Chapter 1 The Billionaire’s Offer.

The club pulsed with energy, bathed in low lighting, served expensive liquor and was filled with a sea of bodies moving to the sensual rhythm of the bass. In the exclusive VIP booth, Liam Astor leaned back, whiskey in hand, his sharp blue eyes scanning the room with practiced indifference. Women lingered, vying for his attention, their intentions as transparent as the crystal glass he held. None of them interested him until her.

She wasn’t trying to be noticed. She navigated effortlessly, weaving through crowded spaces with an understated flair that distinctly set her apart from others nearby. Dark waves cascaded over her shoulders in wild abandon with curves accentuated by a modest uniform that flattered her toned legs. But for her, it became something else, something Liam wanted to unwrap, piece by piece.

Brian Luis, his longtime friend and business associate, followed his gaze and smirked. “That one?” Liam swirled his drink, letting amber liquid catch light in a warm glow surrounding him slowly. “I want her.”

The waitress approached their booth, setting down their drinks with practiced ease. He desires her. The waitress swooped in beside their booth, dropping off drinks with smooth finesse. Her hands remained remarkably steady as she deliberately ignored Liam's intense gaze.

His curiosity was piqued suddenly by that. He got accustomed to women being overly flirtatious and playful in really awkward ways sometimes.“What’s your name?” Liam asked, his voice smooth and commanding.

She barely spared him a glance, her focus fixed intently on job requirements rather than the billionaire standing before her.

Brian coughed to cover a laugh. Liam chuckled, intrigued. Women never dismissed him. Ever.Undeterred, he reached into his jacket, retrieved his gold-plated business card, and flicked it onto her tray. “You will be.”

She scoffed, lifting the tray to her hip. “Not in this lifetime, Playboy.

As she turned to leave, Liam acted on impulse. His hand moved before he could think twice, delivering a light, teasing smack to her ass. It wasn’t hard enough to make his point and to remind her he was watching; he was the kind of man who took what he wanted. She froze on hearing that.

The air around them grows thick with the dim hum of the club fading silently into darkness. She pivoted slowly on her heel beneath the faint moonlight, her expression darkening mysteriously like some brewing storm.

Her grip caused the tray to tremble faintly beneath her fingers, empty glasses clattering loudly against the metal surface. Her knuckles whitened sharply as she clenched the edge of the worn wooden table beneath her fingers with intense, focused energy.

Liam barely had time before she set the tray down slowly with obvious deliberation. She snatched his untouched whiskey from the table and hurled it squarely in his face with utter disregard. Suddenly, an eerie silence fell over the club premises.

Amber liquid splashed recklessly across his chiseled cheekbones, dripping slowly from his rugged jawline and soaking deeply into the fabric of his fancy silk shirt. A few gasps echoed from nearby tables, and somewhere in the background, music still pulsed, oblivious amidst mounting tension.

Liam stayed frozen solid, blinking fiercely against the intense burn of liquor in his eyes. Suddenly, he burst out laughing. Darkness pervades this place, full of something exceedingly treacherous.

The silence was shattered by the sound that slithered slowly around this moment like some whispered dark warning.

The waitress's chest rose and fell rapidly beneath her fancy cloth in visibly angry breaths. Her hands shook fiercely at her sides, but she stood firm. Barely a fraction of space exists.

She locked onto his stare, fire blazing intensely in her eyes, daring him to retaliate with something far worse than humiliation.

Loud footsteps suddenly boomed from way back there.

“Get out,” her manager’s voice snapped, sharp with authority. “You’re fired.” Her lips parted. His voice sharpened with sudden authority now. “Wait, I…”

“No excuses!” The manager barked, already reaching for her arm to shove her toward the exit. “You’re done.”

Shock flickered wildly across her face, then anger rapidly consumed it. Her hands curled into tight fists beside her hips; now her pulse hammers fiercely against her ribcage.

Liam leaned way back in his chair, still dripping whiskey; slowly, his smirk deepened somewhat as she fell apart before him.

"Interesting," Brian shook his head. “That was brutal.” Liam leaned back, wiping his face with a napkin, his smirk never fading. “She will come to me.” And he was right.

Chloe Carter sat in her cramped apartment with legs tucked beneath her, staring at eviction notices scattered across a cluttered coffee table.

Suddenly bold crimson letters blurred rapidly as salty tears welled up in her sensitive eyes. Past-due bills were piled beside it, mocking her and suffocating her.

She ran a hand through her hair, exhaling shakily. It had been weeks since she lost that job due to weeks of rejection emails, sleepless nights and ramen noodles for dinner. She was out of options.

Just then, her mind went to the golden card she unknowingly shoved in her bag on the day of the incident. The arrogant and infuriating man who thought he could buy anything, including her. She had sworn she would never reach out. That she had pride. But Pride didn’t pay rent. Pride didn’t put food on the table.

Her fingers trembled as she picked up the card without reading the name on it; she typed and dialed the number on her phone.

It rang twice before a deep, amused voice answered. “I knew you’d call.” Chloe closed her eyes while swallowing her pride. “Your offer. He repeated himself as if she didn't hear him the first time. That whole offer of yours sounds somewhat intriguing already. Silence falls abruptly after someone asks if it remains on the table.

Send your address via text now. She felt her pulse pounding rapidly beneath her skin, somehow. She gripped the phone tighter. Perhaps somehow it seemed like one possible way for survival existed. “Miss Carter?” She nodded hesitantly to herself and answered, "Yes, Sir."

An hour later, Chloe stood outside her building, arms crossed beneath a darkening sky, as a sleek black car suddenly pulled up. The tinted window rolled down, revealing a suited driver.

With one last glance at her dingy apartment, Chloe stepped into the car, the scent of leather and luxury wrapping around her like a warning.

Mr. Astor awaits your arrival. Chloe cast a fleeting look at her drab flat before stepping into the vehicle, surrounded by opulent leather scents that felt ominously lavish. Darkness had become her reality now.

Tonight, she must somehow pretend that the situation exists. Darkness envelops her as the lights of New York flicker past like specters of life she previously envisioned in fleeting moments of solitude.

She blinked up at the towering hotel before her, a five-star masterpiece of substantial wealth and sheer exclusivity slowly unfolding above.

The driver opened the door, and Chloe stepped out, her knees weak all of a sudden due to overwhelming circumstances. Suddenly, she might reverse direction now.

Step back slowly now. She reckoned with a slew of overdue notices and a whole lot of desperation that had been building rapidly lately.

She steeled herself and walked swiftly into the grand entrance. The elevator ride upward becomes incredibly nerve-wracking, with each passing second stretching out painfully in slow motion.

Doors sliding open at last, she stepped into opulent surroundings replete with lavish finery and extravagant decor. Tall windows rising from the floor upwards framed the glittering city skyline beautifully outside.

Softly glowing flames danced wildly above dark stone surrounding a fireplace that cast faint shadows over plush velvet furniture.

Suddenly, he appeared out of nowhere. Liam Astor stood near the bar, pouring himself a whiskey slowly under dim lighting. “I was wondering how long it would take you.”

Chloe squared her shoulders. “I didn’t come here to play games.” He set his expensive glass down, prowling toward her with lazy confidence.

Her heart pounded. This was a mistake, a terrible and dangerous mistake at that. But she was already here and equally waiting for the worst thing that would follow.