Izzy_Star_3112

✦ SYNOPSIS ✦

Title: His Cunning Smile

Zayden Vale is everything the world worships—powerful, wealthy, and devastatingly charming. His easy smile fools the public, but those who work under him know the truth. Beneath the kindness lies a calculating mind, a heart made of stone, and a narcissist who believes no one is worth his time. Nicknamed “The Fox,” Zayden destroys competitors with a smile on his face and never lets anyone close enough to touch him.

Elara Blake is the daughter no one sees. The youngest in a family that only values power and image, she’s spent her life being ignored—shipped to distant schools, kept out of the spotlight, and treated like a placeholder. When her family needs a favor from Zayden Vale, they send her—not out of trust, but because she’s expendable.

But Zayden sees her. Not for what she can offer, but for the flicker in her eyes—the quiet fire, the silent defiance. She doesn’t worship him like others do. In fact, she challenges him without saying a word.

To him, she becomes a game.
To her, he becomes a danger she never saw coming.

What begins as a strategic alliance turns into a tangled web of secrets, manipulation, and desires neither of them expected.
And when a narcissist falls in love… he doesn’t fall.
He claims.

His Cunning Smile

Elara took a bite of the cotton candy, avoiding his gaze. The sugar melted on her tongue, but the flutter in her stomach had nothing to do with the sweetness.

> "Don't get cocky, Vale," she said, chewing slowly. "This doesn't change anything."

Zayden tilted his head, studying her like she was some kind of puzzle he couldn't wait to solve. "Doesn't it?"

"No," she said too quickly, brushing invisible lint from her jeans. "This was... temporary insanity."

> "Admit it," he said, stepping in just close enough to brush a strand of hair from her face. "You like me."

Her brows shot up. "I like rollercoasters and cotton candy. You're just the one who paid."

He laughed, a low, rich sound that did something annoyingly warm to her chest. "You're dangerous when you're honest."

"You're insufferable when you flirt."

> "Is that what I'm doing?" His voice dropped a note. "I thought I was just being me."

"That's the problem," she muttered under her breath, stepping back to create space — the air had become too thick.

They began walking toward the gates, the quiet buzz of the night wrapping around them. Music played faintly in the distance, children's laughter still echoing here and there, but it all felt far away.

Zayden glanced at her as they reached the parking lot. "I'll have my driver drop you off."

Elara paused. "You're not taking me?"

"I have another stop," he said casually. "And you look like you could use a minute to think about me in peace."

She narrowed her eyes. "I don't think about you."

> "Yet you can't stop glaring at me."

"That's because you never stop talking," she snapped, turning toward the sleek black car waiting nearby.

Zayden followed, his hands tucked into his pockets. "You'll thank me for today. Someday."

Elara turned to him, arms crossed, leaning closer. "Keep dreaming, Vale."

He leaned even closer, his voice a whisper against her cheek.

> "Oh, I do. And lately? The dreams have gotten... specific."

Her breath caught, and she quickly stepped away, glaring at him again—though it lacked the heat it usually held.

He smirked, opening the car door for her with an exaggerated bow. "Until next time, Blake."

She climbed in without a word, but the slam of the door wasn't angry—it was confused.

Inside the car, Elara sat silently, the photo strip from the booth still folded in her pocket. She reached for it and stared down at their faces.

In one, he was smirking and she was pretending not to care. In another, he was leaning in too close and her eyes were wide with surprise.

She was smiling. Just a little. But it was there.

She groaned and stuffed the photos into her bag.

> "Get a grip, Elara," she whispered to herself.

But even as the city lights passed by the window, and her driver hummed along to some soft instrumental music, her thoughts refused to leave him.

Zayden stood in the lot, watching the car drive off until it disappeared into the city.

But his smile returned, slower, more deliberate this time.

He pulled out his phone and texted his assistant:

"Find out what her favorite flower is."

Chapter 27: Fun Games and Dangerous Attraction II