Chapter One

"This is blackmail...blackmail She takes and she takes"

                                   —Blackmail

                                       Brymo

Lindsey's POV

I woke up with a start. I felt my mind was in a daze as I couldn't recognize my surrounding. The sheets beneath her felt exquisite and nothing like her crusty dry bedsheets I always forgot to wash. The lighting of the room definitely threw me of, it was perfect unlike the dim florescent bulb I was used to nor was there any odour of the sort.

I tried to lift my body up but I couldn't as I felt pain wrack my body all over. Lifting the bed covers, I glanced down to see angry purpulish red marks all over me. Why the hell was I naked and more importantly why was I covered in bruises?

"This can't be right" I mutter under my breath trying to make sense of the situation.

Still feeling disoriented I tried to roll myself out of the bed since I couldn't lift myself up. I rolled until I felt something hard hit my back. I froze in fear and turned over to see that someone, a man to be precise was in the bed with me. I grabbed the bed cover and lifted it to my mouth to muffle the scream I was fighting to not let out. Ignoring the pain I was in, I jack knifed out of the bed and bent down rushing to pick up my clothes that was scattered haphazardly on the ground.

My head felt like it was being pierced at with thousands of needles but I paid no attention to it, the only thing I wanted to was to put as much distance between myself and the room as soon as possible. As soon as I was done gathering my clothes, I quickly put them on in a haze and made my way towards the door.

"Where do you think your going?" I heard an angry voice say behind me.

I stood frozen in my tracks, unsure of what to do. I then felt a hand reach out and grab me, drawing me back to the bed and bringing me face to face with one of the most handsome man I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. My confused eyes stared at him head on, unable to look away for even a moment. He...he had captured my entire attention.

Christ, he was beautiful.

His dark brooding eyes which looked at me with anger and annoyance seemed to carry an aura of unreserved arrogance,the kind that could only come from one that has only ever lived in luxury. His face could be likened to ice as it held no warmth and his nose rested perfectly on his face as if God himself dedicated an entire week to sculpt it out.

His tan skin was free of blemishes of any sort, he must have never gone through the growing pains of being a teenager. I wonder how someone so beautiful could look so cold and untouchable at the same time. I was definitely no stranger to handsome men but the one in front of me completely overshadowed them all without even giving them a fighting chance.

Judging from the scratches on his bare chest and the blatant anger in his eyes, I could tell he was the one who had left the bruises on my body.

"Who are you and what the hell are you doing here? Who sent you here? Was it Mr Asherton?Also did you actually think after drugging me you would actually be allowed to walk out of here scott free? He asked me in a low voice

Oh boy... he's mad.

I kept on staring at him as I was unable to say anything as I struggled to piece together the memory of last night... then it hit me.

I had come here because one of my close friends had bragged the country's most sought after bachelor "Ethan Carter" was going to lodge in the hotel which she worked at for a night and was one of the lucky people that would be assigned to taking care of his stay. I was completely down on my luck with a mother that had to be connected to several machines to ensure her survival not to mention her drugs that cost a mini fortune , a crazy step mother that always kept me looking over my shoulder and had been in between jobs for quite a while. The crazy idea of blackmailing Mr Carter came shortly after when I got a letter from the hospital one day saying my mother desperately required surgery as her condition had deteriorated quite badly. The estimated cost of the operation and the follow ups plus her continued stay at the hospital was almost a jaw dropping sum of one million dollars. I was unable to source out that kind of money from any of my odd jobs so that was how the plan of blackmailing Mr Carter was hatched.

The first step of the plan was convincing my friend Meredith to swap places. I had pondered for days non-stop, on reasons why I could cover for her at work. I even suggested that she take some time off and spend it with her husband and but she refused to budge, claiming she wouldn't miss an opportunity to meet "the Ethan Carter" and I definitely could not tell her about my ulterior motives. I had almost given up on the plan entirely when Meredith called me frantically, claiming her little boy Owen couldn't breathe and needed to be rushed to the hospital. Seeing an opportunity, I grabbed it without thinking and I was able to carry out my plan without any hitches. Now I'm definitely begining to rethink this entire idea.

"Answer me woman!" I heard him bellow. His voice brings me back to reality in a second.

What do I do? What do I do? How do I get myself out of this mess? It seems like I won't be able to get myself out of this mess... hmm, I guess I'll have to face his questions head on. I cleared my throat and replied him with a confidence I clearly wasn't feeling and replied him in a low tone.

"My name is Lindsey... Lindsey James and yes I did drug you. No I wasn't sent by anyone neither do I know any Mr Asherton of sorts. The reason I drugged was clearly to sleep with you. I needed the sum of a million dollars from you and so I figured that blackmail was the right way to go about it. You can be rest assured I have pictures of you and I in the act and I'm sure your fiance Nicole would be able to tolerate pictures of her fiance plastered on the television now would she?

So now tell me what will it be Mr Carter?"...