Chapter Two

/-Emily-/

The pain stung on my cheek as I stood there, apologizing profusely to the woman who looked to be my age. It didn’t matter that she slapped me. Where would I find the money to replace her dress?

Plus, if my boss found out about this, she would instantly fire me.

“YOU DUMB BITCH.” Her raven hair fell over her eyes as she regarded me with disdain. “This was my favorite dress of the month. What the hell? Who's your manager? Call your fucking manager!” she raged, looking around.

My heart dropped. “I'm so sorry, ma'am. I'm so sorry,” I said, my gaze on the floor.

A scowl immediately appeared on her face. “You don't look like you're sorry enough. Get on your knees.”

My gaze snapped to her, my eyes wide with shock. Behind me, my uncle and his friends snickered. “I-I said I'm sorry—”

I was cut off by another slap to the cheek, causing the sting to intensify, and my face immediately turned to the side, a new set of tears pouring from my eyes.

“Did I stutter? Get on your fucking knees and beg me like the dimwit that you are, and maybe, just maybe, I might forgive you.” The girl yelled, her voice catching the attention of a few of the guests who were watching with interest, just like my uncle was.

My body trembled, and my hands shook; embarrassment clung to my body like a second skin, and I willed the ground to open up and swallow me. I didn't have any choice. It was either I knelt, or I would be forced to pay for a new dress or, worse, risk being fired.

Against my will, I forced my knees to the hard, cold tiles. My entire body stiffened from the attention that was now on me.

“Now, beg.” I heard the smirk in her voice, as if she was beyond pleased with what was happening.

As I opened my mouth to do exactly that, a voice cut me off. “That’s enough, Samantha.”

I yanked my head up to meet cold, hard grey eyes that regarded me with boredom. My breath hitched from the soulless look in his eyes.

He had dark hair that was slicked back on his head. Like every other man at the gala, he wore a dark suit, but unlike the other men, he looked like he commanded power. His hands were in his pockets as he let his gaze drift to the woman. "Samantha," he said.

“Where have you been? I didn't know you came.” Samantha's voice, which had reminded me of the devil's daughter as she snarled at me, was now cheery and flirty.

My jaw almost dropped at the change. Even her entire demeanor had changed. She was now twirling her hair with her fingers and blinking her eyes at the handsome man, a far cry from the scowl on her face that had reminded me of the evil stepmother in Cinderella.

With a resigned look on his face, he turned his attention to me. “Stand up.”

“What, no? I'm not done with her yet! She needs to pay for my dress,” Samantha whined. “People like her need to be shown a lesson.”

“Send me your account details, and I'll pay for the dress.”

My eyes widened as I knelt there. He was going to pay for my dress? Who was he? Why would he do such a thing for me?

Samantha huffed, “The money isn't the problem; I want—”

“Samantha,” the man called her name in warning. “Don't push me.”

She rolled her eyes, throwing me a look of disdain before huffing, “Fine,” and she turned to leave.

My shoulders sagged with relief, and I got to my feet immediately. The embarrassment slowly disappeared, giving way to gratefulness. “Thank you, sir,” I said, not looking him in the eye because, for some reason, his gray orbs drew me in.

His eyes roamed everywhere on my face. “What's your name?”

I shifted on my feet. Why did he need to know my name? Was he going to report me to my boss? I sucked in a breath. “I can't tell you that.” Even though he helped me, I couldn't risk giving him my name.

I turned to give a glance at my uncle; he wasn't there. A slow surge of anger welled through me when I realized he had left me while I faced such humiliation.

“Well, you know my name; it's only fair that I know yours.” The man's eyes held a twinkle of amusement.

“I don't know your name,” I said with a tick in my jaw. I needed to go back to work, but I didn't want to be rude. He technically just saved me from the hands of the devil's spawn.

A flash of surprise went through his eyes at that before he narrowed his gaze, searching my face like I was a math equation he was trying to figure out the answer to. “You don't know who I am?”

My brows furrowed. “Am I supposed to?”

After a few seconds, his face turned back to one of amusement. “You're supposed to.” His small smirk on his rosy lips sent waves of shivers down my spine.

Now that he was insisting, I was curious about his identity. But I decided that it was better for me not to know his for the sake of fairness.I thanked him again and went to resume work.

The whole time I worked, I felt eyes on me, and every time I turned to look, I would see him watching me.

And every time I saw him watching me, a shiver rolled through my entire body—a shiver I ignored.

The night rolled on, and the gala was finally over. Stuffing my uniform in my tote bag, I headed for the front door.

As soon as I got outside, I halted in my tracks.

The dark-haired man was there, leaning on a black sports car, his hands in his pockets. When he noticed me, his spine straightened. “Let me give you a ride home,” he said in a soft voice.

I gave him a skeptical look. He didn't look like he was a kidnapper. I couldn't take rides from strangers. But then, I needed to save money, no matter how small. “Sure. Thank you,” I said, stepping into the car as he opened the passenger door for me.

Inside, the car smelled like cedarwood and money.

When he entered the car, he spoke, “Grayson Knight.” His deep voice sent tingles throughout my body.

“What?” I said with a brow raised.

“My name is Grayson Knight,” he said, amusement flickering in his eyes.

“Uh... okay?” I narrowed my eyes. “I'm still not telling you mine.”

“You don't have to; I already know it, Emily Carter.”

My eyes widened. “How—”

He gave a shrug. “I asked your fellow colleagues. They told me.”

I fumed. How could they just give anyone my name? But that name, Grayson Knight, sounded familiar. Where had I heard it from?

Studying him as he drove, I couldn't help but notice how beautiful this man was. He was the kind of man who would set women's pants on fire, the kind who would make a virgin want to do wild things.

Minutes passed, and I was still studying him. “You like what you see?”

That made me jump. “I, uh—”

“I know you're attracted to me the way I am to you. I'm not usually a man of many words, so I'll be straight with you. Let's head to my place, and we can do anything we want to each other. Just for one night, and then we can go our separate ways after that. No calls, no contact.”

My jaw almost dropped, and my face immediately heated. “Uhmm…” I was at a loss for words. It was true what he said; I was attracted to him. But that was it. Nothing more.

I looked out the window, considering his offer, watching as we zoomed past people and buildings.

It had been a while since I let down my hair, so why not just do it? There was no harm in it. He was hot. My body wanted him, and I wanted to forget my problems for a night.

I turned to him with determination in my eyes. “Okay.”

The slow smirk that appeared on his face made my nerves jittery.

That night in his penthouse, we played with each other's bodies. I was sure my moans and screams could be heard from miles away as our bodies danced on the bed.

The morning came, and I immediately left the penthouse, leaving a sleeping Grayson.

But as I stepped out of his front door, the morning sun making me squint, I was immediately swarmed by more than a dozen people, some with cameras and others without.

My heart rate spiked, and I looked around frantically.

What the hell was going on?

“Who are you, and what connection do you have with Grayson Knight?” Some of them were yelling, pointing their mics at me.

“What is your relationship with Grayson Knight?”

Flashes of camera lights rained down on my face. My body was in a frenzy.

Again. What the hell was going on?