Clara walked into a luxurious villa, far away from the hustle and bustle of Manhattan. The sound of her high-heeled shoes and graceful steps turned heads as she ascended the stairs toward the main entrance. Oh gosh, Clara didn't like all this attention. She didn't want to be the center of focus.She wished she could come unnoticed, like a silent observer, and then leave without anyone noticing her. But it was too late now. Once she decided to attend Louis's party, she knew the consequences that would follow her.She hoped nothing bad would happen - the kind of things she always feared when being in the midst of a crowd. Hopefully, everyone would recognize her as Clara, not as Flo, the lady of the night."Oh my goodness! I almost didn't recognize you, Clara!" some of her college friends exclaimed as they spotted Clara approaching.Her silver sleeveless floor-length gown was considered one of the more modest outfits at the party, considering some other women wore dresses that exposed al
Clara was aware of every risk she took in her life. Right after her parents passed away, and she lost almost all of her parents' savings for Anthony's medical treatment, she made a life-changing decision that altered her way of thinking and transformed every dream and hope she had.The risks were tremendous—besides the devastation in her life, the dirty job she took plunged her into a dark abyss, drowning her without being able to ask for help. Her self-esteem had vanished since the moment she realized that Anthony only had her, and she only had Anthony.However, Clara ignored every risk and decided to continue with her work for Anthony's sake. The only thing she hoped for amidst the destruction was a chance to have a normal life alongside her repulsive job. She wanted to stay with Anthony, to be the sister who would always be there for him whenever he needed her. She also wanted to complete her studies, fulfilling her parents' second dream, with the hope that she could escape the dar
"It's nice to play with you," Lucas said beside her as Clara walked away from the party crowd. Their game had ended a few minutes ago, and Clara managed to slip away after people started playing cards in the spot where she had played with Lucas earlier. They seemed to have found a new place and gathered there to witness the high-stakes and humor-filled gamble. "You lost, so I don't have a responsibility to talk to you," Clara replied. "But you still respond to me," Lucas glanced briefly at her. Clara turned her head and waited for a waiter she had asked to pack Louis's bread. She only took about a quarter of it, leaving the rest on the table even though she knew no adults there would be interested in such a birthday cake. She also knew that Anthony didn't really want the cake; he was only influenced by Louis to make him attend the party. "Where did you learn to play cards, Cla?" Lucas asked calmly, "I think we both know that your skills don't come from miracles so you can beat me.
Lucas walked calmly toward the end of the balcony of his room, enjoying the gentle breeze there. Louis's party was still ongoing, and he had no intention of leaving after receiving a surprising phone call from the woman ruin his mind for the past week. He had never felt so obsessed with a whore who had rejected his advances.The problem was that she was the only woman who ever turned him down, while others would willingly throw themselves at him. He had almost lost track of her until fate brought her right in front of him, staring at him with those round, mesmerizing blue eyes.Clara. Finally, he found her.And as if his luck had not run out, he discovered that Louis knew her—seemed familiar with her as if they had been friends for a long time.Lucas found her and would do anything to possess that insane woman—arrogant enough to think she was too valuable to sleep with him and even dared to kick him as if he wasn't powerful enough to intimidate her.His manipulative instincts heighten
Clara didn't know how long she had been sitting outside the operating room, waiting for Anthony, or at least for Benjamin to come out and give her information about Anthony's condition. However, hours passed, and the only people who came out were a few nurses rushing in and out quickly without explaining anything to her.Her tears had dried up hours ago. Her eyes were sore because she couldn’t stop crying. Elena offered to get her some spare clothes from Anthony's room, but Clara refused, not wanting to leave Anthony, even just to briefly go to the restroom and change her clothes.She took off her high heels and chose to go barefoot while waiting for Anthony. Her hope was fading when she couldn't find a way to pay for Anthony's surgery, but she found one last option, and finally, the surgery could be done.Clara didn't think about the consequences of her decision. She didn't think about anything other than Anthony's healthy. Vaguely, she remembered her conversation with Lucas a few da
At first, Clara still didn't believe what Lucas had said, but when she realized that Rachel hadn't been answering her calls, even though she always picked up, even in the middle of the night or early morning, Clara began to realize that Lucas wasn't kidding, especially when she remembered her last conversation with Rachel when she was still at the hospital."What are you doing?" Lucas walked closer and snatched her phone."Give it back!" Clara realized what he was doing and jumped to reach it. However, her height didn't match Lucas, making her look ridiculous as she leaped in front of him."You don't believe me, so you called Rachel?" Lucas glanced at her phone and ended the call, erasing Rachel's number right in front of her."What the hell are you doing? You're a fucking asshole!" Clara angrily hit his arm."Calm down, Cla." Lucas returned her phone, but there was nothing she could do with it since he had already deleted everything—the phone number, call logs, and the last message s
Anthony stayed in the Emergency Room for 4 days, a normal duration for a child his age. Clara never left his side, even standing in front of the Emergency Room window late at night just to ensure her brother was okay. Usually, Elena would accompany her, but recently, Clara insisted that Elena rest more and go home while she stayed with Anthony alone.Well, she wasn't truly alone. Louis would accompany her almost every day after finishing his classes. And yes, Clara had once again neglected her studies, only attending when there were important exams. She knew education was key to improving her future and leading to a better life than her current one. However, when Anthony needed her, Clara was willing to sacrifice anything to stay with her brother.One month passed, and Anthony was finally allowed to go home, although it was longer than the usual patient's recovery time. Benjamin assured them that Anthony needed to stay in the hospital for a month post-surgery for proper monitoring. Cl
"Haven’t done it in a while, Cla?" Lucas said as he pulled up her underwear. The black dress she had been wearing had come off a while ago before Lucas led her into his room.Clara held her breath. She didn't want to respond to Lucas, but in the end, she couldn't hold back the moan that escaped her lips when he breathed along her stomach."Do you think so?" she murmured softly."You look nervous," Lucas crawled up to touch her breasts, making deliberate motions that seemed to torment her with every touch.Clara became even more breathless. Her lips parted, and she knew what she wanted.Her job as a prostitute had taught her many things, including the inner struggle that always plagued her at certain moments. She never wanted this, but she couldn't deny that her body naturally reacted to every touch she received.Not wanting to be consumed by what Lucas was doing, she reached out and touched Lucas's abdomen. She couldn't deny that Lucas had a perfect body, sculpted like a favorite arti