"... Wh—! Your fiancée?!"
The woman's smile vanished in an instant, replaced by a stunned expression. She quickly stepped back, rising from the couch, adjusting a strand of her hair with visible embarrassment.
"Oh, your fiancée… So, you're already taken! Haha… how lucky she must be."
"I'm the lucky one."
Leonid replied with an unusually calm tone, then shifted his gaze forward, where his eyes met Charlotte's.
That deadly look alone was enough to say it all.
The woman swallowed hard, realizing there was something in that gaze she could never compete with or escape from.
"Haha… Looks like you two love each other a lot…"
Avoiding Charlotte's angry stare, the woman glanced at Leonid again, nervously waving her hand before adding,
"Well, excuse me, I really hope my coming close to you didn't cause any trouble—"
"Trouble?"
Leonid repeated the word, his voice tinged with a cold smile, without taking his eyes off Charlotte.
"My fiancée is already walking toward us."
"Walking toward us?!"
Her eyes widened in shock. She had thought of nothing more than a fleeting moment of fun… time spent with a handsome man. She had not expected the scene to turn into this.
"Yes, and she looks angry, too."
"Angry?! Oh my God, have I suddenly become the miserable woman trying to steal another woman's man?"
"In my fiancée's eyes, yes, that's exactly what you are."
Leonid let out a quiet, mocking laugh, his eyes never leaving Charlotte's steady approach. Her gaze was locked firmly on his.
Jealousy.
A word Charlotte had never believed in something she thought beneath her.
But now, she felt it, like a hidden spark provoking her, angering her, awakening something in her she didn't recognize.
"I suppose I should thank you. It's rare to see her with such a serious expression."
Leonid's words made the woman glance between him and Charlotte, her eyes shimmering with the threat of a dramatic, inevitable tear.
"Please… I'll gladly accept your thanks, but don't let her misunderstand. I'm not that vile."
The woman tried to fix the situation, but Leonid chuckled softly, a faint smile curling on his lips.
"It's not my business to clear things up. And personally… I want her to be jealous. I like it."
He was savoring the tension, as if the entire situation was a small stage play in which he held the starring role, brimming with cool confidence.
Calmly, he adjusted his jacket, preparing to stand and face his partner's jealousy. But before he could move, Charlotte stopped in front of him, pressing her hands onto his shoulders to keep him seated, and then light as air slid smoothly onto his lap.
"Darling—!?"
Leonid stiffened for a moment, his eyes widening in surprise, but fascination quickly overtook the shock.
The sensation of her soft thighs against his sparked something deep inside him wordless, involuntary.
"You're playing—"
But he didn't finish. Charlotte pressed her palms more firmly onto his shoulders, forcing him to swallow his words and simply breathe in her closeness.
How astonishing, that a few subtle movements could silence him completely.
Charlotte remained silent, but her eyes overflowed with unspoken meaning.
Jealousy. Resentment. Anger.
She was about to shower him with words, to scold him until his ears rang, but instead, she chose silence silence heavy with meaning.
From a distance, the other woman's voice trembled, uneasy:
"Is… is this some kind of revenge? Because I spoke to him?"
Charlotte didn't look at her right away. She simply whispered to Leonid, barely moving her lips:
"Should I answer?"
He raised an eyebrow slightly, silent, enjoying this far too much.
Charlotte finally turned, her expression calm yet as sharp as a blade.
"Revenge? No. I don't waste my time on passersby."
The woman gasped at the blunt reply, then quickly recovered and said,
"Right… well, I'm glad I won't be getting an actual slap. Anyway… I truly apologize. This was just a misunderstanding. And by the way, you two make a beautiful couple."
She gave a little thumbs-up in encouragement. Charlotte smiled in return, though her eyes stayed fixed on Leonid with a subtle, icy edge.
"Oh, thank you. And as for the apology… accepted."
Charlotte paused for a moment, then gestured lightly with her hand.
"You can go."
"Alright, thanks for understanding."
The woman retreated quickly, leaving behind a heavy silence filled only by the sound of the music.
Charlotte slowly dug her nails into Leonid's shoulder and whispered,
"It's very rare to see you talking to a strange woman."
"There's a misunderstanding. I wasn't talking to her."
Leonid raised his hands in a mock gesture of surrender.
