Rivers new problem

River 

The glass shattered the second it left my hand 

Whiskey splashed across the floor of my penthouse while pieces of crystal scattered near Oliver’s shoes. The sound exploded violently. Sharp enough to slice through the silence that had been building between us for the last five minutes. 

Neither of us moved. 

I stood there breathing slowly, staring at the mess near his feet while anger crawled heavily beneath my skin. Oliver didn’t flinch. He didn’t even look surprised. That annoyed me more than it should have. 

“That was your solution?” I asked firmly. “You paid a woman to date me?” 

The city lights burned behind us through the floor to the ceiling windows, throwing shadows across the room. Oliver stayed seated across from where us stood. 

“She signed the contract willingly, you know. I didn’t force her to sign it.” He said 

“Willingly?” I said looking straight at him now. “You found someone desperate enough to need money and call it willingness.” 

“You are reacting emotionally.” Oliver said, letting out a small smile. 

I dragged a hand slowly across my jaw. 

“You involved a stranger in my life without asking me,” I muttered. 

“You stopped allowing people in your life years ago.” 

My jaw tightened. I loosened the cut of my sleeves slowly, trying to settle the irritation crawling beneath my skin. “What exactly did you tell her?” 

“That it is a contract for six months . Nothing important, she just has to get you out of your shell.” 

“And she agreed?” 

“She needed the money.” 

“That answer is beginning to annoy me. You can’t buy people and not because someone is desperate doesn’t mean you have to feed off their desperation.” 

A faint sigh left him before he reached her for the file in his suitcase and handed it over to me. I hesitated before I took it from him and opened it. 

“She owns a company,” he said quietly. “It’s collapsing. She came looking for an investor.” 

My eyes dropped to the file 

“And instead of helping her normally, you offered her a contract?” 

“She was already desperate before she entered the office. She had a choice not to come when I gave her my card, but she did anyway. So can you stop making this a big deal and go through the file I sent to you. And I promise you, you will like her. She’s different from all the girls you’ve ever dated.” 

The photograph was the first thing saw 

Dark hair. Sharp eyes. No smile. 

Most people tried hard to look good in pictures. But she was different. It looked like she was coerced to take this picture and never even cared what the outcome would look like. 

“What’s her name?” I asked 

“Zara.” 

My eyes stayed on the picture longer than they should have. There was something exhausting about the way she looked at the camera. Not weak. Not fragile. Just tired.

Like life had been pressing against her for too long 

“How much did you pay her?” I asked

“Five million dollars up front.” 

That finally made me look away from the photograph. “You gave a stranger five million dollars?” 

Oliver nods pulling out a pack of gum from his picked an popping two into his mouth

Before I could say anything else the door to my penthouse suddenly opened. Oliver didn’t turn because he already knew the only person who could come in uninvited asides him. 

Mira vale walked in like she owned the place. She smiled when she saw me. Bright and confident 

“River,” she said softly, like my name belonged in her mouth more than anywhere else. I didn’t respond. Oliver finally looked up, mildly annoyed but not surprised. 

“You are not on the schedule,” he said 

She ignored him completely. She walked towards me wearing a very tight dress that was transparent, with a six inch heel that she could barely walk in. She always did too much. 

Her heels clicked against the floor as she walked further, eyes locked on me 

“I was in the building and thought to stop by,” she said casually. 

She stopped beside my chair instead of in front of it. Close enough that I could feel her presence shift the air, but I still don’t look up to her. I held the file tightly in my hands now not letting her have a peak of what is inside. 

Oliver scoffs loudly in irritation. He hated her and so did I. 

She leaned down slightly resting one hand on the arm of my chair. Her fingers brushed it first, then stayed there. 

“I missed you at the gala.” She said quietly 

“I wasn’t there,” I replied

A small smile curved her lips 

“You should have been.” 

Her hand slid higher along the chair, then paused near my shoulder. Not quite touching me yet. When I didn’t react, she finally let her fingers land slightly on my shoulders . 

“I heard you’ve been hiding again.” Her voice is quieter now, more like a whisper. 

“I’ve been working.” 

“Yes…we don’t wait around for daddy’s money.” Oliver added. 

She hissed at Oliver’s statement. I expected more but I guess she really didn’t have his time. 

“I could take you out. Just me and you. We could have fun, and I bet I would make you forget about work.” 

“I don’t go out,” I said. 

Her lips curved slightly 

“That’s what you always say. You know, I love it when you don’t respond to me or do what I want.” She said quietly. “It makes me want you more.”

Her eyes moved from me to the folder I was holding in my hands. Her expression changed. “What is that?” She asked.

Mira’s eyes dropped to the file and before I could move it away, she pulled it from my grip with a small smile. 

“Now I’m curious.” She murmured 

She opened it immediately, the teasing expression leaving her face instantly. Her eye settled on Zara’s picture and stayed there longer than expected 

Mira slowly lifted her gaze from the file to me and something sharp flickered across her face for the first time. 

“…who is she? She asked with a serious tone.