Chapter 97: Julian’s Revenge Tease
Manhattan – Julian’s Penthouse Office
The skyline of New York City stretched endlessly beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, but Julian Ashcroft wasn’t admiring the view.
His jaw clenched as he swirled the amber liquid in his crystal glass, eyes fixed on the massive digital screen on the wall.
It was playing a replay of the Paris competition.
Specifically, Ava’s victory.
The way the crowd had cheered her na.
The way Margaux had declared her the winner.
The way Ryan Kim had kissed her like she had won more than just the title.
Julian threw the glass.
It shattered against the sleek marble floor, but he didn’t flinch.
Bethany, his ever-efficient assistant, sighed from across the room but didn’t react. She had seen this coming.
"Would you like
to schedule another eting with the glassware supplier?" she asked dryly, tapping away at her tablet.
Julian’s glare was lethal.
Bethany didn’t bother looking up. "You broke an entire set last month after the New York loss. They’re beginning to wonder if they should just send replacents on a weekly basis."
Julian took a deep breath, running a hand through his perfectly styled hair.
"I don’t want replacents," he muttered.
Bethany quirked a brow. "No? Then what do you want?"
Julian’s jaw tightened.
He wanted revenge.
---
"She Got Lucky."
Ethan Chase leaned against Julian’s desk, far too relaxed for soone who had also lost.
"She got lucky," Ethan repeated, swirling the ice in his drink. "That’s all it was."
Julian narrowed his eyes. "Luck?"
Ethan smirked. "What? You don’t believe in it?"
Julian’s fingers curled into fists. "Luck didn’t humiliate
on an international stage. Luck didn’t destroy my credibility. Ava Lee did."
Ethan’s smirk grew. "Which is why we take her down. Properly."
Bethany, still standing near the window, sighed. "Taking her down didn’t exactly work in New York. Or in Paris."
Julian’s gaze darkened. "Because we underestimated her."
Ethan set his drink down, stretching his arms behind his head. "So what’s the plan, boss?"
Julian exhaled sharply, turning toward the large holographic interface on his desk.
With a swipe of his hand, a new program loaded onto the screen.
Bethany stepped closer, eyes narrowing. "This isn’t the sa algorithm you used before."
Julian smirked. "No. It’s better."
Ethan leaned forward, intrigued. "What am I looking at?"
Julian’s voice was smooth. "The next phase of my empire."
The screen displayed the logo of a new matchmaking company.
Ethan raised an eyebrow. "You’re rebranding?"
Julian turned, his smirk sharp and calculating. "I’m evolving."
Bethany crossed her arms. "Let
guess. You’re making sure people don’t just trust their intuition this ti."
Julian chuckled. "People want certainty. They want guarantees." He gestured toward the screen. "This new platform doesn’t just match people. It predicts every outco of a relationship before it even begins."
Ethan let out a low whistle. "Damn. So you’re not just playing matchmaker anymore. You’re playing God."
Julian’s smirk widened.
Bethany, however, didn’t look convinced. "And how, exactly, does this help with Ava?"
Julian turned to her, eyes gleaming with sothing dangerous.
"She built her career on the idea that human instinct and emotion are stronger than data."
Ethan nodded. "Yeah, and it works. Unfortunately."
Julian’s smirk didn’t falter. "But what if I prove she’s wrong?"
Bethany hesitated. "You’re not just targeting Ava." She glanced at the logo flashing on the screen. "You’re targeting the entire industry."
Julian exhaled dramatically. "Oh, Bethany. Have you not been paying attention?"
Ethan chuckled, shaking his head. "The guy doesn’t just want revenge. He wants domination."
Julian poured himself another drink, satisfaction rolling off him in waves.
"This ti," he murmured, "there won’t be any ’luck’ involved."
---
Ethan’s Side Mission
After the eting, Ethan caught up with Bethany in the hallway, falling into step beside her.
"You don’t buy it," he noted, watching her closely.
Bethany didn’t glance at him. "I don’t buy a lot of things."
Ethan smirked. "And yet, you stay."
Bethany sighed. "Because Julian’s not wrong. His thods are questionable, but his instincts? They’re dangerous."
Ethan tilted his head. "And Ava?"
Bethany finally stopped walking, turning to him. "Ava’s the only one who can stop him."
Ethan chuckled. "And you think she will?"
Bethany exhaled, tucking her tablet under her arm.
"I think," she murmured, "that she doesn’t have a choice."
Ethan’s smirk deepened.
"Then let’s make it fun."
Bethany rolled her eyes and walked away, but Ethan just grinned.
Because this was only the beginning.
And Ava Lee had no idea what was coming.
---
Back Ho – A Temporary Peace
For the first ti in weeks, Ava Lee woke up without an alarm, without the pressure of an imminent competition, and—thankfully—without Julian Ashcroft’s smug face lingering in her nightmares.
Instead, she woke up to the warm scent of fresh coffee and the distant hum of Ryan moving around in the kitchen.
She sighed, stretching lazily under the covers. Her bed—their bed now—was warm, the sheets still tangled from the night before.
The past few days had been a whirlwind.
Winning the L’Amour ??lite competition.
Spending one more night in Paris with Ryan before flying ho.
