Camile left the meeting almost two hours later than scheduled.
The conversation had begun tensely and ended exactly the way she liked: with every decision made and no room for doubts.
Across the table, three executives had tried to challenge a proposal she had presented.
At first, Camile listened.
She didn't interrupt.
She didn't raise her voice.
She simply let them talk.
When they finished, she opened a folder, placed several documents on the table, and began dismantling every argument they had made.
Numbers.
Contracts.
Projections.
Results.
Everything was there.
When she finished, no one had anything left to add.
That was how Camile worked.
She didn't need to intimidate anyone.
Being prepared was enough.
As she left the conference room, her assistant walked beside her.
“Is tonight's dinner still confirmed?”
Camile checked her phone.
“Yes.”
“Do you want to cancel after that meeting?”
She stopped in front of the elevator.
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“I am.”
The doors opened.
Camile stepped inside.
“I spent the entire day listening to men try to convince me of things that make no sense. I think I deserve a glass of wine.”
Her assistant smiled.
“You deserve two.”
Camile finally laughed.
“Don't tempt me.”
The restaurant she'd chosen was in one of the city's most upscale areas.
It was known for hosting businessmen, politicians, artists, and people who preferred to dine away from curious eyes.
Camile arrived shortly after nine.
She wore an elegantly cut wine-colored dress, without anything excessive.
Her hair was loose.
Her makeup emphasized her eyes.
She hadn't chosen the outfit to impress anyone.
She'd chosen it because she liked feeling beautiful.
Period.
As soon as she entered, she was escorted to the reserved table.
Nicole and Vanessa were already waiting.
“Finally!” Nicole raised her glass.
“The meeting ran late.”
“You work too much.”
Camile sat down.
“And you complain too much.”
“We're friends for a reason.”
Vanessa laughed.
“How did it go?”
“Productive.”
“So you won.”
Camile picked up the menu.
“I wasn't competing.”
Nicole arched an eyebrow.
“You always are.”
Camile smiled.
“Maybe.”
The three of them began to talk.
For a few minutes, Camile managed to completely forget the morning.
The restaurant was busy.
Waiters moved between the tables.
Soft music filled the room.
Glasses clinked.
Conversations carried on all around them.
It was exactly the kind of place where Camile felt comfortable.
Until she looked up.
And saw him.
Victor.
He was seated a few tables away.
He was with four men.
Two judges who were well known in legal circles.
A highly influential lawyer.
And another man Camile didn't recognize.
Victor was talking when, by chance, he turned his head.
His eyes met hers.
For several seconds, neither of them moved.
Camile felt her stomach tighten.
Not from fear.
From surprise.
She hadn't expected to run into him.
Much less so soon.
Victor was the first to smile.
A slow, arrogant smile.
As if he'd just won some contest only he knew about.
Camile looked away.
She picked up her glass.
She kept talking.
She wasn't going to give him any importance.
Not that night.
Not after everything she'd decided.
Nicole noticed.
“What is it?”
“Nothing.”
“You were looking at something.”
“It was nothing.”
Vanessa discreetly followed the direction of Camile's gaze.
Her eyes found Victor.
She immediately turned back to her friend.
“Is that him?”
Camile took a sip of wine.
“It is.”
Nicole's eyes widened.
“The idiot?”
“Exactly.”
“Do you want to leave?”
Camile set her glass on the table.
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.”
She adjusted her hair.
“I won't let a man ruin my dinner.”
Vanessa smiled.
“That's my girl.”
Camile went back to talking.
But she knew Victor was still watching her.
She could feel it.
Across the room, Victor had completely lost interest in his friends' conversation.
One of the judges noticed.
“Is something wrong?”
“Nothing.”
Victor continued watching Camile.
She was different.
Or maybe he simply hadn't paid enough attention that first night.
There was something about that woman.
Her posture.
The way she held her glass.
The way she seemed completely comfortable without needing to draw attention to herself.
She hadn't looked at him again.
That irritated his ego.
After what had happened that morning, he expected some kind of sign.
Anything.
But Camile seemed to have forgotten he existed.
Victor smiled to himself.
“Interesting.”
The lawyer seated beside him followed his gaze.
“Do you know that woman?”
“I do.”
“A friend?”
Victor let out a small laugh.
“Something like that.”
The men exchanged glances.
“So are you going to talk to her?”
Victor leaned back in his chair.
“Maybe.”
He wouldn't admit that he was curious.
Much less that her indifference bothered him.
He stood up.
One of his friends asked:
“Where are you going?”
“To take care of something.”
Camile was telling a story when she realized Victor was approaching.
She kept talking.
She didn't stop.
She didn't change her expression.
Victor reached the table.
“Good evening.”
Nicole and Vanessa fell silent.
Camile slowly raised her eyes.
“Good evening.”
Nothing more.
Victor waited.
She said nothing else.
“Aren't you going to ask how I am?”
Camile took a sip of wine.
“You look fine.”
“I am.”
“Then there's no reason to ask.”
He smiled.
“Still the same.”
