CHAPTER 1 - INDECENT PROPOSITION

Kara Baxter drew the lapels of her black jacket together as she anxiously awaited the arrival of her boss, Nico Bernardi.  Her heart thumped fast. She was so nervous. A moment longer of this torture, and she feared her heart would jump out of her ribcage. 

When she received the letter from the bank this morning, she did not think twice about coming here. Nico Bernardi is her only hope.  She had to at least try. 

The door to the office swung open, distracting her from her musings.   

Kara jumped to her feet when the man she was waiting for arrived. She walked in his direction but was quelled by his stern look.  

Kara had to step back. 

“M-Mr. Bernardi.” She squeaked. 

Perplexed,  she watched Nico Bernardi strode in. 

He reached his table, sat on the executive chair, leaned forward, and placed his elbows atop the desk, his fingers interlacing each other. He moved so elegantly that Kara was mesmerized. 

Then, the signet ring on his right pinky finger caught her attention and her heart started thudding fast. 

She bit her lip as she recalled old stories circulating in the hotel when she first applied as a barmaid.  It alluded to their boss as the head of a MAFIA family with connections in Italy.  It was so hush-hush, but the gossip did not die down. 

Suddenly fear crawled through her skin. 

Is she doing the right thing?

Her instinct told her to run, but it was the exact time Nico Bernardi pinned her with his brooding gaze.  Any thought of fleeing flew out of the window when their eyes met and held. 

“What brings you here, Ms. Baxter?”  Nico Bernardi broke into her thoughts.  He gestured for her to sit on the chair near his table.  

Kara nervously clutched the paper in her hands, nearly crumpling it in nervousness. 

She drew a shaky breath. 

“My apartment is going to be repossessed.”  

Kara's voice trembled. The mere thought of her parents' house being seized from her had her in a state of panic.

Nico Bernardi's brows shot upward as if to ask what her house got to do with him. 

Kara’s mind scrambled for words.  In a  very stilted manner, she started to explain.

“....Will you help me?  Will you pay my loan? I  promise I will pay you back.” She gripped the edge of his desk, only for Nico to flat-out refuse her request. 

“No.” He said without batting an eyelash. 

“But you helped Megan.”  She mentioned the name of a co-worker who approached him with financial problems. Megan was boasting in the lounge, extolling Nico’s kindness. If he can do that to one of his employees, maybe he can do it to two. 

“It does not concern you who I help, Ms. Baxter. That is my call, not yours.”

That shut her up.

Nico Bernardi picked a paper from a tray and started browsing through it, ignoring her. It was clear to Kara that he was already dismissing her. 

Dejected,  Kara’s eyes watered immediately.  Every time she thinks about her house being taken away from her, she cannot breathe. Her heart constricts in pain. 

That house is the only thing her deceased parents left her.  

Kara had never known her mother. She died when she was young.  

A year ago, her father died after a week-long stay in the hospital’s ICU. His confinement forced her to mortgage the house.   Despite her efforts to maintain her monthly payments, her meager salary as a barmaid could barely cover living expenses. 

She pushed back paying until this morning, just when she was about to leave for work, she was shocked to receive a notice of eviction in the mail.  The bank has foreclosed on her property. 

Taking a deep breath, Kara tried again. She did not believe that Nico Bernardi could be this heartless.  

“Mr. Bernardi, please. I do not know anyone who can help me pay the loan except you.  I promise I will work hard, I, I.” She looked around her, trying to grope for words that would convince her boss to help her. 

“Stop!” Nico Bernardi said sternly. 

“What makes you think I will trust you with my money Ms. Baxter? I am a businessman, not a charity institution!”  He barked. 

Then, he pushed his chair back and strode to the door, his long legs taking him there in no time.   He twisted the knob, pushed the door open, and turned to face her. 

“I do not think we have anything more to discuss.” 

It was clear that Nico Bernardi was throwing her out of his office. 

Kara’s shoulders sagged.  

Her last remnant of hope was quashed. 

Slowly, with her head downcast, she walked to the door.

Nico went back to his desk and sat down.  He eyed her dejected figure walking out of his office. 

Back when she was trying to plead her case, his eyes flickered. He took in her angelic face tainted with tears, causing the region between his chest twitched.  Her face reminded him of someone. 

But it was her eyes that got to him. She had the coolest shade of emerald eyes that made you want to sink deep into its depths.  And her lips.  She had the perfect Cupid's Bow's lips that his lips ached to nibble on.

But Kara Baxter was a forbidden property. 

Still, he can try. 

“Wait a moment.”  Nico’s voice rang out. 

Kara was midway through the door. She stopped swiftly when she heard his voice. Hope burgeoned in her chest.  

Without turning her head, she waited for him to continue. 

“How far are you willing to go to get my help?” 

She did not understand what he meant. Their gazes met and locked.  Her emerald greens to his black ones.  