"Oh, really? So you wanted me to get jealous, didn't you?"
Leonid nodded without shame, making her frown.
"Very honest. Fine… then consider this elegant jealousy."
"I see it as more alluring than elegant."
At last, Leonid regained his arrogance. He smiled in satisfaction and crossed his legs lightly, unfazed by her weight or by her nails scratching his jacket as if she were a stray cat leaving her mark.
"Hey!"
Charlotte was caught off guard and lost her balance for a moment. Quickly, she abandoned her reserved posture and wrapped her arms around his neck.
Her body pressed against his chest as if she were trying to melt into him, to cling to something she couldn't define something that made him lose control in a way he didn't want to lose it.
Leonid slid his arm around her waist, pulling her closer still, as though their closeness was fueling a fire that no longer lay dormant.
He whispered, his voice low but charged,
"Can you feel what I feel?"
"What are you talking about?!"
Charlotte matched his whisper, but her voice betrayed her; the question was nothing more than a shield for her confusion.
Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment, and she began adjusting her position slowly. Strands of her chestnut hair slipped lightly across his thighs, leaving a silky trace that pulled him in.
Leonid didn't answer. He stayed silent for a moment before murmuring a single word—
"Desire."
"Desire?"
Charlotte repeated, her voice softer than she intended, as if the word itself was an admission.
Suddenly, his free hand slid to the back of her neck. His fingers brushed her skin in a fleeting caress before he pulled her toward him with boldness, about to claim her lips.
But things didn't go as he planned.
The moment he leaned in to kiss her, Charlotte stopped him abruptly.
"How many times must I say it?"
She whispered softly, but with firmness, placing her palm over his lips gently, yet decisively stopping the kiss before it began, as though she held the master key to his control.
Leonid froze, staring into her eyes with a disappointed look. His lips felt the warmth of her hand that had halted him, while his mind tried to read her unspoken message.
That look held everything left unsaid frustration, confusion, and the restrained longing waiting for its moment.
Charlotte held his gaze, then sighed slowly and added,
"You'll ruin my lip gloss, and that's unacceptable."
Leonid frowned with a hint of irritation and mumbled against her palm,
"Oh, you're—... over—reacting."
Charlotte withdrew her hand lightly, staring at him in disbelief, unable to process what he'd just said.
"What did you say?!"
He brushed his thumb over his lips, then let go of her waist and deliberately folded his arms across his chest.
"I said you're overreacting, that's all."
Charlotte smirked slyly.
"Ah, so you're upset? That's… cute."
He arched a mocking brow and said,
"Cute, huh? Darling, you're playing with fire."
He turned his face for a brief moment, then looked straight back into her eyes and whispered coldly,
"So what if I am upset with you? Don't I have the right to be?"
Charlotte raised her brows in challenge, then slowly lowered her hand. Leonid felt her fingers slip into his pocket, deftly retrieving her phone that she had earlier slipped into his possession.
She smiled confidently as she lifted the camera toward his face.
"I'll take a picture… to mark the moment."
Leonid fixed his piercing gaze on the lens, and after the flash went off, Charlotte said playfully,
"Perfect shot. I'll keep it forever."
A faint smile curved his lips as he replied coolly,
"You're far too cheeky and bold."
Leonid rolled his eyes in apparent annoyance or perhaps he was simply trying to provoke her all over again in his own way.
Charlotte playfully extended her hand, showing him the phone screen.
"Look! Even the camera loves you. You look stunning under these lights."
Leonid glanced quickly at the photo it was practically perfect, though he never saw it that way.
He raised an eyebrow and calmly criticized,
"Maybe the camera needs calibration… there's a strange glare in the picture."
"I don't see any strange glare. Seems like you're imagining things… or maybe you just don't have the proper vision."
"Proper vision? Darling, are you trying to start a word game? I've never heard you speak this professionally before."
Leonid shook his head sarcastically, then lazily reached out to snatch her phone. But before his fingers could touch it, two hands came from behind Charlotte and grabbed her waist.
Without warning, Daniel seized Charlotte's waist and yanked her away forcefully, lifting her off Leonid's thighs with a swift, decisive move.
"Eh?"
Charlotte gasped as she found herself momentarily suspended, her feet lifted off the ground, before she steadied herself, stunned by what had just happened.