Chapter 4

I turned my head to look around.

Murray had his jaw dropped in disbelief.

Lillian from finance almost dropped her phone out of shock.

The receptionist clapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide like she'd seen a ghost.

And Jonathan's expression went from tense to a mischievous smirk.

He even pulled out his phone, browsing through it.

My mind was buzzing, and I had no idea what to say.

Nathan was staring at me, his eyes full of anger, pain, and something I couldn't quite put my finger on.

"Nicole," he said, drawing out my name, "I've got screenshots of every message you ever sent me."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because I wanted to confess to you at the End-of-Year Party."

After he said that, the whole room went dead silent for three seconds.

"Holy shit!" someone blurted out, and the whole ballroom exploded with noise.

"Mr. Bennett has a crush on Nicole?"

"He sent her 14 thousand every month? And his salary is only 15 thousand?"

"That's way too simpy!"

"Nicole's got game!"

Hearing all the gossip buzzing around me, I felt like I was dying inside.

Nathan was still staring at me. "You lied to me."

He said it so quietly, it was almost like he was whispering to himself.

But every word felt like a needle stabbing right into me.

I opened my mouth, wanting to explain, but what could I say?

Should I say I didn't mean it? Or that I texted the wrong guy?

But those messages and all that sweet talk were from me.

I thought I was texting my brother the whole time.

But would anyone actually believe me if I said that?

What kind of looks would I get from everyone?

A girl who flirted with her boss every day for money, pocketed cash for three months, and then got exposed in front of everyone at the End-of-Year Party?

To anyone watching, I'd look like a shameless scheming flirt.

I shut my mouth, unable to say a single word.

Suddenly, a warm hand settled onto my shoulder.

He stepped forward, shielding me behind him.

"Mr. Bennett," he said, his voice calm and cold, "let's talk about this somewhere else."

Nathan looked up at him.

The moment their eyes met, I could almost see sparks fly. "Who are you?" Nathan asked.

Jonathan grinned a little. "Jonathan Lane," he said, pausing before adding, "Nicole's brother."

Nathan's eyes went wide in shock. "What?"

"I said," Jonathan said, stressing each word, "I'm her brother. Her actual blood brother, same mom and all."

He pulled out his phone, opened a chat, and held it up for Nathan to see. "Take a good look."

I leaned in for a look. It was my chat history with Jonathan.

First message: [Nate, I want a limited-edition bag.]

Jonathan's reply: [Send me the link.]

Second message: [Nate, I'm out of cash.]

Jonathan's reply: [Just bank-transferred you ten grand. Let me know if you need more.]

Third message: [Nate, I'm home. Thanks for the money today. Love you!]

Attached: A selfie of me in my dress from earlier. It was sent at 7:47 PM.

Nathan's face changed. He glanced down at his own phone, then looked up at Jonathan's.

Two chat windows, right next to each other. Every message matched perfectly. Only the profile pictures and the names were different.

Jonathan's profile picture was a snowy mountain scene I loved, and he'd saved my contact as "My Sister."

Nathan's profile picture was... Wait, what was his profile picture? I leaned in for a closer look.

His WhatsApp profile picture was a photo of two people. One was me, and the other was him.

I froze. In the photo, I was wearing the company T-shirt, standing by the break room door, holding a cup, looking confused.

And he was right next to me, tilting his head to watch me.

His gaze was so soft, like he was looking at something priceless.

Who took this photo? When was it taken? How come I never knew about it?

Nathan stared at the picture for a few seconds, then slowly lifted his head.

His eyes skipped right over Jonathan and locked onto me.

"This photo," Nathan said, his voice hoarse, "was taken three months ago, during the company retreat."

Three months ago again.

"You were making coffee in the break room that day, and I happened to walk in," he said. "Someone called your name, you turned around, and I was standing next to you."

I remembered. It was at that countryside lodge, during the company retreat.

I was making coffee, someone called my name, and when I turned around, Nathan walked in.

But I had no idea anyone was taking a photo. And I definitely didn't know Nathan had set that picture as his WhatsApp profile.

"I thought," he went on, "it was fate."

He paused. "I thought you started acting sweet with me because of what happened that day. I really believed you liked me."

After he said that, he lowered his gaze. His lashes cast a faint shadow over his eyes.

The gossip around us stopped cold.

Everyone went quiet, watching the scene unfold.

I stared at Nathan, his lashes casting a shadow over his eyes, and suddenly, this weird rush of emotion hit me, something I couldn't name.

It wasn't guilt. It wasn't pity. It was something messy and complicated, and I couldn't figure it out.