Han Shān sat behind the massive oak desk in his penthouse office, the city lights sprawling beneath him like scattered diamonds. The merger meeting had ended two hours ago, but the scent of vanilla and cookies still clung to the air, impossible, of course. Yet there it was, stubborn as the knot in his chest that refused to loosen tonight.
His phone lay on the glass surface, screen dark. He picked it up, thumb hovering. Chen Jue. Cousin. The one who had fumbled a perfectly good woman in a café two weeks ago like a nervous intern dropping a quarterly report.
Han Shān pressed call before he could talk himself out of it.
"Han Shān?" Chen Jue's voice crackled through the speaker, surprised. "Twice in one month? Did the ice king finally melt, or is the building on fire?"
"Neither." Han Shān's tone was monotone. The same voice that closed billion-dollar deals. "I need to ask you something about Bai Yue."
