A/N this is the last chapter of Halloween. Thank you all for reading & as always, please review!

The phone rang, sending them both into reality. Conrad answered the phone, but neither moved away from the other. Victoria suddenly felt self conscious. She tried to reason with herself that Conrad had seen her first thing in the morning for years. Still, she found herself trying to fix her hair and clear the sleep out of her eyes.

She didn't know who Conrad was talking to, but he seemed irritated. Without as much as a goodbye he slammed the phone down.

"You look fine, stop trying to impress me." He grumbled.

"I could care less about impressing you. I happen to care about my appearance." She fired back. She was glad they still had their playful banter. It was her favorite thing about their relationship. Maybe her favorite non-physical thing about their relationship. "Who was on the phone, anyway?"

"No one important."

"Who? Emily?"

He rolled his eyes, unsure of why his wife felt so strongly about Emily. He thought she seemed nice enough, but he was also grateful that her hatred was directed away from him.

"Jason Prosser," he whispered. He hated even speaking his name, knowing what a strain Jason had been in their relationship. Like many investors, Jason had used his investor status as a means to get close to Victoria. It wasn't uncommon and Conrad was guilty of dangling her in front of men like that, knowing they'd invest more for the allure of the Grayson lifestyle, especially of Victoria.

"What did he want?"

"The three of us to go to dinner." She sighed, rubbing her temples. There weren't many people who irritated her the way Jason Prosser did. But, he was one of Grayson Global's top investors.

"Where are we going?"

"Nowhere with him. I told him no."

"Conrad! He's a major investor! You'll lose money."

"It isn't the money I'm worried about losing."

"What do you mean?"

"You, Victoria! I'm not going to do this again!"

"Do what again?"

"I used you as bait-"

"-I knew that. I played along. It was what was best for business."

"But it wasn't best for us. The more of a show we put on for the investors and the more I dangled you in front of investors the more our marriage disintegrated."

"I'm not sure the two were related."

"I'm not sure they weren't. And I'm not taking that chance. We're finally back on track-"

"-Back on track? Conrad, I -"

"Don't do that..."

"Do what?"

"Don't say it was just a fluke-"

"It was a fluke, Conrad! Listen to me, this doesn't mean anything. This was all the work of a scary movie. A scheme that you planned, I might add."

"Look around, Vic. That was almost two weeks ago! You're still here and I'm still here."

"That doesn't mean anything," she whispered. She crossed her arms, knowing he was right. In other years, she had caved and spent Halloween in his bed. They were almost halfway through November. She didn't know what had changed but something had. Conrad moved closer to her, gripping her arms as he spoke.

"Vic, I want you. And you want me, too-"

"That's debatable," she scoffed. She was hoping to push him away, but he was more resilient than she had given him credit for.

"I don't want to use you for business. I don't care about losing money. I don't care about losing investors. I care about losing you. I'm sorry it took me so long to realize it but it's true. My only focus is fixing our marriage."

"What if it can't be fixed? What if we try and end up where we are now?"

"Then we haven't lost anything. What do you say, my dear?"

Victoria had never felt so terrified and yet she had never felt so much adrenaline. Where was this version of her husband twenty years ago? She wanted to deny him and stick with the safety of her isolation but her body refused to cooperate. She felt as if every inch of her was pushing for a reconciliation. Instead of answering him, she let her lips brush against his. Her kiss was timid at first, as if she was unsure of herself but grew deeper, more desperate for his touch. He wrapped her in his arms, his lips never leaving hers.

Conrad made a mental note to buy Charlotte that car for Christmas. Hell, maybe he'd buy her two.

Victoria would never admit it, but in that moment she was grateful for every stupid scary movie she had watched for this moment with her husband.