🤍 Jessica's POV 🤍
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As the page finishes loading, my gaze snags on the photograph beneath it, and everything else fades into static.
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My breath hitches.
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"Holy Jezebel," I whisper.
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Roman Valentus.
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The man staring back at me isn't just handsome. He is dangerous.
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The kind of handsome that doesn't just turn heads—it stops time. He looks like a Greek god sculpted by someone with a vendetta against mortal men.
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His jet-black hair is thick and slightly tousled, framing his face in a way that makes him look so powerful and untamed.
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That's bad.
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His eyes are like midnight—so dark, yet sexy and alluring.
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Oh God, this is bad bad.
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Thick, arched brows sit majestically on top, and his jawline is so sharp and defined it could literally cut glass.
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He looks like a man who never begs or wavers. He only takes.
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And I'm staring. Like an idiot.
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I feel something tingle between my thighs and mentally curse myself for being so affected by this man, who looks like a potential Casanova. Cause look at him!
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Footsteps coming down snap me out of my trance. Rachel walks into the bakery, tying her hair into a messy bun as she heads straight for the fridge.
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"Please tell me there's still some..."
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She stops mid-sentence. I feel, more than see, her head snap toward me, and I don't even have to look to know her eyes have landed on the laptop screen.
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"Whoa..."
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I stiffen as she comes closer and leans over my shoulder.
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"Who is this fine-ass hercules?"
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Oh, boy.
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"No one." I immediately move to close the tab, but Rachel is quicker.
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She snatches my hand from the mouse. "Not so fast, bitch. I need to see this"
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I roll my eyes.
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She lets out a sound that's somewhere between a gasp and a whimper.
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"Roman Valentus. Oh my God. He's such a sexy creature! Bet he's really big down—"
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I grit my teeth. "Aht aht. Enough, you horny-ass woman."
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"Are you sure he's human?" She licks her lips, eyes still glued to the screen. "Look at that face. That jaw. Those eyes! He looks like—like a vampire king who lures women into his castle just to ruin them"
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"Yep." I agree, honestly, before I can stop myself.
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"Right?!"
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I fix myself, leaning back in my chair casually. "No. You're being dramatic."
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Rachel tears her gaze from the screen and gapes at me like I've personally offended her.
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"Dramatic? Jessica, do you need to see an optician? The man could eat me for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and I wouldn't be satisfied."
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Oh God. I can't with this girl.
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I force a shrug. "Eh. He's okay. Just not my cup of tea. You've been reading too many romance novels."
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She fake-gasps, clutching her chest like I've just insulted her entire bloodline.
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"You're lying. Take that back!"
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I grab my drink, avoiding her gaze. "I'm serious. He's fine, sure. But he just has that... broody, cold CEO look. Nothing special."
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"Nothing special? That's it. You're definitely lying."
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Yes, I am. But who's gonna check me?
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I shrug in an *I-don't-care* manner, as if my heart hadn't just done a triple axel over a single photograph.
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As she keeps gushing—something about how he probably 'ruins lives for fun'—I find my eyes drifting back to the screen, to those piercing midnight eyes that make my legs weak.
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God. Those big, strong, veiny hands.
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Maybe she's right. Maybe Roman Valentus is ruinously, unfairly beautiful.
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The kind that should come with a fucking warning label.
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But there's no way in hell I'm going to admit it. Or show it.
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Rachel yanks open the fridge, her head disappearing inside.
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"What brought you there, anyway?" she asks, rummaging through the fridge.
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"They have a job opening for marketers," I reply, skidding right back to the job listing page before those eyes arrest me again.
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Rachel emerges with a bottle of iced lemonade, her lips curling into a mischievous smirk.
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"So you get to work for Mr. Please fuck-my-ass, you lucky gal"
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I shoot her a look. "Language, sissy! And no. I haven't even applied yet."
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She arches a perfectly sculpted brow, her expression dripping with disbelief.
"Um... And why the hell not?"
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I lean back in my chair, letting out a long sigh.
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"Because it's Valentus Technologies, Rachel. They're a global empire. My chances of getting hired are somewhere between 'snowball in hell' and 'winning the lottery.'"
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"What's with all this pessimistic talk? How do you know you won't get in if you don't even try?"
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I chuckle, raising my hands in mock surrender. "Alright, fine. I'll apply. Happy?"
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That seems to satisfy her. Her grin widens, and she leans down to press a quick kiss to my cheek.
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"Ecstatic!"
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With that, she saunters back upstairs, her messy bun loosening.
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Yeah. Not applying.
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I sigh, close my laptop, and stretch my arms above my head. Just as I reach for my phone, the soft chime of the doorbell rings, pulling me back into work mode.
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Instinctively, I straighten my apron, plaster on my best customer-service smile, and turn to greet the new customer.
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The man who walks in looks to be in his early thirties, short, and dressed in a simple T-shirt and jeans. He has a phone pressed to his ear, speaking rapidly in Bulgarian.
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My smile widens instinctively.
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A fellow Bulgarian? That's rare around here.
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Is this pride I feel in my chest?
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But then I catch the words spilling out of his mouth. And my smile wavers.
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"Te toku-shto se nanesokha, a tya izglezhda kato edin ot onezi mrŭsni bogatashi. Mislya, che moga da vzema dopŭlnitelni $5000 ot neya za prozortsite. Mislish li, che shte go kupi?"
They just moved in, and she looks like one of those filthy rich ones. I think I can get an extra $5000 from her for the windows. Think she'll buy it?
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My stomach twists.
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Five thousand dollars?!
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This man is sick. A full-blown con artist!
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That's more than some people make in a month. And he's scheming to squeeze it out of someone just because they look 'filthy rich.'
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The hell is wrong with people these days?
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He lets out a low laugh, wrapping up his call with a casual, "Chao, choveche." Bye, man.
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'Chao, choveche' my ass, you bloody swindler.
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I exhale slowly, forcing my smile back on as he approaches the counter, pretending I haven't heard a wink of him plotting daylight robbery.
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"Hi. What can I get you?" I ask, my voice sweet as maple syrup.
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I fix his order, hand it over, and watch as he leaves, my eyes tracking his every move through the window.
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He crosses the street and enters one of the residential houses—the one that's been empty for months.
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Seconds later, a moving truck rumbles past, pulling away from the curb.
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Someone just moved in.
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I'm guessing they're the unlucky ones about to get swindled by this scumbag.
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Looks like I've got new neighbors to say hello to.
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