Chapter 1

"Faster!" a woman's voice rang out.

"Say my name, tell me you want me," a man's voice was also clearly audible from behind the second-floor bedroom door.

Stella froze in front of the door. Her heart hammered wildly, not because of the sweet surprise she had prepared inside the paper bag in her hand, but because her fiancé Alex's voice sounded so unfamiliar and demanding. She had already sensed something was amiss when she arrived at the house; the servants had kept their heads down, avoiding her gaze and acting far more nervous than usual.

She stepped closer, holding her breath, her trembling hand pushing open the unlocked door of the master bedroom. The sound of mingled breathing in the air preceded a sight that shattered her world in an instant.

On the bed, Mia, her best friend, was beneath Alex's body, trapped in a heated embrace that made Stella's blood boil.

"What are you two doing?!" Stella shrieked, her voice cracking.

Mia, instead of showing guilt or sliding down from the bed, simply looked up and smirked faintly through the sweat dampening her temples. "I'm scared," she whispered in a feigned, fragile tone.

Alex didn't even bother to shift or pull a sheet over their bodies. Without changing his position in the slightest, the man stared coldly at Stella.

"Go away and don't disturb us. And don't scream anymore, you're scaring her," Alex said unburdened.

"You choose to defend her? Then who is tomorrow's wedding for? Tomorrow's wedding isn't just an agreement between two families, Alex. You can't just do whatever you want like this. Are you serious about wanting me to leave?" Stella asked, her voice trembling violently, tears already welling up in her eyes.

"You think your family still holds power in this city? Don't forget, you no longer have parents, and your parents' legacy business could go bankrupt at any time if you don't marry me." Alex smirked.

"How dare you break the agreement our parents made!" Stella clenched her fists.

"Leave! Or do you want to watch us finish this with your own eyes?" Alex challenged bluntly, without a trace of remorse in his eyes.

Stella couldn't speak another word. Her heart shattered instantly, and with uncontrollable sobs, she turned and ran out of the house.

Instead of going home, she drove her car straight to a bar and immediately ordered liquor to numb the anger and pain in her chest.

An hour passed, her head spinning and her steps unsteady as she walked out of the bar, intending to find a taxi to go home. The moment the taxi door opened and she tried to get in, a strange man suddenly slipped in beside her and sat down in a hurry.

Outside, several men in black suits were seen running out of the bar, looking around for someone, and beginning to approach the taxi, which hadn't moved yet.

"Find and grab that flash drive!" shouted one of them.

When one of them stepped closer and tried to pull the taxi door handle, the man beside Stella acted quickly. He pulled Stella onto his lap, forcing her to face him, and sealed her lips with a sudden kiss.

Stella, already overcome by alcohol and heartache from Alex's betrayal, didn't fight back. Instead, the surge of emotion and the influence of the drinks made her return the kiss with enthusiasm. The man in the black suit who had managed to open the taxi door froze at the intimate sight inside, then quickly closed it and waved to his associates. "Let's search inside the bar," he shouted, then walked away.

After the threat passed, the man pulled back from the kiss and ordered the taxi driver to drive away immediately. "Let's go now."

"Where to?" the taxi driver asked through the rearview mirror, driving at a slow speed.

The man turned, looking at Stella, who was now sitting back in her seat beside him. "Where do you live?"

Stella chuckled softly, looking at the man before her with a drunken smile. "You want to leave just like that after kissing me?"

"Why? Do you want more? Do you know who I am?" the man challenged with a raised eyebrow.

Stella shook her head slowly, her fingers boldly touching the collar of the man's suit. She pulled him closer, narrowing the distance between their faces. "I don't care who you are. But I really like the way you kiss me. And I want more than that."

The man stared deeply into Stella's eyes before giving a small nod to the driver. "To a hotel."

Arriving at the dimly lit hotel room, the door closed tightly amidst their ragged breathing. The man cupped Stella's face, staring intently into her eyes before once again capturing her lips in a deep and demanding kiss.

Stella gasped softly between kisses, her fingers gripping tightly onto the collar of the man's shirt in front of her. "I like your lips," Stella whispered through heavy breaths, her eyes revealing a mix of desperation and defiance. "I like the way you kiss me."

The man smiled faintly, his gaze growing darker. "Do you know what you're doing?"

"Satisfy me tonight," Stella requested without hesitation, her voice trembling yet demanding, wiping away the last remnants of sobriety in their heads.

The man's hands moved firmly to grip her waist, pulling their bodies flush together without a gap, then lifting Stella so her legs wrapped around his waist. Their kiss grew hotter and wilder, leading them toward the bed amid the silence of the night.

When morning sunlight crept through the cracks of the hotel room curtains the next morning, Stella was already gone. The man's forehead creaked sharply as his eyes caught a faint red stain on the white sheets.

"Is this her first time?" he wondered in surprise, staring at the mark with an unreadable expression.

He then got up from the bed, his steps halting when he saw a piece of paper tucked on the nightstand.

"This is enough reward for you," read the handwriting on the paper, alongside a thick brown envelope.

The man opened the envelope, finding a wad of cash inside, and then burst into laughter that filled the quiet room. "She's paying me?" his laugh rang out, half-disbelieving and half-amused. "Do I look like a poor man in her eyes?"

Without wasting time, he reached for his phone on the table and turned it on after deliberately keeping it off all night to avoid being tracked. Before the main screen could even fully load, an incoming call rang loudly.

With a raised eyebrow, he swiped the green button. "Great! I've needed you since last night, and you're only reachable now?" an angry voice snapped from the other end of the line.

"What is it, Alex? What time is your wedding party? I'll be there as soon as possible," the man replied in a casual tone intentionally meant to provoke anger.

"My wedding party is ruined! My fiancée acted up, she ran away. Help me, have your men search for her until she's found," Alex shouted in total frustration before the call was abruptly disconnected.

Before he could respond, a new message popped up on his phone, displaying a picture of a beautiful woman accompanied by a full sheet of personal information. The man stared at his phone screen instantly, a wide smirk spreading across his lips as he recognized the face in the photo.

"What is this?" he chuckled softly. "So last night... I slept with that fool Alex's fiancée?"