Why was this question coming up now? Weren’t they just happily reminiscing about their shared traumatic childhood? How did the subject suddenly switch?

Avoiding his direct gaze, Valentina contemplated her options.

Tell him the truth, that she was in a contract with Kaiser to help Luca, but some feelings had developed between the two of them?

No way!

Not only was it none of his business, but she also actually wasn’t sure where the relationship with Kaiser was going? Although he joked about her becoming Luca’s stepmother all the time, it wasn’t something she took seriously and even thought about.

No.

It seemed the best answer was no answer at all.

“None of your business.” Valentina replied blandly before continuing to eat her food.

Mmmm, mushrooms. Sweet potatoes. Spicy beef shank. So delicious. Yum.

“Why are you living in his house then?” Rio doubled down, his brows furrowing as he glared at her.

“No comment.”

“Don’t tell me you plan on dating him or you're in love with him?”

“No comment."

“Is he the one that’s helping to break your contract and facilitating your switch to Platinum Entertainment? Val, you need to be smart and not mix business and pleasure. Do you know how much money it costs to break a contract?! You won't be in a position to refuse anything he asks of you. Not to talk of how it would tarnish your reputation if it were ever found out by the public! Use your brain a little!” Rio scolded her angrily.

Valentina stared at him as her eyes narrowed.

“I said it was none of your business Rio. Do you see me grilling you about who you’re associating with or how you live your life? I'm not stupid, okay? I am properly thinking everything through and not jumping into anything. So just mind the business that pays you and stay out of mine.” Valentina retorted coldly, not backing down in the slightest.

Staring at her for a moment, Rio sighed, “Look, you're an adult and can make your own decisions. But we’re friends, and I care. I'm just saying that getting involved with someone like Kaiser Grayson, especially when he could be your future boss, is a bad idea. These wealthy folks don’t think like regular people, and they never do anything for free, even if that’s what they say.

There is always a catch, always a hidden price that has to be paid, and you might think you have it handled, but it will always rear its ugly head when it needs something from you. I'm afraid that you’re just looking at everything in a naïve light.

Plus, the public hates celebrities who sell their bodies to wealthy individuals to advance their careers… not that I'm insinuating that you're doing so. I trust your character!” He immediately corrected himself as he saw those brilliant green eyes flashing with rage as her chopsick stabbed a piece of meat in her bowl.

It looked as if she wanted to take those chopsticks and stab them through his heart!

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Glaring at Rio, Valentina wanted to shout at him. Instead, she sighed before calming down her anger and lowering her tone. Although his words were wrong, she could clearly hear the concern in his tone.

And it was something that she had thought of as well that constantly weighed on her mind. Should she trust Kaiser? Should she continue accepting his goodwill and believe the words he said, or should she

If you had asked her a couple of months ago, she would have definitely replied- ‘Run! Run far away!’ but recently, her mind had been changing.

It was nice to feel wanted. It was nice for somebody to do things for her without holding it against her. Was it so wrong for her to enjoy this after a lifetime of struggling and fighting for herself?

Even now, she was tied to a system that clearly wasn’t on her side, and the only person who had helped her in a meaningful way was Rio, yes, but mainly Kaiser.

He had always shown her a dependable side and made handling issues that plagued her look easy. She genuinely liked spending time with him, and it didn’t hurt that he was easy on the eyes. As she had promised Kaiser, she would try just this once.

She just had to make Rio understand that.

“By your own words, we shouldn’t be friends since you're one of those wealthy people who is treating me well with an ulterior motive that I know nothing about. Since that’s how you think, I’ll quickly finish my food, pay my half of the bill, and take my leave. Since I can't trust you to be my friend and do things for me out of the goodness of your heart.”