Returning to her cozy apartnt that suddenly felt much smaller now that Ryan was part of her life in a very permanent way.
She smiled sleepily, pushing back the covers and slipping on Ryan’s button-down shirt, which had sohow ended up on the floor last night.
When she padded out into the kitchen, Ryan was standing at the counter, barefoot, wearing sweatpants and an old college T-shirt, flipping pancakes like he did this every morning.
Ava leaned against the doorfra, arms crossed. "So this is what retirent from matchmaking looks like?"
Ryan glanced over his shoulder, flashing a grin that made her stomach flip. "Not retirent. A well-earned break."
Ava huffed, walking toward the counter. "I don’t take breaks."
Ryan smirked, flipping another pancake. "Exactly why I’m making you one."
She narrowed her eyes. "So you bribed
with food?"
Ryan set the spatula down, leaning one hand against the counter as he crowded into her space. "Bribery is such a strong word. I prefer persuasion."
Ava rolled her eyes, but her cheeks ward when Ryan slid his arms around her waist, pulling her against him.
"Let
take care of you for once, Matchmaker Extraordinaire," he murmured against her ear, his breath warm against her skin.
Ava’s stomach fluttered, but she scoffed to cover it up. "Fine. But if the pancakes are burnt, I reserve the right to judge you forever."
Ryan chuckled, pressing a quick, lazy kiss to her cheek. "Deal."
---
Life Without Chaos...?
After breakfast, Ava and Ryan settled into sothing dangerously close to normal.
It was weird.
It was too quiet.
No matchmaking conventions.
No sabotages.
No Julian.
Just lazy mornings, shared coffees, and Ryan stealing her socks for no apparent reason.
"Ryan," Ava called from the living room, flipping through a few unread emails. "Where’s my laptop charger?"
Ryan, from the kitchen: "No idea."
Ava narrowed her eyes, pushing off the couch and heading toward the bedroom.
Where she found Ryan sitting at her desk, using her charger for his own laptop.
Ava crossed her arms. "Excuse ?"
Ryan didn’t even pretend to be guilty. He just smirked, leaning back in the chair. "I’m legally borrowing it."
Ava lifted an eyebrow. "You’re a divorce lawyer. You should know ’borrowing’ implies that you’re giving it back."
Ryan grinned. "I’ll return it eventually. Maybe. If I feel like it."
Ava scoffed, walking toward him. "You are the worst."
Ryan caught her hand before she could snatch the charger, pulling her onto his lap instead.
"Am I, though?" he murmured, his hands warm against her thighs, his breath teasing her skin.
Ava tried to glare, but her face betrayed her when her cheeks flushed.
"You’re... a nace," she muttered, but she didn’t pull away.
Ryan chuckled, brushing his lips against her bare shoulder. "And yet, here you are. Hopelessly in love with ."
Ava groaned. "I take it back. I regret everything."
Ryan laughed, tucking his chin against her neck as she buried her face in his shoulder.
No more chaos.
No more competitions.
Just them.
For the first ti in forever, it felt like they had all the ti in the world.
---
Later that afternoon, i barged in unannounced, as usual.
"Why do you even have a key?" Ava groaned as her grandmother sauntered into the living room, Harold following close behind, balancing a tray of homade cookies.
i smirked. "Darling, you think I wouldn’t have a key to my favorite granddaughter’s apartnt?"
Ava pinched the bridge of her nose. "I’m your only granddaughter."
"Which makes you my favorite!" i clapped her hands. "Anyway, I just wanted to check in! You’ve been suspiciously quiet."
Ryan, who had been lounging on the couch, smirked. "Maybe we just wanted peace."
i gasped dramatically. "Peace? In this family? Impossible."
Harold chuckled as he set the cookies down. "I told her not to bother you two."
i waved him off. "Nonsense. I had to make sure my matchmaking masterpiece was thriving."
Ava sighed. "I am not your matchmaking masterpiece."
i bead, nudging Ryan. "Tell , dear, has she finally admitted that I was right all along?"
Ryan’s grin was infuriating. "Oh, she definitely knows you were right. She’s just stubborn."
Ava smacked his arm.
i looked entirely too pleased with herself.
"Well, then! My work here is done. I have a Mahjong ga to get to." She grabbed a cookie from the tray and waltzed back toward the door.
Harold, before leaving, leaned in toward Ava and whispered:
"Good job landing a lawyer, dear. We always knew you had good instincts."
Ava nearly choked on air.
Ryan snickered.
And just like that, i and Harold left as quickly as they had arrived.
Ava turned to Ryan, narrowing her eyes. "I hate that they know everything."
Ryan shrugged, pulling her onto the couch with him. "They just love you. And, in fairness, i called this before either of us did."
Ava sighed, dropping her head against his shoulder. "We’re never going to live this down, are we?"
Ryan pressed a lazy kiss to her temple. "Nope."
And honestly?
Ava didn’t even mind.
---
anwhile... Back in Manhattan
As Ava and Ryan enjoyed their quiet, post-competition bliss, Julian Ashcroft was crafting his next move.
And soon, their peaceful little world would co crashing down.
But for now, neither of them had a clue.
For now, all Ava knew was that she was happy.
And for Ryan?
He wasn’t about to let anyone take that away from her.
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