Reclaimed By My Ex-husband

Stay?

Zara wondered if she had misheard. Nathaniel couldn't possibly be asking her to stay. He had always hated being interrupted at work.

'Maybe the alcohol is still affecting him,' she thought.

Last night, she could have sworn she heard him call her sweetheart. And now, here he was asking her to stay? Shouldn't he be telling her to leave instead?

"You must be busy," she said quickly, prying his hand off her arm. "I should leave."

But before she could move, he tugged her into his embrace. Zara stilled in his arms.

"Don't avoid me," he murmured against her hair. "Stay. Let's have lunch together."

Her thoughts spun. She hadn't imagined it.

He actually wanted her there.

She pulled back just enough to meet his eyes, disbelief flickering across her face. "But… won't I disturb your work?"

"No," he replied with a soft smile. "You came. I'm glad."

"Really?" Zara blinked, stunned. In the past, he had despised her presence here, yet now he claimed to be happy.

She couldn't make sense of it. Had he truly changed? Or was there something else she didn't know?

"It has always been the driver who brought my lunch," Nathaniel recalled. "But this is the first time you came yourself. It matters to me."

Zara didn't correct him, though the bitterness inside her was impossible to swallow. 'He forgot,' she thought. 'This isn't the first time I've come here. I came before, but you didn't like it. You asked me to leave right away.'

Unaware of the thoughts running through her, Nathaniel went on smoothly, "Since you are here, I'll take you out."

Guiding her toward the sofa, he sat beside her and clasped her hands. "I have a luncheon with an old client. Come with me."

"Huh?" Zara's lips parted in surprise. So that was why he wanted her to stay. But he had never taken her to such events before. Why now?

"You… you want me at a business luncheon?" she asked, baffled. "But what would I even do there? I don't know anything about your work."

She would be completely out of place. Wouldn't it make more sense for him to bring his secretary instead?

"You are my wife," Nathaniel countered. "That alone makes you qualified to accompany me. Relax. No one is going to quiz you on how to run a company."

A teasing glint spread across his eyes.

Zara's brows knit, displeased at his teasing tone. Jerking her hands free, she turned aside, her face flushed with embarrassment. "I know my limits. I just don't want my presence to interfere with your discussions."

Nathaniel moved toward her, closing the little distance between them. "It's an old client—we have been working together for years. The luncheon is more about reinforcing trust as we step into a new project. His wife will be there too. And I want you to meet her."

Zara gazed at him, realization dawning. 'Ah… so that's what this is about.'

"Besides…" He slipped an arm over her shoulder. "Mrs. Corby is quite the fashionable woman. She loves spending on clothes and jewelry. Who knows—she might even ask you to design something for her, and eventually become a regular at your boutique."

Zara's gaze lingered on him. Beneath the playful sparkle in his eyes, she caught sight of the calculating businessman. "How sly of you," she murmured. "You are hosting this luncheon to keep your old client happy, and now you want me to charm his wife."

"Is that such a bad thing?" He arched an eyebrow playfully.

Zara searched his face intently. She had always thought of him as cold and distant, yet here he was revealing unexpected layers she had never seen. The more he let her in, the more confused she became.

'What else are you hiding from me?' she mused silently.

Nathaniel's heartbeat quickened as Zara's steady gaze held him captive. In an instant, last night's memory came flooding back—the taste of her lips, the heat of her bare body pressed so intimately against him, the way her nearness had set every nerve ablaze.

The memory of what had almost happened stoked the fire he had been forced to abandon. If not for Zane's sudden interruption, he knew he would have crossed the threshold he had been aching for, finally claiming the closeness he craved.

Now, with her in front of him, that suppressed desire surged back, raw and insistent. His breath grew uneven, heavier. The yearning inside him was no longer just a passing thought—it pulsed through his veins, an ache that demanded release.

He leaned in and rasped in her ear, "If you keep looking at me like that, I might forget where we are."

Heat flared across Zara's cheeks at the meaning behind his words. She tried to edge away, creating some space, but he closed in further. She inhaled sharply, her body tensing instinctively.

Nathaniel pressed his face against her shoulder, taking a deep breath. "This scent of jasmine… it's intoxicating," he whispered. "You came here with intention, did you? Trying to seduce me right in my office?"

Her nearness overwhelmed him. The softness of her skin, the sweet, inviting scent of her perfume, sent sparks racing through his body, igniting a fire he could hardly contain. His restraint crumbled with every breath he took.

The temptation to give in to this magnetic pull between them and make her wholly his was nearly unbearable. It was as if every fiber of his being urged him to abandon reason.

"Then let me tell you: you are successful," he said hoarsely. "I shamelessly claim that I want you – right here, right now." He pressed a searing kiss on her neck.

Zara's heart skipped a beat at his blatant claim, her cheeks turning red. Though part of her longed for him and urged him to give in, she still resisted.

"Nathaniel…Control yourself." She glanced at the door, fearing it would fly open. "Anyone can walk in at any time. Don't forget this is your office."

Nathaniel didn't want to stop. The fire in his veins raged almost beyond control. Her nearness, her trembling resistance, the flush on her cheeks—all of it beckoned him, tempting him to cross the line between restraint and surrender. Every second with her tightened the ache in his chest and the hunger in his body, making the urge to claim her almost unbearable.

The pull was fierce and consuming, as though his entire being ached for only one thing—her. The thought of giving in, of silencing the need by losing himself in her, nearly shattered his composure.

And yet, somewhere beneath that storm of desire, a voice whispered caution. He couldn't hurt her, couldn't force her, no matter how much his body screamed otherwise.

Drawing in a breath, he forced the fire down. He leaned back, dragging a hand down his face. "Sorry. I didn't mean to force you."

Zara rose to her feet. "I'll leave now. You should finish the food."

But he caught her wrist firmly, holding her in place. "You are not going anywhere. Relax, I won't cross the line."

She looked down, then back up into his eyes, still feeling the lingering warmth from their closeness.

"I really need you at the luncheon," he said, his voice almost pleading. "I promise I'll keep myself in check."

Trusting him not to lose control, she nodded. "Alright… I'll stay."