Chapter 5: The Honey Trap

Lucas stared at the glowing blue text hovering above Camilla Verman’s photograph until his eyes began to burn.

The System was orchestrating a collision course between two wealthy titans and placing him right at the epicenter of the blast zone.

If Victoria found out he was playing the role of Camilla’s fake fiancé she would feed him to her legal team without a second thought.

If Camilla realized he was a corporate spy working for her worst enemy she would likely have him buried under the foundation of her newest luxury condo development.

He closed the thick manila folder and shoved it into his worn leather messenger bag. He wondered if his cheap life insurance policy covered death by corporate warfare. He needed to survive his first day as an executive attaché before he could even start worrying about surviving a charity gala full of ruthless millionaires.

Lucas arrived at Vertex Management at a quarter to six the next morning.

The glass lobby was eerily quiet without the usual swarm of junior staff and frantic mid-level managers running around with tablets.

He rode the private elevator up to the executive floor while nervously adjusting his tie. It was the same cheap polyester suit from yesterday but he had spent an hour ironing out the wrinkles to look somewhat presentable.

The executive suite was a sprawling layout of frosted glass and imported Italian marble where Victoria was already sitting at her massive desk typing rapidly on her laptop. She wore a tailored charcoal blazer and did not bother looking up when the elevator doors chimed open.

"You have a coffee stain on your left cuff," Victoria said without breaking her typing rhythm.

Lucas looked down and cursed his own negligence. "I will have it cleaned by tomorrow."

"You will go to the supply closet and put on the spare jacket I had my tailor drop off," Victoria commanded as she finally stopped typing to look at him. "My personal attaché does not walk around looking like a bankrupt college student because you represent my brand now."

Lucas found a sleek black suit jacket hanging in the adjacent closet. He slipped it on and was shocked to find it fit his shoulders with tailored precision.

The woman had somehow eyeballed his exact measurements yesterday while threatening to throw him in federal prison.

He walked back into her office and spotted the private espresso machine sitting on a sleek countertop in the corner. He had fifty Acquisition Points left over from his landlady repair job and he needed a quick victory to set a positive tone for the day.

He mentally opened the Skill Shop and purchased a minor ability called Artisanal Beverage Crafting. The knowledge of temperature control and bean extraction instantly flooded his mind.

He brewed a dark roast espresso and frothed a small amount of almond milk before carrying the ceramic cup to her desk. He placed it down without spilling a single drop.

Victoria eyed the mug with blatant suspicion. She picked it up and took a cautious sip. A rare look of pleasant surprise flashed across her face before she quickly masked it behind her usual stoic expression.

"Adequate," Victoria murmured while setting the cup down. "Your summary of Camilla Verman."

Lucas pulled his written report from his bag and placed it on her desk. He had stayed up half the night memorizing every detail about the ruthless real estate tycoon.

"Camilla built her fortune by aggressively acquiring distressed properties and converting them into high-end retail spaces," Lucas recited while keeping his posture straight. "She is highly competitive and recently poached our biggest hospitality client by offering them a massive reduction in management fees."

Victoria skimmed his handwritten notes with a critical eye. "She is a parasite who thrives on cheap publicity stunts and media attention. That brings us to the charity gala this Saturday."

She tapped a button on her keyboard and a holographic display flared to life in the center of the room. It showed the floor plan of an opulent ballroom with dozens of circular tables mapped out in a glowing grid.

"Camilla is hosting a silent auction at the Crystal Pavilion to secure investors for her new waterfront development," Victoria explained while standing up and walking around her desk. "We are going to make sure she leaves that party humiliated and empty-handed. I cannot simply walk in and sabotage her without causing a public scene that would damage my own reputation."

She stopped right in front of Lucas and looked him up and down. The subtle scent of her expensive jasmine perfume filled his senses.

"That is where you come in," Victoria said with a cold smile. "You are going to attend the gala as a freelance wealth management consultant."

Lucas felt his stomach drop. "You want me to talk to her wealthy investors?"

"I want you to talk to Camilla," Victoria corrected him. "She has a well-known weakness for young and ambitious men who look good in a suit. You are going to get close to her and plant a fabricated financial rumor about her waterfront project."

A familiar chime echoed in his skull.

[Main Quest Updated: The Double Agent.]

[Victoria Sterling requires you to seduce the target for corporate sabotage.]

[Camilla Verman is actively hunting for a young pawn to parade as her fiancé.]

[Objective Collision Detected. Proceed with caution.]

Lucas swallowed hard as the floating blue text vanished. Victoria was ordering him to walk into the trap the System had warned him about last night.

"How close do you want me to get?" Lucas asked carefully.

Victoria reached out and adjusted the lapel of his new tailored jacket. Her manicured fingers brushed against his chest and sent a surprising jolt of warmth through his body.

She was standing close enough that he could see the faint pulse beating in her neck.

"As close as it takes to make her trust you," Victoria whispered softly while maintaining intense eye contact. "I want you to become her new favorite distraction. Can you handle a simple honey trap without letting a pretty face ruin your judgment?"

Before Lucas could formulate a convincing lie the heavy oak doors to the executive suite swung open without a single knock.

"Victoria darling," a melodic voice called out. "I brought back the settlement papers your legal team keeps crying about."

Lucas turned around and his breath caught in his throat.

A woman walked into the room wearing a stunning crimson dress that hugged every curve of her body and left very little to the imagination.

She moved with the predatory grace of someone who owned whatever space she occupied. She had sharp aristocratic features and piercing green eyes that immediately locked onto Lucas. It was the woman from the photograph in the manila folder.

Camilla Verman was standing inside Vertex Management.

The air in the room instantly grew heavy with silent hostility.

Victoria stepped away from Lucas and her posture shifted into a rigid stance of absolute authority. The two millionaires stared at each other across the office like rival generals surveying a battlefield.

"You are trespassing," Victoria said in a voice as cold as ice. "My security team should have stopped you at the lobby."

"Your security team is too busy admiring my shoes to do their jobs," Camilla purred while tossing a sleek black folder onto the nearest coffee table. "I figured I would save everyone some time and deliver the bad news in person."

Camilla ignored Victoria’s glare and took a slow confident step toward Lucas. Her green eyes swept over his tailored jacket and his handsome bewildered face.

A dangerous and amused smile spread across her red lips.

"Oh my," Camilla said while tilting her head. "Who is this gorgeous new toy and why are you hiding him up here all to yourself?"