'I never liked you as a woman.' As I stood by the lake with a bottle of wine in my hand, his words kept echoing in my head. 'The one I adore and love is Jane,'
I was fooled by the person I thought to be my life's love. Everything shattered when he told me that he never loved me. All those sweet moments they had shared turned out to be a complete lie.
Ashley Brown, the brilliant and attractive daughter of multimillionaire businessman Richard Brown, was also a well-known model. She disagreed with joining her father's business as she had the dreams she wanted to pursue.
Being the pampered child, Richard never objected to her decision and let her live her own life with her terms and conditions until one day, she was caught in a rumor that she walked with a man hand in hand, making the news spark. The man was none other than Greg McAdam.
Richard never liked the guy because he knew that Greg, the boy, was only interested in her because of the status she held. He tried to make her understand, but his love blinded her, and she argued with him.
Now that reality had hit her square in the face, she saw that everything her father had said had been accurate.
"How stupid of you to believe that bastard loved you," she said in a heavy, pained voice as she threw the full wine bottle into the lake.
Her bloodshot eyes looked at the calm water, letting her tears roll down. She was going to surprise him, but all she got in return was the biggest shock of her life.
Greg McAdam, her longtime boyfriend and model, cheated on her with Jane Willows, a close friend. How can she never notice the closeness they shared in the name of friendship?
"Stupid," her slurry voice cursed herself, and she turned to leave from there.
Today was the most historic moment of her life; her boyfriend cheated on her. She felt ridiculous but kept herself intact, not letting herself break down.
She won't shed a tear for a cheater like him who made fun of the love they shared. No, she would never make the same mistake by trusting someone who would keep her as an option.
Getting inside the car, she drove it to the nearest nightclub in the town and stopped in front of it. Being a VIP entry, she had the easiest access to the club despite it being a busy weekend.
Tonight, she wanted to let her guard down and feel comfortable in her own skin. She refused to bear the burden of the false love that had cut a savage hole in her heart.
Gulping down three shots of vodka, Ashley walked toward the dance floor and began showing her moves.
Her hips swayed at the beat of the loud music as she forgot the world around her and let suck in the moment of releasing the pain. She desired to relax and indulge in the drinks. She had already done half of their work while she did the rest.
Not too far from her seated, a man with these sharp blue eyes looked in her direction as she kept moving to the beat of the rhythm. Getting up from his seat, he walked toward her and pulled her out of the crowd.
Startled by the sudden jerk, Ashley finally opened her eyes and looked at the person in front of her. She could not even make out the person's face because she was so drunk, but all of a sudden she heard him say, "Stop it."
Upon hearing his warning, Ashley laughed and gave off a foolish smile, acting as though everything around her was a hallucination.
Blinking her eyes, she finally looked at the man whose sharp eyes pierced her; all she could do was stare at him.
He happened to be the most handsome and charming man she had come across in the club, which made her recall her bastard boyfriend, who was also handsome but not like the one who stood in front of her.
"Who is he?" she wondered as she struggled to concentrate her vision.
Just the recall of Greg's face made her lose her cool. She wanted to show him that his betrayal didn't affect her at all, and in the heat of the moment, she dragged the man's collar and sealed his lips.
She wasn't going to let anyone make fun of her. Ashley Brown, the unstoppable beauty in the modeling industry, would show that she is not easily duped in the name of false love.
The two bodies wrapped around each other. One moaned out loud while the other kept worshipping it.
They were unable to control their desire and spent the entire evening together, drawing each other deeper and deeper into a puddle of lust.
***
Inside the hotel's opulent suite, two people lay entwined in each other's arms as the morning sun shone.
The light fell on the girl's eyes as she fluttered, opening them and adjusting her vision.
Ashley tried to guess the place she was in right now and was about to get up when she felt a cold hand around her waist that stopped her from getting up.
Her eyes only slightly turned to reveal the face of the man sleeping next to her before her body froze.
The memories of last night rushed through her mind like a hurricane, and she shut her eyes, knowing what she had ended up doing.
She composed herself slowly and attempted to break free from the powerful arm, but before she could act, the horse's voice near her ear said, "Do not move," and her body froze.
Ashley was too ashamed to look him in the eye, so she dared not turn to look. She remembers how she pounced on him and took advantage of his helping hand.
The man next to her saw her froze in his arm and knew she recalled everything that had ever happened to them.
His mouth slightly pursed as he observed the side profile he proceeded to kiss until his heart was satisfied.
The man took his hand off her waist and looked at her for a long time before saying, "Move."
Ashley finally moved to turn her head to look at the man next to her after hearing his sharp voice.
She felt her breath hitch the moment her eyes fell on the devilishly handsome face; all she could see was the man next to her.
His perfectly sharp features, especially his deep blue eyes, made him look no less than a runway model.
She had seen handsome men in the modeling world for more than five years, but the one next to her was more than beautiful.
She didn't realize that she was shamelessly gawking at him until she heard him say, "If you are done drooling, will you get up from me? You weigh too much."
When she was almost asleep, Ashley furrowed her brows at the sound of his voice and the sight of him pointing down on his arms.
Shuddering, she moved back and sat up on the bed. She was fortunate to have a white sheet covering her body, which prevented her from becoming even more ashamed.
She heard the man chuckle, and that made her frown.
Not even her coworkers had ever dared to make fun of her. Everyone was aware of her extreme temper since she disliked it when people made fun of her. Everyone was scared of her, and she liked it that way.
She turned around and got off the bed, trying to steady herself while sensing the pain. Her entire body was in pain. This man was the cause; last night, he was an unstoppable beast.
Even though she wanted to scold him, she couldn't because she was the one who forced herself on him.
Picking her clothes from the ground, she walked in to get change and came out. Her eyes looked at her purse, and when she found it, she pulled out a sum of money and kept it on the side table.
"Here, take this for entertaining me." Her entire demeanor changed, and she did look like she was shy as before.
Upon seeing her paying him for their night together, the man on the bed arched his brows and burst out laughing.
"Do you think this much would be enough for all the scratches I got from you last night?" He made fun of her by pointing out the nail marks on her arms and back.
Ashley wanted to vent her anger but controlled herself as she was at fault. Withdrawing additional cash, she added it to the earlier one and asked, "Her, is this enough for the medical expense of your scar?"
The man was impressed by her feisty persona, and he climbed down the bed, making his way toward her.
He looked into her black eyes with his blue ones and knew that she was that tigress—very different from the women he would see the night before. Her fierce character was overshadowed by the drink last night, but she was back to being that yesterday.
"Maybe I could give you something in exchange for spending the night with me?" Ashley became enraged at his words.
What does this man take her as a whore who spends time with every man?
"Watch your mouth, Mr. Are you aware of who you are speaking with?" Ashley clenched her teeth, finding it difficult to accept the remarks he made about her.
The man let out a chuckle that pissed Ashley even more. No one dared laugh at her, but this man had done it twice.
"I don't care who you are because it doesn't concern me. Ashley's jaw dropped at his words, and she felt the ground give way beneath her feet. "All that matters now is how are you going to take responsibility for taking advantage of me," he said.
"Was he serious?" she asked herself, staring at him like a naive fool who had just felt icy water on her face.