Adrian looked oddly out of place in his designer jeans and cashmere sweater among families with cotton candy and screaming kids. Celeste dragged him from ride to ride. Their date on Coney Island had been her idea after all. He won her a teddy bear at the balloon dart game after six tries and forty dollars, but when he finally popped three balloons, his grin was boyish and triumphant.
"Your prize, my lady," he said, presenting the stuffed bear with a ridiculous bow.
Celeste laughed. "You overpaid by about thirty-eight dollars."
"Well, it was totally worth it," he said, the grin never leaving his face.
They shared funnel cake, and Adrian got powdered sugar on his nose. Celeste took a picture before he could wipe it off.
"That's not going on social media," he warned.
"Nope. This one's just for me."
As the sun set, they rode the Wonder Wheel. At the top, the city sprawled before them, lights beginning to twinkle.
"Thank you," Adrian said quietly. "For this. For at least pretending to tolerate me."
"I'm not pretending anymore," Celeste admitted. "Somewhere along the way, you became tolerable."
He laughed and their eyes met.
Just then, his phone buzzed with a text from Ila. "What is the latest update on the acquisition? The board is still about it."
Adrian quickly switched off his phone screen. Unknown to him, Celeste had already seen the text. A plan quickly formed in her head. She was not going to let him have the upper hand this time.
*****************************************
Five weeks in, Celeste swept her gaze across the kitchen in Adrian's penthouse. It was a chef's dream. Sparkling marble countertops, professional-grade appliances, a spice rack that looked like it had never been touched.
"You don't cook, do you?" Celeste asked, running her hand over the pristine stovetop.
"I have a chef who comes three times a week." Adrian leaned against the counter, watching her. "But she's off tonight. I wanted something real. No cameras. No performance." He met her eyes. "Just us."
Celeste's heart felt like it had skipped several beats. "What am I making?"
"Surprise me."
She made coq au vin, her grandmother's recipe. The one she'd perfected at culinary school. As she cooked, Adrian sat at the kitchen island, sipping wine and asking questions. About her training, her dreams, why she'd given it all up.
"I was supposed to start at Le Valentin," she told him, deglazing the pan. "It was my dream job. But then Grammie collapsed at the grocery store. Brain tumour. With the bills, treatments and chemo, I couldn't leave her. Couldn't take a job that would have me working eighty-hour weeks."
"So, you took the bakery job."
"Marie's pays the bills. Barely." She plated the dish with practiced precision. "But culinary school feels like a lifetime ago."
They ate at his dining table, the city glittering through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The food was perfect.
"This is incredible," Adrian said. "You should be cooking in a Michelin-starred restaurant."
"Should be, would be, could be." Celeste pushed chicken around her plate. "Story of my life lately."
"I meant what I said before. You have talent. Real talent. It shouldn't go to waste because life dealt you a bad hand."
Something in his voice made her look up. He meant it.
After dinner, he led her to his study. It felt darker and more personal than the rest of the penthouse. Books lined the walls, and a chess set sat on a side table.
"This was my father's room," Adrian said. "When he died, I brought everything here. Couldn't let it go."
On his desk sat a black velvet box. He opened it carefully, revealing an antique gold ring, with a large centre diamond surrounded by intricate designs and smaller diamonds. Even in the dim light, it was breathtaking.
"It's beautiful," Celeste breathed.
"It's been in the Moretti family for generations. My father gave it to my mother on their wedding day." His voice went rough. "He was wearing it on his watch chain when he died. Heart attack. One moment he was at his desk, and the next, he was gone."
He stared at the ring. "I was supposed to have more time. I keep this close because it's all I have left of him. The man he was, the legacy he built."
Celeste watched him and without thinking, she reached out and squeezed his hand.
Adrian looked at her, and caught his breath.
"Stay," he said. "Tonight. No cameras. No arrangement. Just stay."
She should've said no. Should've remembered this was temporary, fake, a business deal.
Instead, she stayed.