Joss couldn't stop thinking about that night at the gala.

The old partner's words kept looping in his mind like a broken record:

"You look very much like someone I used to know... Thanarath Caskey's son, Gawin Caskey?"

"But I heard he disappeared in the States..."

Gawin Caskey.

A name that should have been buried in the past.
A boy who had vanished over a decade ago.
Someone Joss had searched for—endlessly, hopelessly.

But why...

Why, when he heard that name, did he immediately think of Fluke Wichit Kittiwattanakul?

Starting the Dig

Joss didn't believe in coincidences.

If there was one thing the business world had taught him, it was this:

Nothing happens by chance. Everything has a reason.

And Fluke Wichit could not possibly be "just" a random Beta.

Why would someone with such a flawless résumé apply to work at Wongthep Group?

Why aim for the personal assistant role, a position with direct, daily access to him?

Why was Fluke utterly unaffected by his pheromones?

And why—
why did his eyes feel so painfully familiar?

Revisiting the Files

Joss ordered his secretary to pull every scrap of data on Fluke Wichit Kittiwattanakul.

The file appeared on his screen—
lines of impeccable credentials and records.

Too clean.
Too polished.
Almost manufactured.

The night wind slipped through the window, carrying a faint scent—
mint, green tea, lavender—

Faint, but enough to scrape across his memory like an old, bleeding scar.

He tapped his finger against the desk.

And he found it.

The inconsistencies.

Academic Red Flags

— Fluke claimed to have graduated from Wharton Business School.
— But when Joss casually mentioned his name to a friend from the same cohort, the friend couldn't recall anyone by that name.

Employment History Gaps

— One of the major firms Fluke listed had no record of him in their internal database.
— Several employment dates overlapped suspiciously.

Everything was Too Perfect

— No missing details.
— No gaps.
— No verifiable background beyond a point.

Joss didn't believe in perfection.

He believed in reality.

And reality—always cracked.

The Unconscious Familiarity

The biggest mistake of someone hiding their identity?

Unconscious familiarity.

Gawin had tried to act like a stranger.

Tried to maintain distance.

But there were moments—tiny, telling moments:

• The first time Gawin walked into his office—he didn't glance around.
He went straight to the exact place a personal assistant should stand.

• He organized documents the way Joss preferred, though no one had ever taught him.

• During a casual conversation, someone mentioned an old internal family event—a minor detail that only insiders would know.
Gawin casually referenced it, without hesitation.

But the most glaring thing was—

His gaze.

From the very first meeting.

Gawin hadn't looked at him like a stranger would.

No apprehension.
No fear.
No distance.

Instead—

It was the look of someone who once knew him intimately.

McDowell High School

Joss clicked open a folder from his IT department.

They had pulled student records from McDowell High School in the U.S.

His fingers froze on the mouse.

On the screen:

A blurry yearbook photo.

Sharp enough to see the eyes.
The shape of the face.
The faint curve of a smile.

It was Fluke Wichit.

Without a doubt.

But the name underneath the photo wasn't Fluke.

It was:

Gawin Caskey.

Joss's breathing slowed.

He stared at the name.

At the face.

At the truth he could no longer deny.

Shockwaves

Joss wasn't easily rattled.

He'd survived boardroom betrayals, corporate wars, media storms.

But this—

This shook something loose inside him.

His fist clenched against the desk.

His entire body trembled, just slightly.

Not from anger.

Not from surprise.

But from something deeper.

Pain.

A pain he didn't have a name for.

Gawin had never truly disappeared.

He hadn't died.
He hadn't abandoned the world.

He had been right here.

Right beside Joss.

All along.

And Joss—

Joss had touched him.
Claimed him.
Addicted himself to him.

Without even knowing it was the person he had sworn to protect forever.

The Taste of Betrayal

Joss's chest tightened.

Gawin had known from the start.

He knew who Joss was.
Knew how deeply Joss had once loved him.
Knew how long Joss had searched for him.

And still—

He hadn't said a word.

He had approached Joss—

Not as Gawin.

But as Fluke Wichit Kittiwattanakul.

Joss's fists shook.

Why?

Why had Gawin come back?

Was it for him?

Or for something else?

Dark Thoughts

He had been a fool.

He thought he was the predator.

He thought Gawin was the one tangled in his web.

But in reality—

He had been the one trapped.

He let Gawin back into his life without defenses.

Let himself be pulled into the addiction, blind and willing.

Now—

He didn't even know if Gawin came back for love.

Or for revenge.

But one thing he did know:

He couldn't forgive.

From Love to Hate

Joss laughed under his breath.

But it wasn't a laugh of joy.

It was bitter.
Sharp.
Poisonous.

"You thought you could fool me, Gawin?"

He had once loved that boy.

Had once searched for him like a madman.

But now—

All he felt was rage.

If Gawin wanted to play this game—

So be it.

But from now on—

Joss wouldn't give him a way out.