The charming man's survival instincts kicked in, and with a forced laugh, he made himself scarce.

“What's with that look?" Scarlette bristled, her voice sharp with indignation.

Kenji gazed down at her, taking in her defiant expression. “No more pretending now that the elders aren't around?" The contrast between her earlier saccharine greetings and her current snarling demeanor wasn't lost on him.

Scarlette let out an exasperated huff and made a grab for her drink.

Kenji easily kept it out of reach. “This isn't your scene. I'll have a driver take you back to the hotel-you can occupy yourself with your puzzle games there."

“Since when do you get to dictate my choices?" Scarlette fired back.

“I'm legally an adult. The bouncers didn't stop me. What gives you the right?"

Kenji's gaze deliberately dropped to her chest, followed by a contemptuous click of his tongue.

Humiliation burning through her, Scarlette retaliated by dropping her own gaze to his crotch and clicking her tongue twice in response.

The neon lights beckoned Scarlette forward-she'd traversed the city's expanse, and damned if she wouldn't savor every moment.

Protected by the shield of her bodyguards at the entrance and her influential parents lounging at their five-star suite, Scarlette felt invincible. Any mayhem she stirred would ripple away like water, leaving her untouched by consequence. Each time Kenji urged her departure, her resolve crystallized further.

With the confidence of a lioness, Scarlette toyed with her collar, letting it slip just enough to tease, and sashayed toward the pulsing crowd.

Kenji clamped his jaw shut, the word "reckless" burning on his tongue like a hot coal. If not for his parents’ ironclad instructions, he'd have vanished into the night without a backward glance.

The VIP booth awaited Scarlette's arrival.

Kenji melted into the seat beside her, his posture a study of calculated indifference as he crossed his legs.

Scarlette's smile crumbled. “Why are you hovering like a shadow? Have you fallen for me?"

Kenji's response was silence carved in stone. His eyes flicked to his watch with military precision. "Be back with me by eleven."

“I won't"

“Then your father will be my next call."

Scarlette scoffed. "Be my guest.”

“Oh? Has your mother's influence lost its sting too?"

Scarlette's fingers betrayed her, scrambling to secure her neckline up to her collarbone.

Contempt danced in Kenji's smirk. "Though there's precious little worth concealing, isn't there?"

Fury blazed across Scarlette's face. Lacking verbal ammunition for a worthy comeback, she launched a physical assault on his foot instead.