CHAPTER 2

SAMANTHA'S POV

My head throbbed hard and I moaned in pain. I tried to sit up but it felt like I just forced a nail through my skull with a hammer. I sighed and held my head in my hands. Why was I in so much pain?

I laid back into the bed but it was too soft. It was softer than the bed I owned and that was enough to wipe sleep from my eyes. I forced my eyes open and I stared at the unfamiliar ceiling. Where am I?

Someone grumbled beside me and I turned to see a stranger lying beside me! I looked down to see that we were both naked under the bed sheet. I didn't need a fortune teller to tell me what had transpired between us. I bit my hand hard to stop myself from screaming. Slowly, the memories from last night began to return to me.

I remember walking into the club with the sole determination of finding someone attractive enough to take away my virginity. I remember walking up to the counter and asking the bartender to give me the strongest drink they had. I could recall whining when he gave me tequila.

I remember vividly when my eyes set on the perfect man for the job. He was very hot and looked out of his element. He asked me to run and I could still remember how those words affected me but I chose to ignore him because it was my last night of freedom till Gregory Quin finally kicks the bucket.

I smiled and danced my way to him. I remember sliding myself on his laps and wrapping my hands around him.

“If you are looking for someone to fool around with for the night, I'm sorry to disappoint you but you've chosen the wrong man.” He had said, his voice filled with amusement, while he dug his fingers inside my waist.

I had rotated my waist feeling his hardness and giggled as he tightened his grip on my waist and held me in place. I then placed a kiss on his lips and whispered into his ears. “No, you are just perfect for the job.”

I tried to stand up from his laps but he drew me back into his laps and whispered into my ears before crashing his lips against mine, “It's too late to back away. You must finish what you started.”

That was all I could remember. I scoffed and hit my head with my hand then whimpered at the pain. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't remember what happened next but the evidence of what we had done last night was too obvious to ignore.

My phone rang, jolting me from my thoughts. I grabbed it quickly when I saw my mother’s doctor’s name on the screen.

“Hello, doctor,” I answered, trying to keep my voice as low as possible so I wouldn’t wake the man next to me. The last thing I wanted was for him to wake up and see me. I wasn’t ready to face that embarrassment.

I slowly got out of the bed, dragging the bedsheet with me, and winced when my legs touched the cold floor. My head throbbed painfully, and I sniveled, holding my head in my hands. Why was I in so much pain? Why couldn’t I recall anything else?

“I called to remind you that you haven’t paid for the month. We will need the installment to continue the treatment for this month.” The doctor’s voice was calm, but the reminder felt like a punch to my gut. I appreciated his thoughtfulness and cut the call.

I opened my bank app to transfer the money, only to be met with a zero balance. I recalled my father saying he used the money because he had to sort some bills and promised to replace it. I hit my forehead and whimpered, the weight of my situation pressing down on me.

As I wondered what to do next, tears streamed down my face, this was my mother, the only person that really loved me, the one ally I had. It hurt me so much to myself in a situation where I couldn't help, I tried to close my mouth to avoid waking the person sleeping next to me.

"I think it's wrong to wake up to an adult crying by this time of day."

I jumped up in shock, I had not noticed he was awake, he was rubbing his eyes as he stood up from his sleeping position.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know –" I stammered embarrassed.

"It's fine, do you regret last night so soon?"

"What do you mean? No, I wanted that." I said covering up my body.

His eyes moved from my head to my toes and the back to my face.

"What is it then?"

He was a stranger, he didn't deserve to know anything about me, I can't be vulnerable in front of him, I can't let him see my weakness.

"My mum is in a critical condition, the hospital called, they need money to continue with her treatment." I blurted out before I could stop myself.

"Oh, I'm sorry about your mum. Let's say this is another way to repay you for last night, I had fun." He said standing up to open his suitcase.

I watched as he brought out some was of cash and placed it on the bed, everything felt wrong.

"You're paying me for last night? I'm not a hoe that you can pay off, thank you for your help but I'll be fine." I said angrily.

