All Chapters of Chasing Sensations: The Billionaire's Game: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

ARIANA~Two days later, Ivy's couch has become a habitat I have no intention of leaving.I'm sitting cross-legged beneath a blanket I've been wrapped in long enough to consider it part of my skin, staring blankly at the television.Some show is playing.I think.People are talking. Things are happening. I have no idea what is.Ivy is saying something too. I know she is because her mouth keeps moving every few seconds from where she's standing in the kitchen.The words don't make it all the way to me.My head throbs. My eyes still feel swollen from crying. My nose is blocked. My face must look like I've gone twelve rounds with a professional boxer and lost every one.This is the longest I've managed to go without crying since I walked out of the company building. It probably helps that Ivy stole my phone yesterday and turned it off.Nathan called seventy-three times before she did.Every time his name lit up my screen, it felt like somebody was reaching into my chest and squeezing.So

CALVIN~Ambrose hasn’t killed us yet, which feels increasingly impressive considering he’s currently treating Manhattan's traffic like a fun maze.I’m almost certain we’ve run two red lights in the last five minutes alone. At this point, my assistant will be dealing with traffic citations before noon tomorrow.All this trouble because Arthur Lockwood decided to host another cocktail dinner nobody actually wants to attend.I suspect Art knows nobody would willingly attend one of these unless there’s another reason attached to it, which explains why tonight is supposedly in honor of one of Marinette’s social milestones.I stopped trying to keep track about those years ago. Still, Art and I go back far enough that declining the invitation would’ve caused more trouble than attending it.Ambrose takes another aggressive turn that throws us slightly sideways before laughing under his breath.“Relax.” he cackles. “We’ll be there in fifteen.”No shit.My attention stays fixed on my phone, sk

– ARIANA –~"WHAT?!"My best friends' voices penetrate loudly through the speaker of my phone. Katrina called a minute ago to ask how the party went, and Ivy joined seconds later, just in time to hear me admit I'd kissed Calvin Grey.The sound of a chair scraping breaks the quiet, followed by Kat asking someone to complete a report before the sound of heels starts clicking rapidly across marble. She's likely looking for somewhere private to lose her mind."Are you sure it's THE Calvin Grey or some random guy named Calvin Grey?" Ivy finally finds her voice, though amazement strings the words."Which other Calvin grey would have access to a Lockwood private event?" I groan, feeling a headache begin to bloom behind my temples. My eyes turn toward the window as the car slows down at a red light.She laughs. "Holy smokes, girl." "Run that back, Ana," A door slams. It seems Kat has finally found a place she can conveniently express her shock. "What happened exactly?"I sigh and tell them

ARIANA~I check the time again.4:03 p.m.My frown deepens.The restaurant is quieter than I expected for the city. Warm lighting spills across polished wood and dark stone while low conversations drift between tables. Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, traffic crawls through the city in a blur of yellow cabs and impatient pedestrians.Yet, none of it is distracting enough.I have spent the last hour sitting at the bar, nursing a Negroni I’ve only bothered to sip once. The bartender has checked on me three times and I suspect he’s trying to determine whether I’ve been stood up or am just having a public breakdown.The answer is both.My eyes drift toward the entrance again.Nothing.No Calvin Grey. No message. Just me sitting here like an idiot.I shouldn’t have come.I’ve had the same realization at least twenty times since I arrived.I should’ve ignored the card. Ignored Nathan. Ignored whatever temporary lapse in judgment convinced me that meeting Calvin was necessary. Yet ever

- ARIANA -~My entire body is still humming from the rather reckless decisions I just made.I proposed a fake relationship to Calvin Grey and handed him ten percent of my company during what was arguably our first real meeting. I am convinced I’ve lost my mind because no person in their right mind does that.It’s laughable. I’m usually careful. Level-headed. Irritatingly so, according to most people who know me. But this? This feels like the beginning of a very questionable streak that will have my father and friends asking whether I’d suffered a concussion beforehand.Yet, much as I hate admitting it, Calvin might actually be the only workable solution to my current problems. As my fake boyfriend, Nathan suffers, and as CEO, the company survives.Hopefully.God. This better fucking be it, else I’m screwed.A firm hand suddenly closes around me, pulling me out of my thoughts and stopping me short of the door I nearly walk into.I blink.Then my eyes drop to my waist and my lips twist