Chapter 10

"What kind of big money are we talking about?" Nerissa instantly perked up at the mention of cash.

"Got a one-night gig at a fancy club tonight — just pouring drinks and promoting alcohol. Pays a thousand for the night, plus commission. You in?"

Promoting alcohol?

Nerissa hesitated. She'd never done that kind of work before, but she wasn't clueless — those clubs weren't exactly clean-cut places. Still, a thousand for one night? That was seriously tempting.

She worked as a cashier at the supermarket, barely made over a hundred a day. That didn't even scratch the surface of her dad's rehab bills.

She needed to keep earning — constantly — just to feel like she could breathe.

"Don't worry, this place is really upscale. My friend's done a bunch of shifts there without any issues. That's why I thought of you. I mean, you're obviously strapped for cash; didn't you eat instant noodles again at lunch?" Chloe explained, picking up on her reluctance.

Through all four years of college, Nerissa had relied on Chloe for job leads — and they had always turned out fine.

"Alright then. Let me finish this sketch and I'll go with you," Nerissa nodded, speeding up her hand movements.

At 7 PM sharp, Nerissa arrived at the club with Chloe and her crew.

Since it was a referral gig, the manager was nice enough to give them some slack. Nerissa ended up in a relatively chill private room, and things went pretty smoothly.

She wasn't good at sweet-talking or selling drinks, so she just quietly kept pouring refills. Honestly, even without tips, the base pay of a thousand bucks was already decent in her eyes.

Luckily, the guests weren't hard to deal with. She stayed there the whole three hours until they finally decided to head out — and that's when she found a moment to sneak off to the restroom.

Just as she stepped inside, she almost bumped into someone. On reflex, she backed away a bit.

The guy looked her way — and immediately blocked her path.

"Well, well, Nerissa. What are you doing here? Working as a hostess now?"

Just her luck. It was Liam — of all people.

He reeked of alcohol, face flushed, clearly wasted. And the moment he saw her, that drunk smugness took over. He stumbled toward her, clearly up to no good.

"Why bother serving others? Just come hang with me."

"I don't even know you that well. Move aside." Her voice was calm, but her guard shot up.

Nerissa tried to sidestep him, but he grabbed her without a word and yanked her straight into his chest, holding her tight.

"What's there to be shy about? Just sleep with me once, and you'll get used to it. Honestly, you've got such an innocent face and a clean vibe — I really wanna do it with you. Stop pretending, just say yes already, alright?"

Liam had her pinned against the bathroom door, his face dangerously close to hers.

"Liam, let me go!"

Nerissa was panicking now, pushing at him with all her strength — but it was useless.

"Hmph, back in college I couldn't get you, but here? This is my turf. You think you can run? Be good and stop struggling, maybe then I'll go easy on you."

He tightened his grip around her wrists, ignoring how hard she fought back, not budging an inch.

Tears welled up in Nerissa's eyes. Her clothes were already a mess from the struggle. The club was loud as hell — no one even heard her when she screamed at the top of her lungs.

Just as he was about to kiss her, Nerissa bit down on her lip in desperation.

BANG!

The bathroom door flung open with a loud crash, cutting their scuffle short.

Liam turned his head, already annoyed — until he saw the man standing there, icy expression on his sharp, refined face.

He froze.

"U-Uncle?"