Chapter 2 — The Proposal
The meeting ended twenty minutes later.
People left the conference room quietly, as if afraid speaking too loudly would summon the man who remained inside.
Lucien Vale was still standing near the glass window when Zara finished packing her tablet.
The room was empty now except for them.
The city outside glowed with evening lights, stretching endlessly like a sea of artificial stars.
Zara felt nervousness crawling slowly up her spine.
"Close the door," Lucien said without turning around.
His voice was calm.
Not cold.
Just controlled.
Zara obeyed.
The soft click of the door lock sounded louder than it should have.
She walked back toward the conference table and stopped about two meters behind him.
"Do you want to fire me now, CEO Vale?" she asked.
Silence.
Then—
"No."
The answer came immediately.
Zara blinked.
"Oh. That's disappointing."
This time, Lucien turned around.
Slowly.
His dark eyes studied her face like he was trying to understand something hidden behind her expression.
"You are not afraid of losing your job?" he asked.
"I am," Zara said honestly. "But being afraid doesn't make me stop talking."
One corner of Lucien's mouth moved again.
That almost-smile.
The one she was beginning to suspect was his version of laughter.
He walked toward the table and picked up a document folder.
He placed it in front of her.
"Read."
Zara frowned.
"What is this?"
"A proposal."
"For what?"
"Open it."
She did.
The first page was stamped with the Vale Corporation emblem.
Her eyes moved across the text.
Then she froze.
Her heartbeat skipped once.
Twice.
Her brain tried to process what she was reading.
After several seconds, she spoke.
"You want me to… be your fiancée?"
"Yes."
"For one year?"
"Yes."
"Public appearances?"
"Yes."
"No emotional relationship?"
Lucien looked at her.
The silence that followed felt heavier than the city outside.
"Yes."
Zara closed the folder slowly.
Then she said, very carefully,
"Are you insane?"
"No."
"Then why me?"
Lucien did not answer immediately.
He walked past her toward the conference table and sat down slowly, placing his hands together in a way that made him look like he was discussing business instead of proposing something controversial.
"You are outspoken," he said.
"You are not intimidated by status."
"You speak your mind even when it is inconvenient."
"And you are currently financially stressed."
Zara's eyes narrowed.
"Are you stalking my bank account?"
"No."
"Then how do you know that?"
"Your mother's hospital payments were delayed last month."
Her stomach tightened.
Anger rose first.
Then something else.
Fear.
"How did you know that?" she asked quietly.
"I have access to financial reports of most employees."
"That is creepy."
"It is efficient."
Zara inhaled slowly.
The room felt smaller suddenly.
"So this is what?" she said. "A contract marriage proposal from the Ice CEO himself?"
"Yes."
She laughed.
Not because it was funny.
Because it was absurd.
"You rejected three models, two famous actresses, and the daughter of a senator," Zara said. "Why me?"
Lucien's eyes studied her again.
Longer this time.
Almost uncomfortable in its intensity.
"Because," he said finally, "you called my marketing slogan a villain speech."
Zara blinked.
Then stared at him.
"That is the worst romantic reason I have ever heard in my life."
"Good," Lucien said.
"I am not trying to be romantic."
Silence settled between them.
Zara felt her fingers tightening slightly around the folder.
This was dangerous.
Not because of the contract.
But because something inside her was annoyed by how calm he looked while offering something life-changing like it was a normal business transaction.
"How much?" she asked.
"Five million dollars."
The number dropped into the room like a stone into deep water.
Zara's breath stopped for half a second.
Five million.
Enough to clear her mother's medical debt.
Enough to remove the shadow that had been sitting on her chest for months.
Lucien spoke again.
"Payment will be transferred in three installments."
"And if I refuse?"
"Then you walk out of this room and continue working in the research division as if this conversation never happened."
Zara frowned.
"That is surprisingly respectful."
"I do not force people to stay where they do not want to be."
Another silence.
Longer this time.
Zara stared at the contract.
Then at the man who looked like he had calculated every possible outcome of this conversation.
"Rules?" she asked.
"Yes."
"No emotional attachment."
"Yes."
"No public embarrassment."
"Yes."
"No interference in my personal life unless required for appearances."
"Yes."
Zara sighed.
Then closed the folder.
"Can I insult you occasionally?" she asked.
Lucien paused.
"Within professional boundaries."
"Excellent," Zara said.
She pushed the folder back toward him.
"I accept."
Lucien's expression did not change.
But something in the air shifted.
Almost imperceptibly.
He reached forward and took the contract.
"You sign tomorrow," he said.
"Yes, CEO Vale."
Zara turned to leave.
"Miss Quinn."
She stopped.
"Yes?"
"One more thing," he said.
She waited.
"If anyone asks," Lucien said quietly, "you are engaged to me because I like your company."
Zara frowned.
"That sounds suspiciously emotional."
"It is a business explanation."
She shook her head slightly.
Then muttered,
"You are the strangest man I have ever met."
Lucien did not respond.
But after she left the room, he looked at the city skyline for a long time.
And for the first time in many years…
The Ice CEO touched the corner of his own mouth with his fingers.
As if testing whether the almost-smile was real.