist. I stiffened for a moment, then looked up at him, giving a shy smile that hinted at something deeper.

“Are you okay?” he asked, concern etched on his face.

“I’m not feeling great. I might need you to drive me home,” I admitted, letting a playful tone slip in.

“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it,” he replied confidently.

I gave him the address of my private villa in the suburbs, and a flutter of anxiety hit me.

I knew this was risky, but sometimes you had to take a chance.

I was nervous about what might happen next, but I couldn’t ignore the thrill coursing through me.

My mind raced as I tried to figure out how to navigate this situation safely, wondering how I could find my way out if things turned sour.

Cason wasn’t at all the reckless person I had imagined. He took care of me attentively, staying until dawn broke.

The tenderness in his gaze under the warm morning sun almost made me believe it was genuine.

Almost.

As I finished the comforting bowl of porridge he had made, he prepared to leave, handing me his contact before stepping out.

I watched him go, and the soft light in my eyes faded to icy clarity.

I tapped my phone and added him as a friend.

His clean-cut profile had only a few simple work updates, but the list of people who liked his posts caught my eye…

Later that evening, Cason sent me a message.

“Feeling any better?”

“Yeah, much better,” I replied lazily.

“Still awake at this hour?”

Surprised, I got up and quietly slipped behind the curtain, pulling it aside just enough to peek out. Sure enough, Cason’s car was parked right outside.

I couldn’t help but smirk, turning back to the bed.

“Not sleepy yet. I want to stay up a little longer.”

His response came quickly. “Alright, I’ll keep you company.”

The night deepened, and I knew he was still waiting for me downstairs.

I pulled out the leather notebook, flipping to the page where I had tucked in a bookmark. A few short lines stared back at me, each word stabbing at my heart like a dull knife.

[Tonight, he sat in the car, keeping me company until deep into the night…]

The similarities between this and what those other women had said hinted at a familiar pattern for him.

The game was getting more intriguing; was his next move to step into my world?

Around two in the morning, I turned off the lights and noticed an Instagram post from him.

[On a night like this, just being here with you feels so peaceful.] It was accompanied by a picture of a corner near my front door.

I grabbed Yina’s phone. She wouldn’t be able to see that post, so it was likely meant just for me.

The next day, I replied to his post with a shy smiley face.

It felt as though this small interaction had opened the door to a new world, as Cason shed his usual reserve and became more proactive.

He invited me out for dinner, shopping, and even movies.

But that one phrase he hadn’t said yet lingered in the air.

I knew he was waiting, waiting for the right moment.

But I didn’t want to wait anymore. I needed a catalyst.

The Inspiration Program project quickly ran into “difficulties.”

Of course, I had anticipated this.

Now, all I had to do was sit tight and wait.

Cason wasn’t as patient as I had expected. After all, he had pushed the manager to raise the price just to please me, and I had intentionally leaked that information to the higher-ups at the Inspiration Program. Now, he was under internal investigation, and to salvage his position, he had to deliver even greater benefits to the program to resolve the current crisis.

The only place he could dig for those benefits was with me.

While it wasn’t hard to draw him in step by step, I had to be careful. He was sharp and perceptive.

After all, Yina and those other women were cautionary tales.

Yes, when I got those names, I had someone conduct a thorough investigation into those women. Sure enough, each of them had some ambiguous connection to Cason. In other words, they were just small fish in his pond.

Now, as his target “big fish,” I knew he would have to put in some serious bait.

But I never imagined that Cason would resort to such risky moves.