“It’s not the same-“

“What’s not the same about it?” Valentina quickly interrupted him before continuing, “Grenier, right? Their amoung the top 10 families in the country. Your family has more influence and money than most people will ever see in their entire life. By the standards you’re using to judge Kaiser, you fit into those same very standards. Kaiser and I are friends, and even if we were more than that, it doesn’t concern you. Every point you’ve made is something that I've thought about and am prepared to deal with. If you keep talking about it, I’ll leave.”

Rio gave her a skeptical look, not believing it for one moment, but he let it be for now rather than ruin their time together. Holding his hands up in surrender, he sighed.

“Fine. Fine. You’ve made your point. I'm just saying be careful, okay? As a man, I know that other man rarely does things out of the goodwill of their hearts. They always expect a reward even if they don’t come out and say it.”

“Is that what you're doing? Expecting a reward while pretending to be nice to me from the goodness of your heart?” Valentina asked seriously. She considered Rio a friend, one of the few that she had in this new life, but if that’s how he thought of her, she would distance herself.

At her words, Rio’s face darkened, and he looked truly angry.

“Stop comparing him to me! He and I are not the same. I’ve already told you that I'm not like that. Even though I have this last name, I'm just a regular person at heart. I'm just really worried for you. You let men approach you too easily. Look at how you let the host from the show ask you out today. You need to be firm when speaking with men.”

“That’s easy for you to say. You’re already established and a man to boot. I'm already working with a negative reputation. If I do anything that they don’t like, I can be blackballed by the industry.” Valentina griped.

“What does me being a man have to do with anything? I get hit on all the time by female hosts.”

“Uh-huh. And if you say no in a rude manner, they move on. If I don’t decline things in a polite and soft manner, they’ll say all sorts of things about me. I bet if you ask any woman in the industry, they’ll argue with me. You men have it so easy, and yet you dare to complain. I want to be a man in my next life!”

“You…really like him, don’t you, considering that you’re defending him like this and changing the subject like that, huh?” Although he did his best to hide his feelings, his words still sounded a bit bitter.

“Who knows? Either way, it’s none of your business.”

Rio: “……”

Seeing her sly smile and the slight blush on her cheeks, he took back the words he wanted to say and sighed.

Clearly, this was a sore subject with her, and there would be no getting through to her. Time to change the subject!

Clearing his throat, he quickly brought up a different topic.

“What about you and Aaliyah? How’s that relationship going?”

“What relationship?” Valentina snorted in disdain. “It’s as terrible as ever, and I have no plans of making it better.”

“I knew it was bad, but I didn’t think she would push you down the stairs in front of everybody. Wait…was Kaiser Grayson the one who helped you resolve that?”

“Who knows?” Valentina didn’t confirm or deny his speculation.

“Suspicious. Hmmm?” Rio gave her a skeptical look, causing her to laugh.

“Hmmm? Hmmm?”

“Hmmm, hmmm, hmmm, hmmm?”

“Hmmm, hmmm, hmmm, hmmm, hmmmmm?”

“You’re stupid.” Rio rolled his eyes, stopping their silly little game and causing her to laugh once more.

“Takes one to know one.”

“Just eat your food.” Rio sighed before digging into his own meal.

He would let it go just this once, but he would have to corner Roman and ask him what his brother’s intentions were.

It wasn’t that he was jealous of the way Valentina kept protecting Kaiser and the way Kaiser seemed to slip easily into her life and integrate himself with her; he just wanted to keep her from harm, especially after they reconnected.

After they finished eating, the two of them got some milk tea and walked to a nearby park. They sat on a park bench and chatted as Rio relayed what he remembered of her while they grew up.

She found out that he was an only child and very close to his mother. She also found out that she was apparently close to the woman as well.

Slowly, the life that the original Valentina had filled her mind, and she felt a bit sad. If only the girl was around to see that someone remembered her fondly and missed her.

As the sun began to set, she felt as if she should head home, but when Rio offered to take her to his favorite taco spot and beer spot, promising that it would be the best thing she ever tasted, she couldn’t resist going along with him.