“What do you mean?” 

“Close the door and come here.”  Nico invited. 

Taking his invitation positively,  Kara moved hastily.  Following his order, she closed the door and almost ran back to his desk. 

Nico noted the change in her demeanor as she happily sat back on the chair she vacated earlier, placing her interlocked hands on her lap.  Her transformation was surprisingly fast.  He was just not sure how fast she would change her mindset once he laid his offer on the table. 

He shook his head from the distracting thoughts.  He cleared his throat.  Kara’s eyes fixated on him. 

“You are a very lovely girl, Kara, and I want you,”  Nico told her seriously. 

Kara did not think that she heard him correctly.  Her gaze locked on him once more and saw the desire in his eyes. She shook her head in disbelief. 

In the year she worked in this hotel, she had very few interactions with him.  In those few instances, he never gave any indication that he was interested.

Nico saw her brows knitted.  Her face became pale.  He assumed that she was shocked by his proposition.  But he had no intention of taking the offer back.  Since he already started it, he might as well push through.

“Tell me, would you be willing to be my mistress?  In return, I will pay off your debts and clear your credit score.”  Kara’s head throbbed. She was not expecting that Nico would be so blunt.

For a moment, she was tempted. She hesitated at the thought of her boyfriend, David Ford whom she promised her virginity to after they got married. 

Kara clutched a hand to her chest to steady her jostling heart. At the same time, she was shaking her head no. 

“Y-you know I have a boyfriend.” She stammered. 

Nico Bernardi snickered.  A wayward lock fell on his forehead, covering his left eye a little, giving him the impression of a roguish pirate.  

In truth, Nico Bernardi is a very attractive man.  He had intense black eyes that swept many women off their feet.  Apart from that, he had a confident aura about him that made him stand out in a crowd.  If Kara would be honest, she was not immune to his charms.

“W-why me?” 

She could not wrap her head around the idea that he was attracted to her. 

He shrugged.  “I told you earlier.  I am not a charity institution.  You want my help.  So I am only telling you my terms.  Be my mistress, and I will help you.”  

Just like what he did with her request, Kara refused his offer. 

“No. What makes you think that I will betray David? I love him.” 

Nico smiled - a devilish one. 

“But can your love help you in your predicament?  Think about this, Ms. Baxter.  Do not cling to absurd notions.  Romantic illusions will not get you the things that you want in life.  It will only decapitate you.”  

Then he opened a desk drawer and took out a calling card.

“Here is my mobile number.  You can reach me here in case you change your mind.” 

Kara refused to take the rectangular card he was offering. To her, accepting the card would only mean that she was considering his offer. She did not want to give herself room to change her mind later. 

Her decision is final. 

“I won’t change my mind.” She said and marched out of his office so fast as if the demon was after her.   

While the gap between Nico’s office and her widens, she could not help but curse the man in her head. 

How dare he?  Kara fumed.

She could not believe how unscrupulous he could be. The gall of him to offer to make her his mistress! 

Without thinking, Kara took her phone from her pocket and started calling David's number. 

After the proposal she got from her boss, Kara’s nerves were so frayed. She wanted to see David to be able to calm down.  No, she would not expose her boss. He and David were friends, and she did not want to put a wedge between them. 

But she seriously wanted to see David. 

Unfortunately for her, David was not answering her call.  

When the elevator arrived at the lobby, Kara got off the building, hailed a cab from the taxi bay, and asked to be sent to David’s apartment, two blocks away. 

She could have walked to go there but did not think she could do that, given that her knees were so weak. 

In five minutes, she arrived in David’s building,  took the elevator, and pressed his floor number. 

She stepped out upon reaching his floor, walked a few distance to his unit, and when she arrived, she rang his bell, but no one came to the door.

She rang and rang, but no one answered. 

“Where could he be?” Kara said to herself. 

She took out her phone and tried calling him again. This time, his phone was off.

She was about to press David’s door once more when the door next to his apartment swung open, and the occupant glared at her. 

“Will you quit that?  It was obvious nobody was in. Otherwise, they would have answered the door by now.”

Kara was shocked at the hostility of David’s neighbors. Before she closed the door, Kara overheard her saying, “What a nuisance his neighbor and his girls were.” which surprised her.  

Deciding to leave, she marched back to the elevator bay.

Kara pressed the down button, impatient to get out of the building after the dressing down she received from David’s neighbor. 

When the door opened, shock registered on her face at the startling sight in front of her. Right before her was David with his pants down.  A woman’s leg circled his waist while his hand held her exposed bottom. 

“What the h*ll!”  Kara cried and felt her chest tighten. 

She did not know whether to laugh or to cry.

What an absurdity! 

While she was trying to keep her virginity intact for him, for their wedding night, her boyfriend was busy b*nging someone behind her back!