Chapter 04

CLEO

I woke up the next morning with a smile on my face, ready to face whatever life threw at me and of course, win the bet. It would be nice to show Andre that not every woman could surrender to his charm. 

I was still in bed reflecting on the strategies to use in winning the bet when I heard a knock at the door. Curious as to who it could be, I got out of bed and walked towards the door. 

"Good morning Miss. This was delivered for you." The guy at the door (a bellboy) said, handing me a bouquet of red roses. 

"Uh thanks." I said, accepting it. 

"You're welcome Miss." He replied, walking away after I handed him a tip. 

I closed the door and walked back to the bed, while searching through the roses for a card to find out who sent the roses. I found it and sure enough, it was Andre. 

Chuckling to myself, I threw the roses in the bin. Andre must really be insane if he thinks roses can win my heart. 

Time to show him how real players work.

••••

ANDRE

"Sir, Miss Reynolds just came in. Do I let her in?" My secretary said over the intercom. 

"Yes of course. Let her in." I replied. 

"Okay Sir."

I let go of the button I had been pressing and leaned into my chair with a smirk. The bet had been the only thing on my mind ever since we agreed on it yesterday. 

It would be fun to charm Cleo like the others and prove to her that I was the better player. It would be more fun to have her in bed and dump her like the rest... I'm so going to enjoy this. 

Then Cleo entered and my jaw dropped upon seeing her. She was gorgeously dressed in an off shoulder black dress with a polka dotted jacket over it. The dress looked both official and seductive at the same time. I was in shocked, just staring at her. 

Probably noticing my reaction, she smirked and took her seat in the chair in front of me. 

"Good morning Andre." She said coyly, an innocent smile on her face. 

"Uh yeah, good morning." I replied, trying desperately to stop ogling her. 

She smirked as she reached into her bag and brought out some files. 

"So did you get the flowers I sent?"

"I did."

"Did you like them?"

"Oh I did. I liked them so much, I threw them in the bin."

I chuckled at her remark. "You're joking right?"

"Nope." She replied, before returning her attention back to the files. 

I took my eyes off her and began playing with my pen, trying to pass time until she was done with what she was doing. 

Once she was done inspecting the files, we began discussing in lengths about the plans for the hotel. Cleo is actually a hotelier meaning she has a bunch of hotels around the world so she's currently planning on building one in New York which is where I come in. 

"I think that should be all for today. We can meet tomorrow to choose a location for the hotel. Is that okay with you?" She asked, already on her feet.

"I have an idea too." She said stopping in her tracks. 

"What's your idea?"

"How about we change our deal a little?"

"Really? Change it into what?"

"Let's see.... The first person to steal a kiss from the other loses." She said, her face only a few metres away. 

"Oh really? I agree."

She smiled. "Of course you will. Let's just see you try to steal a kiss from me."

"Trust me, you'll be begging for me to kiss you by the end of the week."

"Let's just wait and see, shall we?" She winked before heading out of my office. 

I chuckled. This should be fun. 

   ••••

CLEO

"Oh my gosh Cleo. You're kidding right?" ... Kyla said over the phone. 

"Of  course not Ky. Why would I lie? We really made the bet."

"Whoa ! That's exciting. So..do you think you're going to win? "

"  Duh! Of course I will. This will be a cinch."

"  Are you sure or maybe you'll end up losing your heart in the end?"... I could hear the smirk in her voice. 

" Don't even start with that Kyla. We're talking about Andre Simmons over here. How can you say that? If there'll be any falling, it'll be him falling for me and once I get that kiss, it'll be bye bye player reputation for him and hello half his fortune for me..."

"  You'll be surprised. Love works in mysterious ways, you know."

"Yeah  I know but not for me, it doesn't... Look I'll catch you later Ky. Room service is at the door."

"  Okay. Bye bes. Ari and I will be there within the week."

"Yay ! Can't wait!.." I squealed. 

"Neither can I. Good luck on your bet. Have fun with Mr. Hottie."

"Whatever! Bye Ky."

I hung up and walked to the door. I was handed my tray of food. 

"Thanks Ma'am." The waiter said, collecting the tip. 

"Sure." I replied, walking in and closing the door behind me. 

I sat in bed and turned on the TV. I was halfway through the meal when a particular topic came up in the show that was currently airing. 

It was about an article that had recently been released about me and what it was about completely surprised me... 

   ••••

ANDRE

I was the first person to get to Cleo's hotel the next day. A crowd of reporters had already gathered outside so it wasn't easy getting in but I did anyway. 

It was tricky but I was able to get the receptionist to give me her room number. Once I got to her room, I resorted to knocking as hard as I could until she answered. 

"Okay. Who the heck... Oh it's you. Come in Andre." She said opening the door, wide enough for me to enter. 

"Are you okay? Are you alright?" I asked once in. 

"I'm fine. Why are you asking that?" She asked, arching her eyebrows. 

"You seem normal. Why aren't you huddled over in one corner of your room crying or something?"

"Why would I be doing that?"

