All Chapters of Empire State Enemies: An Enemies-to-Lovers Billionaire Roman: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

PROLOGUELexiTonight, I’m someone I barely recognize. A fraud in fake designer heels. A stranger in my own skin.It’s wild how just a few hours of craziness can flip your entire world upside down.This morning, had you asked me about my grand plans for the night, I’d have confidently said I was destined for a glamorous evening sprawled on the couch, ready for a Million Dollar Listing binge-fest with my little sister, Grace. Decked out in my most tragically holey sweats and the kind of underwear that screams “here to support a full bush, not lure in a lover.”We’d be shoveling chips into our mouths, while we live vicariously through the disgustingly rich. Pretending just for a moment that we’re the ones rolling in money.But instead, here I am.Pinned against a wall in a swanky hotel bathroom by New York’s most notorious playboy. Pulse jackhammering as I straddle the line between sheer panic and twisted arousal.It’s the kind of questionable decision you make when you’re not thinking

I walk over to Brenda, my sneakers squeaking against the floor like a bad horror movie. Brenda’s just doing her job, sure, but she has this way of getting under my skin—the constant throat clearing, those judgmental eyebrows, that look like she’s tasting something sour.She dives right in, no warm-up. “Let’s not beat around the bush. You know why I called you over.”I swallow hard. Yeah, I’m painfully aware. We pre-pay every six months, but with their insane price hike and my stagnant income, this time I’m short. Way short.“I just need a few days,” I say evenly, tamping down desperation. “You’ll get the full amount by Friday. I swear.”“Tomorrow. Noon sharp.” She spits out each word aggressively. “No exceptions, Miss Sullivan.”I’m pretty sure my soul just shriveled but I fight to keep my expression neutral. “Got it. Tomorrow.”Goodbye, groceries; I enjoyed our time together.“And don’t forget the late penalty interest,” she tacks on, almost gleefully.My eye twitches. I imagine Bren

Anger and fear fight inside me. “Who’s the guy?”“Better you don’t know yet. You’ll meet him soon enough.” He grins, cocky as always. “Relax.”He playfully dangles the envelope in front of me, only to click his tongue and yank it back, like the dick that he is. “Oh, and Lexi?”I grit my teeth. “What?”“Try not to look like someone ran over your dog. He’s gotta want to fuck you. Get dolled up for your date, Cinderella. Clock’s ticking.”I can’t help but snarl as I fling the door open. “Guess I missed the part in Cinderella where she swipes the prince’s Benz.”Deano cracks up like we’re suddenly best buddies. But before I can bail, his hand clamps my wrist in an iron vise.“You should be thanking me.” He winks. “I’m basically your knight in shining armor here.”Yeah, right.I’m way out of my depth here. But it’s not like I have a ton of options.Guess I’d better go get prettied up for my hot date tonight.Just my luck that there’s no fairy godmother in this twisted tale waiting to pampe

He’s so close.Too close.I could count each individual bristly hair along his jawline if I wanted. See every chestnut-brown strand on his head. The small scar cutting through his left eyebrow that somehow makes him look even more rugged. The laugh lines around his eyes, evidence he sometimes smiles.He smells good. Hot and unapologetically masculine.“Is it the lights?” he asks, voice low and gravelly.“What?” I breathe.“Your eyes.” He stares at me like he’s witnessing the second coming of Christ, right here in this bathroom.I feel my cheeks roast. I’m used to the attention my mismatched peepers bring. One green, the other a brownish color—I used to think I looked like a Cabbage Patch doll that had its eyes swapped in the factory.But the way he’s looking at me now . . . it sends my pulse into overdrive.I blink hard. The guy must be wasted.“I thought it was the lights, but they really are different shades,” he murmurs, his hand gently lifting my chin so I can’t look away. “It’s c

Despite his assholery, no one could look at that ruggedly handsome face and hard body and deny he’s hot as hell. He’s the type of guy you know is bad news, but you’d sleep with anyway because the sex would be mind-blowing. Then, you’d slink away before sunrise to avoid being kicked out like yesterday’s trash.But as his hands slid into my panties, something clicked in my brain. I realized what I was becoming. Or what I would become if I let him continue. It was like getting zapped by an electric fence.And yeah, all right, shoving him like that was a dick move too on my part. But even with all that booze flooding his system, his cocky confidence radiated off him.My feminist side cheered as I left him hanging mid seduction.But honestly? Some disturbingly estrogen-charged cavewoman part of me wondered what might’ve gone down if I hadn’t fled . . .The way he had me pinned against that wall with his hard body . . . yeah, I wanted it bad. So bad that I’m disgusted with myself for it.Bu