The Orphan Who Owned The Billionaire

Chapter 4

Aurora stumbled through Emma's apartment door like a wild animal. Her chest heaved as she gasped for air. Her hair looked like she'd been through a tornado, her dress was wrinkled beyond recognition, and she was completely barefoot, her heels lost somewhere between the building and the street.

Her hands were still shaking from running.

"AURORA!" Emma screamed, her face twisted with panic. She launched herself at her friend, grabbing her shoulders so hard her fingernails dug into Aurora's skin. "Oh my GOD, where the HELL did you disappear to?!"

"I was going INSANE! I thought you had gone back to that piece of trash Kaiden when you were drunk! I've been calling you for HOURS!" Emma's voice cracked. "Why didn't you pick up your phone?! I thought something terrible happened to you, I couldn’t sleep!"

Her hands wouldn't stop shaking as she held onto Aurora.

Aurora looked at her friend's terrified, worried face. Her eyes were red and swollen from staying up all night. Suddenly Aurora smiled for the first time in days. Her lips curved up naturally, and warmth filled her eyes.

"Emma, calm down…"

"CALM DOWN?!" Emma stepped back, her mouth falling open. She stared at Aurora like she'd grown two heads. "Is that... wait... is that a SMILE I see on your face?!"

Emma's voice went from panic to pure horror in seconds. Her hands flew to cover her mouth, her eyes going wide with fear.

"Oh my GOD! NO! Don't you DARE tell me you got back with that bastard after everything he did to you! Aurora, please tell me you didn't…"

"NO!" Aurora shouted, her face twisting with disgust. Her stomach turned at the thought. "EWW! God, no! Never!"

She grabbed Emma's trembling hands, her eyes bright with liveliness Emma hadn't seen in days.

"Emma, I'm just grateful. So grateful for you." Aurora's voice shook with emotion. "You're the only real thing in my life right now. And I'm so sorry about last night. I was completely wasted... I woke up in some stranger's room."

Her cheeks flushed red with shame as she said it.

Emma's face went completely white. All the blood drained from her cheeks. She sank onto the couch like her legs had given out, her knees buckling under her.

"What?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. Her lips barely moved. "Aurora... did anything... did he...?"

"Yes," Aurora said quietly, sitting beside her. Her hands started trembling in her lap. "Of course something happened. And the worst part?"

Aurora's hands shook harder as she buried her face in them, her shoulders hunching forward.

"I can't remember ANYTHING! It's all black! I had a complete blackout!"

Her voice came out muffled and broken.

"Oh God, Aurora..." Emma reached out with trembling hands, her face twisting with worry. "That's... that's terrible. What if he hurt you? What if…"

"But Emma," Aurora interrupted, her voice getting strange and distant. Her eyes unfocused as she remembered. "I saw something in that room."

Emma froze completely. Her whole body went rigid. Her eyes went wide with fear. "What?" she whispered, her voice barely above a breath. Her throat felt tight.

Aurora looked directly into Emma's eyes. Her own eyes were filled with shock and disbelief that made her look like she'd seen a ghost.

"Marcus Dawson's business card. Emma... I think I slept with Marcus Dawson."

The silence that followed was deafening. Emma's mouth fell open so wide she looked like she was screaming, but no sound came out. Her eyes bulged like they might pop from her head.

For a long moment, she just sat there, frozen in shock.

"Did I..." Emma's voice came out as a tiny squeak. Her throat felt dry as sandpaper. "Did I hear you correctly?"

She grabbed Aurora's shoulders again, this time desperately.

"Aurora, do you have ANY idea who Dawson really is?!"

Her voice cracked with panic.

Aurora nodded slowly, her face pale as milk. "He owns Dawson Industries. He's filthy rich and completely ruthless. But Emma, what does it matter? I slept with him and can't even remember. It's just another mistake in my pathetic life…"

"DAWSON!" Emma suddenly screamed, jumping up from the couch like she'd been electrocuted. Her whole body shook with excitement and fear. "DAWSON! How can you not see it?!"

Her eyes were wild, her hands waving frantically.

"What are you talking about?!" Aurora yelled back, her face scrunched up with confusion. Her heart started beating faster.

