Cole reached out his hand to Vanessa. She put hers on his one.

His touch. It was like electricity passed through her body. And she literally knew what electricity passing through the body was—it burns from the inside.

"Vanessa," Cole said in a low voice, saying her name in a way that made her skin tingle every time.

"Cole."

They stood facing each other. So close that Vanessa felt Cole's heart beating. It was beating fast. So fast. Just like hers.

"Nessa!" Jackson's voice interrupted the intense moment. "You look incredible! God! You look dazzling!"

"Thank you, Jacks!" Vanessa replied after turning to him. "You look not bad yourself."

"Come on." Jackson tried to ignore Cole's presence. "The limo is waiting in front of the house!"

Vanessa looked back at Cole for a moment and, feeling a touch of awkwardness, followed Jackson.

"After you, milady!" Jackson gestured Vanessa into the car after opening the door for her.

"Thank you," she replied kindly and got into the limo.

But just before Jackson could follow Vanessa, Cole stepped in front of him and went inside.

Jackson got nervous, and it was evident from the look on his face. He also got into the limousine and closed the door behind him. Cole had already sat next to Vanessa, and he sat across from them.

"As you already saw, my brother will come with us," Jackson said to Vanessa with an apathetic tone. "But don't let this spoil your evening!"

"Someone has to represent the family properly," Cole replied to his brother.

Visually, both brothers certainly looked sophisticated enough. Cole wore a black, sleek tuxedo and black shirt. And although he wore suits in the same tone in his everyday life, in contrast to their sporty-elegant style, his tuxedo now was strictly formal. Jackson was also dressed elegantly but in lighter colors—his pants and jacket were in blue shades with lighter stripes, and his shirt was in peach color. Despite his partying lifestyle, Jackson certainly knew how to dress and behave at such social events. So, it was hard to believe that Cole's reason for joining the ball was his concern about how his brother would behave.

As Jackson looked increasingly annoyed with Cole, Vanessa tried to lighten the mood. "The more, the merrier, right?"

"Yeah, just perfect..." Jackson mumbled. "Anyway, would you like some champagne, Nessa?" he asked her, already holding a bottle of expensive champagne.

Vanessa hesitated but figured she would probably break her no-alcohol rule tonight anyway. "Yes, thank you."

Jackson filled a glass and handed it to her, then poured himself a drink and handed the bottle to Cole. Who, however, just left it in the bowl of ice without saying anything.

After about thirty minutes of awkward silence, the limousine parked in front of a large, one-story building entrance.

"We arrived!" Jackson told Vanessa, now more excited. "Come on, beautiful!"

He got out of the limo first, stood by the door, and held out his hand so he could help Vanessa out. But instead of her, Cole got out of the car and stood in front of his brother, holding his hand in the same manner. Vanessa put her hand on his and got out of the limo. She looked at him and softly whispered, "Thank you."

Cole didn't reply. They took a few steps forward, and Jackson, who had stayed behind, angrily slammed the car door.

After the three were already at the building door, Jackson approached Vanessa and put his hand on his waist so she could catch him by the hand.

Just when they were about to start to walk, Cole approached her on her other side and put his hand on his waist the same way.

A slight smile appeared on his face—a confident smile.

So, Vanessa took them both by the hand and walked into the ballroom with the two brothers.

The hall was spacious and bright. On either side of the entrance were high tables covered with long white tablecloths and tied with pretty golden ribbons. Glasses of champagne were arranged on top of them. It was full of people. All the women were dressed in beautiful, elegant dresses, each more beautiful than the other, and the men were no less in dapper tuxedos. Like a fairytale ball. In the middle of the hall was a huge dance floor where couples were already dancing in the background of gentle ballads that sounded. At the periphery, there were more high tables with glasses and hors d'oeuvres. At the bottom were many paintings and other exhibits, probably for the upcoming charity auction.

"Boys!" Cole, Vanessa, and Jackson had been approached by a woman, around fifty years old, wearing a long dark green dress with close-cropped mahogany hair and a beaming smile. "I am so happy to see you!"

She kissed Cole on the cheeks and then hugged Jackson tightly. "My pretty boy, you're so grown up!"

Jackson also hugged her back with a wide smile.

"And who is this beautiful lady?"

"Marie, this is Vanessa." Cole presented Vanessa, then turned to her. "Vanessa, this is Marie, a very close family friend and the organizer of today's event."

