Hearing his words, Valentina closed her eyes for a moment and thought through Kaiser's explanation. Although there might be some risk, the way Kaiser outlined everything made it seem possible to not only get out of Black Rock Entertainment scott-free but she could whack them and Aaliyah in the back and make them suffer a bit. Although it was a bit selfish, she had no attachments to the company and anyone in it. If Kaiser truly made them suffer the way he planned, the most she would do was light a candle and pray for them when she remembered.
Although she might have to deal with the media during the case and carefully watch her step, no matter how she looked at it, the pros outweighed the cons, and if things played out the way Kaiser expected them to, she wouldn't be in Kaiser's debt any more than she already was.
As she opened her eyes, she looked into his gray ones and, ready to give him a reply, the system blared out with a message, causing her to flinch.
[Warning!]
[Warning The Host to watch your actions. Or there will be dire consequences.]
[Advising the host to rethink your actions as this might be detrimental to the host's future and cause irreparable damage to your bond with the Salazar family.]
Seeing the warning, she immediately lost her temper.
'I haven't settled the score with you about the contract and fines, and you want to complain when someone is actually helping me? Do you know what's detrimental to my future? Staying at a company where I'm hated and have no opportunity to work. Being slapped for no reason! So you can take your advice or warning and shove it where the sun doesn't shine because I don't care!'
Valentina mentally imagined all the wrestling combos she could use to beat up the system.
"Are you okay? You seem angry." Kaiser asked concernedly, his hands touching her brows as they furrowed once more.
Smiling brightly at him and ignoring the system's continuous warnings with all her strength, Valentina continued what she was going to say.
"Yeah, I just got a headache at the thought of something really annoying, but it's fine. As you told me before, I'm on your side and no one else's. And those people are not my family. So whatever happens to the Salazar's or Black Rock Entertainment has nothing to do with me. I'm happy to contribute however I can, whether it be selling a relationship, acting as an innocent lamb in public, or playing dumb with Aaliyah. As long as you don't cause me harm and tell me what you plan, use me as you see fit. Anything I can do to help, I'm willing to do."
She intentionally doubled down while daring the system to do something to her, and although it continued giving warnings, the intensity dropped once she verbally agreed with Kaiser.
"Good. Then we'll get to work immediately." Kaiser gave her a sharp smile.
"But regarding the faux ambiguous relationship, who is going to be? Jonathan or Rio?" as she asked the question, she couldn't help but laugh as Kaiser's face twisted into a frown as if he had just eaten something sour.
"Neither. I don't want you in a fake relationship with any of them. Even as an ambiguous friendship." Kaiser sulked as he responded grumpily.
"Why are you changing your mind? Isn't this your idea?"
"It is, but somehow I don't like it. Jonathan is my little cousin and the Grenier kid...I just don't like him." As he pulled her onto his lap, she willingly sat sideways, draping her legs over the arm of the chair while laughing at his silliness.
"Well, it has to be one of them. I'm filming with Jonathan, so I'd rather not start anything ambiguous there, especially with Aaliyah around. Plus, if we're still together in the future, I don't want to be linked to any dating rumors with your cousin. And although the 72 demonic pillars are scary, are they really that bad? Technically, nothing has happened to me apart from some silly comments, and considering some footage that might come out from the music video, Rio is probably the better option. Besides, Rio and I are actually friends."
"What footage?" Kaiser asked with narrowed eyes.
"Hmm? Did I say footage?" Valentina pretended to be innocent as she looked away but could feel his arms tighten around her as his expression soured even more.
"Yes. You said footage? Of what?"
"It's a secret. It hasn't been released yet, and I hope it never will be. But if it is, you have to remember that you can't be upset about my work."
"Is that right?" Kaiser replied grumpily as he secretly vowed to ask Roman to acquire the BTS footage of the MV.
"It is. You promised." She replied firmly, not even giving him a glance.
"...fine. Actually, considering the viciousness of that person's fans, it might be better to use him to lead the charge of public opinion. They're organized like a military and are better than buying thousands of bloggers. If they can be conquered, they are good to have on your side. It seems that I'll have to speak with him after all." Kaiser muttered in distaste.
Seeing Kaiser seemingly not want to say Rio's name, Valentina couldn't help but laugh at his silliness. He was the one who suggested it, yet he was also the one who was against it. Make it make sense.
