They were newspapers.Countless newspapers—from every major media outlet I could think of.
And splashed across the front page of every single one was the same photograph.
Me.Kissing him.
The headlines screamed at my face in bold, merciless letters.
"Heir of Blackwood Group Caught Cheating on His Fiancée!""Lucas Blackwood Seen Intimate with a Woman for the First Time!""Identity of Mystery Woman Still Unknown—Can Vanessa Wright Forgive Him?""Is the Century‑Old Alliance Between the Blackwood and Wright Families at Risk?""One‑Night Stand or Long‑Term Illicit Affair?""Blackwood Group Stocks Plunge Two Percent in Two Days!"
The blood drained from my face.
This… this was no longer something I could fix. It was completely out of control.I couldn't even begin to imagine how I was supposed to make amends for something of this scale.
If I had known who he was that night—No.
I shook my head. Regret was useless now.
"What… what can I do to mitigate this?" My voice came out softer than I intended, pliant, submissive—confirming my full cooperation. "If I give a statement saying the incident was entirely my fault—"
"Your statement would be meaningless, Ms. Bennett," Lucas interrupted calmly. "No one would believe it. In fact, it would only fuel their suspicions further. This situation is already beyond redemption."
My fingers curled tightly into my palms.
"Mr. Blackwood," I said quietly, "I'll do whatever it takes to make things right."
"Forget the scandal," he cut in smoothly, as if it were nothing. "What about my phone?"
My heart skipped.
"It was custom‑made. One of a kind in the entire world. A gift from an overseas friend. You have no idea how expensive it was."
Deja vu.
Those were almost the exact same words he had used that night—right after I had thrown a few crumpled notes at him.Only now… they carried a completely different weight.
"I'm sure someone as influential as President Blackwood can afford a thousand phones like that," I said quickly, forcing cheer into my voice. It cracked halfway through.
Lucas glanced at me from the corner of his eye. One side of his lips curled upward, the mockery unmistakable.
And all I could think was—Out of 7.7 billion people in this world… it had to be him?
It felt like the gods were playing some cruel game with my fate—dragging me into chaos just to entertain themselves.
"Let's set the phone aside," he continued. "You can never compensate for the loss of the data inside it anyway."
I didn't notice it then, but Secretary Grace Hill's expression twitched.There was no data loss at all.He was lying. Fluently. Shamelessly.
"Compensation…" The word finally clicked in my head.
So that was it.
This man hadn't come here to reason with me.He had come to dig my grave—and he wanted me to lie down in it willingly.
"To summarise," Lucas said calmly, "you've caused damages worth ten million RMB. That doesn't even include the expenses required to suppress the rumours."
I lowered my head, unable to speak.
"I hope you take responsibility," he added lightly, "so we don't have to involve lawyers. Though I wouldn't mind. It's just… troublesome, dealing with media attention."
My fists clenched.
"Is that what you want?" I raised my head and looked straight into his eyes, fearlessly. "Revenge for being offended?"
His gaze flickered—just for a moment.
"If you want revenge, why mention courts and lawyers at all? Someone like you doesn't need the law to destroy someone like me."
My eyes didn't waver. Neither did my resolve.
"No," he said, smiling faintly. "I simply want you to take responsibility."
"And how exactly do you expect me to do that?" I laughed bitterly. "You must've already investigated my background. You know my financial situation. No matter what, I can't afford this."
Lucas fell silent.
Then, slowly, he spoke.
"There are other ways to take responsibility."He met my gaze."Just agree to a small request of mine."
My heart sank.
"A request?"So this was why he came.
"Yes," he said, his smile deepening. "A small one."
Something about that smile made my skin crawl.
"If you think I'll sleep with you," I said flatly, "you're wrong. I'd rather have you ruin me completely than do that."
Lucas: "…"
For the first time since he arrived, he looked genuinely speechless.
"Ms. Bennett," he said slowly, "you have a very… imaginative mind."
"I just understand men," I replied coolly.
"Well, then you've never met a decent one," he laughed. "Because that's not my request."
I crossed my arms. "Then say it plainly. What is your so‑called small request?"
His dark eyes locked onto mine—deep, shimmering, unreadable.
"Alright," he said. "Be prepared."
My pulse thundered in my ears.
"My request is…"He paused deliberately."…that you marry me."
I went blank.
Completely.
Silence swallowed the room.