"Mr. Hurlington told you to wait for him inside, Miss." A middle-aged woman dressed in full formal attire, who she guessed was the butler of this luxurious mansion, guided and informed Victoria.
Victoria smiled and nodded as she expressed her gratitude. "Thank you very much."
After the butler left, Victoria opened that sizeable wooden door. She entered and sat on the sofa in the room, which looked like her father's workroom at home. For a long time, Victoria waited in the room where she was bored. Until the wooden door finally opened again. This time, a man dressed in a full suit walked in.
"Good morning, Mr. Hurlington." Victoria naturally stood up and greeted the room's owner for her politeness.
Maverick walked towards his desk after only a brief nod in response to Victoria's greeting. The man stood behind his desk, filling a shelf with matching dark blue folders. He picked up one of the folders and joined Victoria on the sofa.
It seemed that the folder Maverick was carrying was their agreement. The man had been making it for some time as if knowing that this was the decision Victoria would make. He opened the folder and showed it to Victoria.
"I have arranged all the articles and rules in the agreement so that it is balanced between the two of us. My only requirement is that there must be no love in this relationship," he explained and continued, "Read it first and tell me if there is anything you would like to propose as a condition."
Victoria took the paper and read the agreement. It was pretty detailed, and there were no points against her—except that they had to act out publicly to make the relationship look real. Victoria hesitated to say her objection.
"Mr. Hurlington, I think article number 2 is unnecessary?"
"If you want to get back at that bastard, you have to show that you can find a man who is more than him. Then, it's necessary to make him regret it. I also want this relationship to be seen as something other than just a contract. It will tarnish my good name and cause bad rumors."
Victoria knew that very well but was unsure she could do it. Realizing her hesitation, Maverick opened his voice to convince Victoria or provoke her as he had at the party last night. "Are you afraid you'll break the conditions if you do the charade?"
Victoria gasped, but that was not why she hesitated. She was so sure and confident in her feelings that she would never open up to any man again, especially a cold and arrogant man like Maverick Hurlington. Besides, the wounds left by Alden were more than enough to make Victoria not want to start a relationship again.
"Of course not," Victoria said in a slightly annoyed tone. She took a pen and affixed her signature.
Then, it was Maverick's turn to sign the letter. After finishing, he slightly grinned, indicating satisfaction with this agreement. He extended his hand to Victoria and said, "Let's work well together for the future.”
"With my pleasure, Mr. Hurlington." Victoria steadily returned the handshake.
"Call me Maverick, and start getting used to us talking casually to each other. We won't be able to start the plan if you still have that engagement. What are you going to do?" Maverick released their handshake first, throwing out a question to hear Victoria's opinion.
Victoria remained silent for a while and then said, "I don't intend to prolong the relationship, but it would be better if we didn't expose our wedding plans too hastily. I will reveal their affair first. That way, I can use it as an excuse to break off the engagement. I won't let myself be seen as the perpetrator while I am the victim."
Maverick agreed with Victoria. It was an excellent first step, without him even bothering to say it first. Instead of breaking off the relationship suddenly, especially without an apparent reason, it would be more beneficial for Victoria. It was also the first step to destroying Alden Benedict through his public image.
"And how would you make their secret public?" he asked again.
"I would make them confess their infidelity," Victoria said her plan very confidently as if it would work. She was sure she would manifest what she said because it had to happen.
"That's a good first step to destroying their image." Maverick nodded, just about to continue, when someone suddenly walked in and interrupted their conversation.
"Brother!" Karina was no less surprised than Victoria, who made eye contact with her. "Sister?”
"I've often said you should knock before entering my room!" Maverick exclaimed. The man was annoyed by his sister's arrival.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know Sister Victoria was here."
Karina apologized, but her tone did not sound remorseful. Instead, she was still staring at Victoria with a clear question mark. Of course, it was because Victoria and her brother’s relationship was not very close before this. It didn't even seem like they knew each other to be sitting and chatting in a private room.
Victoria realized it and tried hard to find an excuse before Karina said anything to Emberly. She finally opened her mouth to explain, "I came here to get my stuff that your brother found yesterday. I'm sorry if I took up his time to meet with you."
