Victoria_Xoxo

He chuckled. “What’s with the face?”

I blinked. “What?”

“You’re blushing.” His voice held a teasing lit, and I could practically hear the smirk behind it.

“Oh.” I raised a hand to my cheek, rubbing absently, only to feel the warmth spreading across my skin. My lips twisted into a small, guilty smile.

Leo’s eyes gleamed with amusement. There was something about the way he looked at me—steady, knowing—that made me uneasy. Not because I felt uncomfortable, but because I had spent so long misunderstanding him.

Why hadn’t I seen his loyalty from the start? Why had I assumed he wanted me for business, for something transactional? A pang of guilt settled in my chest.

“This place is…” I started, glancing around, searching for words.

He leaned back slightly, one arm draped over the chair. “Deserving of a heiress,” he finished smoothly. “I had a work break.”

A warm rush of gratitude filled me, but it was quickly dampened by a lingering thought. Cassie had mentioned something earlier—something about Ophelia storming into Leo’s office. My fingers curled slightly against the tablecloth.

Kill Lila!

Mario just fed me with some bullshit of information.

When we took a leisurely visit to the park for Ella's birthday celebration, in company of Pain-in-the-ass Cassie, Ella's nanny and a bouncer, Mario got a chance to patronage one of these circus people- a Japanese shaman, whom he claimed peered into his palms to predict his future.

Mario claimed he didn't tell the shaman anything about our impending journey. He just wanted to know if Cassie and him would eventually end up together, but the Chinese lady had something else to say.

"C'mon, the forest is just full of animals and plants and trees." I interjected. Raised my styrofoam coffee cup to my lips and sucked in the content.

"But how do we know Lila is actually in that place? She would've been mauled by beasts now, or she simply isn't there." He said.

22. Fortune Unveiled. President Leo's Pov