Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 254

Chapter 254

“I came to see you,” he said simply.

“What? Why?” I asked, completely thrown.

“Can I come up?” he repeated, and there was something in his tone-almost amused. “I think we can talk better up there, don’t you?”

I hesitated. The last person I expected to see today was Marcus Kensington. Actually, the last person I expected to see any day was Marcus Kensington. Our relationship back in Verdania had ended in a… complicated way, and since then we’d maintained a very intentional distance. A distance he himself had set: me in Euradia, him in Ascia.

“Sure,” I said at last, pressing the buzzer to let him in.

I rushed to the bathroom mirror, checking my reflection. I looked like a disaster with messy hair, eyes slightly puffy from stress, and an oversized T-shirt and sweatpants. Definitely not how I wanted to look when facing an ex, especially one who always seemed like he’d been ripped straight out of a fashion magazine.

A knock came a few minutes later. I took a deep breath before opening the door, putting on the most neutral expression I could manage.

Marcus stood there, wearing that smile I knew far too well. Tall, dark hair perfectly in place despite what must have been an international flight. Leather folder in hand. That annoyingly confident posture he always had.

“Hey, Annie,” he said, as if it were the most normal thing in the world to show up at my London apartment unannounced.

“What are you doing here?” I asked coldly, not moving aside to let him in.

“Christian sent me to fix your mess,” downplay a serious situation.

I felt my blood boil.

We replied with that playful tone he always used when he wanted to

“My mess? My mess?” I repeated, my voice climbing several octaves. “Thank your cousin Alexandra for this mess!”

Marcus laughed under his breath, which unfortunately, was enough to make me step aside so he could come in.

“Easy, Annie. I’m here to straighten everything out. I’ll make sure the board doesn’t bury you, okay?” He placed the folder on the couch and turned to face me. “Christian trusts me to handle this.”

“Why you?” I demanded, arms still crossed. “You’re COO of Ascia. Nate is COO of Euradia. Shouldn’t they have the same level of credibility with the board? Or better yet, shouldn’t Christian have even more since we’re in Euradia?”

“That’s what you call him? Christian? Not… Carter?”

Heat rushed to my face-like a kid caught doing something wrong.

“We’re friends.”

Marcus’s expression shifted, his smile sharpening into something more serious.

“Sure. Anyway… yes, he would,” he said, looking straight at me. “If he weren’t also in the crosshairs… for sleeping with a certain employee.”

I nearly choked on the water I was drinking. I set the glass down with more force than I meant to, the sound echoing through the silent apartment.

“I remember we were good together,” he said, now close enough that I could smell that familiar cologne. “I remember you made me laugh in a way no one else ever could. I remember how beautiful you looked in the mornings-messy hair, wearing my shirt. I remember how… enthusiastically we made use of every corner of the Kensington estate.” He laughed lightly.

Something tightened in my chest. Marcus had always been like this: charming, eloquent, perfectly tuned to find the words that melted through my defenses. It was part of what drew me to him in the beginning and part of what made everything between us so chaotic.

“That was a long time ago,” I murmured, though my voice came out less steady than I wanted.

“It was,” he agreed, lifting a hand slowly toward my arm. “But I’m here now. And you’re here. And from the sound of it, you could use someone who actually cares about you.”

His touch was soft, almost tentative, like he was testing my reaction. Part of me wanted to pull back, to hold onto the careful distance we’d built over the months. But the other part which was exhausted from feeling alone and overwhelmed, wanted to lean into that old familiarity.

“Marcus, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I said, though I didn’t move away.

“Why not?” he asked, his hand gliding up to my face. “Because you’re afraid of getting hurt again? Or because you’re afraid you’ll feel something real when everything else in your life is falling apart?”

His words hit right where it hurt. Because it was true. My life was a complete mess. Nate was too complicated, Wanderer was a mystery I couldn’t unravel, and now Marcus was here offering something familiar, something that didn’t require decoding or navigating corporate warfare.

“It’s not that simple,” I whispered.

“It could be,” he said, leaning in closer. “If you let it.”

For a moment, we just stood there, staring at each other. I could see the sincerity in his eyes-mixed with something deeper, something almost dangerous. The chemistry between us had always been undeniable, even when everything else was falling apart.

And then Marcus leaned in and kissed me without warning or hesitation. He took advantage of the closeness and the vulnerability between us. The kiss tasted like memories of lazy afternoons in the vineyards, a version of my life that felt simpler, easier, even if it hadn’t really been.