My Devil In A Suit

That kiss cost me my boyfriend before the night was even over. It was supposed to be a normal Tuesday night shift at the high-end lounge downtown. My feet were throbbing inside my cheap black flats, and my arms ached from balancing heavy drink trays for five hours straight. I needed this job. I needed every single dollar in tips to pay my overdue rent and keep my phone line active. "Five hundred says you wont kiss the waitress," a loud man in a sharp grey suit smirked. He gestured toward me as I moved carefully between the crowded velvet tables, my tray balanced on my arm. I didn't even understand what he meant at first. I assumed it was just another arrogant customer making a crude joke after having too many glasses of scotch. Then the man sitting beside him stood up. He was quiet, dressed in a dark tailored suit, and he had not said a single word all evening. But suddenly, he was standing directly in my path. His jaw was set in a tight line. His cold, dark eyes locked on mine like he was already making a calculation in his head. Before I could ask him to step aside, his hand shot out and caught my wrist. His grip was firm and tight, completely locking me in place. The rich smell of his spicy cologne filled my lungs, and before I could even draw a breath to protest, his mouth was hard on mine. A violent rush of heat flooded my chest. My body reacted out of pure instinct. My free hand swung back and moved before my brain could even process what was happening. The slap hit his cheek with a c***k so loud that the surrounding tables instantly fell dead silent. "I'm... I'm so sorry!" The words burst out of my mouth, but they were directed at my manager, who was standing near the bar with a face red with fury. He was staring at me in complete rage for striking a VIP guest who spent thousands of dollars here every month. I didn't wait for my manager to scream at me in front of the whole room. I turned right around, hurriedly packed the fallen glasses onto my tray, and pushed through the kitchen doors with my face burning like fire. I rushed straight into the staff bathroom and locked the door behind me. I stood over the sink, breathing heavily as I splashed freezing cold water over my face again and again, trying to convince myself I wasn't trapped in a bad nightmare. Why would a total stranger kiss me out of the blue like that? Why would he take a stupid bet from his friend and ruin my night? I waited until the main floor cleared out before grabbing my shoulder bag. I walked down the dim back alley with shaky legs, expecting to see my manager waiting near the exit doors to hand me my final paycheck and fire me on the spot. Instead, I saw my boyfriend leaning against the brick wall under the yellow streetlight. "Hey, baby," I breathed out, letting out a small sigh of relief. I took a step toward him, expecting him to pull me into a tight hug and ask if I was okay after what happened inside. Instead, his arm swung out, and his palm hit my cheek with a sharp sting. I stumbled back, my eyes filling with hot tears as I clutched my face. "Why would you do this to me?" "Did you think I didn't see all that happened in there?" he spat, stepping into my space with an ugly sneer on his face. I was too shocked to speak. The side of my face throbbed from where his hand had landed. "I saw the way you were looking at his table," he snapped, shaking his head at me. "I'm sure you flirted with him just so you could get a big tip out of him, isn't that right?" "I didn't flirt with anyone!" I tried to explain through my tears. "He grabbed my wrist! He forced himself on me!” "Save your pathetic excuses," he barked, pointing a finger directly at my face. "I'm done with this shitty relationship, you slut!" He turned on his heel and walked away in a haste, disappearing into the dark alley like he had been waiting patiently for this day to finally happen. I stood alone in the cold alley for ten minutes, crying until my throat felt dry. I walked all the way home with a heavy heart, unable to sleep a single wink as I stared at the cracks on my bedroom ceiling. The next morning, my phone would not stop buzzing on my nightstand. A text notification popped up on my screen from my best friend. "Hailee, you need to see this urgently." I clicked the link Zoe sent me, and what appeared on my screen left me in total shock. Someone had recorded the incident from last night and edited the footage down to five seconds. The clip completely cut out the moment the man grabbed my wrist and forced me into the kiss. All that was showing was the part where I appeared to be leaning into him, followed by my slap. Above the video was a bold headline written in bright letters: "Desperate waitress trying to entrap a wealthy guest for tips.” "Why would all this happen to me?" I screamed in total frustration, throwing my hands over my face as the clip played on a continuous loop. Not long after, my phone started ringing again. It was my auntie calling me. I pressed the answer button with trembling fingers and lifted the phone to my ear. "Hailee!" my aunt snapped through the speaker before I could even say hello. "I've always known you were a w***e! I just didn't know you'd be this desperate!" "Auntie, it's not what you think," I tried to defend myself, my voice cracking. "The video was cut. He grabbed me first!” "Keep shut!" she barked coldly. "I don't want to hear your trashy excuses! You're ruining our family's reputation!" My aunt dropped the call before I could say another word to defend myself. While trying to steady my racing heart, my body shook as I stared down at the buzzing screen. An urgent email notification sat right above the viral video link. Reminder: Your final interview with Korrigan Architectural Company is scheduled for 9:00 AM today. I opened the attachment to double check the office address. My heart sank straight to my stomach as a photo of the company's founder loaded at the top of the PDF. Sharp jawline. Cold, calculating eyes. It was the quiet man from the restaurant. The exact same man who had forcibly kissed me, framed me online, ruined my relationship, and now held my entire future in his hands. I was completely doomed.