Chapter Four

**Andrew’s POV**

I smirked as she stood there, frozen in shock. Her face was priceless—lips parted, eyes wide with horror. Good. Let it sink in.

“Well, well,” I drawled, leaning back in my chair. “If it isn’t my favorite drunk.”

Maria’s jaw clenched, her hands curling into fists at her sides. She looked like she wanted to throw something at me. Again.

“What the fuck is this?” she hissed.

I tilted my head, pretending to think. “This? Oh, sweetheart, this is your new workplace.” My smirk widened. “Surprised?”

She scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest. The movement only accentuated her curves, and my brain betrayed me for a split second—flashing back to the way they had felt beneath my hands last night.

I clenched my jaw.

Fucking hell.

Only last night, I had been too drunk to realize who she was. Too wasted to connect the dots. And now? Now, I knew exactly who she was. Maria fucking Smith. The daughter of the people who had destroyed my family.

And I had fucked her.

I clenched my teeth, my grip tightening on the armrest of my chair. How fucking disgusting of me.

And yet, here she was, standing in my office, looking at me like she wished I’d drop dead.

She didn’t belong here.

She wasn’t the type of woman Everwood Enterprises hired. Not even close. We had turned her down the first time, but I had made sure they called her back. Why? Simple.

To humiliate her.

And I was going to enjoy every second of it.

Maria lifted her chin, her brown eyes flashing with defiance. “Let me guess,” she sneered. “You set this up just to fuck with me?”

I grinned. “Clever girl.”

Her nostrils flared. “You’re a sick bastard, you know that?”

“Mm. I’ve been called worse,” I said lazily, watching her squirm.

She scoffed. “You really went through all this trouble just to get a rise out of me?”

I leaned forward, resting my elbows on the desk. “Sweetheart, trouble is when a deal falls through at the last second. Trouble is a fucking lawsuit. This?” I chuckled darkly. “This is just entertainment.”

Maria’s entire body stiffened.

Good. Let her feel the weight of her insignificance.

Her phone vibrated in her hand, and she looked down.

The shift was instant.

The fire in her eyes dimmed. Her whole expression changed—tightening with something that wasn’t anger anymore. Something desperate.

I frowned. What the hell was that?

She gripped her phone so tightly I thought she’d crack the screen. When she finally looked back up, there was no bite in her voice.

Instead, she did the one thing I never expected.

She begged.

“I need this job,” she said quietly.

I almost laughed in her fucking face.

A few minutes ago, she was spitting venom at me. Now? Now, she was swallowing her pride.

It was pathetic.

But more than that—it was interesting.

I drummed my fingers against the desk, tilting my head. “That desperate, huh?”

Her jaw tightened, but she nodded.

“Please, Andrew,” she said, and the sound of my name on her lips was like fucking poison. “I just need this job.”

I let the silence stretch. Let her feel it. Let her feel me reveling in her misery.

Then I laughed.

A slow, mocking chuckle that made her shoulders stiffen.

“Get out.”

Her face fell.

For a split second, I almost thought she’d beg again. But no. The fire came back, burning hotter than before. She glared at me, her hands trembling with rage.

Then, without another word, she spun on her heel and stormed out, slamming the door behind her so hard that the glass panel on the bookshelf rattled.

I leaned back, completely fucking satisfied.

I should have left it at that. Should have basked in my victory and moved on.

But then my mind wandered back to last night.

The way she felt. The way she tasted.

The way she fucking ruined me without even knowing who I was.

My jaw ticked as images flashed through my head—her lips, her nails digging into my skin, her moans filling my ears.

Fucking hell.

I clenched my fists, pushing the thought aside just as my office door opened again.

“Sir.”

I looked up, frowning as Conway stepped in.

“Your hired date won’t be able to make it,” he said nervously. “And we don’t have enough time to get another person.”

I ran a hand over my face, exhaling sharply. Of course. Just fucking great.

I was about to tell him to fix it when Williams, my manager and best friend, cleared his throat. He was right behind Conway.

“Uh,” he said hesitantly, “Fatso is still downstairs trying to get a cab…”

I froze.

Slowly, I looked up.

He smirked. “I mean, uh—Miss Smith is still outside.”

My lips curled.

He knew about the silent feud between our families. He also kicked against me bringing her over to ridicule her, and now, this?

Whose side was he on exactly?!

“Hear me out.” He hurriedly said. “First, nine out of ten ladies would try to milk you and blackmail you into dating them.” He paused for the information to sink. “But with her, she wouldn’t last a day with you. And, it would be just a transaction.” He spun, feeing fly.

I was about protesting when I paused. A stupid, reckless plan formed in my head.

As if he noticed, he nodded with the ridiculous smirk.

Right now, she was my only hope. I was desperate as she was.

Just like last night, we could strike a deal. Or better yet, she could pay for her family's sin.

I shot up from my chair and stormed past them, and sprinted out of my office. Fuck it. I didn’t think—I just moved.

By the time I reached the lobby, my breath was uneven, but I pushed forward, my eyes scanning the street.

There she was.

Maria stood at the curb, phone pressed to her ear, her free hand gripping her purse tightly. She was still trying to get a cab.

Not happening.

“Maria!”

She flinched at the sound of my voice, turning sharply. The moment her eyes landed on me, her expression twisted with immediate fury.

I didn’t let her speak.

“Be my date.”

Her lips parted. She blinked. Once. Twice.

“What. The. Hell?”