"Come to my office tomorrow to meet with the lawyers to begin the prep process and hash out the details so you'll have no issues working. I'll have a police officer come as well to collect your statement, and you can take a look at the platinum entertainment contract as well."
"Okay. It will have to be after lunch, though. I want to go see Lia in the morning and stop by my apartment if I have time."
"I'll have a bodyguard come to the house then to take you around with the driver. If possible, do you mind bringing Luca along with you when you come to the office?"
"I thought I couldn't take him out due to Fallen Angels fans?"
"As long as it's from the house straight to the office, it should be fine. I just want him to get out a little, but if you don't want to, you don't have to bring him."
"No, I'll bring him. I need to spend as much time with him as I can before I leave. And you two need to spend more time together as well. You can't be at work every day and not make time for your son even if you're busy. That's bad parenting." She shot him a firm look until he nodded in acceptance.
"Okay, I will try."
"Not try, do it. And...thank you for your help with Black Rock Entertainment and Aaliyah and just everything. I really thought I was screwed."
"Of course, it's what I should do. But if you really feel thankful, you can give me a kiss for all the hard work I'll be doing for the next couple of months. I accept other forms of payment as well. I remember a certain threat to mark me up." Kaiser told her with a wink.
"You are something else," Valentina muttered. The man never stopped with his flirting.
"So I've been told. Is that a no?" laughing lightly, Kaiser swept his thumb lightly over the lush pink lips, marveling at the soft sensation over his fingers.
As her tongue lightly swept over his finger, leaving a warm trail as she languidly licked it while looking directly into his eyes, he felt his body twitch and his throat dry up.
"When did I say that?" Valentina asked in a low tone as she swept her tongue over his finger before briefly sucking it for a couple of seconds.
Smirking at Kaiser's rare stunned appearance, she easily got up and placed one knee in between his legs before resting her entire weight on it and leaning on him.
Draping her arms on his shoulders, she kissed her way down from his temple down to his neck before circling a spot with her tongue and lightly sucking it as his hands tightened around her waist.
Done decorating his neck in a location that couldn't be hidden by the collar of his shirt, she pulled back to observe her handiwork with a satisfied smile on her face.
"Payment delivered."
"You're going to leave me like this? Shall we continue?" Kaiser brushed his neck with his hand while looking at her with eyes that indicated if she said yes, she would find herself being thrown on a bed somewhere.
"Absolutely not, and I've kept my promise to mark you up. Go work hard for the rest of your reward." Valentina leaned down and pressed a kiss to his cheek.
"Wicked girl." Before she could pull back, he turned his face so his lips touched hers, and before she could react, pulled her close with a swift kiss, his tongue sweeping her mouth until she opened up and allowed him in. His hot fingers tangled in the back of her head, pulling her head close to his as he nipped and tasted every corner of her mouth until she was breathless and dizzy.
As she stood there panting, he got up with a satisfied smirk, adjusted himself, and headed toward the door.
As he was about to leave, Kaiser pointed his finger at her.
"Since Black Rock sent you this complaint, and you're quitting anyway, I'm sure they're not paying for your travel. Contact Roman so he can get you your flight to the film location and get him to give you the details on how to ship all the things you need to the right address. I can assure you that two boxes will not be enough for the duration of the shoot, and you don't want to be lacking anything, especially as you'll be in the limelight due to the legal battle about to start. You're nominally a part of Platinum Entertainment now, and none of our artists fly economy unless they're being punished, so pack everything you need and don't be shy about it. There are more suitcases downstairs, just ask the butler and If you need anything else, just send Roman to get it for you. He's good at running errands."
"You want me to use your brother, the CEO of Platinum Entertainment, as my personal errand boy to prepare my travel?"
"Why not? He's a good errand boy, so use him well. He needs to earn his paycheck somehow, and getting in the good books for his future sister-in-law is a good way to start. I'll see you in my office tomorrow. I'm off to work hard for that promised reward." Giving her a wink before she could protest being called Roman's sister-in-law, Kaiser quietly shut the door behind him.
Authors Note:
If you're not following me, you should 😉
If we get to 200 followers by the end of January, I'll up the weekly chapters to 6 a week.
Extra chapters can be bought for one Kofi.
Last chapter for the week. I made the last four chapters all 1.5x the usual length. gonna be on a plane on Monday as well, so forgive me if the chapter is a bit late.