Chapter 12 – Cossette POV
The elevator doors slid open with a soft chime, and I stepped onto the 15th floor like I was walking into enemy territory. Because, in a way, I was.
The hallway was eerily quiet—carpet too clean, air too cold. Even the light felt sterile. My pulse pounded in my ears as I passed a wall of framed magazine covers, all stamped with the same smirking logo: Eat & Like. And then, like he'd built a throne for his ego, there it was—his office door. Oversized, glossy black, with bold silver letters etched across it:
Ray Lether, CEO
Subtle as a slap.
I glanced around. The reception area was unusually empty—no assistants, no security, no witnesses. My window was small.
I pushed the door open slowly.
Empty.
Good. Where is he ?
"Who the hell are you?"
The voice hit me like a whip.
I froze.
Then turned—
And slammed straight into him.
Ray Lether.
My breath caught before I could stop it.
He looked… nothing like I expected. Taller. Sharper. Stormy eyes, obsidian hair, a tension in his posture like he'd just stepped out of a battlefield instead of a boardroom. His expression was a mix of confusion and fury, and it rooted me to the floor.
My plan was falling apart.
"How did you get in here?" he snapped, taking a step closer. "GUAR—"
Without thinking, I reached out and slapped a hand over his mouth.
"Please, no!" I hissed. "Just—listen to me. I'm Cossette Jonas. I'm not here to cause trouble. I just need five minutes. That's all."
His eyes, narrowed and burning, didn't blink. He could have easily thrown me off. Called security. Escorted me out with his cold voice and colder eyes.
But he didn't.
After a long, terrifying second, he peeled my hand off his mouth.
"Sit," he said, curt.
I obeyed.
He leaned back against his desk, arms crossed, like he was trying to decide whether to throw me out a window or ask me what flavor of betrayal I'd brought.
We stared at each other in silence, the air between us dense with suspicion.
He broke it first. "Four minutes left. Or are you just here to stare at me like you've never seen a man before?"
I forced my gaze away from his jawline. "Don't flatter yourself."
"Then talk."
"I need your help," I said simply.
That made him laugh. Not kindly.
"You?" he said, arching an eyebrow. "Asking me for help? After practically serving Thomas Frost our market share on a silver platter? I thought you were smarter than that."
I met his gaze, steady. "I am."
"Then explain."
"I let him think he's won," I said. "Because I'm playing a longer game. I'm still CEO of my half. And now I'm inside. Close enough to tear it all down."
He studied me. His face didn't change, but something flickered in his eyes—skepticism, maybe. Or interest.
"You're married to him," he said slowly. "Why betray him now?"
I paused.
There were so many ways to answer that question.
Because he and Anika destroyed me. Because they buried the old Cossette and danced on her grave. Because they don't deserve to win.
But I wasn't ready to give him that truth.
So I lied.
"He's cheating on me," I said. Quiet. Controlled. "I'm done being humiliated. I want out—and I want payback."
Ray's expression shifted, just barely.
He stared at me longer than I liked. Then, surprisingly, he said, "He cheated on you?"
His voice held disbelief. Then something else. Something sharper.
"You're… stunning. He's out of his damn mind."
I blinked, caught off guard. My cheeks warmed. I hated that I blushed—but it was too late.
"Thanks," I muttered. "But yeah. It's true."
"With who?"
"A maid." The lie slipped out with ease. "Someone irrelevant."
Ray scoffed. "Disgusting. Idiot."
I leaned forward, letting the mask of cold detachment slip just enough to show him what I needed him to see. "I want to work with you. I can feed you everything. Every launch, every flaw in their infrastructure—I'll be your inside link. You and me, we can dismantle them."
Ray didn't answer right away.
Then—his computer beeped.
He clicked something and looked at the screen.
And then he laughed.
Not a small laugh. A loud, delighted bark of a laugh.
"What?" I asked.
He turned the monitor toward me.
On the screen: Betha, still in her pillow pregnancy, was now hopping on the reception couch like a rabid squirrel, wailing about contractions while the guards circled her like nervous midwives.
My jaw dropped. " She is a good actress for a distraction huh ? "
Ray wiped a tear from the corner of his eye. "This… this is your distraction?"
He picked up the phone. "Don't worry. I'll tell them to let her go without calling an ambulance . Honestly? Ten out of ten commitment."
My face burned.
He made the call. A few clipped instructions later, he hung up and looked at me again. This time, there was a flicker of something softer in his expression.
"All right, Miss Jonas. I'm in. Give me your number."
"Why?"
He raised an eyebrow. "What do you want me to do—send you coded messages by carrier pigeon?"
I gave a small laugh. "Fine." I saved his contact as Rebecca, just in case fdrost ever snooped.
As I stood, I nodded toward the door. "I should go. Before Betha delivers a throw pillow in the lobby."
"Wait," he said.
I paused, glancing back.
He was looking at me now with less suspicion and more… weight.
"You don't deserve that kind of betrayal, Cossette," he said, voice low. "If you were mine—I wouldn't have even looked at another woman. You're strong. Smart. Beautiful. He doesn't know what he's lost."
The words landed somewhere in my chest, sharp and warm at the same time.
If only you knew, Ray.
If only you knew what he really did to me.
But I just nodded, eyes steady.
"To our new collaboration," I said.
He nodded back. "Let's make it count."
And I walked out of his office—not just with a plan in motion, but with my first real ally.
Game on.