"Money… no money… money…" I gasped when I picked the last petal until the stem was empty. "No money?" I muttered, slapping my palm against my forehead. I knew that whenever Johnny asked for a favor, it would bring me trouble. And if he threw out bait with his "I'll pay you" sentence, I wasn't just screwed—I was about to be broke. Tamara had just witnessed a horrifying sight—her son trying to get into the pants of the one person she trusted… me. I’d seen the look on her face, and it made me feel guilty. "Guess I'm not the right choice after all," I grumbled under my breath, tossing the skinny stem I’d murdered somewhere and shifting in my seat, feeling how my butt was starting to go numb from sitting and waiting on the bench for half an hour. Tamara had left me a message after I left Johnny’s place—aka Hell’s annex to Earth—asking me to meet her at the park. So here I was, about an hour earlier than the same time because all my energy to work my ass off in his forsaken compa
My vision spun while my heart played a hard rock inside my chest. I felt like puking everything I ate today, and my knees were seconds away from giving up on me. “I—I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I croaked, gripping the doorknob for dear life because if I didn’t, I’d be kissing the floor. How did he know? Did Tamara tell him? No, that’s impossible—unless he figured it out himself. Is he spying on me? No way. He wouldn’t waste a second of his precious time on me. He’d rather be chasing some round, bouncy ass instead of keeping tabs on me. Maybe he’s got eyes and ears everywhere. Or maybe it’s his mother. Typical billionaire power move. But I doubt it—he’s not that smart, in my opinion. He scoffed, leaning in so close he sucked all the air from my lungs. My eyes widened. My senses shut down. “You were masturbating before I knocked on your door,” he whispered, then laughed in my face like a teenage boy who never mentally outgrew puberty. Is this how he talks to women a
Forcefully swallowing the lump in my throat, I felt it drag its way down to my already churning stomach as I stared at myself in the mirror.I'm looking at the woman I always wanted to be: flawless, expensive, living in luxury. And tonight, I am that woman.A deep red dress—hell, a revenge dress—is barely holding me together. It’s long, but it’s hanging so low, both front and back, that it’s more like I’m not wearing anything at all. Perfect for the plan. Perfect to show off my tattoo.I traced my fingers down my bare neck, trailed it over the hollow of my chest, exposed and teasing.Tonight, I’m a tease."I believe this will complete your look," Tamara’s voice whispered behind me, and before I could protest, she draped a necklace around my neck—a ruby pendant, heavy and suffocating, adorned the emptiness around my neck.She stepped back, eyes full of pride as she examined me in the mirror."You look more fabulous than I imagined. You’ll have Johnny’s attention in no time, I’m sure."
"Your new parcel just arrived," I announced, depositing the box on his table with a grunt. "Your lube, condoms, and heaven knows what else." The usual smugness on his face was absent today. His eyes—colder than the depths of the sea but hotter than the sun—were throwing glares at the hard copy report from the finance department. "Problem?" I asked casually, as if I didn't work for him and was just talking to an idiot friend of mine. "I didn’t get my fill last night, got a speeding ticket this morning, and then this..." He tossed the red folder onto his unorganized table and passed his glare to me, as if I were the one who caused all his headaches. "That motherfucking cocksucker thought stealing all my ideas and endorsing my products would take him a step ahead of me," he added, pointing at his chest. Lifting my eyebrows, I already knew what was making his million bubbles of ego burst. In his world of bachelor life and business, there was one daredevil who dared to oppose
Forcefully swallowing the lump in my throat, I felt it drag its way down to my already churning stomach as I stared at myself in the mirror.I'm looking at the woman I always wanted to be: flawless, expensive, living in luxury. And tonight, I am that woman.A deep red dress—hell, a revenge dress—is barely holding me together. It’s long, but it’s hanging so low, both front and back, that it’s more like I’m not wearing anything at all. Perfect for the plan. Perfect to show off my tattoo.I traced my fingers down my bare neck, trailed it over the hollow of my chest, exposed and teasing.Tonight, I’m a tease."I believe this will complete your look," Tamara’s voice whispered behind me, and before I could protest, she draped a necklace around my neck—a ruby pendant, heavy and suffocating, adorned the emptiness around my neck.She stepped back, eyes full of pride as she examined me in the mirror."You look more fabulous than I imagined. You’ll have Johnny’s attention in no time, I’m sure."
