the wind while tugging her scarf tighter to her throat. If there was something New York didn't joke about, it was the winters. A breeze nipped at her skin and she shivered before entering the mall.

Anthony dropped her off at the block and she had been the smart one who decided to walk the rest of the way in order to avoid traffic. Christmas music blared inside the place and delicate snowflakes and candy canes lined the walls. There were many shoppers, all hurrying to get home and out of the crowd.

For the tenth time today, Nyla regretted the fact that she did not do her shopping earlier on. At least that way, she would have been able to avoid the herd of shoppers. The last few weeks had been particularly busy for Nyla. They were getting ready for the release of the vitamins in time for New Years Eve and she needed to approve everything.

Her and Darius went back and forth, arguing about everything from packaging to the size of the pills. It was time consuming, but a buzz was forming around the release. Just last night, Nyla finalized a list of health advocates and lifestyle bloggers that would be receiving the vitamins in advance so they could display it to their followers. It wasn't a traditional method of marketing and Darius' team had argued in favour of billboards and print advertisements.

Nyla had flat-out refused.

She'd told them that while they might be knowledgeable about drugs, the beauty industry worked in different ways. The old ways of marketing no longer applied to makeup and she slowly backed her information with numbers from Renne's internal reports.

She was exhausted and the last thing she wanted to do was to shop but she had a few gifts to buy. She'd purchased Hyeon's gift earlier on in the day, an all-inclusive trip to a resort in Hawaii, something that had been on a secretary's list for a while. Now she needed to purchase the most difficult gift—for her nephews.

Though Nyla and her sister were not on speaking terms, Nyla did send her nephews a Christmas present every year. She wasn't sure if they received it or if her sister told them who it was from, but it made her hopeful that her nephews might be playing with things she'd bought them. She didn't know what to purchase for them this year. Her eldest nephew was turning nine and the younger one was four. Looking around the mall, Nyla entered the first toy shop.

It was absolute mayhem. It seemed like every parent and child in New York City was inside the shop. It was hard to walk through the crowd, but Nyla managed to squeeze between a group of children starring at a display. She came to the section where cars lined the wall. She didn't know much about the toy vehicles; however, she selected the largest one there. That ought to keep the four-year-old happy.

She didn't know what to get the nine-year-old. She turned around and bumped into a child that was running through the aisle. He fell to the ground. Nyla panicked immediately, wondering if he would start crying.

She placed the car beside her on the floor and helped him up. "Are you okay? I'm sorry I bumped into you."

The boy looked up to her with wide eyes before brushing her arm away. "I'm fine."

He looked at the toy on the ground beside him, "Are you buying that for yourself?"

Nyla smiled in spite of herself. "No," she said softly. "It's for my nephew."

He wrinkled his nose. "Did he write it on his Christmas list?"

Nyla shook her head again, "I was trying to surprise him, but why were you asking?"

"Cars are old," he said in a matter-of-fact tone. "It's all about video games now."

"Which video games?"

"Fortnite, but there are other games too like Call of Duty and NBA."

Nyla looked at the gift in her hands and decided that she would give it to her youngest nephew but for the older one, she would buy a video game. "Do you mind helping me pick out a video game?"

The kid looked at her suspiciously before glancing around and shrugging his shoulders. "I don't see my parents right now, but I suppose I could help you."

An hour later, Nyla left the store with a large bag in her hands. The kid had helped her purchase a new gaming system, the PS4 and a bunch of games that would go with it. Nyla's eyes had gotten wide at the price, but she swiped her credit card anyways. She really hoped that her nephews enjoyed their gift because it might be the only one they would get until next Christmas. Nyla had also bought the kid that helped her a few games as well and the smile that he gave her was worth it. She'd met his parents and they had thanked her profusely as well.

Feeling a lot lighter than she had before entering the mall, Nyla walked around. She was about to make her way to the exit but something stopped her. Internally debating, Nyla wondered if she should get Darius a Christmas present or not. Friends got each other gifts, didn't they?

Sighing, Nyla returned back to the throng of shoppers. She went into a few stores but didn't like anything they had to offer. Ties were quite a boring gift and she was certain that Darius had plenty of them. Shoes were too subjective, and she didn't know Darius' size either. Feeling dejected, Nyla was about to screw it all before she passed a suit shop.

She remembered that Raymond enjoyed personalizing his cufflinks, maybe Darius did as well. She entered the shop, bags in hand. "Do you guys do personalized cufflinks?"