"No, Sis, I'm here because he promised to drive me to campus." Maverick frowned and looked sharply at Karina. "When did I say that promise?"
Karina chuckled at being caught lying. "My car is in the repair shop, and we're in the same direction anyway."
"Then what are you here for instead of going to your campus?" Maverick was getting annoyed and looked like he would insist on rejecting Karina.
"Taxis are quite expensive to get to campus, so I came here. Victoria also goes to the campus, so drop us off while you go to work. It's a good time."
"Y-yes, I was going to the campus, but..."
"Did you hear? Hurry up and drop us off before it's too late." Karina cut her off before Victoria could finish her sentence and returned to talking.
Although annoyed and displeased, Maverick complied with his sister's wishes. He looked cold and arrogant on the outside but was different from his family. They seemed to dislike each other, but instead, they seemed close. Moreover, Karina was Maverick Hurlington's sister. There was no way she didn't have enough money to pay for a taxi.
In the end, despite the confusion, Victoria went with them, even though her schedule was already late. She and Maverick still hadn't finished their conversation because of Karina. No one opened their voices throughout the journey, and Victoria was very used to this silence.
After a few minutes, they arrived at the same parking lot Victoria had left last time. Maverick's car sped away from the campus area once after she and Karina got out. Victoria was grateful that Maverick didn't have to show his face. However, her company with Karina would lead to another rumor. She was about to leave immediately when her voice made Victoria undo her intention.
"Sister, I have a question to ask you." Victoria turned around again and asked calmly, "What is it?"
"Is that all you have to do with my brother?"
"Didn't I tell you earlier?" asked Victoria, trying to remain calm. This young woman didn't let herself off the hook at all. After all, whatever she said later, Emberly would still find out she met Maverick. And that meant Alden would find out, too. A smile suddenly formed on her lips. "I'm slightly surprised and curious about what business you two could be sitting around talking about. Even my brother invited you to his mansion. I thought your life was so filled with your fiancé that you didn't make friends with anyone else." Victoria was silent when Karina seemed to have some misconceptions about her. She did not want to befriend the people around her because she had been used too often, coupled with Alden's existence, which she thought was enough, before knowing the truth about the man. However, Victoria felt no need to explain everything. More than that, Victoria did not understand Karina. "Anyway, I'm glad you visited Brother Verick's mansion so that I could meet you."
"Please, forgive me. I thought you changed a lot lately because of another man, honey." Alden touched and rubbed Victoria's hand that was on the table. Victoria was still unmoved, not even glancing at Alden, who begged her to apologize after the reason she said. At first, she was very lazy with this time-consuming date. However, seeing this man pleading in her charade was quite entertaining. "Honey..." Alden coaxed once again gently. "I'm a little offended that you don't trust me, Alden." "I'm really sorry. You were right, and I was wrong. I did that because I was afraid of losing you, honey." How sweet the words coming out of the man's mouth would be if Victoria didn't already know the truth. After knowing how Alden had behaved behind her back all this time, those words were nothing more than vomit coming out of the mouth of an asshole. 'You're just afraid of losing my money, aren't you, jerk?!' Victoria cursed inwardly. This time, Victoria turned her head, turning
"What are you arguing about that your voices can be heard downstairs?!" Rosalee walked in and scolded them both. "Mom, Victoria-" "Emberly, your father just got home. Don't let this fight upset him!" she snapped at Emberly, who was about to complain. "And you, Victoria, you're older. Don't yell back at your sister. Solve your problems with maturity!" Rosalee took turns blaming everything on Victoria. "I just got home too, and want to rest. Please tell your daughter to come out now, and she can continue this drama tomorrow." Victoria replied to Rosalee, blaming Emberly for starting this fight. "You only have to answer to me, Victoria!" retorted Emberly irritably. "Emberly, get out now!" Rosalee, who had no more power to corner Victoria, relented and ordered her daughter out. Since her mother said it, Emberly couldn't argue anymore. However, the glare in those piercing eyes could not lie about her frustration that was still mounting. She exited, followed by Rosalee,
