chapter 31

Esmeralda POV

CRASH!

Glasses, cutlery, and plates heavy with food slid off, hitting the restaurant's tiled floor in a catastrophic sequence that drew the attention of nearly every customer in the room.

For a split second, I stood frozen in the wreckage as a rushing sound grew louder in my ears.

“This is the end,” I mumbled to myself. “I'm getting fired today. I should just clear the floor, grab my bag, and leave.”

“Someone get the manager!” a voice called out behind me, snapping me back to reality.

"I'm so sorry…." I dropped to my knees immediately and started reaching for the broken glass with my bare hands, my brain temporarily failing to function.

"Hey, don't touch the glass with your bare hands!” A firm hand closed around my arm.

I was pulled upright before I could finish apologizing. The grip wasn't gentle, but it yanked me entirely back to the present.

It was Kane. My adversary.

"Kane," Jayson warned from behind us, his tone impatient and cautious. "Not here."

Whether Kane heard him or simply chose to ignore him, he kept his hand clasped tightly around my arm.

"Jayson….” Kane began.

"I will have the staff handle the mess," Jayson interrupted.

Kane nodded, and dragged me toward the front foyer, muffling the noise of the dining room behind us.

“Let me go!” I yelled, tugging my arm free from his grip.

“Esmeralda.” He turned to face me. His expression was completely devoid of emotion as he spoke my name, though his jaw remained clenched. He rubbed his forehead in a swift, tense motion.

"I want to understand something," he sneered. "And I would appreciate a straight answer."

I waited for him to continue, my pulse racing.

"What exactly is your game?" he asked.

I blinked. "My game?”

“The reason you're stalking me,” he said. “At my friend's hotel, where you somehow began working two days after sleeping in my bed… then you demanded money from me for an agreement I never made.” He held my gaze without blinking. “You expect me to believe this is all coincidence?” he asked. “You appeared at my friend's hotel after that night. Then you appeared at the gala and tried to seduce me. Yet, here you are working at another establishment connected to me.”

“Seduce you?” I asked, unable to believe my ears. “I never did anything of the sort! You were the one trying to seduce me. Making outrageous and degrading offers!” I snapped right back.

He grumbled under his breath. “You know, I heard about your little escape from Meridian.” He stalked closer, gripping my arm once again. "And now here…. a restaurant that, I will point out, belongs to a business associate of mine. Would you like to tell me how many more of my acquaintances' establishments you plan to work your way through to get to me?"

The dizziness that had been sitting at the edge of my vision all afternoon pressed closer.

"I am not stalking you," I said through gritted teeth.

"No?" Disbelief was written all over his face as he grabbed my chin in a tight grip. “You're not trying to trap me in your honey trap?”

"Never!" I was outraged by his absurd claims. "I am a waitress, Mr. Ravello. I go where shifts are available. I did not know this restaurant had any connection to you. I did not know Meridian had any connection to you when I applied. I did not know you would be at the gala either, and I certainly didn't know you would be in that bathroom!”

Something flickered in his expression in my last sentence.

"You ran from Jayson's office," he said coldly.

"I was unwell."

"Through the service exit?"

“I needed medical care fast.” It wasn't the whole truth, but it wasn't exactly a lie either. I had been sick. I just hadn't told him the real reason I was desperate to leave.

"Is that so? Who are you trying to fool?” He chuckled darkly. “Or were you afraid?”

"I told you… I was nauseous! I was sick! Get that through your thick skull!” I shoved him away, disgusted by his words. Who did he think he was? “Do you think I wanted anything to do with you? That night was a mistake. Period!”

I turned and tried to push through the door, but he slammed it shut ahead of me.

"You do not walk out on me," he said softly. “You're afraid.”

“Of what?” I sucked in a breath, trying to suppress the rage and dizziness surging inside me.

"Of what they were going to find out." He studied my face then smirked. "The question is, what exactly are you afraid of?”

"Nothing." My voice came out steadier than I felt. "I have nothing to hide."

"Then why run?"

"Because…" I stopped. Tears welled in my eyes as an overwhelming sense of emotional exhaustion crashed over me.

‘Because of Mulan. Because of the burly man's threat on the staircase. Because everything that happened that night involved people other than me, and I was not prepared to sit in a chair and answer questions that could destroy the only person helping me survive.’ I said inwardly.

But I couldn't say any of that.

He watched me quizzically as I searched for an answer that would work.

"How many men?" he asked quietly.

The question was spoken so softly, yet landed so hard that I took a physical step backward.

"I beg your pardon?" I whispered.

"Since that night." His eyes didn't leave my face. "How many men have you sold yourself to for money? How many times have you lied and stumbled into another man's bed to orchestrate your schemes?”

The room began to tilt. “What are you saying?”

I stared at him, my voice breaking as I thought back to that unfortunate night I walked into that hotel room. Where I made the worst decision of my life because I truly believed it was my only choice.

And here was Kane Ravello, standing in a restaurant foyer, asking me how many men I had slept with since then.

"How dare you," I whispered. It came out so quiet, yet harsh. "How dare you stand there and accuse me of trapping men. Who gave you the right to judge me? Who are you to tell me what I am?”

He said nothing, staring down at me.

"I will not say this twice, so listen,” I said, my voice steadying. “That night only happened because I was desperate and had no choice. That's something I don't expect your privileged, golden-boy mind to comprehend. But I have paid for that night every single day since… so I will not! Stand here and have you shame me for it.”

The foyer fell dead silent. Kane simply stared at me. For a split second, something shifted in his expression, but I didn't have the energy to read meaning to it.

“You…..” he started but was interrupted.

"Kane." Jayson appeared at the entrance of the foyer. His voice was low, firm, and final. "You are creating a scene. Let her go. Now."

Kane held my gaze for three excruciating seconds. Then he stepped back.

Without another word, I turned and walked back into the restaurant. I kept my chin up, refusing to give Kane the satisfaction of seeing how badly his words had affected me.

I took a deep breath, and as soon as I neared the kitchen.

I heard them before I even reached the doors, two waitresses hovering near the serving station gossiping about me.

"She seemed so quiet and innocent. I can't believe my ears."

A short, bitter laugh followed. "Clearly not as innocent as you thought.”

"Did you see that? The way she followed him out there? She only started yesterday and already caused a massive scandal.”

"I've only heard of women trapping rich men; I've never seen it play out right in front of me.”

“Me too. I heard she sleeps with wealthy men for money at Meridian, and when she got caught, she bolted.”

“Only God knows how many men that shameless, money-grubbing whore has ruined,” Lucy’s voice spat bitterly.

The words hit me like a physical blow, striking straight at my chest, but I forced myself to keep walking. I kept my face blank, counting the floor tiles one by one, refusing to let a single tear slip.

Crying would only encourage them to be more cruel. I had learned that long ago.

But Kane's words kept echoing in my ears. ‘How many men since that night?’

The cruel whispers followed me across the room, blurring my vision so severely that I wished the world would just stop.

I reached out for the nearest table to steady myself. My hand found nothing. The floor tilted violently beneath my feet.

The room closed in around me, swallowing the noise until everything sounded muffled and distant. The last thing I heard was someone calling my name.

"Esmeralda!"

Then, everything went black.