THE NIGHT THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
1430 Words
CHAPTER 4 – THE NIGHT THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
Adrian never believed a single moment could rearrange a man’s entire life. But as he stood beside the glowing bar at Sterling Club, dressed in a borrowed tux that fit a little too well for someone “poor,” he felt it happening.
The gala was loud, glamorous, soaked with gold light. Billionaires mingled under chandeliers, laughing about fortunes they doubled overnight. Adrian kept his shoulders squared, jaw firm, trying not to betray the strange storm brewing inside him.
He wasn’t here to celebrate.
He was here because Sebastian Crane wanted to humiliate him.
And because he was running out of ways to protect Eliana.
She stood across the room in an emerald dress that captured the light like she was made for brilliance. Her hair fell in dark waves that framed her soft face, but her eyes—those warm, bright eyes—held tension she couldn’t hide. Every few seconds she glanced at him, as if checking he was really there.
She shouldn’t be here, Adrian thought.
Not in this world, not in this glittering battlefield.
But she had insisted. “If someone is trying to ruin your life, I want to know who,” she’d said earlier, her voice trembling but brave. “Adrian… let me stand with you.”
Stand with him.
Nobody had ever said that to him before.
And now Sebastian was circling her like a shark sensing fresh blood.
Adrian’s hands balled into fists.
This was exactly why he kept secrets.
This was exactly why he walked away from her three months ago.
Now she was tangled in the very web he wanted to keep her far away from.
---
“Cole,” Sebastian said, appearing beside Adrian with a drink in hand. His perfect suit, perfect hair, perfect smirk—it was all designed for one reason: domination.
Adrian forced a calm expression. “Crane.”
“Your date looks… overwhelmed.” Sebastian gave a low laugh. “I suppose that’s expected. She doesn’t fit in here.”
Adrian’s jaw tightened. “She doesn’t have to. She’s better than anyone here.”
Sebastian raised a brow as though amused. “Including you?”
Adrian didn’t answer. There was nothing he could say without revealing the truth.
Sebastian leaned close. “You should have kept your little waitress hidden. Once you bring someone like that into my world, she becomes fair game.”
“What do you want?” Adrian asked through clenched teeth.
“I want to see how long you’ll keep up this pathetic act.” Sebastian’s voice dropped to a whisper. “So I propose a new challenge.”
Adrian’s muscles stiffened. “I’m not interested.”
“Oh, you will be,” Sebastian murmured. “Especially when she’s involved.”
Cold fury ripped through Adrian. “If you touch her—”
“I won’t have to.” Sebastian smiled. “She’ll come to me herself.”
Adrian didn’t understand—until Sebastian lifted a hand and signaled someone.
A server approached with a silver tray.
On it lay a contract.
Adrian froze.
A familiar, terrifying contract.
A bet contract.
Like the one from years ago—the one that had destroyed the last woman Adrian cared about.
Sebastian tapped the papers. “A million dollars—if I can make Eliana fall for me in thirty days.”
Adrian’s chest stilled.
For a moment, he forgot how to breathe.
Sebastian’s eyes sparkled with cruelty. “And another million that she’ll choose me over you once she learns who you really are.”
Adrian grabbed his arm. “You sick—”
“Careful,” Sebastian warned softly. “People are watching.”
Adrian released him before he did something stupid.
But the rage didn’t leave his eyes.
“Sign it,” Sebastian whispered. “Or walk away like a coward. Which will it be?”
---
Adrian opened his mouth to refuse—
—but a soft gasp from behind him sliced through the tension.
Eliana.
She stood frozen, her clutch trembling in her hand, her eyes wide with shock.
“Fall for you?” she echoed. “A bet?”
Sebastian smiled like a demon who’d been waiting for this exact moment. “Ah, Eliana. Perfect timing.”
Adrian stepped forward. “Eliana, it isn’t—”
“Isn’t what?” she whispered. “A game? A challenge between the two of you?”
Her voice shook. Not in fear.
In heartbreak.
Adrian reached for her hand. “Let me explain.”
She pulled away as though his touch burned her.
“Adrian… please tell me you’re not part of this.”
His heart cracked. “I’m not. I would never—”
“Because he was,” Sebastian cut in smoothly. “He’s just better at hiding it.”
Adrian lunged forward. “Shut up!”
Sebastian didn’t flinch. He simply held Eliana’s gaze with faux sympathy. “Sweetheart, tell me… how well do you really know him? His job? His background? His friends? Where he gets his money? You don’t know anything, do you?”
Eliana looked pale. “Adrian… why does he talk like he knows you better than I do?”
Adrian swallowed hard.
He couldn’t tell her the truth.
Not here.
Not now.
Not with every billionaire in the room watching.
“Eliana,” he whispered, “please. Come with me. I’ll explain everything privately.”
She stepped back. “If there is nothing to hide… say it here.”
His stomach twisted.
He couldn’t.
He couldn’t.
And that silence—three seconds of suffocating silence—destroyed her.
Her eyes filled with tears.
“That’s what I thought,” she said, voice breaking.
---
“Eliana,” Adrian said desperately, “don’t listen to him. He’s setting a trap. You’re not part of any bet—I swear.”
“Then why was I invited to this?” she cried. “Why do I feel like I walked straight into something planned?”
“Because he planned it,” Adrian insisted, pointing at Sebastian. “He’s trying to hurt you to get to me.”
Sebastian gave a soft laugh. “Funny how people with secrets love to accuse others.”
Eliana stared at Adrian, waiting.
Begging for truth.
And he failed her again.
Adrian opened his mouth but the words died.
He would not expose his real identity like this.
Not in front of Sebastian.
Not in front of men who would weaponize that information.
He was trapped.
“Just tell me one thing,” Eliana whispered. “Who are you really?”
Adrian’s throat dried.
Her tears fell.
“That’s all I needed,” she said quietly, then turned to walk away.
Adrian moved to follow but a strong hand grabbed his shoulder.
Sebastian.
“You chase her,” Sebastian murmured, “and I’ll show her the contract. You know I will.”
Adrian froze.
Every muscle, every breath, every instinct screamed to run after her.
But he couldn’t.
Sebastian smirked, savoring Adrian’s pain. “Poor little billionaire in disguise. Look at you—terrified to lose a girl because she’ll see the monster underneath.”
Adrian’s fist collided with Sebastian’s jaw before he even realized he’d swung.
Gasps filled the room.
Security rushed forward.
Sebastian wiped blood from his lip and smiled. “Now things are interesting.”
---
“Eliana!” Adrian shouted, pushing through the crowd.
But she was gone.
The doors swung shut behind her, leaving cold winter air drifting in.
Sebastian stepped beside Adrian and held the contract up between two fingers.
“Thirty days,” he whispered.
“Thirty days to prove you deserve her.”
“And when she finds out what you truly are… she will hate you.”
Adrian stared at the paper, fury choking him.
“This time,” Sebastian added, “I’m going to win.”
Adrian turned slowly, eyes burning with a darkness he hadn’t felt in years.
“No,” he said. “This time… you made the worst mistake of your life.”
The lights flickered as if the city itself sensed what was coming.
Adrian walked out of the building with a single mission:
Get Eliana back before Sebastian destroys her life.
But as he stepped into the cold night—
A black car pulled up.
The door opened.
“Eliana is with us now,” a familiar voice said from inside.
Adrian’s blood turned to ice.
Someone else had taken her.
And it wasn’t Sebastian.
- Writer