The man behind the counter nodded. He was dressed respectably in a bottle green suit. Nyla eyed him critically. The suit seemed to mold to his body and didn't have any awkward shaping. It seemed like the store owners knew what they were doing.

Placing the bags down, Nyla requested to see some of the cufflinks they sold. The man brought out a tray with a few dozen lined on the velvet fabric.

Nyla picked up the closest one and eyed it critically. "Does this have any diamonds?"

The man nodded. "The three at the top are diamonds."

She liked the designs that they had but she had her own idea of what she wanted. She asked for a piece of paper and sketched out the design she was imagining. The man nodded and said that the cufflinks would be ready in a couple of days. Satisfied, Nyla left the mall. She couldn't wait to go home and cuddle under her blankets, away from the snow and people.

♠♠♠♠♠♠

"The only thing we might have to worry about is the press asking if the vitamins will lead to a drug addiction."

Nyla watched out the corner of her eye to see Darius' jaws tightening.

"They might ask about Mr. Giordano's drug addiction, and how he's doing." The man finished.

Nyla knew that the man had hit a sour spot. After the day at the gym, it was an unspoken rule, they didn't talk about Vincent. Nyla didn't know if Darius had visited him in the rehab facility, but she did know that he didn't want to talk about it, and she respected that—even if others didn't.

Darius gritted his teeth. "Vincent is doing fine; the press shouldn't be asking questions like that anyways."

The man looked to argue but Nyla shut him down. "If it comes to that, we will be ready to deal with it. Until then, it's better to drop the subject."

The man nodded and Nyla smiled politely. "Is there anything else you would like to address?"

He shook his head before exiting the room. Nyla watched as the employees all left one by one until only her and Darius remained in the boardroom.

"Are you okay?"

Darius nodded tersely, and Nyla let the subject drop. "That man loves to argue."

Darius snorted. "He gets on my nerves. Not to mention there have been continuous errors in his reports."

"Why is he still employed then?"

"He won't be for much longer." Darius vowed. "I've found a replacement. You might remember her from the conference in San Francisco, her name was Everly?"

Nyla narrowed her eyes. "That can't be right. She interviewed for a job at Renne headquarters and I'm planning to hire her myself."

The two glared at one another. It seemed like they were competing for the same employee. "I'll be making an offer to her by today."

"Not if I can help it," Nyla mumbled.

Darius grinned at her. "You should just give up. I know she'll be working here in a couple of weeks. Being Vice President of a Marketing Department is not something everyone can give up."

"Well she might if she get's to be the President of the Marketing Department at Renne." Nyla said with a smug smile.

Darius was no longer grinning at her. "She'll get better hours and more mentorship in my company."

Nyla shrugged her shoulders. "If she's looking for a mentor, she needs not to look any further. I'll be there assisting her anyway she needs it."

They locked eyes and something sparked between them.

"What do you want to bet that she'll sign with me?"

Nyla thought about it for a moment. "Your secretary should be a fine prize."

"Oliva? You want her?"

Nyla nodded. She didn't really need his secretary, but she would enjoy the day he would have without her. She knew how important secretaries were and everything could be screwed up without them. Just thinking about the frustration Darius would experience brought a smile upon her lips.

"If I win, I want you to do an interview with Sona and tell the media that you think I'm wonderful."

Nyla snorted. "Is your ego really that fragile that you need me to help you build it?"

Darius shook his head. "It's not, but I also know that you hate interviews and complimenting me so I think it will be the perfect punishment."

The two shook hands, holding on longer than was necessary. Nyla glanced into his blue eyes to see the determination. She knew the same feeling was reflected in her own.

"May the best negotiator win."

Nyla echoed the statement and released his hand. She gave him a nod before leaving the boardroom. The first thing she did was call Hyeon and order her secretary to set up a meeting with the head of Human Resources. It was time for her to win a bet, and an employee.

♠♠♠♠♠♠

"That would be perfect, I'll see you in a couple of days then?"

The voice on the other line confirmed yes and Nyla hung up the phone with a smile. It had been a long drawn out battle with Darius but like she expected, she won. Everly had just sent over the signed contracts and was due to start working at Renne soon. It was a good victory for her. She couldn't wait to see Darius agitated expression.

There was a light tap on the door before Hyeon entered. "Is your phone call done?"

Nyla nodded.

"So?" Hyeon probed. "Did she accept the offer."

Nyla smiled. "We will be having a new employee join our ranks soon."

Hyeon squealed, pushing her glasses further back. "When she came in for the interview, I really liked her. She asked for my name and wanted to know more about my position. I think she'll be a great fit for the company."

