Her Billionaire, His Lover

CHAPTER 3: THE DAY WE LOST TO GAIN

Tyler didn’t look back. He pushed open the door to the bar with a slam.

The bar quieted in an instant. Conversations died. Every eye turned.

Jesse, wiping down the counter, looked up with a bemused frown.

Tyler’s eyes scanned the room. No Tony.

“Where is he?” he snapped.

Jesse didn’t flinch. “If you’re talking about the guy you threw your guards at, he left. Not long ago.”

Tyler’s nostrils flared. “Convenient.”

Jesse leaned on the counter, unimpressed. “Depends who you ask.”

Lila stepped into the bar behind them, her breath still short from the chase. She spotted Jesse and gave him a brief, subtle shake of her head, implying, please don’t escalate this.

But Tyler already had.

“You,” Tyler spat, pointing at Jesse like he was dirt under his shoe, “You’re fired.”

Jesse paused mid-wipe, then slowly set his towel down. He stared at Tyler as though he'd just heard a joke with a terrible punchline. Then, he smiled.

“I think you’re confused,” Jesse said calmly. “I don’t work for you.”

Tyler took a step forward, his guards stiffening.

Lila moved too. “Tyler, don’t do this.”

“I’m doing what I should’ve done the moment this place became a circus,” Tyler snarled.

Jesse was about to retort, but then the bar phone rang. A single, shrill ring that seemed to cut through the tension like a blade.

He picked it up slowly.

“Yes... De Royal Lounge.”

There was a pause.

Jesse’s face changed. His smirk faded. He straightened.

“Yes, sir. Understood.”

He set the receiver down slowly and looked up at Lila.

“I’ve just been fired,” he said.

“What?” Lila said sharply.

Tyler’s smile returned, cold and triumphant.

“Funny how things work so fast with a good leader,” he muttered.

Jesse glanced around the bar, exhaled, and reached under the counter. He retrieved his keys and his phone and slid the towel off his shoulder. “Guess that’s my cue.”

Lila stepped forward, furious now. “This wasn’t necessary, Tyler.”

Tyler shrugged. “He stood in my way. So he’s gone.”

Jesse locked eyes with her, calm despite the storm swirling around him. “You gonna fix this?”

Lila’s jaw clenched. “Yes.”

Jesse gave her a nod, then walked out without another word.

Tyler turned to Lila, still smug. “Next time, choose your allies more wisely.”

Tony was still angry when he got home. His mind was wavering from the thought of his mother and the beautiful lady he had just met. How did he allow his anger to let the moment slip from him so easily?

He thought about Lila. Her smile, poise, and manner of carrying herself had all felt too perfect. And maybe that was the problem, perfection never lasts.

Just as the silence in his apartment started to thicken, the front door burst open.

“Bro!” Jesse’s voice rang through the space like a thunderclap.

Tony looked up. Jesse looked winded, disheveled, and not in his usual jokey mood.

“I got fired,” Jesse said, throwing his bag down with a loud thud.

“What?” Tony stood up, alarmed. “What the hell happened?”

Jesse paced across the room like a caged animal. “It was a mess. Your man with the suit and guards.”

Tony frowned. “You sure?”

Jesse turned sharply. “I don’t know who he is, but he sure just made a phone call, and the manager called to let me go.”

“Just like that?” Tony asked

“Yeah! Just like that!” replied Jesse.

Tony gave a long exhale. “Damn.”

Then, as if the weight of it all couldn’t hold any longer, Jesse let out a short, dry laugh. “And the best part? I almost punched the man in a suit like you on my way out. But I just walked out like a gentleman. A very, very angry gentleman.”

Tony chuckled, despite himself. “That’s progress. I think.”

Jesse slumped onto the couch, rubbing his face. “So… enough about my tragic downfall. What about you? Did you get Lila’s number?”

Tony froze.

Jesse noticed. “Wait. Don’t tell me…”

“I didn’t,” Tony admitted, rubbing the back of his neck.

“What do you mean you didn’t? You were with her for, what, two times in a day?”

Tony nodded. “Yeah. And in that time, I learned… she works for Royal Incorporated. That’s it.”

Jesse’s eyes widened. “You didn’t ask for her number? Email? Insta? Even LinkedIn?”

Tony groaned. “The man with the suit tore it, bro. I didn’t bring it up again. I thought I’d see her again.”

“And now?”

“Now I’m not so sure,” Tony said quietly.

Jesse leaned back and sighed. “Great. One of us lost his job, and the other lost the girl.”

There was a pause. Then Jesse cracked a grin. “Wanna flip a coin and see who’s more pathetic today?”

Tony laughed. “Only if we’re betting with fake money.”

The two friends sank into the couch, their laughter lingering in the room like a fragile comfort.

“Wow! What a day,” Tony said. “I think that lady is out of my league, but I still want to see her.”

