Damon's POV:
The foreign investors were on their way to the hotel we booked for them when they were intercepted by a team from the Orion Group. I knew this was Yannick's doing. He always loved playing dirty, thinking that stopping investors halfway to offer a "better deal" would actually work. He was foolish and still had a lot to learn about real business.
When my assistant, Ray, asked how we should handle the situation, I told him not to interfere. If those investors were so easily swayed by Orion, then that was their choice to make. Royal Enterprise isn't desperate. We don't bend or break just because a few investors turn their backs on us.
That situation didn't actually bother me. What really had me annoyed was the fact that my mother insisted on a family portrait. We already have plenty of them, yet I had to miss hours of work just to stand here.
Finally, after two hours, we were finished. My mother and Steph crowded around the camera to see how the photos turned out. My father just sat there quietly; I could tell he wasn't enjoying this either, but no one argued when my mother was being persistent.
"I'm leaving," I said, standing up. My father frowned at me. I knew he wanted an excuse to leave just as badly as I did, but he didn't have one. He had been retired for two years and didn't have any urgent business to attend to.
I pulled out my phone to reply to a message from Smith about playing chess tonight. I didn't really have the free time for it. When I raised my head, I spotted a familiar figure at the entrance gate.
Athena.
That girl was a force of nature. For the past few years, I haven't looked at a woman for more than five seconds, but her performance last night had actually gotten under my skin. She moved so well, and it irritated me that every man in that hall was able to feast his eyes on her.
I didn't want them watching her. She was incredibly beautiful, with deep eyes and full lips. Her curves were unreal, and now she stood there in trousers and a backless top that hugged her body perfectly. She seemed to wear anything that showed off her figure.
Despite her job, she had dared to reject my invitation last night, and surprisingly, that made me feel relieved. The fact that she wouldn't just take money for a private dance with a stranger made me feel a strange spark of excitement. I didn't want her with another man.
Our eyes met, and her fingers, which had been sliding across her phone screen, suddenly froze. She wrapped her arms across her chest and didn't stop staring. She refused to be the first one to look away. This girl was a first for me. Most women only catch my eye for a second before looking away and acting weak or vulnerable, but I don't like "princesses" who act like they're in distress.
"Brother," Steph's voice boomed from behind me. I hadn't even realized I'd stopped walking just to admire my sister's friend. She was dangerously pretty, and even her name felt new and interesting to me.
"Are you leaving already? Won't you join us for breakfast?" she asked. She didn't wait for my answer. As soon as she saw her friend standing outside the black gate, she hurried over happily.
Steph hardly ever made genuine friends, and the few she had were usually from famous families. I wondered how she had become friends with an exotic dancer—especially one this attractive.
They hugged, and Steph clung to Athena's arm as they started walking toward me. I stood my ground, expecting her to look at me again so I could get another glimpse of those beautiful eyes, but she didn't. She was clearly trying hard to avoid my gaze.
They stopped in front of me, and Steph nudged her. "Remember my brother, Damon? I introduced you two last night."
Her long lashes fluttered before she finally looked up at me. A small smile spread across those inviting lips. "Hmm... hello."
I didn't look away. I didn't even reply to her half-hearted greeting. I simply reached out my hand toward her. "Damon."
Believe it or not, I had been curious about her all night. I wanted to know if she was just a dancer or something else, which is why I had Ray make that offer. Honestly, I probably would have lost my temper if she had actually agreed to it. But she turned it down and left the party instead. I knew I had offended her because she hadn't looked back once as she walked away.
Even now, she was clearly annoyed.
She stared at my hand with a hesitant look on her face. After a long moment of thinking about it, she finally shook my hand. "Athena."
Her voice was magical. I wondered if she sang, too.
"Uhm... okay, see you later, brother," Steph interrupted, breaking the icy tension that had been building between us. They both walked past me, and I turned to watch them go. I was curious to see if she would turn around for one last glance, but Athena didn't.
I don't chase girls, but she was definitely going to make me work for it. I didn't really have the time for this.
***
My car pulled up in front of the tall, glass building of the Royal main branch. I stepped out, and security immediately took my keys. Ray was waiting at the entrance with a few company executives. I adjusted my cufflinks before walking past them. They followed me inside, and Ray began his report.
"Last night, while we were at the party, someone tried to hack into our main server," he started. Our main business is AI and cybersecurity. We create systems for high-level individuals and government officials, and we handle major payment platforms. To put it simply, we have information on everyone.
An average hacker couldn't even get past our first firewall. If the system sent an alert about the main server, it meant the hacker had gotten very close.
"The engineers have already added more protection to the server, and they're trying to trace the IP address, but it's proving to be difficult," he added. The security guard at the elevator held the door open as we stepped in.
"Also, the investors we invited haven't replied to our emails," another executive reported. "They arrived at 5:00 AM and were met by Orion's people at 6:00 AM. They never made it to their hotel."
"Yannick Orion is holding a press conference in two days," someone else added as the elevator reached the 15th floor, where my office is. "He hinted that his team developed a new system—a household security system. That's exactly what we've been working on."
Yannick was a coward. He was only in charge because he was the most capable of his siblings, which wasn't saying much. He didn't understand business, but he played dirtier than anyone I knew. He was always up to something.
We entered my office, which was filled with sleek blue and white furniture. A large window showed the city full of buildings and factories, but no nature. I sat behind my massive desk and unbuttoned my suit jacket with a heavy sigh.
"Tell the engineers to stop tracking the hacker," I ordered. Even though it didn't make sense to them, they knew not to question me. My methods always worked. "As for the investors, don't send any more emails. Ignore them even if they reach out to us."
The executive nodded. I switched on my four desktop screens. I didn't need pen or paper to handle my business.
"And about that press conference in two days... I'd love to attend." I smirked. I wanted to look Yannick in the eye while he talked about "developing" a project that my company actually built. I wanted to see how bold he really was.
Our launch date for that project was two months away. He probably expects us to rush the release today or tomorrow to stop him, but he's stupid if he thinks he can force my hand.
Once the other executives left, I was alone with Ray. I stared at the lines of code on my screen. "Do you need anything else?" Ray asked.
"Did you do what I asked?"
He nodded and stepped forward, dropping a file on my desk. There was only one name on it: Athena.
No last name. But looking at her features, I could tell she wasn't from around here.
"Everything we could find about her is in there," he said. I nodded. Now, let's see what her life is actually like.