Lunistra
Angeles Head Quarters

A few days later, Emily took the bus to Lunistra--Lunaria's capital city. Standing before the grand building, she tugged at the hem of her outfit, her best attempt at professionalism. It wasn't much--her mother's black coat over a blue pinstriped button-down shirt, and an old academy navy pencil skirt that thankfully still fit. She could feel the eyes of the people she passed on the way up to the top floor, their snickers only making her nerves more unravelled.

"Uh, I'm here to see Laurence Angeles about the, uh... internal job?" She told the receptionist when she arrived at the top floor. The woman behind the counter only hummed before buzzing her in, announcing over the receiver that 'a kid is looking for you, Laurence, it's about that vacancy thing you have.'

There was a pause and the lady said, "Go ahead sweetheart, they're ready for you." Emily instinctively ran her fingers through her brown hair, willing her lips to form a cheery smile despite the anxiety building up in her heart.

And so, Emily met Laurence Angeles... and the young CEO, Timothy Angeles. Commonly known as the Ice King, his reputation preceded him—aloof, brash, colder than the iceberg that sank the Diamond Cruise. Some said he was an Ice Mage, which only added to his mystique.

Emily didn't know much about Lunarian history, but she did know that Mages once ruled over the region, until they were overthrown by the non-magic users. The technology the Mages left behind, though, had helped Lunaria advance faster than the rest of the world, with the Mystic Grid powering everything.

She'd seen Timothy's name in the papers—a ruthless CEO always on the cutting edge of business ventures.

The first thing she saw when she walked into the office was Timothy, sitting behind a large glass table with Laurence reading something to him. Emily didn't want to sound cliché, but Timothy Angeles looked like he had been handcrafted by the gods. Too bad those gods had been so focused on his physical attributes that they forgot to give him any emotions.

Timothy looked positively bored. He had dark hair, a chiselled jaw, and grey eyes that held nothing but emptiness as he leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, a leg casually thrown over his knee. Emily felt her skin prickle, her gaze reluctantly lingering on him.

"So, you're applying for that internal position?" Laurence's voice broke through the tension, and Emily tore her eyes away from Timothy to focus on the man across from her. She nodded slowly, handing him her CV.

She was a jack of all trades, confident she could handle whatever the job demanded. After all, she'd been the one to juggle her family's needs for years.

"My name is Emily Choi, and my mum—she works for you. A supervisor at the shop in Freycrest." Laurence hummed as he flipped through her CV. Emily's eyes flicked around the room, admiring the sleek, modern furnishings that complemented the high-powered atmosphere. But before she could linger too long on the interior design, Laurence's question took her by surprise.

"Can you keep a secret, Ms. Choi?"

The words froze her for a moment. Was this job something shady? Maybe that's why they hadn't advertised it openly. Emily nodded, keeping her composure despite her growing unease. She could feel Timothy's eyes on her, sending a shiver down her spine. Was he testing her?

"We're hiring you, Ms. Choi, indefinitely of course. You don't have to worry, though. The wage is very good and it can anchor even your children in the future." Emily took a sharp breath at this.

It's like winning the lottery—minus the effort and spending money on lottery tickets! She's definitely in.

"Okay, what's the catch?" Because surely there was a catch. It's too perfect. There should be a downside to this job—everything has. Especially at the promise of securing her future children's future.

"Well, we will need your utmost confidentiality." Laurence paused, and Emily found herself leaning in, already suspecting where this was going. "We are hiring you as the temporary fiancée of the CEO."

Emily froze. Of course, it was going to be something shady. "We've prepared a character background for you as the part-time fiancée, but if you don't want to do this..." Laurence trailed off, his eyes shifting to Timothy, who had been silent the whole time.

Timothy arched a brow at her, his tone nonchalant, almost mocking. "The door is unlocked. You can walk away," he said, his voice smooth like ice. "But you may speak of this to no one." A faint smirk curled on his lips, but it didn't reach his eyes. The air around him was still, too still, like he was daring her to refuse.

She wanted to ask, 'Or what?', just to test him, but something about the way he sat there—so composed, so cold—made her hesitate. It was the same unsettling feeling she had when she arrived.

Still, her gaze flickered back to the deal on the table. Working at the flower shop hadn't been much help—her income was barely enough to cover her bills. This, however, was an opportunity. The kind that only comes once in a lifetime.

She didn't want to think about the consequences of saying yes, or how strange it felt to agree to something like this. It went against everything she believed in, but...

'It's for your family, Em. Suck it up.' She mentally steeled herself, and before she could second-guess herself, she looked at Laurence. "Where do I sign?"

Laurence didn't waste a moment. He slid a pen and paper toward her. Emily took the pen, her fingers cold and tight around it, and glanced at Timothy for any sign of reaction. But his face was unreadable, that same unnerving calm still there. She couldn't afford to back out now.

She drew in a shaky breath and signed the paper. The weight of the decision was heavier than she expected, but there was no turning back now.

The end justifies the means, right?

"Congratulations, Miss Choi. It looks like you're now temporarily engaged to me." Timothy smirked as he leaned into the table, fingers steepled under his chin.