Chapter 10

Zaria

The bass from the speakers vibrates through the floor and straight into my bones as I lean against the cool surface of the bar. Colored lights are everywhere. Blue, red, purple, casting shadows over bodies pressed together, laughing, swaying, drinking like the world isn’t falling apart outside these walls.

People who are dancing like they don’t have problems. Like they don’t wake up every morning with dread sitting heavy in their chest.

I wrap my fingers around the glass in front of me, watching the ice slowly melt into the drink, watching strangers forget themselves one song at a time. The air smells like alcohol, perfume, sweat, and freedom. It’s loud, chaotic and alive.

And for the first time in a week, I’m not in Tristan King’s office. I’m not at the hospital where my father’s judgmental eyes burn holes into me and stepmom is not making snarky comments about how I brought Tristan King’s wrath upon us all.

It’s been exactly seven days since I started working for that evil bastard, and I already feel like I’ve aged seven years. Every morning begins with tension coiled tight in my chest, every night ends with exhaustion that seeps into my bones. I’ve been running on caffeine, rage, and sheer stubbornness, barely sleeping, barely breathing.

That’s why Anna dragged me out tonight. Literally dragged me, I’m serious. 

She didn’t ask. She just showed up at my door with heels in hand and a determined look in her eyes and said, “Put on something sexy or I’ll do it for you.”

Anna has always been like that. You can’t ever change her mind when she sets it on something. Anna Malcom lives right across from my apartment, just like she stayed right across from me back in campus years, close enough to knock on my door whenever she wanted someone to talk with. We’ve always been close and she's been there through every heartbreak, every breakdown, every moment I wanted to quit and disappear. My best friend. My chosen sister. The one person who knows me beyond the Buckley name.

She leans beside me now, effortlessly commanding attention without even trying.

Anna is tall, dark-skinned, and devastatingly beautiful. The kind of beauty that makes heads turn when she walks by. Long legs, smooth skin that glows under the club lights, curves that would make any man turn their heads for a second look. There’s something magnetic about my friend, like an aura that pulls people in, both men and women. 

And right on cue, a man strolls past us, slowing just enough to flash a lazy smile and wink at my friend.

She grins back instantly, lifting her glass in a flirty little salute before taking a sip. I can practically feel the man’s interest trailing after her even as he disappears into the crowd.

I laugh, shaking my head.

Anna turns to me, arching a perfectly shaped brow. “Why didn’t you wave back?”

I snort. “Because he wasn’t looking at me. He was looking at you.”

She scoffs. “Please. If anyone has eyes, it’s you they’d be looking at. Look at those boobs and tiny waist for God’s sake!”

“Talking like you’re not the most gorgeous woman to ever walk this earth, please.” 

“Don’t flatter me right now, girl. Tonight’s for you! We need to find a man who’ll make you feel good for the night!”

 “Anna, I only came out because of you. I’m not interested in any man tonight. Or any night. Or ever again, honestly.”

She studies me for a moment, lips pursed, then shakes her head slowly in disapproval. “That attitude is illegal. Joe is a useless punk and you can’t accept defeat because of that fool.”

I chuckle, but the sound doesn’t fully reach my chest. “Joe is the last thing on my mind right now.” My evil new boss is.

“Then what is? You should be moving on and mingling right now.” Anna presses, looking at me with confusion in her gaze.

Maybe I really should mingle. Maybe I should let loose, dance, flirt, drink until my thoughts blur and Tristan King fades into the background like white noise.

But what’s the point? By Monday, I’ll still wake up and walk straight back into that man’s world. Back into his office. Back under his cold stare and calculated cruelty.

The thought alone makes my jaw clench.

My fingers tighten around my glass as yesterday flashes through my mind. How he sat there, composed and smug, and casually told me to serve drinks to the board members like I was some maid. Like I wasn’t a professional. Like I wasn’t the woman who practically kept that company afloat before he walked in and turned my life upside down.

The humiliation still burns. I want to kill him. I want to wipe that infuriating calm off his face. I want to scream at him until his control cracks, until he finally admits he enjoys making me miserable. He’s unapologetically cruel, deliberate in every insult, every power play, and he knows exactly what he’s doing.

And I hate him for it.

My ugly thoughts are interrupted when someone slides onto the empty stool beside me.

“Hey there.” The voice is warm and confident but not cocky. I turn slightly and find myself looking at a man with soft brown skin, neatly trimmed beard, and kind eyes that hold a spark of curiosity. He’s dressed casually but well, dark jeans, a fitted shirt, a watch that hints at money without screaming it. Clean. Attractive. Safe.

“I’m Jasper,” he says with an easy smile. “And I’d hate myself if I didn’t at least try.”

I blink. “Try…?”

“I’ve been watching you all night,” he admits honestly. “And I figured if I walked out of here without talking to you, I’d regret it.”

Something about his openness makes me smile despite myself. “That’s… bold.”

“I'll take it as a compliment.”

“I’m Zaria,” I say, lifting my glass slightly in greeting.

He nods, pleased. I open my mouth to tell him politely that I’m not interested, that tonight isn’t the night and I’m emotionally unavailable and mentally exhausted but before I can, Anna pinches my thigh hard.

“Ow!” I hiss, twisting slightly.

Anna is glaring at me like I’ve committed a crime. She leans closer, lips brushing my ear.

“You dare not say no,” she whispers fiercely. “You need to let go. Forget your ex or your boss. Forget your family. Forget everything.”

I glare back at her. She doesn’t blink.

Jasper clears his throat gently, clearly amused. “So…um… would you like to dance?”

I start to shake my head.

“Of course she would!” Anna answers immediately with excitement. I turn to her slowly, murder in my eyes. She grins unapologetically.

“I..I’m really not the dancing type,” I tell Jasper, trying to regain control.

He chuckles softly. “That’s okay. You don’t have to do much. Just move with the music.”

Then he opens his palm and waits. I stare at his hand longer than necessary.

What’s the harm?

One night.

Just this once. I place my hand in his.

He leads me to the dance floor, where bodies move freely, pressed close together, lost in the rhythm. The crowd helps because no one is watching, no one cares. I glance back at the bar and spot Anna already laughing with the man who winked at her earlier, her head thrown back, completely at ease.

I trust my girl to take opportunity of the situation.

The music pulses through us as Jasper turns toward me. “So… where are you from?”

I shake my head lightly. “I…really don’t want to talk tonight.”

He smiles. “Then we won’t. Let’s dance.”

He steps closer, his hands settling at my waist, gently but firm. We move slowly at first, my body stiff and hesitant. Then the rhythm takes over. My shoulders loosen. My hips follow the beat.

And before I can stop myself, I begin to grind my ass into him, a smile lifts my lips when I feel the hard bulge of his erection as I move against him. He’s turned on so fast? Maybe tonight will be fun after all.

His breath hitches as his hands slide down my arms, deliberate without being creepy about it. I like that. I like that he doesn’t seem desperate, doesn’t grab too much. Maybe… maybe I should let myself have this.

Just tonight. I’m about to turn and ask him if he wants to come over when a sudden chill crawls up my spine.

That feeling of being watched. I glance around me but all I can see are swarms of bodies everywhere. 

Just then, I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket and lazily pull it out. When the screen comes on, my blood turns to ice.

Mr King: You just love flirting with every man you come across, huh?

Another message comes through before I can breathe.

Mr King: Grind into that man one more time, you and him will regret it. Leave now and go home. This is your last warning, Zaria.

My breath catches painfully in my chest.

Tristan King is here.

And he’s watching me.

***