A Billionaire For My Valentine

Chapter 1 POV: Stephanie I thought the worst thing about Valentine’s Day was the pressure to be perfect. I was wrong. The worst thing is standing outside a locked office door, clutching a box of expensive chocolates, and hearing your fiancé’s heavy breathing as he moans someone else’s name. The rhythmic thudding against the wood of the door was steady and loud. It was a wet, heavy sound that made my stomach turn. I stood in the hallway of the Fredericksburg Country Club, surrounded by red heart balloons and the scent of roses. Everything was decorated for the Sweetheart Gala, but inside that room, my life was being torn apart. "Oh! Oh, Jake! Yes! Right there!" Sarah screamed. Her voice was high-pitched and breathless. I leaned my head against the cool wood. I could hear the leather of my father’s old desk creaking under the weight of their bodies. The thumping grew faster. It was a frantic, desperate beat. "God, Sarah," Jake grunted. His voice was thick and sweaty. "You feel so much better than her. Faster, harder. Give it all to me." "Tell me... ah... tell me I am your Valentine," Sarah moaned. She sounded like she was losing her mind. "Say it while you are deep inside me. Use me, Jake! f**k me as you own me!" "You are my only Valentine," Jake growled. I heard the loud slap of skin against skin and a messy, squelch sound. "Stephanie is just a boring statue. I am only marrying that farm girl to get the mineral rights from her grandmother. Once I own that ranch and the papers are signed, I am throwing her away. I will send her to some lonely house and keep you in my bed every night." "Yes! f**k me as you hate her!" Sarah yelled. She started making loud, garbled noises. "Agh... ugh... mmmgh... harder, Jake! Don't stop! Oh god, yes!" The office was filled with the sounds of their frantic movements. Sarah was babbling gibberish now, her voice rising and falling with every hard thud against the desk. "Oh god... oh... ahhh... mmm-hmmm... yes! Right there! Give it to me! Take it all!" I looked down at the gold box in my hands. The red ribbon looked like a streak of blood against the gold paper. Inside that room, my best friend was screaming in pleasure while my fiancé promised to steal my legacy. Every moan was a knife in my back. Every wet sound made me want to throw up. "I am close," Jake roared. I heard him gasping, his breath coming in short. "I am... ugh... agh... damn it, Sarah! Take it! Take all of it!" A final, loud groan echoed through the door. It was followed by Sarah’s long, shaky exhale. The thudding stopped. The only sound left was the heavy breathing of two people who had just destroyed my world. "Happy Valentine's Day to me," Sarah whispered breathlessly. "That was incredible. You are so much bigger than him." I heard the sound of a chair rolling back. Then came the sharp, metallic slide of a zipper being pulled up. "Clean yourself up, Sarah," Jake said. His voice was suddenly cold and businesslike. "The Sweetheart Gala starts in less than an hour. I have to go put on a fake smile and pretend I love that girl for the cameras. We need those mineral rights. Just keep your mouth shut, and your legs open for me until the wedding is over." "Whatever you say, boss," Sarah giggled. I heard the rustle of silk as she pulled her dress back on. "Just make sure you don't call out my name at the altar." I backed away from the door. My heart wasn't just broken; it was gone. I felt a cold, sharp rage taking its place. I didn't cry. I didn't make a sound. I turned and ran through the club, past the happy couples and the red decorations that looked like a mockery of my life. I dropped the chocolates in a trash can and pushed through the heavy glass doors. I burst out into the freezing February rain. I didn't go to my car. I went straight for the dark, narrow alleyway behind the club. Steve was there, sitting on a wooden crate under a leaking pipe. He was covered in dirt and wearing rags. People called him a beggar, but when he looked up at me, his eyes were like steel. "Stephanie?" he asked. His voice was a low rumble. "Why are you out here in the rain? You look like you've seen a ghost." "I need you to be my billionaire," I told him. My voice was cracking as the rain soaked my hair and my silk dress. "I heard them, Steve. Jake and Sarah. They were in his office... doing things. Talking about my land and talking about how boring I am." Steve stood up. He was much taller than Jake. He stepped out of the shadows, and for a second, he didn't look like a homeless man. He looked like a predator. "What do you want me to do?" he asked quietly. "I want to ruin them," I said, stepping closer to him. I grabbed the lapels of his dirty coat. "The town is waiting for a billionaire wedding. I want to walk back into that Gala and tell everyone that Jake is a liar. I want to tell them that you are my real fiancé. That you were just testing my heart by pretending to be poor." Steve looked at me for a long time. The rain washed the grime from his face, revealing a sharp jaw and high cheekbones. "You don't know what you are asking for, Stephanie. If I walk back into that room with you, the game changes for everyone." "I don't care," I snapped. "I'll give you everything I have left. My father's gold watch. My savings. Just help me take his power away on the one night he thinks he has won." Steve reached out and took my hand. His grip was warm and steady. "Keep your money, Stephanie. I'll do it for free. I've been waiting for a reason to stop hiding." "Then let's go," I said, wiping the rain and tears from my face. "Let's give Jake the Valentine's surprise he deserves." We walked toward the lights of the club. As we passed a window, I saw my reflection. I looked tired and wet, but my eyes were burning. Beside me, the man from the alley was walking with his head held high. Tonight, the Sweetheart Gala wasn't going to be about love. It was going to be about war. And with a "billionaire" by my side, I was finally ready to fight. Jake thought he was the hunter, but he was about to find out what it felt like to be the prey. We reached the back entrance. Steve stopped and looked at me one last time. "Once we go through this door, there is no turning back. Are you ready to be a Savage?" "Yes," I whispered. "Happy Valentine's Day, Jake. You're about to lose everything."