"I dunno. Maybe it's because, half of New York thinks you're a slut?!"

"Oh that! Meh I don't care."

"Wait a minute, you don't?"

"No I don't." She replied simply, taking her seat on the bed. 

"Why? Most girls would be crying on their bed and cursing life or specifically whoever published that article but you don't even seem affected."

"Because I'm not... Look Andre, if I spend every second of my life worrying about what people thought about me, I would never move ahead in life. In a few days, this whole thing would have blown over so yeah, I don't care."

"Oh!" was all I could say as I stared at her. 

"Yeah. So gimme a few seconds and then we can get looking at some sites."

"Okay cool." I replied as she walked into the bathroom. 

"Well that was unexpected." I muttered to myself, staring at the door of the bathroom. 

   ••••

CLEO

I exhaled sharply as I stepped into the bathroom. I felt my eyes tear up as I slowly fell to a heap on the floor, brushing away unbidden tears. I closed my eyes as various memories began rushing back. 

"California Play Girl, more like California's #1 Slut." 

That'd been the headline of the article from yesterday. It had been about me and literally every line in the article had called me a slut. The writer had attached pictures of me and several of the guys I'd played and had said that even though I was rich and all, I was nothing more than a cheap whore. 

The line alone brought back memories that I thought I had long forgotten. I tried desperately to stop the flashbacks but they came nevertheless. 

"Stop please stop!" I muttered, tears already streaming down my cheeks but that didn't stop the flashbacks at all. 

In any case, it seemed to make them worse, making it seem like it was happening to me presently. 

I could still hear their voices and the hatred in them. 

"You're nothing more than a slut." I heard in my ear even though there was no one there. 

"No no no!" I muttered as the memories became more vivid. 

All of a sudden, everything faded and I heard Andre calling my name from outside the bathroom. 

"Cleo, are you alright in there?" I heard him ask. 

"Yeah yeah. I'm alright." I sniffled, brushing away my tears. 

I wasn't going to let one tiny article ruin. After all, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. 

With that thought in mind, I slipped out of my nightgown and turned on the shower to have a nice relaxing bath. 

   ***

"Cleo, are you sure you're okay?" Andre asked for the umpteenth time that day. 

I sighed. "Ask me that one more time and I swear you won't live to lose the bet."

"What makes you sure you'll win?"

"Because I'm me." I replied in a 'duh' tone. 

"Yeah right. Keep kidding yourself."

I rolled my eyes at him and was about to reply when a guy suddenly approached us and began throwing questions after questions at me, creating a scene as he did. 

He was a reporter and he was asking questions like "Why am I the way I am?" "What do I have to say about the article?" "Do I agree that I'm a slut with no moral ethics?"

I wanted to answer or fire back but I couldn't. Instead I felt the wall I'd built up to prevent my emotions from showing, cracking little by little. Just when I thought, I couldn't hold it in anymore. 

Something happened or to put it correctly, Andre happened. 

"Hey Mister, I would appreciate it if you'd stop calling my fiancee a slut."

"Your what!?" I and the reporter exclaimed at the same time. 

   ••••

ANDRE

I felt for Cleo when the reporter crashed our lunch and began asking all these stupid questions. It was obvious that she was trying desperately to keep from cracking so I stepped in and did the only rational thing I could (the only other thing I could have done would have been to punch the guy in the gut). 

"Hey Mister, I would appreciate it if you'd stop calling my fiancee a slut." I yelled, earning a gasp from everyone. 

"Your what!?" Cleo and the reporter exclaimed at the same time. 

"Yes. Cleo and I are getting married and she's not a slut so I would appreciate it if everyone stops calling her that." I shot Cleo a look that told her to play along so she kept quiet. That didn't stop her from gaping at me though. 

"But…but..." The reporter stuttered. 

"Y'all heard me right. We're so in love and will be getting married very soon... Now if you don't mind, I and my beautiful fiancee will be leaving now." I said grabbing her hand and heading towards the exit, ignoring all the questions thrown at us. 

Once we were safely in the car, I signaled the driver to take us back to her hotel while Cleo remained quiet. 

"You didn't have to do that, you know. I had it covered."

"Didn't seem like it."

She scoffed. "Whatever!"

I laughed before looking away from her. 

"Thanks though." I heard her say a few seconds later. 

I smirked. "You're welcome, wifey."

"Don't call me."

"Whatever you say...wifey." I whispered into her ear. She shot me a glare but didn't reply. 

I laughed aloud. This should be fun. 

   ••••

REYNA

"Argh! What do you mean they're getting married now? You were supposed to ruin her reputation.... Just get out of here. You're useless." I yelled into the phone before throwing it against the wall. It shattered upon impact but I didn't care. It was old anyway. 

I can't believe my plan to ruin Cleo didn't work. Now they've moved from dating to being engaged. Andre never even proposed to me. 

Could it be that he's actually serious with her?...... No no, he can't be. 

But nevertheless, I'm not giving up. Andre's mine and only mine and I don't mind getting rid of anyone who stands in my way...

. 

T B C