Chapter 1

Ingrid had been making advances toward Hansel for a while, but he remained uninterested. She was baffled by what might be holding him back. Did he truly believe that keeping his distance would somehow prove his commitment to Miranda? How absurd!

Hansel switched off the light in his room, ready for sleep. But every time he closed his eyes, he was plagued by the vision of Miranda and Sam, enjoying themselves on the beach—laughing, drinking, with the wind dancing around them. The thoughts kept him up all night, leaving him restless.

He arrived at the restaurant for breakfast the next morning, looking exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes. Ingrid clung to his arm, her every action measured and restrained.

Just then, Hansel saw Sam emerging from another elevator across the room. The atmosphere crackled with tension as they stared each other down. Coincidentally, Miranda and Winter entered from a different entrance. Sam immediately approached them, smiling warmly. "Good morning, beauties! How was your night?"

Hansel noticed the unmistakable cunning in Sam’s voice.

Winter nodded. "I slept alright."

"There were a few too many bugs, but everything else was fine," Miranda replied.

"How about we get some breakfast together?" Sam suggested.

"Sounds good," Winter said.

The trio walked off, leaving Hansel behind. Hansel’s face fell. He considered catching up, but Sam suddenly said, "Oh, I just realized I left something behind. You two go on. I'll catch up in a minute."

Winter waved him off. "Okay, go ahead."

But instead of retrieving anything, Sam headed straight toward Hansel.

"What do you want?" Hansel asked, frowning.

"Come with me. We need to talk," Sam said, heading for the emergency stairwell.

Hansel, annoyed by Sam's abruptness but suspecting it involved Miranda, followed after a brief hesitation.

Winter and Miranda arrived at the restaurant. Winter noticed Miranda seemed different around Sam. With a playful poke, Winter said, "I saw what happened earlier. You usually don't give anyone but Hansel the time of day. What's the deal? Are you finally thinking about giving love another chance?"

"Don't be silly. He did me a favor, and I'm grateful. That's all. Please stop saying things like that," Miranda stated firmly.

Realizing Miranda was serious, Winter shrugged. "Fine, I can see you've made up your mind."

Miranda laughed softly. She forked a piece of baked potato with salad dressing and popped it into Winter's mouth. "Just eat up."

In the stairwell, Sam said, "I've got the company's legal team preparing to sue the hotel over yesterday's incident. If everything goes smoothly, we should have it settled within months."

Hansel's anger flared. "What's your point? Did you bring me here just to brag? What's your problem?"

Sam, used to Hansel's aggressive reactions, hinted, "Don't you think everything that happened yesterday seems a little too convenient?"

Hansel narrowed his eyes. "What are you getting at?"

"You know exactly what I mean."

Hansel frowned. "I've gone through the security footage and videos. The timing of the shark's appearance is definitely suspicious, but there's no evidence to suggest it was planned. I get what you're hinting at, Sam, but not everyone is as deceitful and scheming as you."