"What nonsense are you talking about, Alden?" asked Emberly, increasingly confused. "No way! It would be more likely if she were also in a relationship with another man. And that would be Maverick Hurlington, I'm sure, because he-" "She only took the earrings that he found. That's why she went there!" Alden cut in. "You believe that ridiculous reason, especially a cold man like Maverick Hurlington?!" snapped Emberly irritably, finding Alden's answer ridiculous. "I believe because it's a piece of jewelry her mother left her, but I wouldn't expect him to take an interest in Victoria." "While he's being set up with you," he muttered. "What?! What do you mean I will be set up with Maverick Hurlington?!" Emberly, who heard it, asked in a high tone. "I heard it from Victoria herself when we were on our date yesterday. She already knew about your and Maverick Hurlington's engagement plan, Emberly. That's why she has changed lately, and she is not jealous of you anymore." Alde
"Welcome home, Brother." Maverick frowned, displeased, when he found his sister in the living room right after getting home. He turned to look at the butler, who was taking his bag and coat. "Why is that little brat here, Shenan?" "Come on, don't blame Shenan too much. I came by myself. Why am I being treated like a stranger anyway?" Karina argued, defending the butler's lady while grumbling in protest at her brother's attitude. "I came here because I was hungry." "You think my house is a food warehouse?" Maverick said irritably as he stepped towards the sofa and sat down to join Karina. Despite his annoyance, he didn't shoo her away again. Maverick knew that Karina had come for a reason, so he settled the matter before going to bed and falling asleep without interruption. "Quickly tell me what you want." "I wanna know, could it be that you are interested in Victoria, Brother?" asked Karina with a severe tone and face. "Why do you ask?" Maverick threw back the question.
Though wondering, Victoria replied, "I don't care how my family's image is. All I want is for those two traitors to get what they deserve." "Don't worry, I won't back down just because of my family," she continued. Victoria pushed that ridiculous thought aside, trying to give herself a suggestion. Their relationship was nothing more than a contract that would end when their goals were achieved. Someone like Maverick Hurlington couldn't have such feelings. "You might think that, but your father would not. Instead, he will protect the Agriche name that he is proud of. Wouldn't he?" She was silent, not denying what Maverick said. It was true, especially since Emberly was his favorite daughter, even though there was no blood relationship between them. "At least the stigma will still be attached to them," Victoria replied quietly. Deep down, there was a long-held disappointment. However, Victoria again chose not to care about it but to focus on her goal. "So, what do yo
"Y-you figured it out already?" Karina asked, surprised. Victoria nodded as she removed her hands from Karina's. Through her words, she should not have doubted Karina anymore, even from the beginning. Her demeanor showed innocence, making it clear that Karina was just a cute and clumsy young woman. "Yes, I've known since Emberly's birthday party. I saw the two of them in the hotel room." Karina gasped at that. Victoria smiled a small smile, showing a calm demeanor. However, although it did not show any signs that her heart was hurt, it brought back painful memories that would never disappear. She just tried not to get too emotional, which made people pity her. "How did you hold it in all this time?" asked Karina with amazement. Victoria refrained from telling Karina about her revenge plan. Although she had reduced the distance between them, it didn't mean she trusted her completely. For now, Victoria is only removing her suspicion from Karina. But without realizing it,
"Mr. Hurlington, he is Mr. Alessandro, the director of Alessandro's company, that you must know. He is my business partner and my friend as well." Victoria immediately introduced Gustav, especially her relationship with him, to Maverick to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings. "Forgive me for my impoliteness, Mr. Hurlington. I am Gustav Alessandro, owner of the GV brand and best friend of Tori." Gustav extended a hand and again emphasized their relationship, leaving Victoria speechless. "Maverick Hurlington." Maverick returned the handshake while introducing himself briefly. They shook hands for a long time without breaking eye contact, as if there was a conversation that only they heard. Victoria unconsciously felt the atmosphere become a little tense due to their hostility. What exactly was the matter that these two seemed to hate each other at their first meeting? "Victoria!" Another audible voice finally distracted the two. Victoria turned her head towards the directi