Jesse stood up abruptly. “What do you mean? Man, you cannot be thinking like that. Come on, be optimistic.”

“You are right, bro. I wish my situation were different.”

Meanwhile, Lily stood in front of her mirror in her bedroom. Her heart felt heavy, and her mind was in chaos. Filled with judgmental whispers and unspoken expectations.

Everyone had turned on her, or at least, that’s how it felt. The board, the press, even her so-called allies. And Tyler, smug, power-hungry Tyler, parading around as if the empire was already his.

She needed to change the narrative. The image of the company is being affected, and Tyler was using it to his advantage.

She imagined Tyler as the leader of the empire.

“No,” she whispered to her reflection. “Not him. Never him.”

Her fingers trembled slightly as she zipped up the dress, short, sleek, with just enough edge to make a statement. It clung to her curves unapologetically, revealing more than she normally dared, but tonight wasn't about playing it safe. Tonight was about forgetting.

About escaping.

She had promised herself weeks ago that she was done with alcohol. That she’d find better ways to cope. But that promise had cracked under the weight of reality. Drinks dulled the voices. The pressure. The pain.

Standing in her heels, she gave herself one last glance, then reached for her clutch.

“Club 99,” she said out loud, as if saying it made it more real. “Let’s pretend none of this matters... just for tonight.”

She took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and walked out the door.

Tomorrow, the war for the empire would continue. But tonight, Lily just wanted to feel like she was still in control, even if she knew she wasn’t.

Meanwhile, Jesse leaned against the doorway of the apartment, swirling a can of beer in his hand. “I’m heading out,” he said, eyes dim but voice steady. “Can’t sit around drowning in misery and bad decisions all night.”

Tony glanced up from the couch. “Where to?”

“Somewhere with loud music and bad lighting.”

Tony raised an eyebrow. “Club 99?”

Jesse smirked. “That still open?”

“Open and thriving. We could use something to knock this feeling out of our system.”

Jesse nodded, his smile growing just a bit. “Let’s do it. Misery loves bass drops.”

Club 99 was booming. Inside, the music pulsed like a heartbeat, loud and alive, wrapped in smoke, perfume, and the scent of sweat and whiskey. As they stepped past the velvet rope, a sharply dressed man spotted Tony and waved them over.

“Tony!” the man grinned, pulling him in for a quick hug. “Didn’t think I’d see you back so soon.”

Tony chuckled. “Life’s been weird, Max.”

Max, the club manager, nodded knowingly. “Aren’t we all living in weird? Come on—VIP section. On me tonight.”

“Seriously?”

“You know I got you.”

Jesse grinned, already loosening up. “Now this is how you rebound from a bad day.”

They made their way through the crowd, up the stairs, and into the soft-lit glass-paneled VIP lounge. The music was still loud, but not deafening. The lights shimmered like stars over black leather couches and glass tables.

Tony turned the corner to claim a seat and stopped dead in his tracks.

There she was.

Lila.

Dressed in silver that caught every glint of the room’s light, a glass of something amber in her hand. She was mid-laugh, but the second she turned and saw him, the sound caught in her throat.

They stood there, face to face, time slowing like some strange dream. Her eyes widened. His lips parted.

“Lila,” Tony said, almost breathless.

“Tony,” she replied, equally stunned.

Jesse glanced between them. “Wait, this is Lila?”

Neither of them answered.

There was too much unsaid. Too many questions caught in the tension hanging between them like smoke.

Tony took a cautious step forward, heart thudding louder than the music.

“I didn’t think I’d see you again,” he said quietly.

Lila set her drink down slowly, eyes locked on his. “Neither did I.”

Meanwhile, Tyler had reached Lila’s family's house.

He was expecting to meet Lila there. He had informed her that he would be coming over.

“Good evening, Mr. Josh,” he greeted Lila’s father.

Josh was a very direct person. He had little or no emotion in him. He was a very blunt man.

“I take it that you have come to seek me cause of Lila,” he said.

“The ever-blunt and direct Mr. Josh,” Tyler smiled as he entered the house without Josh inviting him. His guards followed him.

“You don’t need all these guards for advice from me,” Josh said.

Tyler waved for him to stop talking.

“I want my company back,” he barked.

“The company was never yours, and the only way to get it is to marry Lila,” Josh said calmly.

“I love your daughter, but she is driving me crazy,” Tyler shouted.

It was Josh's turn to laugh as he smiled and clapped.

“You have never been a patient man nor a man with a strategic plan. How do you think you will get Lila to agree to marry you?”

At this point, Tyler sat down gently. He has realized that he needed Josh and that he could not intimidate him.

“What do I do? I love your daughter, but not enough to marry her, though enough to get me my company,” Tyler looked tired as he explained his position to the one man he felt understood him.

“I heard Mrs. Zani has a son. If that story is true, then marrying Lila is not your only problem.