Bring Her

Sebastian let out a low, humorless chuckle, still crouched on the floor. That woman packed a hell of a punch. It took him longer than he cared to admit to recover from the blow to his groin.

Normally, a cheap shot like that wouldn’t faze him, but he’d been distracted, dazed, even, by the way her lips had felt against his.

He exhaled sharply, running a tongue over his lower lip. “How the hell can a kiss be that good?”

He’d kissed plenty of women before. But none of them tasted like her. None of them had left this lingering, maddening need in his gut.

And the way she smelled… fresh and intoxicating, like something he couldn’t quite place but suddenly craved.

Sebastian hissed in frustration, glancing down. Even with the dull throb still radiating from between his legs, another kind of ache refused to fade.

“Since when did I turn into a damn pervert?” he muttered, forcing himself to his feet. He needed answers. That woman was obviously lying.

“She knows exactly what happened,” he mused, running a hand through his hair. “The question is, what’s her angle? What does she gain from this?”

Or worse… was she being used?

His gaze darkened. Ever since he became the head of the Bancroft Syndicate, enemies had been lurking in every shadow, waiting for an opening to strike. ‘Could this be one of their schemes?’

Sebastian clenched his jaw. If someone thought they could play him, they were about to learn just how dangerous that mistake would be.

A knock on the door pulled him from his thoughts. Seconds later, Clay, his right-hand man, stepped inside.

“Boss, are you alright?” Clay asked, eyes scanning him with concern. 

“Miss Rhea is downstairs fuming. She’s giving statements to the media, says the engagement is off, and she won’t marry you.”

Sebastian exhaled sharply, dragging a hand over his face. “Just great.”

As if this morning couldn’t get any worse.

Clay hesitated before asking, “What… exactly happened?”

Sebastian’s jaw clenched. “Find out who that woman is.”

“What woman?” Clay’s brows shot up in alarm.

“The one I woke up with, damn it!” Sebastian snapped. “Naked. In my bed. The one Rhea saw.”

Clay paled. “Shit.”

“Exactly. I want her identity, and I want her in front of me by tonight.”

“Yes, Boss!” Clay rushed out to follow his orders.

Sebastian exhale, bracing himself for the media circus waiting outside. Today was supposed to be a polished, picture-perfect exclusive interview and a high-profile photoshoot with Rhea. Instead, it had turned into a public disaster.

Rhea Monroe wasn’t just some socialite. She was the sole heiress to the Monroe Group, the world’s largest automotive manufacturer. Their engagement had been a strategic move, one that had just blown up in his face.

And now, his grandmother was going to kill him. She’d been hounding him to settle down for years, using every trick in the book… guilt, threats, even fake health scares. He’d managed to dodge her relentless matchmaking, but when the Monroe deal presented itself, it had seemed like the perfect solution: secure a powerful business alliance and shut his grandmother up in one go.

Sebastian massaged his temples. Now, all of that was gone, slipping through his fingers because of one unexpected woman.

As he stepped out of the building, a swarm of reporters descended like vultures, flashes going off in rapid succession. His security detail moved fast, blocking them from getting too close.

“Mr. Bancroft! Is it true Miss Monroe caught you with another woman in bed?”

“Who is she? Is she your new lover?”

“Was this affair going on before the engagement?”

Sebastian ignored them, striding straight to his car. Once inside, he slammed the door shut and exhaled, muscles tensed with irritation.

Clay was already in the passenger seat, holding out a tablet. “We found her.”

Sebastian took the device and scrolled through the profile displayed on the screen.

“Arabella Winters,” Clay began. “Twenty-two years old, works as a medical technologist at Meta Doctors Hospital. She was on the guest list for last night’s charity gala, the hospital director invited her personally.”

Sebastian’s gaze darkened as he watched the CCTV footage Clay had pulled up.

“She was drunk,” Clay continued. “You can see her swaying, trying to open the wrong door at first. Then she tries yours… and, somehow, the keycard works.”

Sebastian’s grip tightened around the tablet.

“Turns out,” Clay added, “the front desk gave her the wrong key.”

Sebastian let out a sharp breath. “And after she walked in?”

“No footage inside the room,” Clay admitted. “But that’s where the story cuts off. What happened between you two-”

“-only she and I know,” Sebastian finished, his voice laced with suspicion. His gaze lingered on her photo. “Arabella…”

Something wasn’t right.

A mix-up this perfect? At a high-profile event like last night’s? Coincidences happened, but this… this felt deliberate.

“Dig deeper,” he ordered. “I want to know everything. Who she is, why she was there, and if someone orchestrated this. Find her this instant and bring her to me.”

Clay nodded. “Understood.” Then, after a pause, he hesitated.

“What?” Sebastian snapped.

“She’s at the hospital right now,” Clay admitted. “Her father is scheduled for a heart transplant today. A matching donor was found last minute, and the surgery is happening in a few hours.”

Sebastian’s brows furrowed. 

Clay nodded. “That procedure costs over a million dollars. And from what we gathered, she’s not exactly in a position to afford it. Her salary is average. Her father hasn’t worked in months. It’s unclear how she suddenly got the funds.”

Sebastian’s smirk was slow and knowing. “She didn’t win the lottery.”

“Doesn’t seem like it,” Clay agreed.

Sebastian leaned back, his mind already piecing things together. Money. Desperation. A sudden, suspicious encounter.

Someone had orchestrated this.

And he was going to find out who.

Clay cleared his throat. “So… should I still bring her in?”

Sebastian exhaled, eyes flickering toward the hospital’s address on the tablet.