My vision spun while my heart played a hard rock inside my chest. I felt like puking everything I ate today, and my knees were seconds away from giving up on me. “I—I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I croaked, gripping the doorknob for dear life because if I didn’t, I’d be kissing the floor. How did he know? Did Tamara tell him? No, that’s impossible—unless he figured it out himself. Is he spying on me? No way. He wouldn’t waste a second of his precious time on me. He’d rather be chasing some round, bouncy ass instead of keeping tabs on me. Maybe he’s got eyes and ears everywhere. Or maybe it’s his mother. Typical billionaire power move. But I doubt it—he’s not that smart, in my opinion. He scoffed, leaning in so close he sucked all the air from my lungs. My eyes widened. My senses shut down. “You were masturbating before I knocked on your door,” he whispered, then laughed in my face like a teenage boy who never mentally outgrew puberty. Is this how he talks to women a
"Money… no money… money…" I gasped when I picked the last petal until the stem was empty. "No money?" I muttered, slapping my palm against my forehead. I knew that whenever Johnny asked for a favor, it would bring me trouble. And if he threw out bait with his "I'll pay you" sentence, I wasn't just screwed—I was about to be broke. Tamara had just witnessed a horrifying sight—her son trying to get into the pants of the one person she trusted… me. I’d seen the look on her face, and it made me feel guilty. "Guess I'm not the right choice after all," I grumbled under my breath, tossing the skinny stem I’d murdered somewhere and shifting in my seat, feeling how my butt was starting to go numb from sitting and waiting on the bench for half an hour. Tamara had left me a message after I left Johnny’s place—aka Hell’s annex to Earth—asking me to meet her at the park. So here I was, about an hour earlier than the same time because all my energy to work my ass off in his forsaken compa
"Yuck!" I exclaimed, gargling for the tenth time. But no matter how many times I brushed my teeth, wiped my lips, and washed my mouth, the warmth of his lips against mine still lingered. And it made my stomach churn! The way his touch still burned my skin gave me goosebumps. And it sickened me because the more I forced myself to hate the feeling, the more I liked it. "This is all your fault, Cassidy. If you weren’t so easily deceived by money, you wouldn’t have to suffer," I scolded myself, staring into the mirror. "Look at yourself. You look like a damn rainbow—like your old self, stupid." The first few weeks were fine. I believed I could get through this easily. But weeks turned into months, months turned into a year, and now, I've been tormented for almost two years! Johnny is an insanely attractive man—no one has the guts to deny it, not even me. Physically ideal, but behaviorally flawed. This prolonged misery taught me a lot of things about that bastard. He never misse
"Your new parcel just arrived," I announced, depositing the box on his table with a grunt. "Your lube, condoms, and heaven knows what else." The usual smugness on his face was absent today. His eyes—colder than the depths of the sea but hotter than the sun—were throwing glares at the hard copy report from the finance department. "Problem?" I asked casually, as if I didn't work for him and was just talking to an idiot friend of mine. "I didn’t get my fill last night, got a speeding ticket this morning, and then this..." He tossed the red folder onto his unorganized table and passed his glare to me, as if I were the one who caused all his headaches. "That motherfucking cocksucker thought stealing all my ideas and endorsing my products would take him a step ahead of me," he added, pointing at his chest. Lifting my eyebrows, I already knew what was making his million bubbles of ego burst. In his world of bachelor life and business, there was one daredevil who dared to oppose