IN-BETWEEN THE BILLIONAIRES

COKE INDUSTRIES

Lucy's pov

Stepping into coleIndustries was stepping into a different realm. The luxuriance of the place surrounded me like a second layer, my nerves thrilling. The floors gleamed under the light fixtures' glare, and the smell of expensive cologne and newly ground coffee Beans permeated the atmosphere.

One month had passed since that incident in the alley.

One month of Marcus constantly checking up on me, lurking over me like an attentive specter.

He'd had me banned from the café and then sued them for damages. I didn't ask how much, and I didn't want to know. He'd also taken my last bit of money to pay my rent, which had left me with hardly enough to survive until I got a new job. Not that it was required—most nights, I didn't have to spend a penny. Marcus provided for that, breakfast, lunch, and dinner, despite my protests.

And whenever I had gone to argue, he would just shrug and say, "You're going to pay me back anyway."

For some reason, that had made me feel slightly better.

Now here I was, standing in front of the receptionist's desk, clinging to my bag like a lifeline.

The woman behind the desk was stunning.

Red lipstick, bold and perfect.

Eyes the color of sapphires, framed by lashes long enough to reach heaven.

Blond hair was pulled into a severe, no-nonsense knot that screamed power and danger.

She looked like the kind of woman who could kill me with a single glance.

And then she smiled.

"Hello, what can I help you with today?" Her voice was smooth, polite, but there was a snap to it—like she was already sizing me up.

I swallowed, shoving my glasses higher. "I have a job referral from Stanley Corporations."

Her eyes flickered.

For a nanosecond, her lips twisted in disgust, like the name itself was something dirty on her desk.

Then, just as quickly, she slapped on a perfectly fake smile. "Of course."

She picked up the receiver, dialing a number with immaculately manicured nails. She waited a few moments before talking into the receiver. "Sir, the Stanley referral is here."

A pause.

Then her gaze sliced to me. "Go ahead. He's expecting you."

I faltered, my heart pounding. He?

I drew a deep breath and walked toward the double doors, my heels clicking on the marble floor. I knocked, and when a deep voice inside the room told me to enter, I pushed open the door—

And stalled.

Sitting behind a shiny black desk, smiling at me like I was a gift he'd been waiting to unwrap, was the man from the alley.

The man who'd saved me.

The man who had murdered for me.

His icy blue eyes glinted with humor as he lounged in his chair, one hand resting lazily against his jaw.

"Welcome, Bunty." His voice was every bit as smooth and dangerous as I remembered.

"I've been waiting for you."

I couldn't catch my breath.

He was sitting there. Behind that enormous desk, looking at me like a predator looking at prey.

I'd gone over our alleyway encounter in my mind too many times during the past month, but I never figured I'd ever see him again. And here he was. Dustin Riot.

My mouth was opening and shutting.

Opening and shutting again.

The words were there—Good morning, sir—but they stuck on my lips, barely above a whisper.

His eyes didn't waver from mine, but the look of condescending amusement twisted my stomach.

"Don't stammer."

I swallowed hard. "I—I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize."

I bit down on my lips.

He extended a hand, waiting. "Where's your resume?"

I dug into my bag, frantically pulling out the neatly typed sheet and laying it on his desk. He didn't even glance at it.

Instead, he grasped the paper in his hand, ripped it into half, and tossed it into the trash can beside him as if it was nothing.

I blinked. My mind went blank. What…

"I'm not going to need that," he replied calmly, and my skin crawled. He indicated the chair in front of him.

"Sit down. I have a couple of questions for you."

I obeyed immediately, smoothing my skirt a hundred times as I sat, my fingers curling into a knot in my lap.

His blue eyes pinned me. "You're going to be one of them, aren't you?"

I blinked, surprised. "One of—?"

"One of the little pity things that drift up here pretending to be the most innocent pieces of the world." His voice was smooth, with a touch of mockery.

My hands curled tighter.

"Let me tell you something, Lucy Cheng." He inched forward, his movement slow, calculated. "I don't care what becomes of you."

My breath halted.

"You could have died that night, and finding you was a matter of luck." His lips curled into something that would have been a smirk if it wasn't so cruel. "So don't stare at me like I'm some kind of messiah. Because I will kill you before you ever get the chance to worship me."

I shut down completely.

I didn't realize I was holding my breath until my chest burned from the lack of oxygen.

This wasn't the same man that man. That man, despite how frightening he'd been, had still stood up for me.

This man?

He couldn't have cared less.

I opened my lips to respond, but before I could say one word, he stepped back, eyes scanning me as if I were nothing.

"Anyway, Miss Cheng." His tone shifted, becoming cold, detached. "Come back in two weeks."

I blinked. "What?"

"Now, you're not ready for this job."

My stomach dropped. Not ready?

My fists tightened in my lap. "But… you didn't even look at my resume. You tore it up. How can you—"

"Decide whether you're worth my time?" He tilted his head to one side, goading me with his eyes. "I already did."

It seemed like the room just dropped a few degrees.

I should have been mad.

I should have gotten up and stood up and walked out.

But all I could manage was just sit there, stunned, as Dustin Riot leaned back in his chair and looked at me like he had already planned out exactly how my life was going to go from here.

I barely noticed the taxi drive away as I walked to my apartment, my head in a knot of rage and something else I refused to name.

The conversation replayed itself in my mind, repeating over and over, each word sinking deeper into my skin.

I don't care what happens to you.

I will kill you before you ever have the chance to worship me.

A shiver ran down my spine, but not from the night air.

There was a well of heat in the pit of my stomach, making my legs stagger.

What's the matter with me?

I detested men like him. Men who thought they could patronize women, men who had an unchecked ego, men who wielded power as a bludgeon.

And yet….

My hands clenched into fists as I swallowed hard.

He was so damn gorgeous.

The curve of his lips shaping every word, every syllable flowing from his lips like something forbidden.

The curve of his dark brows rising in perfect, effortless disdain, daring me to resist—to rebel against him.

The timbre of his voice surrounding me, rough and smooth at once, like something dangerous.

Like something that would consume me whole.

And God have mercy on me, I couldn't wait to be consumed.