Chapter 3: A misunderstanding

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~CLAIRE~

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"Who is Sloane?" I asked sharply. "Have you been cheating on me, Jason?"

He didn't reply immediately. For a few seconds, we silently gazed at each other in the darkness.

I couldn't see his face clearly, but I was sure he was searching for a lie to tell.

I opened my mouth to ask who Sloane was again when he spoke first. And that was when I noticed the change in his voice.

"Who is Jason?"

His question caught me off guard. What the hell did he mean–

My eyes widened in realization. Oh dear God. It can't be.

I backed away from the bed, taking the sheets with me to shield my bare body. Then I stumbled across the room, searching for the light switch.

When I found it, I pressed it with shaky fingers. The room flooded with bright light, blinding me momentarily.

When my eyes cleared, I received the greatest shock of my entire life, probably one that would haunt me forever.

The man lying on the bed wasn't Jason. It was some stranger I had never seen. And damn, he was breathtaking.

I took a look around the room, noticing how different it looked. It wasn't bare and tasteless like the suite I shared with Jason.

This was one different, luxurious. The walls were pleated with gold weaves. An elegant chandelier hung in the middle of the whitewashed ceiling.

White fluffy curtains adorned the single window which looked out to the sea. There was a coffee table in the middle of the room, with a golden kettle and teacups.

The entire room reeked of intense luxury.

Where the hell did I step into?

I looked back at the man who was still staring at me in silence. A deep frown marred his handsome face, and I could tell he was furious.

Oh dear God.

"Who the fuck are you?" He roared suddenly.

I flinched from the sound of his voice, taking a step back instinctively.

"I–I don't..." I stuttered badly. My tongue felt heavy, unable to form a coherent word.

He slowly got off the bed, still naked. I tried not to stare at the thick organ hanging between his thighs, but my eyes betrayed me and strayed lower.

I looked away abruptly when he grabbed his trousers. He glared at me as he put them on, then his shirt followed.

I was so preoccupied with trying not to drool at how handsome he was when he came across the room suddenly.

He grabbed my arms and slammed me into the wall. I winced from the pain, and the fury in his eyes terrified me.

"Please..." I started to plead, but he cut me off.

"Who the fuck are you?" He roared again. "Where is Sloane? What have you done with her?"

"I don't know who you're talking about." I protested. "I'm just as surprised as you are."

"You're lying!" He snarled. "How did you get in here? Who sent you?"

"I swear. I..."

"Was it you who drugged me?" He yelled into my face. "You drugged me so you could have sex with me? Who are you working with?"

"I swear, I don't know what you're talking about." I yelled back. "I don't know how I got here. I–I was drunk. I was headed to my suite to meet someone and..."

He swore suddenly, cutting me off again.

"You're a fucking whore." He cursed. "I should have known."

He released me abruptly and turned away, like I disgusted him.

I was too shocked to say a word, too confused and shaken to defend myself. And he kept interrupting me whenever I did.

He walked out of the room into the adjoining room, and I heard him muttering to himself.

I could feel how angry he was. I had to leave before everything escalated, before he tried to hurt me in any way.

But I couldn't get my feet to work. I was frozen, clutching the sheets to my chest.

Something crashed in the other room and I clamped my hands over my mouth to swallow the scream that threatened to escape.

I had to get out of here. I pushed my feet forward and started to inch towards the door when he stormed in again.

I froze on the spot.

"Sir, this is just a misunderstanding." I began. "I swear I didn't mean to..."

"Be silent!" He snarled. I promptly shut up, looking away from him.

He opened the wallet he held and pulled out a wad of dollar bills.

Walking towards me, he shoved the cash in my face.

"Here." He muttered gruffly. "For your services."

It took me a moment to understand what he meant. He was paying me off. He actually thought I was a whore.

My eyes flashed with anger and I finally gathered the courage to talk back to him.

"With all due respect, Sir, I am not what you think I am. This is just a misunderstanding."

"I don't want to hear another word from you." He barked. "You're lucky I decided not to call security. Just take the money and get out."

"But..."

"I SAID GET OUT!" He roared.

He grabbed my gown and heels from the floor, shoved it into my arms along with the money and pushed me towards the door.

He yanked it open, shoved me outside and shut the door in my face before I could say another word.

I stood there for several minutes, trying to understand what just happened. I'd never felt so humiliated. He actually thought I was some whore who tried to seduce him.

The number on the door caught my attention and I narrowed my eyes at it. The metal slab where the suite number was written had come loose, making the number '6' turn to number '9'.

And in my drunken state, I hadn't noticed it.

I palmed my face in frustration. How could I have been so gullible? I had given my virginity to a total stranger, got called a whore, and Jason was probably searching for me.

Could this night get any worse?

I turned away from the suite finally and walked down the narrow passage. I had to return to my suite as quickly as possible. Jason would be pissed.

I stopped under the cover of a flight of stairs to change from the bedsheets to my gown. Then I held my heels and walked barefooted towards Jason's suite.

I pushed the door open and stepped in, expecting to see Jason pacing around angrily, worried about my disappearance.

But what I saw shocked me completely for the second time that night.

Jason was fucking a strange woman. He had her bent over the bed, her thighs wide open, her hands held behind her while he pumped his cock into her.

She was wearing my lingerie, the one I had carefully picked out for this trip.

But that wasn't what shattered me. Something glittered on her finger, and my stomach dropped when I noticed it.

She was wearing the diamond ring Jason purchased. The one he was supposed to propose to me with.