Chapter 6

A black Maybach screeched to a halt outside the wrought-iron gates of the Luna estate.

Julius Hansen emerged from the car. He was dressed in a perfectly tailored suit that seemed like armor, his face a cold mask of indifference. But his eyes burned with a focused, predatory light. He was a man on a mission.

He strode toward the gates, his bodyguards flanking him. The estate security guards moved to block his path, but Julius's men took a single, synchronized step forward. They said nothing, but their sheer size and the cold, professional stillness in their eyes was a threat more potent than any weapon. The Luna guards hesitated, faltering under the palpable intimidation.

Candice was waiting for him on the manicured lawn. She had seen the car coming. Her hands were ice-cold, but she forced her spine to remain perfectly straight.

Their eyes met through the bars of the gate. The air crackled with a tension that was years in the making-or years in the future.

"Well, Candice," Julius said, his voice laced with mocking amusement. "Are you done with the theatrics? Tearing up contracts, calling reporters. Is this your new strategy to get my attention?"

His face. The face that had haunted her dreams. The face she had once loved and now loathed with every fiber of her being.

"This is my property, Julius," she said, her voice shaking slightly despite her best efforts. "You're not welcome here."

He laughed, a short, sharp sound. "Oh, don't play coy. I know how this works. The more you push me away, the more you think I'll want you. It's a bold move, I'll give you that."

The sheer arrogance of his words, the complete misreading of the situation, was so absurd it was almost breathtaking.

He pulled a new, even thicker contract from his briefcase and slid it through the bars of the gate. It landed on the grass at her feet. "Sign it. And I'll pretend today's little outburst never happened."

Candice looked down at the document. It was her past, her future, her family's ruin, all bound in a neat leather folder.

She looked back up at him, and all the fear was gone, replaced by a profound, bottomless contempt. "You really believe the entire world revolves around you, don't you?"

Julius's smile faltered. He narrowed his eyes. No one spoke to him like that. Especially not her.

He decided to go for the kill. "Let me be perfectly clear. The only woman I care about is Amina Rowe. She is my soulmate. You are a business arrangement. A beautiful, empty shell. Nothing more."

Amina's name. It was a knife, just as he'd intended. He expected tears, rage, jealousy.

Instead, Candice smiled. It was a brittle, chilling thing. "Then I'm happy for you. Now take your soulmate and get the hell out of my sight."

Julius stared at her, genuinely thrown. This wasn't in the script. In his memory, the mere mention of Amina sent Candice into a spiral of insecurity. Her jealousy had been one of his primary torments. This... this was a dismissal.

His mind raced, trying to process the new data. It's a trick, he concluded. A higher level of psychological warfare. She's trying to make me feel guilty by pretending she doesn't care.

"A clever tactic," he snarled, gripping the iron bars. "But it won't work. I see right through you."

Candice had heard enough. She turned her back on him. "Keep a close watch on the gate." she said to her head of security. "If he tries to force his way in, call the police and report him for trespassing."

The security chief hesitated for a second, then nodded and signaled his men.

Julius's bodyguards moved forward, but Candice's team stood their ground. The two groups faced off, a silent, tense standoff.

"You'll regret this, Candice!" Julius yelled at her retreating back. "I will make you crawl. I will make you beg me to sign those papers!"

She didn't look back.

Julius stood there, his face a thundercloud. He had never felt so out of control, so thoroughly wrong-footed by this woman.

He stalked back to his car and slammed the door. He punched the leather seat, a muffled thud of pure frustration.

He pulled out his phone and dialed his lawyer.

"Forget the contracts for now," he commanded, his voice dangerously low. "Initiate Plan B. I want you to start shorting Luna Group stock. Immediately. We're going to war."

Inside the estate, once she was out of his line of sight, Candice leaned against the cool stone of a garden wall and slid to the ground. Her entire body was shaking. The confrontation had taken everything she had.