Ethan sighed in satisfaction, stretching his arms as he leaned back into the couch.

    Pizza? Almost gone.

    Soda? Devoured.

    Sanity? Barely intact.

    Vanessa sat beside him, looking a little too pleased with herself, her legs stretched over his lap like she owned the place.

    "You''re getting too comfortable," Ethan muttered, reaching for his laptop.

    Vanessa watched as he placed the device on his lap, fingers hovering over the keyboard. "You''re seriously going to work right now?"

    Ethan gave her a look. "Unlike some people, I actually have responsibilities."

    Vanessa scoffed. "Excuse me? Do you know how much training it takes to race at my level?"

    "Yeah, yeah, driving fast, turning left, I get it."

    Vanessa gasped dramatically. "That is offensive to the sport."

    Ethan smirked. "What are you gonna do? Run me over?"

    She crossed her arms. "Tempting."

    He chuckled, shaking his head. "I have almost a hundred thousand reservations to sort out. If I don''t start now, I''ll wake up tomorrow and find a hundred thousand people screaming for tickets."

    Vanessa raised a brow. "That''s a you problem."

    Ethan rolled his eyes. "Wow. Such support."

    She grinned. "You''re welcome."

    Ignoring her, Ethan cracked his knuckles and reached for the keyboard.

    But just as his fingers were about to grace the keys, Vanessa grabbed both of his hands with her own.

    Ethan blinked. "Uh — "

    Vanessa''s fingers traced along his, her touch slow and deliberate.

    It sent a strange chill up his spine.

    He looked at her. "What are you doing?"

    Vanessa didn''t answer.

    Instead, she bit her lip, her heart pounding loud enough that she was sure he could hear it.

    Her eyes locked onto his.

    And before Ethan could process what was happening, Vanessa leaned forward and pressed her lips against his.

    Ethan stiffened. His brain completely short-circuited.

    Ethan sighed dramatically. "First you steal a kiss, now you steal my food? What''s next, my entire bank account?"

    Vanessa smirked. "Well, you are rich now..."

    Ethan groaned. "I regret everything."

    Vanessa giggled, licking some pizza sauce off her lips. "No, you don''t."

    Ethan opened his mouth to argue but stopped.

    Because, annoyingly, she was right. He didn''t regret it. Not even a little.

    Shaking his head, he picked up his laptop, hoping to actually get some work done.

    But just as he started typing, Vanessa snatched the device away.

    "Oh, come on!" Ethan groaned. "What now?"

    Vanessa tucked the laptop under her arm and stood up. "No work. Not tonight."

    Ethan gave her a deadpan look. "And what do you expect me to do instead?"

    She tossed him a playful smirk. "Figure it out."

    Vanessa let out a long sigh as she set Ethan''s laptop down on the small dresser.

    She ran a hand through her hair, staring at the dim glow of the screen before shutting it with a quiet click.

    She didn''t know when or how it had happened, but somewhere along the line, she had fallen for Ethan.

    And she was too much of a coward to admit it.

    She folded her arms, biting her lip as she leaned against the dresser.

    It wasn''t like she hadn''t been in relationships before — she had.

    She had flirted, dated, broken hearts, and had hers broken in return.

    But Ethan? He was different.

    She couldn''t just tell him.

    What if he laughed it off like one of his usual jokes?

    What if he didn''t take her seriously?

    What if he just saw her as another one of his girls, nothing more, nothing less?

    Vanessa sighed again, rubbing her face with her hands. She was overthinking it.

    And yet, the thought of confessing sent her heart racing.

    She glanced over at Ethan, who was still sitting on the couch, watching her with an amused expression. "You good over there?"

    Vanessa stiffened. Crap. Had she been staring too long?

    " I— yeah. Totally." She turned away, completely not acting suspicious at all.