《THE COST OF LOVING YOU 》全部章節：第 1 章 - 第 5 章

The Velvet Room Spa was a members-only wellness club, money flows like water here and morality was often left at the gold-leafed doors.Ava Williams had been hired three weeks ago. She was a specialist—deep tissue, sports, prenatal. She was the best they had, and she kept her head down. She knew the whispers; she knew some therapists offered "extras" for a price that could cover a month’s rent. But Ava didn’t. Her pride was the only thing she had left that wasn't for sale.Her phone buzzed as she walked the dim, incense-scented hallway toward the manager's office. She slipped it out and answered. “Girl, are you still at that fancy torture chamber?” Tessy’s voice came through, a mix of humor and genuine worry. “It’s almost eleven. You said you’d be off by ten.”Ava leaned against the cool marble wall. “One last client. VIP suite. Eighty minutes of deep tissue. It’s a lot of money, Tess.”Tessy snorted. “VIP suite? That’s code for ‘rich guy who wants a happy ending.’ You sure you're ok

Nico Jordan didn’t sleep that night. He paced the penthouse on the 62nd floor of One57, bare feet on cold marble. From the bar to the window and back, gazing out at Manhattan below like it was mocking him… sirens, horns, that endless drone of people chasing things they’d never catch. It matched the noise in his head. He poured two fingers of Macallan 25. No ice. Held the glass, didn’t drink, he poured it down the sink instead. Pulled his phone from his pocket, opened the camera roll. He looked at a photo of his mother, Sofia…the woman who had taken her own life because his father had treated her like a disposable object. She was smiling, a real smile, tired eyes. The last summer she laughed without forcing it. Before his father started staying out. Before the late-night calls, the hotel receipts in the trash… Rebecca loft, two names. His father’s. And hers. A call girl from a client's dinner. The man hadn’t even lied about it, moved her in while Sofia was still scraping together co

“You’ve got some nerve,” Nico said, leaning back in his leather chair.“I know,” Ava’s voice was steady, though he could hear the faint tremor of desperation. “I need to talk business.”“Business? You slapped me. That’s a hell of a way to start a negotiation.”“I’m not negotiating. I’m offering,” she said. “I need money.”She went quiet again. He could hear her breathing. Fast, but trying to hold it together. “So,” Nico said. “The lioness finally comes out to play.”Ava gripped the phone so tight her knuckles turned white. She leaned her forehead against the cool glass of the window, closing her eyes. “I’m not here to play games, Mr. Jordan,” she said. Her voice shook slightly, but she forced it to be steady. She refused to beg. “I know what you think of me. I know you think I’m just another girl who changes her mind when the money gets tight.”“Are you?” he asked simply.She flinched as if he had struck her again. “No. I’m not. But I need help. And you’re the only person I know who