I’m All Yours, Mr. Prescott

Trading Up

Mia’s Pov

“How dare you?!”

My voice echoed through the grand suite as I yanked the contract from Dorian Blackwood’s desk and tore it into half. “Did you think I would just go along with this?!”

Standing across the lavish hotel suite was no other person than Dorian Blackwood, one of the most influential tycoons in the business world. His name was always splashed across headlines for the deals he engaged himself in.

He had a reputation for being ruthless and a cunny mind for getting whatever it is he wanted at any bloody cost. And today I was standing face-to-face with the predator because my boyfriend wanted me to.

“Temper, watch your temper,” he muttered. His smile was infuriatingly calm as if I was throwing a tantrum over nothing.

“I’m not your pawn!” I shouted, my hands now trembling uncontrollably as I glared hard at him and my mind racing. “I don't care what kind of deal you might have struck with Evan. But I want it to be clear to you that I am not a part of it.”

Evan Walters, the so-called boyfriend of mine. CEO of Walters International, a company making waves in the business world even though not as much as Dorian. His charms and influence had always been mesmerizing to those around him.

Though his company had hit a few financial snags, he was still viewed as the youngest rising star, someone destined for greatness or so my dumb self-thought.

Dorian straightened up himself, crossing the distance between us slowly, every step he took was a deliberate, calculative one. “You seem upset Mia,” he said, his tone mocking. “Evan made it clear-he offered you up as collateral for the deal. That contract you just tore up? It was my leverage.”

My heart pounded louder in my chest. Collateral?

“I don't believe you,” I spat defensively, stepping back. “Evan wouldn't…”

“He would. And he did,” Dorian interrupted smoothly. “He was desperate, you know that. His company has been tanking for months.”

“That is not true, I have seen him running up figures on a steady, Evan’s can’t go broke,” I said with my eyebrows creasing, “He can't” I added.

Dorian gave off a croaked laughter, “You were probably too dumb to notice his games and lies,” he replied, “He’s been leveraging on everything he has, assets, and now you. All for the sake of saving his business from going down the shambles.”

I stared at him stunned. It was as if the ground had crumbled beneath my feet. Everything started adding up in my head, all the times he sent me for business deals in clubs, all the times I got stared at like prey, all the times their fingers grazed my skin as I took the contract from them and they laughed lousily at the expression on my face, and all the time I told Evan about it that he shrugs and planted a kiss on my lips to shut me up.

“No,” I whispered, shaking my head. “He wouldn't use me like that. He wouldn't.”

Dorian chuckled darkly. “Do you honestly think I’m lying? Your boyfriend is no saint, Mia. He came to me, practically begging to help keep his company afloat,” he said, “And that was how he threw in his girlfriend, he said you would help smooth things over.”

Anger flared inside me, my chest tightening with betrayal. I felt nervous suddenly, but I couldn't afford to break down now.

“I’m not for sale,” I said through gritted teeth, fighting to keep my voice steady and my tears from falling. “And I am done having this conversation with you.”

Dorian’s eyes flickered from me to the door, “I’m afraid it is not that simple, sweetheart. Evan owes me more than you know. Walking out of here? That’s going to cost you both,” he replied slyly, “If I were you, I would stick with the plan of being a w***e for the night to save your head, after all, you have already made it this far,” he continued, his hand finding its way around my waist.

Something inside me snapped from the disrespect he had just thrown at me. Without pausing for a second to think, I pushed his hand away and slapped him across his face, the sound reverberating through the quiet room.

His head tilted to the side, his cheek reddening instantly. For a brief moment, I remained frozen, taking in what had just happened with my hand still hanging in the air.

Dorian’s jaw clenched as he slowly allowed his eyes which were narrowing with a dangerous glare to rest on me. “That was a big mistake you just made,” he hissed, rubbing his jaw.

“I’m never going to save my head in such a dirty way,” I let out with a shaky voice, “Even if it is just for a night.”

His smirk widened as he took another step towards me while I moved back in turn, his presence looming uncertainty. “You’re in this deeper than you think, Mia. Walking away wouldn’t erase what your boyfriend owes me. You’re just as tied to this mess as he is.”

I didn't wait for him to say any more taunting words before I grabbed my purse and stormed out of the room, my vision blurry with unshed tears. I was still very much in the denial stage of Evan trading me like a commodity to save his head.

“Walk away if you want,” Dorian called after me, his voice stiff. “But this isn't anywhere close to being over, you’ll come crawling back when you realize this is the only way out of it all.”

I slammed the door behind me, my heart pounding, rage, disbelief, and hatred swirling inside me. The betrayal burned deep, but I knew one thing was for sure-i wasn't going to allow myself to be used. Not by Evan. Not by Dorian. No one.

***

The whiskey burned as it slid down my throat. The glass was almost empty for like the fourth time, but I didn't care. Instead, I was craving something stronger, something that would be able to drown the strangling weight in my chest.

As I sat on the bare floor of my apartment, I couldn't help but think about how the betrayal-Evan’s betrayal-was a dull ache that I couldn't shake. I can't believe that after three years, he would toss me aside as if I never meant a thing to him. I lifted the bottle again and poured myself another drink, watching the amber, translucent liquid swirl.

The sharp ringing of my phone pierced through the silence, pulling me out of my haze. Evan’s name flashed across the screen and my chest tightened with panic. I didn't want to hear his voice, but I answered anyway because the phone wouldn't stop ringing.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” his voice exploded from his phone, sharp and biting in a harsh and unforgiving way. “You had one job, Mia. One simple task and all you did was to screw it up. Do you have any idea what you had just cost me?”

I sat there, silent. His words washed over me, but I was numb. All I could think about was the three years of my life I had wasted on him.

His words grew muffled and distant like I was underwater as he went on with his ranting, and I didn't hear any more words till he said, “I don't want to see you again, I don't want to see you anywhere around me. We’re done.”