It was supposed to be me having fun and racing back home, I shouldn't even be taking to him after last night.

"It's fine then, I'm doing this for your, take my brown watch from the suitcase, you can sell it off, I'm sure it'll be enough to pay off whatever you owe." He said and walked into the bathroom.

I watched as he disappeared, it still felt like a payment but I had no choice, this was a better option. I quickly dressed up, picked up the watch and ran out.

I boarded a taxi to the nearest pawn shop and sold off the watch. It was barely enough to get the money I needed like he had claimed. I had to add the jewelry on me and my shoes. I quickly transferred the money to the hospital’s account and sent my proof of payment to the doctor in charge of my mother’s treatment. My phone rang again, and I hurriedly picked up the call, thinking it was the doctor.

“Where are you?” Sandra screamed in my ear. I removed the phone from my ear and stared at the unknown number before placing it back in my ear.

“Where I am is none of your business, Sandra. I don’t have to report to you.”

“You have two hours to come back from wherever you ran off to before your father dies of a heart attack and your vegetable of a mother loses her chance to return to her miserable life by missing your own wedding.” She cut the call.

Holy Moly! Today is the wedding. I hurriedly boarded another taxi to my father’s house. Sandra was standing outside the mansion, comforting my father.

“Where have you been? Are you out of your mind?” she yelled, her eyes blazing with anger.

“Are you trying to ruin all that your father has worked for and drag his name through the mud in the process?” Sandra hissed through gritted teeth as I stepped down from the taxi, her eyes blazing with anger.

“It’s okay. What matters is that she is here now. We have less than an hour to make it to the altar before the priest calls the wedding off,” my father said softly, his voice a soothing balm to my frayed nerves.

It was a frantic rush to do my makeup and force me into a tight bridal dress I never chose, all within thirty minutes, but somehow, we pulled it off. The ride to the church was too speedy for my liking, my heart pounding with each sharp turn, but we arrived on time. Cameras flashed on me immediately as I stepped down from the car with the help of my father, the bright lights blinding me momentarily.

My stepmother rushed to my side with fake tears in her eyes, her performance worthy of an Oscar. “I can’t believe you are getting married. I can still remember the first time that we met. You were so little and cute.” I rolled my eyes at her. Could she not try to play the good mother part today?

She patted my cheeks, her touch insincere. “You are the most beautiful bride I have ever seen.” I gently removed her hands, making sure to squeeze them before letting her go, a silent warning. She smiled and walked ahead of us entering the church to probably take the front row as she watched me exchange vows with the ugliest man in the world.

“I know you hate me for this, but I promise you that the first chance we see to get you out of this marriage, we will take it,” my father whispered into my ear as the door opened and I placed my hand in his.

I raised my head to stare at the sick old fool I was about to get married to, only to see a man in nothing more than his late twenties staring back at me. When did Gregory Quin become so young?

With each step I took, the person at the altar became more familiar. When I was only a few steps away from him, I remembered him as the one-night stand. My eyes widened in shock, and I stared back at my father in confusion, but he placed my hands in the man’s hand and avoided my gaze.

“Take care of her,” he whispered to the man, his voice filled with a mixture of hope and resignation.

I turned to him with my heart racing, my mind a whirlwind of emotions. There was a ninety-nine percent chance that he had had so many one-night stands in his life and couldn’t remember most of them, and I was on that list. Hopefully.

Just when I forced a smile on my face and accepted the fact that he couldn’t recognize me, he stared at me with his face full of disdain.

“You are a thief!” he spat, his voice low but filled with venom.

Confusion clouded my mind, I felt the blood drain from my face. The world seemed to tilt on its axis, and I struggled to keep my composure.

My eyes were wet with sweat as I felt like everyone was staring at me. I could hear the murmurings. The cameras flashed and I wanted the earth to open and swallow me.

God! Can't you pick another day to disgrace me that does not involve me being filmed live?

What the hell was he even talking about?