"It's nice to meet you, dear," Marie greeted Vanessa in a gentle tone.

"The pleasure is mine," Vanessa told her back. "Everything looks fabulous!"

Marie stroked her arm. "I'm glad you like it." Then she took Cole by the arm and leaned close to his ear. Although her gesture suggested whispering something to him, her voice came out at an average pitch. "She's wonderful. I'm so glad to see you with a girlfriend finally!"

"She is with me!" Jackson cut Marrie off, pulling Vanessa gently against him. "Cole decided to accompany us at the last minute."

"Oh, I'm sorry." It was visible that Marie felt awkward about her mistake. "Have fun, kids, and don't forget to bid hard!"

After the lady walked away, an elderly man stopped next to Cole, and they both began to talk. It seemed that their conversation was going to last a long time. So Jackson used the moment to hug Vanessa across her waist, and the two headed toward a group of youths standing by the window on the left side of the hall.

"Look, look, who's here!" One of the boys came up to Jackson as soon as he saw him, hugged him, and patted him on the shoulder. "Welcome back, man!"

"I heard you were coming back, but the last place I expected to see you is here, bro." Another of the boys joined them. "What has New York done to you?"

Jackson laughed. "Nice to see you, guys, too! You know, I think I've been underestimating these events until now." Then he turned to Vanessa. "Nessa, let me introduce my friends. These are Emily, Elena, and Evelyn." He pointed to three of the girls. "The three were inseparable before. We called them the triple E. Until Nathan, the boy over there next to Emily, decided to propose to her and put an end to the trio." Everyone started laughing, and Jackson continued the introduction. "Beside them are Simon and Kevin. And that's..." He paused for a moment. "I'm sorry, I don't know you."

"This is Alice," Elena introduced her. "My cousin who came to live with me."

"Hi, Alice," Jackson greeted her and continued, "Well, this is everyone. And everyone, this is Nessa."

Vanessa waved her hand in greeting.

The whole company warmly welcomed Vanessa. Compliments on her dress were not long in coming. Jackson handed her a glass of champagne, and everyone toasted his return to LA. It wasn't long before the first part of the auction began, and, unsurprisingly, Cole, standing on the other side of the dance floor, acquired two beautiful paintings, each for a six-digit sum.

More than an hour passed imperceptibly.

"Girls." Jackson approached Vanessa and the other girls after he had gone somewhere. "Your glasses are empty. Let me fix that." He took their empty glasses and replaced them with full ones.

"Jackson, this is the last one, really," Vanessa told him after taking a little sip. "I admit, it tastes excellent, but I feel dizzy already."

Jackson giggled. "Okay."

"Oh, I love this song!" Emily's voice came from beside them. "Where's my boy?"

Jackson looked around with Emily to see Nathan walking away from the DJ. A few seconds later, the couple in love was dancing on the dance floor, along with many others.

"May I have this dance?" Jackson asked Vanessa.

She took a deep breath. "Jacks, don't get me wrong, but I don't like to dance."

"Well..." Jackson did a fake cough. "That was a brutal cut. Good thing no one heard," he said with a laugh. "Okay, no problem. Cheers then!"

The two raised their glasses in a toast.

"Che—" Vanessa tried to add but was cut off at that point.

"Do you mind if I steal your lady, Jackson?" Cole's voice was heard from behind Vanessa, though he didn't care about the answer.

He took her hand without asking for her opinion either and led her to the middle of the dance floor.

His one hand gently slid on her back, pressing her tightly against him. He looked tenderly into her eyes.

Vanessa wrapped her arms around Cole's neck and couldn't look away from his eyes. It was the first time she had seen them radiate such warmth. She was drowning in them. She was lost in his embrace.

They danced slowly but seemed to fly. It was as if everything around them had disappeared. And it was just them—just her and him.

All the feelings Vanessa felt at that moment, and the butterflies that seemed to fly in her stomach, whether they were a result of the alcohol or his presence, felt good but frightened her at the same time.

"Cole."

"Yes."

"Are you drunk?"

"No."

"I think I am."

He ran a hand down her cheek, pushing a strand of hair back. "Okay."

Meanwhile, Jackson stood off to the side, watching them. He had been irritated at first. But then he wasn't angry anymore. He wasn't even annoyed. He looked like he was enjoying the view.

He was smiling.

That was the moment when he saw it.