Naughty Nice [chapter 3] -

Elena looked at the file folder sitting between them. It was labeled Project Kringle —a name so wholesome it made her stomach turn. Inside were the routing numbers that shouldn't exist and the signatures she had forged with a shaking hand just three hours ago.

Elena sat in the corner booth of 'The Daily Grind,' watching the snow turn to gray slush against the windowpane. Opposite her, Marcus was doing that thing with his pen—clicking it in a rhythmic, agonizing pulse that matched the ticking of the wall clock. To anyone else, they looked like two coworkers finishing a late-shift project. To Elena, they looked like a crime scene waiting to happen. Naughty Nice [Chapter 3]

The "Nice" Elena would have walked away. But Chapter 3 belonged to someone else entirely. Elena looked at the file folder sitting between them

Marcus finally looked up. His eyes, usually bright with a curated, boy-next-door charm, were dark and sharp. This was the version of him the board members never saw—the 'Naughty' hidden beneath the bespoke wool suit. Elena sat in the corner booth of 'The

"Maybe not," he conceded with a faint, dangerous smirk. "But the villains always have more fun at the after-party."