"As do I."

Now Nyla only had to break the news to Hyeon that Olivia would be joining them in the office for a day. Seeing Hyeon's happy expression, she decided to delay that piece of information for a later time.

"I came to call you to the office party now. Everything's been set up on the floor now. It's in a full swing."

Nyla logged off her computer and grabbed her phone. "I'm ready, let's go."

She closed her office door softly before walking towards the elevator. The C-Suites were empty as most of the members had left for the Holiday party that Renne hosted. It was done on the lowest floors of the office which had the most open space. They rode the elevator down and Nyla could hear the employees having a good time.

This was the one place in which employees were able to relax with her. Nyla never made a grand speech, preferring to blend in the shadows and let the people have a good time. As Nyla entered the room, she had to admit that Zoey's team had done an excellent job. The young woman knew her taste well. Soft powder white and blue streams went across the walls. Wreaths adorned the empty spaces in between. It looked liked a winter wonderland.

She joined the groups and mingled around. For the most part, they avoided talking about work but at one point, George pulled her aside for an update on the vitamins. She gave it to him, and he looked satisfied. For the next couple of hours, Nyla relaxed and enjoyed a few champagnes as well as listened to the rest of the employees have a good time. It brought a smile upon her face to see that they were enjoying the party.

Nyla was about to make her way to the food table to grab another spring roll when Hyeon approached her.

"You have someone waiting for you upstairs."

Nyla promptly dropped the spring roll back on the table, "Who?"

Hyeon shrugged her shoulders. "Security didn't tell me; all I know is that they are waiting on the top floor."

Nyla shrugged the uneasiness from her body and quietly exited the room. She rode the elevator back to the top floor to see that there was still silence. A faint light glowed towards her office and she walked only to see Darius standing in front of her office door. He did not look happy.

"How did you nab her?" The question was asked in a cool tone, but Nyla knew better.

She slowly back away as Darius advance only to hit the wall of her closed office. She tried turning the knob, but it was shut without her key. Darius continued prowling towards her until he was only centimetres away. The tip of his leather shoes touched her nude pumps.

She tried feigning ignorance. "What are you talking about?"

Darius eyes got darker. "Don't play with me, you know exactly what I'm talking about. One-minute Everly's ready to sign a deal with me the next minute I receive a call that she'll be working with you starting the new year."

Nyla smiled, "Maybe she just finds me more charming that you do." To rub it in a little further so continued on. "I'll be waiting for you to send over Olivia in the next couple of days."

Darius sighed, but didn't back away. "Maybe she did find you charming, you do have a knack for saying things to please people." The words were uttered in a soft, breezy tone.

Nyla looked up to see Darius' face inches from her own. His blue eyes were bright, she could see the rim of black surrounding them. Not for the first time in months, she wondered what the stubble on his cheek would feel like under her fingers. She itched to touch it but refrained from doing so. The two of them stood there in silence, aware of each other but not moving an inch.

That's when Darius looked up, above Nyla's head and a small smile made its way onto his face. Nyla didn't have time to see what he'd seen because seconds later, Darius lips were inches away from hers. She hadn't been this close to him since the photoshoot.

"What are you doing?" she breathed.

"Mistletoe," he said before his mouth captured hers.

Nyla didn't know if she was dreaming, but Darius' lips were upon hers. Gently coxing her, bit by bit, to join him. After she realized that it was not a dream, she began kissing him back earnestly. They lip didn't collide with one another, instead they ascended into a large wave the gently touched the shores before rising once again.

Darius arms came around Nyla's waist and he pulled her closer to him. Nyla made a noise of protest but that was quickly cut away with another kiss. Nyla couldn't believe this was happening. Deep inside of her, she knew that there were sparks between them, but they had always done a good job of quenching them. It seemed like the volcano exploded and the both of them couldn't stop.

Nyla reached her hand to touch Darius beard. The hair was soft, something she didn't expect. Darius groaned beneath her breath as separated for a moment and their eyes met.

"You'll be the death of me," he whispered the words, causing Nyla to shiver.

They stared at one another, still in an embrace, her hand on his face and his on her waist. The moment was broken, and Darius was the first one to step away. Nyla felt the lost of warmth right away.

He avoided looking into her eyes, "I have to go."

Nyla opened her mouth, but she found out that she couldn't say anything. Instead, she leaned against the office door and watched Darius retreating figure. Catching her breath, she wondered how was it possible to feel so hot one moment and cold the next?

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*Ducks behind the wall* Was this the chapter you all were waiting for? ;)