003

- CHLOE -

Vasili closed the gap between us and used his index finger to tilt my chin upward, then he asked, “Young girl. How old are you?”

His eyes peered at me as though if he looked away, I’d disappear.

He had this intimidating aura that made me swallow nervously, and blink slowly, but still, my eyes couldn’t leave his.

“So you speak English,” I said.

“Answer my question,” He demanded impatiently.

I was beginning to love his Russian accent a little too much. It sounded damn hot. Gosh, what the hell was wrong with me? Was it the alcohol?

I swallowed.

“I’ll be 21 in a few months from now,” I answered.

The moment I said that, he let go of my chin and backed away as though he just did something he shouldn’t have.

“You’re 20, and I’m 39. You should go for your age-grade kid,” He said and turned to walk away, but I held his arm again.

“My age grades call me a grandma, so I should be with older men. Don’t you think?” I bit my bottom lip.

For a moment, I saw his eyes darken when he looked at my lips. It was almost like he wanted to give in, but a call came in at that moment.

“Don’t listen to them. You… You don’t look like a grandmother. You are beautiful,” He said to me before he answered the call and finally went into his car.

I froze when he said that.

It was the first time I heard anyone, except my Dad and Lorraine, call me beautiful.

A stranger thought I was beautiful, and my boyfriend of one year thought I wasn’t.

What an irony.

I saw a convenience store still open nearby and headed there to get chilled water. Research shows that it has always helped drunk people.

But when I entered the store, I froze because standing behind the counter was my Dad.

The Almighty Ethan Myer was behind the counter, attending to customers.

He looked stressed, but he still managed to maintain a smile on his face.

I turned around and left immediately, not wanting him to see me.

The fact that he didn’t tell me that he was working at a convenience store shows he was embarrassed about it.

I felt embarrassed on his behalf and angry at the world.

My Dad had helped a lot of people, but still, they were quick to believe that he was a bad person and turned their backs on him.

I was also angry with myself. Angry that there was nothing I could do to help him.

I hailed a cab and went home with tears uncontrollably rolling down my face.

On my way home, I saw Theodore Bane.

He was a nerd who confessed his feelings for me back in high school.

Seeing him now, he looked different. Hot.

Suddenly, an idea came to my mind when I remembered my best friend Lorraine telling me about how Theodore was now a big shot in Armsville.

I was willing to do anything to take care of my Dad, even though it meant marrying someone I didn’t love.

Theodore and I had been chatting online for years now, but I didn’t pay much attention to him because I knew he still loved me and I didn't want to cheat on Brian.

I know what you may be thinking, but no, I wasn't a gold digger.

I was just a girl who life was harsh to, and I wanted to save my Dad from embarrassment.

I made a mental note to meet up with Theodore. Who knows, love could blossom. Plus, he looked really hot now.

However, I still couldn’t get Vasili out of my mind.

So I convinced myself that it was because he told me I was beautiful and tried to push him out of my thoughts.

When I got home, I fell asleep the moment my back hit my bed.

☘️☘️☘️

A loud knock on my door woke me. “Honey, food is ready,” My Dad called out.

I stood up and dashed outside.

I hugged him tight to the extent he could barely breathe. I couldn't forget how stressed he looked last night while attending to customers in the store.

“Are you trying to squeeze me to death?” He joked, making me let go.

I pulled away from him and looked at him. He looked worn out but still maintained his signature smile.

This made my heart ache more.

I didn’t want him to act strong in front of me. I wanted him to feel free and let his true emotions show.

I wanted to tell him it was okay not to be okay after everything he went through.

I was the only family he had left because he was an orphan who never knew his family.

Everything he had was out of his hard work.

“Are you that excited about the party tonight?” He chuckled, and I nodded.

“Well, get prepared then. It’s beginning by 4 pm,” He gave me a forehead kiss and walked away.

I smiled sadly and then followed behind him.

While eating, I was about to message Theodore. Hell, I was already even typing a reply to his text, which had been unanswered for days now.

But then his text came.

“Hey Chlo, I heard you’re in town. Would you want to meet up with me? There is something I need to tell you,” His text read.

My brows shot up, wondering what it could possibly be. However, I told him I wasn’t free tonight and that we could meet up the next day.

I sighed, feeling hopeful.

☘️☘️☘️

My Dad and I got to the party 30 minutes late because we couldn’t find a cab on time.

It was one of those parties where more than half of the people in it were elderly, rich people.

People who used to shake hands with my Dad while bowing their heads in respect.

But now they barely noticed us.

I could tell that my Dad was nervous, so I gave his hand a tight squeeze, an encouraging smile, and a nod.

He nodded in response, and we walked further into the hall.

Within minutes, he got busy talking to some people he approached.

I stood enjoying the music, but then my phone vibrated.

This time, I knew it’d be Brian, and I wanted to block and delete his contact from my phone.

But in the process, I mistakenly played the video he sent me.

This time around, he wasn’t with any girl.

He was alone, and the asshole even put a subtitle making me see what he was saying clearly.

He called me an uptight Prude.

This pissed me off so much and made me feel worthless, so I went to my Dad and whispered to his ear.

“I’ll be outside if you need me,” I told him and left the hall.

I didn’t want to cry. No, scratch that, I wasn’t going to. But I ended up doing just that.

I stood outside the hall shamelessly crying silently when a familiar SUV Cadillac Escalade pulled up in front, and Vasili emerged from it.

He looked devastatingly handsome in his tuxedo.

What I loved about his looks was his well-kept skin. His face was sharp and defined.

Don’t even get me started with his seductive voice.

He was manly and mature. Something neither Brian nor Theodore was.

Feeling embarrassed, I quickly wiped my tears away when my eyes met his.

He had a blank look on his face as he walked to me instead of going into the hall.

Then he surprised me by closing the gap between us and whispering something into my ear that made me shudder in a way I never had before.

It felt foreign, but also so good.

He asked, “Are you stalking me now? Is that how badly you want to be fucked by me?”