Chapter 0004

Unable to handle the teasing from Jonathan's family, who kept trying to match them together, Zoey decided to leave early—using the excuse that her café was busy and she needed to help her staff.

"Zoey, are you leaving?" her uncle Gabriel asked, who happened to cross paths with Zoey. Gabriel was Jonathan's father.

"Yes," Zoey replied, nodding slightly with a light smile. People said her uncle was quite intimidating, but to Zoey, he was the best uncle.

Yes, he was quiet and cold, but her uncle was someone who deeply cared about and loved his family.

"Jon, come here for a moment," Gabriel suddenly called when he saw Jonathan walking by, intending to enter the elevator.

Zoey immediately panicked, glancing at her uncle, then at Jonathan, who was walking coolly like a king approaching his throne.

'Zoey, you already have a boyfriend. Please forget about Jonathan. Remember! There are many beautiful and smart women in Paris, and last time you saw him, he was with another woman. Don't fall for him again. And don't forget he once terrorized you! Don't fall in love with the devil,' Zoey tried to convince herself in her heart.

Zoey's heart pounded wildly, beating faster as Jonathan approached her. When he stopped right next to her, so close that her shoulder brushed against his arm, her heart felt like it was about to explode.

This was too close! Her heart wasn't safe around Jonathan!

The truth was, this was the man Zoey had always liked, and she had never confided her feelings to anyone. She had kept it all to herself. Yet somehow, the family found out that Zoey had feelings for Jonathan, and now the news had spread, leading to constant matchmaking between her and Jonathan.

In the past, Zoey had been shy about being paired with Jonathan. Even now, she was, but she had come to understand something: Jonathan was uncomfortable with it and didn't like it.

Five years ago, Zoey had foolishly confessed her feelings to Jonathan. In the spur of a moment, she had told him how she felt. Jonathan had told her to graduate and chase her dreams first, and only then would he consider a relationship. The worst part was that just a few months after Zoey confessed, Jonathan started avoiding her. Not long after that, Jonathan abruptly decided to move to Paris to manage their family's business there. Zoey understood then that he wasn't promising to wait for her; he was gently rejecting her.

The most painful thing was that Zoey had impulsively followed Jonathan to the airport, intending to see him off and say goodbye. But when she arrived, she saw Jonathan sitting with another woman on his lap, and they were kissing. That was the deepest heartbreak Zoey had ever experienced.

Since then, Zoey had buried her feelings, trying to move on and forget Jonathan, her first love. In the midst of her attempts to move on, Jonathan suddenly threatened her over the phone. That was the cruelest blow to Zoey's heart.

Now, Zoey had a boyfriend. She was not quite in love with him yet, but she was sure that after they got married, she would learn to love him.

"Your future wife wants to leave. Can you take her home?" Gabriel asked as soon as Jonathan was nearby.

'What?! What is he doing?! Even Uncle Gabriel is in on this?! Ugh.'

"Sure, Dad," Jonathan nodded.

"A-actually, it's not necessary, Uncle. I've already called a taxi—"

"You can cancel it," Jonathan interrupted quickly, grabbing Zoey's wrist and pulling her along with him.

"Jonathan, I don't need you to take me home. I can go by myself. Besides, my boyfriend—"

"Break up with your boyfriend!" Jonathan cut her off sharply, his tone angry, his expression even colder.

"Sorry, but that's none of your business and has nothing to do with you," Zoey responded, her voice soft and careful, though she was both nervous and awkward. Jonathan's sharp gaze was intense and intimidating.

This terrified her greatly.

"None of my business? Who gave you permission to have a boyfriend?!" Jonathan hissed, his eyes piercing into Zoey.

"I'm an adult now, so I can make my own decisions without asking anyone for permission," Zoey said quietly, her voice steady despite her nerves.

"An adult? What proof do you have that you're an adult?" Jonathan raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms as he looked at Zoey's sour expression.

"I'm twenty-five years old."

"Age doesn't guarantee maturity."

"My chest has grown bigger," Zoey snapped in frustration, puffing out her chest as if to prove her point.

But when she realized what she was doing and saw Jonathan's gaze drop to her chest, Zoey quickly crossed her arms over her chest and stepped back, embarrassed.

'Ah! What was I doing? Oh my God, I'm so embarrassed!' Zoey thought, cringing internally. Her cheeks flushed hot with embarrassment, spreading all the way down to her roots.

"Tch, that's fake," Jonathan commented, hands on his hips, still staring at her chest. "That's padding," he added, making Zoey's eyes widen in shock.

'What?! Fake? Padding?! Is he serious?!'

"They're real!" Zoey retorted angrily.

"I've seen them," Jonathan said, freezing Zoey in place, her body stiffening, "and they're not bigger than my hand," he added in a quiet voice, now standing so close to Zoey that she could feel his minty breath on her face.

Zoey's heart felt like it had dropped into her stomach, her knees shaking.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about. Excuse me, I need to go." Zoey pushed against Jonathan's broad chest, rushing away with a pale, panicked expression.

Hah, not bigger than his hand? Why did this Frost King suddenly seem perverted? And... Did Jonathan remember that night?

–

"Let's talk again later. Just hang up; your patients are waiting, and saving lives is more important than a phone call," Zoey said softly over the phone to her boyfriend, Daniel Smidt—a surgeon at a local hospital.

They had been dating for six months, and Zoey thought that was long enough to get to know each other. But for some reason, she kept putting off marriage with Daniel. Maybe it was because she still wanted to enjoy her youth.

"Huh," Zoey sighed, massaging her temples after Daniel hung up. Once again, Daniel had asked if she was ready to get married. "Should I just go through with it? But I'm not a virgin anymore. Ugh, what do I do?" Zoey muttered to herself in the office of her café.

Click.

The door to her office opened, and Zoey instinctively turned to see who it was. "Excuse m—" Her words stopped short when she saw who was standing there.

It was Jonathan.

Zoey's heart pounded in her chest. Her eyes widened, and her face turned pale. "Why are you here?"

'Don't tell me he followed me here?'

"Break up with your boyfriend!" Jonathan said coldly, not answering her question. He locked the door and began walking toward Zoey, who stood frozen in place.

"I've already told you, my relationship has nothing to do with you!" Zoey snapped, trying to cover her nervousness as Jonathan drew closer.

"You're going to marry me," Jonathan said casually.

"What? Who said I'd marry you?!" Zoey stammered, her face turning red as she grew more panicked.

"I won't marry you! I'm going to marry my boyfriend, not you."

"Are you sure you want to refuse me?" Jonathan raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, I'm one hundred percent sure," Zoey nodded firmly.

"By the way, I didn't use protection that night, and I came inside you," Jonathan said coldly, now standing directly in front of Zoey, wrapping his arm around her waist as he stared into her eyes with a sharp, warning look.

Zoey's heart felt like it was about to jump out of her chest. Her face wasn't just stiff—it was burning red with both anger and shame at Jonathan's words. And with him standing so close, holding her like this, Zoey felt like she was going to faint.

'I came back for you, but you chose someone else. Tsk, don't think you can escape me!'