Her Billionaire, His Lover

Tony sat at the far end of the bar at De Royal Hotels, the half-empty glass in front of him long forgotten. He was in pain. Not physical but mental, as he continued to stare at his half-empty glass while his thoughts were focused on something else. The bar was busy, the clink of bottles, soft jazz playing over the speakers, and murmurs of other guests filled the room, but his mind was elsewhere, deep in thought. De Royal Incorporated. He had never forgotten that name, even more so as he sat in the bar of one of its hotels. The name had once been synonymous with power and prestige, his father’s empire, a legacy that had crumbled like sand beneath the tide. Tony was born with a silver spoon. At a very young age, he had chauffeurs and first-class flights, yet here he was, nursing a cheap drink at a hotel bar his family used to own, though he did not know this. His father’s death had not only marked the end of an era but had entangled the web of so many unanswered questions and players. They lost everything. The wealth vanished almost overnight, and his mother, a once radiant and vibrant, beautiful lady, had spiralled into a pit of silence and paranoia. She became mentally unstable almost immediately after Tony's father's demise. Tony sighed, rubbing his temples. The past was a wound that refused to close. Then, just as he was about to drown himself in another wave of self-pity, he heard a voice. Soft. Pleasant. Feminine. "Can I have a shot of tequila?" Tony turned, startled, to find a woman standing across the counter, arms folded, looking straight at him. Her lips were painted a shade between danger and seduction, and her eyes shimmered with both exhaustion and mischief. Her hair, a soft curtain of chestnut curls, framed her face like art. He blinked, confused. “I - - I’m not the—” She didn’t let him finish. “Oh, please. I’m not in for that crap.” She waved her hand, dismissing his attempt at clarification. “Pour me my drink and let me quietly go sit and watch my horror movie.” Tony blinked again, completely thrown. “Horror movie? In a bar?” The woman sighed, pulling out a stool and plopping down beside him with dramatic flair. With a faint smile, she responded as if to say, ‘You got me wrong.’ “Figure of speech. I’m actually referring to the management meeting I have to attend in twenty minutes. But frankly, I’d prefer a zombie apocalypse to another round of fake smiles and backstabbing executives.” Tony chuckled, surprised at himself. “Tequila, huh?” he said, turning slightly to face her. “Strong choice for a horror show.” She arched an eyebrow. “Desperate times, bartender.” “I’m not the bartender,” he said, finally clarifying with a small smile. “My friend Jesse runs this bar. He just stepped out to take a call.” “Well, not - a -bartender,” she replied with a smirk, “you’re doing a terrible job at customer service.” Tony reached behind the counter with a dramatic sigh and poured her the shot. “You know, that’s illegal,” he muttered. She took the glass and raised it. “So is dying of boredom.” He watched her throw it back in one smooth motion. She winced slightly, then smiled. It wasn’t a perfect smile, but it was real. That smile made Tony forget about his sorrows for the first time that evening, and he could clearly see the lady in front of him. She smelled wealthy all through. Her Hermes bag, Louis Vuitton corporate gown, and lovely Zara shoes. She wore long hair that fell over her shoulders. Her face was the most beautiful thing Tony had seen. She was busty and shapely. “I’m Lila,” she said, placing the empty shot glass on the counter with a gentle tap. It woke Tony from the trance he was in as his eyes ran all over Lila’s body. “I-I'm, oh, I'm sorry you want more?” Lila smiled, “Yes, if you promise you will stop staring at me the way you do right now. Mr. …” “Tony,’ he replied. “Well, Tony,” she said, licking a bit of salt from her thumb, “I’m glad you’re not the bartender. You make a better stranger.” He laughed. “Is that a compliment?” “I’ll let you figure that out.” The conversation that followed was easy, a slow dance of humour, sarcasm, and a few carefully revealed truths. Lila told him about her job at Royal Energy Group, how the company had swallowed her soul and spat out stress. Tony shared bits of his past, not the whole tragic opera, but enough for her to see he was no stranger to loss. He left out his father’s name. He didn’t want to be pitied or viewed through the lens of a lost fortune. “You have sad eyes,” Lila said at some point, tracing the rim of her glass. Tony raised a brow. “You just said I make a good stranger. Don’t go trying to evaluate me now.” “I’m not. Just… noticing.” Something about her gaze made his breath hitch. There was no agenda, no flirtation, it was just raw, human curiosity. Lila stood suddenly, brushing the imaginary dust from her pencil skirt. “I have to go lose my mind in that conference