"Williams." Answered Zaria, wondering why the man would ask for her surname and not her full name. Besides, if he knew so much about her, how come he didn't know her surname?

"Is that your father's second name, family name or is it your mother's family name?" He probed.

"My father's family name." She answered to shut the man up. Perhaps he had this peculiar way of striking conversations.

"What about your mother's name? I mean, her maiden name." Came the next question.

"Roatta. Lucy Roatta." She added before she could be asked about the first name.

"Oh." She caught a hint of disappointment in his tone and she wondered whether he was sad about not having anything to talk about anymore.

"What about you?" She asked.

"What about me?" The elderly man was either feigning ignorance or he was shocked that someone was interrogating him.

She dipped her head to make up for the difference in height. "What's your surname? And what are your parents' surnames? Also, what's your first name?" Her aim was to let the elderly know that his questions were making her uncomfortable.

However, the latter didn't seem to find them problematic as he answered all her questions.

"My surname is Su and my name is Nathaniel. You can call me Nat."

"Okay…" She was puzzled. How strange it must sound to use such a childish nickname on a man like him.

He soon switched back to business mode as he showed her around the hotel, and her feet were sore by the time they were done. Luckily she was not wearing high heels or she would have long fallen to the floor.

She took note of all the important aspects and what she needed to change, replace, and restyle.

Glancing at the time, Nathaniel offered, "You can choose any of the presidential suites to spend the night. Dinner will be served to you at the ring of a bell or if you wish, you can go to the restaurant at the lobby."

It was a tempting offer, but she had to reject it. "I need to get back to Imperium as soon as possible."

"Aw bummer." The elderly man drawled, making her wonder whether it was an impostor beside her. How could Nathaniel Su be so different from the intimidating man she had heard about?

"Can we at least be friends?" He asked in a coaxing tone and she could only nod. "Sure."

Luckily, the man's assistant came to look for him and it saved her the absurdity of whatever was going on.

Deciding not to think about it for too long, she went back to Imperium and arrived at 8pm, tired and famished.

Her father was yet to return from Luxenville and it made her more curious. What business did he have that took him so long? She gave him a call to confirm that he was doing alright before she started to prepare her dinner.

Her phone rang as she chopped the vegetables and she paused to answer it, recalling that she had yet to report the outcome to her boss.

"What's the news?" The man asked as soon as she answered the call. As expected, it was the reason why he had called.

"We won the bid. Regal Hotel now belongs to Preston and Fort Group." She chirped jovially.

"Good girl." He praised her in his deep voice. "Would you like a reward? No, what would you like as a reward?"

"You don't need to reward me." She quickly rejected it. How could she ask for a reward from her boss?

"But I want to." The man insisted, and she heard the sound of an engine that was on the other end of the line come to a stop before the man spoke again. "Come down."

"Huh? Down? As in at my apartment complex?" She was disoriented.

"Mmh. Don't keep me waiting." He hung up, leaving her confused.

She dropped the unchopped radish in her hand onto the chopping board and dashed to the balcony to peek. When she saw a familiar head of brown hair below, she blinked and rushed out to meet him.

The man turned around when he heard the sound of rushed footsteps. Zaria was no longer in her business attire, she was wearing a pair of shorts with a purple cotton t-shirt, and had an apron draped over her. Her hair was in a messy bun and some of the stray stands fluttered in the breeze as she rushed to him. He ran his eyes over her, thinking about how lovely it would be to see her like this every evening.

He couldn't resist grabbing her in a hug and kissing her neck.

She quickly tried to push him away. "Desmond, you can't do that here. It's a public zone!"

It was a large apartment complex and not everyone preferred to mind their own business.

Hearing her warning, he looked around before pulling her towards a wall. He pushed her against it and resumed kissing her. "Then I'll do it in private."

"You shouldn't either. We have an agreement." She protested, but that didn't stop him from running his thumb against her cheek.

"We do, don't we?" He laughed.

"Des…" The word was interrupted when his lips connected with hers in a fiery, impatient kiss. He pinned her against the wall as he held the back of her head in his hand, kissing her senseless.

"I missed you." He whispered before biting her lip and she whimpered. Her hand held onto his that was caressing her neck and moving down her chest, but she did not intend to stop him. When she felt his tongue pressing past her lips, she finally pressed onto his shoulder to push him away.

After getting pushed by her the last time in his mansion, he was more careful and paid more attention to her feelings. He was ready to break the kiss as soon as he felt any hint of discomfort from her. At the slightest tug, he stopped and took a step back.

"I don't want to create a headline." She wheeled her breath back to normal as organized her hair that had fallen out of the bun. She had already made the headlines before and the ending was not something she desired to happen ever again.

"You will not. No one dares to report news regarding the Fort Family." He let it slip. In a way, the lawsuit he had filed against F&P Media had its advantages. For instance, it was a stern warning that aside from the agencies he was in secret collaboration with, whoever dared to report anything about the Fort Family should prepare for their agency to shut down.

He was helpless when he saw that she was still regarding him with a gaze of displeasure. "Zaria, I did promise to give it time, but I can't stay away from you even if I try to."

"You never tried." She playfully punched his chest as she accused him.

"Would you like me to try?" His eyebrow quirked in amusement, she was probably the only woman who wanted to be away from the man she liked.

"I didn't say I wanted you to." She cleverly denied the claim, making him laugh.

"Your roundabout way of expressing affection is quite unique." He felt her shiver from the cold. Knowing that she did not have any intention to invite him into her house and the little puppy would growl at him, he held her in his arms to keep her warm and asked about the bid instead.

"Everything went smoothly." She answered in one statement, planning to send over a detailed report to him.

"Not everything. You look like you are in deep thought about something." He observed and probed.

"It's alright. It's just that I think Nathaniel is strange." She explained so he wouldn't mistake it for something huge and worry about her.

"There isn't a single day when that old devil hasn't been strange. Ignore him. Unless he did something out of line?" His voice turned deeper and threatening at the last statement.

"No, he didn't. He only kept asking me about my and my parents' surnames. What a bizarre method to get to know someone." She found it amusing and creepy at the same time.

"Must be a weird hobby of his. He once asked Natalie and I the same questions." He frowned and wondered what kind of hobby that was, but she was reassured.

"I need to go back." She wrapped her arms around him and pressed a kiss onto his lips, taking him by surprise. It was just a peck but he did not let go and instead deepened the kiss with his arms around her waist.

…

A few meters away, a man held his camera and checked out the photo he had just taken of the kissing couple. Although it was dim in the spot they were standing, the photo taken was of good quality so one could still recognize the man and woman.

The man grinned. "Zaria, my beautiful Zaria.. I bet you can't get yourself out of this." An evil smirk replaced his smile. "Don't worry, I'll help you."