“I don't know if that's a compliment.”
“Maybe it is.”
Camile turned her attention back to her friends.
Victor remained there.
“Can I talk to you?”
“You are talking.”
“Alone.”
“I have nothing to say to you.”
His smile vanished for a moment.
“Are you sure?”
Camile looked directly at him.
“Absolutely.”
Victor crossed his arms.
“I thought you'd understood the message that morning.”
His friends, watching from a distance, laughed quietly.
Camile heard them.
She didn't react.
She merely tilted her head.
“What message?”
Victor seemed pleased.
“That it was a mistake.”
“Oh.”
She nodded.
“Was that it?”
“Exactly.”
“I understand.”
“Then why are you here?”
Camile glanced around.
“Because this is a public restaurant.”
Victor fell silent.
Nicole lowered her head to hide a smile.
Vanessa bit her lip.
Camile continued:
“I didn't know you'd bought the place.”
One of the men at Victor's table burst out laughing.
His face hardened.
“You're still a smart-ass.”
“And you're still cocky.”
“Nothing's changed.”
“One thing has.”
Victor raised an eyebrow.
“What?”
Camile smiled.
“Now I know exactly what kind of man you are.”
He stared at her for several seconds.
“And that should worry me?”
“No.”
She picked up the menu.
“It should save me time.”
Victor didn't like the answer.
He'd expected an emotional reaction.
He'd expected her to be resentful.
Maybe even to try to prove something.
But Camile was calm.
Extremely calm.
And that calm made it seem as if he were the only one bothered.
“You're pretending.”
She raised her eyes.
“Pretending what?”
“That you didn't care.”
Camile gave him a small smile.
“I didn't care.”
“I don't believe you.”
“That's your problem.”
Victor moved a little closer.
“You were offended that morning.”
She held his gaze.
“I was.”
The admission surprised him.
“Then...”
“I was offended because you were disrespectful.”
He opened his mouth.
She didn't let him speak.
“Not because I wanted anything from you.”
Victor fell silent.
Camile continued:
“There is a huge difference.”
His friends watched the situation.
One of them whispered something to another.
Victor noticed.
His pride took a hit.
“You're trying to act superior.”
Camile smiled.
“I don't have to try.”
Nicole turned her face away.
Vanessa nearly choked on her wine.
Victor grew serious.
“You think you're so much better than everyone else.”
“No.”
Camile rested her elbows on the table.
“I just don't think I'm beneath anyone.”
The statement left Victor silent.
She had answered without shouting.
Without insulting him.
Without losing her elegance.
And yet, he had just lost ground in the conversation.
Victor looked at her.
“You really don't regret it?”
Camile understood exactly what he wanted to know.
“That night?”
“Yes.”
She thought for a few seconds.
“No.”
Victor seemed surprised.
“Then...”
“I don't regret doing what I wanted.”
She tilted her head slightly.
“I only regret imagining you were more interesting than you really are.”
His eyes hardened.
“Careful.”
Camile smiled.
“With you?”
“With what you say.”
She leaned back in her chair.
“Victor, I've heard much worse from men far more important than you.”
He stood perfectly still.
“So you don't impress me.”
One of his friends called:
“Victor.”
He didn't answer.
He continued looking at Camile.
There was something about that woman that made him completely uncomfortable.
She wasn't trying to beat him.
She wasn't trying to draw attention.
She wasn't trying to make him feel bad.
She simply didn't need him.
And that realization stirred a part of Victor's ego he didn't like admitting existed.
Camile picked up her glass.
“Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to continue my dinner.”
Victor took several seconds.
“Of course.”
He walked away.
Camile turned back to her friends.
Nicole waited until he was far enough away.
“I have a question.”
“What?”
“Do you always manage to leave a man that size with no idea what to say?”
Camile smiled.
“Only when he deserves it.”
Vanessa laughed.
“Are you okay?”
Camile took a sip of wine.
“I am.”
And this time, it was true.
She had run into Victor.
He had tried to provoke her.
Tried to remind her of the humiliation.
Tried to show her that he still had some power over her.
And he hadn't succeeded.
Camile had realized something that night.
The pain that morning had been real.
So had the anger.
But that didn't diminish her strength.
On the contrary.
Now she knew exactly how Victor worked.
And that made everything easier.
Or at least, that's what she thought.
Because a few tables behind them, Victor returned to his friends with his jaw clenched.
“Who is she?” one of the men asked.
Victor picked up his glass.
“I don't know.”
“What do you mean, you don't know?”
He looked at Camile again.
She was laughing with her friends.
Completely at ease.
“Not yet.”
The lawyer smiled.
“Looks like someone found a challenge.”
Victor didn't answer.
Because for the first time, that word seemed far too dangerous.
Challenge.
He'd believed Camile would be just a one-night fling.
But now he wanted to know who she was.
And worse, he wanted to discover why that woman could make him feel that, in this contest, he was always one step behind.
Camile, without realizing it, had just started a war.
And Victor still had no idea he was about to discover who was really sitting across from him.