room now.” Tony nodded, more disappointed than he expected. “Right. Good luck surviving the zombies.” She grinned and pulled a business card from her clutch. “In case you ever decide to bartend professionally.” He took it, flipping it over. Her name was embossed in elegant silver print. Lila Josh, Corporate Strategist, Royal Energy Group. He looked up, but she was already walking away, and she did not even look back. Tony was still watching Lila walk away, her beautiful shape gradually disappearing around the corner like a closing chapter he desperately wanted to keep reading. A smile had just begun to touch his lips when a shadow fell across the table. “Who are you?” The voice was cold and controlled but laced with an authority that made Tony’s head snap up. A man stood before him. He was tall, clean-cut, and dressed in an impeccably tailored grey suit. His jaw was sharp, his expression sharper. Behind him stood three men, Tony knew, guards, no doubt, with the kind of eyes that scanned for threats even in calm air. Tony rose slowly, uncertain. “Excuse me?” “I said, who are you?” the man repeated, his tone lower, darker. Tony steadied himself. “Tony. My name is Tony. Why?” he replied, not even knowing why he did so. The man’s gaze flicked to Tony’s jacket pocket. “Give me that,” he said. Before Tony could react, the man reached forward and snatched the card Lila had given. “Hey!” Tony’s voice was sharp, cutting through the rooftop’s gentle ambience. “That’s mine!” The man didn’t even look at it. He crushed the card in his palm like it meant nothing. Tony felt that he did it like Lila meant nothing, and that angered him. “You don’t belong here,” the man said. Tony’s fists clenched. “I think you’ve made a mistake.” But the guards moved fast. Two grabbed Tony’s arms, pinning them behind his back. The third stepped forward, inches from his face. “Mistake?” the suited man said, now with a smirk. “We don’t make mistakes. Especially not where Lila Josh is concerned.” Tony’s breath caught. So, this was about her. “Let go of me,” he growled. The man leaned in, his voice dropping to a whisper. “Stay away from her. This is your last warning.” Tony twisted hard, trying to break free, but one of the guards slammed him against the bar counter. Bottles clattered. Glass broke. People turned. The tension had reached a boiling point when— “Hey!” It was Jesse. He stood by the stairwell, phone in hand, voice raised. “I just called the police. You’ve got thirty seconds to walk out of here before things get messy.” The guards hesitated. The suited man raised a hand. “Let him go.” They released Tony, who staggered to his feet, his chest heaving with fury. His eyes met the man’s again, and he didn’t need to speak the threat. It was written all over his face. The man smoothed his jacket. “You should’ve stayed a bartender, Mr. Zani or whatever you call yourself.” “Some advice?” he said with a strange calm. “Walk away. Before whatever you are thinking swallows you whole.” Then they turned, walking briskly into the building. Tony wiped a cut on his cheek, heart still pounding. “Who the hell was that?” Tony stood there, stunned, chest heaving. Jesse came up beside him. “What the hell just happened?” “I don’t know,” Tony said, rubbing his jaw. “I have no idea who they were.” “Did you recognize them?” “No,” Tony said, his voice cold. And then he saw the direction they’d gone. The conference wing. His mind flashed. He thought they had come for Lila. Tony didn’t wait. Something inside him burned. He pushed past Jesse, through the lobby, ignoring the wide-eyed stares from guests and hotel staff. He went through the corridor to the conference wing of the hotel. His steps were fast and hurried. At the end of the wing, a glass-panelled room came into view. And there they were. The suited man. The guards. Seated calmly in the middle of a high-level corporate meeting. And at the far end of the room was Lila. Tony stopped short. She was sitting at the long table, her fingers interlocked, brows slightly furrowed in thought. Her lips moved as she spoke to someone beside her. She looked… composed. Unaware. And then, the suited man looked up. His gaze went straight through the glass wall and locked onto Tony like a sniper scope. Tony froze. The man tilted his head, almost amused. As if he had been expecting this. Lila turned to follow the man’s gaze. Her eyes landed on Tony. Her lips parted in surprise. She stood abruptly. Her chair scraped across the polished floor. Inside the room, whispers started. People turned. But the suited man only smiled. It wasn’t friendly. It was a warning. Tony stared back, fists clenched, breath shallow. He didn’t know who that man was. But he knew one thing now for sure. Lila was in the middle of something dangerous. The guards followed after Lila as she approached him. Tony could hear his heartbeat pretty fast. He did not know what to expect. He clenched his fist harder.