Then it dawned on her. Aurora's face drained of all color. Her mouth fell open. Her eyes went wide with horror.

"Oh my God," she whispered, her voice getting smaller and smaller. "Sophie... Sophie is a Dawson."

Her hands started shaking violently.

"Could it be...?"

"GET THE LAPTOP!" Emma shouted, her hands shaking so hard she could barely grab it from the table. "RIGHT NOW!"

Her fingers fumbled with the keyboard.

Aurora pressed herself against Emma, their shoulders touching as they frantically typed "Sophie Dawson" into the search. Both of their hearts were pounding so hard they could hear them.

When the results loaded, both girls screamed at the same time. Their voices echoed through the apartment.

There was Sophie, beautiful, smug Sophie, in a glamorous photo wearing an expensive dress. The headline made Aurora's heart stop completely: "Marcus Dawson's Beloved Niece Announces Engagement."

"HIS NIECE!" Aurora screamed, pointing at the screen with a shaking finger. Her voice cracked with shock. "That witch Sophie Dawson is his niece!"

They stared at each other in complete shock for a long moment. Both of them were breathing hard, their chests heaving like they'd been running.

Then Aurora's face changed completely.. A slow, mischievous smile spread across her lips.

"Emma," she said quietly, "This is it. This is the perfect opportunity to destroy them both."

Her hands stopped shaking. Her whole body went still and focused.

"Aurora, NO!" Emma grabbed her arm desperately. "I know that look! You're thinking of seducing him!"

Her voice was high with panic.

"I have to!" Aurora stood up, pacing back and forth like a caged animal. Her eyes burned with determination. "Don't you see? I have to make Marcus Dawson fall for me! I have to get close to him and ruin Sophie's perfect little world!"

Her hands clenched into tight fists as she walked.

"Are you INSANE?!" Emma screamed, jumping up. Her face was red. "He's completely out of reach! He's too rich, too powerful! Men like him don't even look at girls like us!"

Her voice shook with desperation.

Aurora bit her fingernails frantically, her teeth clicking against them. Her mind was racing, her eyes darting back and forth as she thought.

"I wish I had known! I wouldn't have run out like a scared little girl! I could have…"

"STOP IT!" Emma yelled, shaking Aurora again. Her hands gripped Aurora's arms tightly. "Listen to me very carefully. Men like Marcus Dawson are DANGEROUS. They eat girls like us for breakfast and spit out the bones!"

Emma's voice dropped to a desperate whisper.

"They don't mix with our kind, Aurora. Please, just forget about revenge for now. Focus on getting your life back together. Riley has been calling me nonstop asking where you are!"

Aurora's face crumpled like paper. Reality hit her again, crushing the fire in her eyes. Her shoulders sagged with defeat.

"What am I supposed to tell them?" she said looking sad. "Everyone at work knows I was supposed to get married! They threw me an engagement party! What do I say now?!"

Emma pulled her into a hug, wrapping her arms tightly around her friend.

"The truth will come out eventually anyway. It's better to face them now before the rumors start."

Aurora's hands shook violently as she picked up her phone. She dialed Riley's number, her heart pounding in her throat.

"Riley?" she said, her voice breaking like glass. "It's Aurora. I'm so, so sorry I disappeared. I had a... a family emergency. I promise I'll be in tomorrow."

Her voice cracked on every word.

When she hung up, she looked at Emma with a sad expression.

"Tomorrow I have to face everyone and pretend my world didn't explode."

Meanwhile.....

In the most expensive office in the city, Marcus Dawson sat behind his enormous desk. His powerful hands turned something small over and over, his fingers moving restlessly.

His best friend Jake sprawled in the leather chair across from him. He was still laughing so hard tears ran down his face, his whole body shaking with amusement.

"Holy s**t, Marcus!" Jake slapped his knee hard, the sound echoing through the office. "Are you actually for REAL right now? You had s*x? With a WOMAN?!"

Jake's laughter got even louder, his face turning red.

"Dude, ever since Vivian screwed you over, your d**k has been dead to the world! I thought that crazy b***h put a curse on you or something!" Jake wiped tears from his eyes. "You've tried with the hottest women in the city and NOTHING! But now you're telling me it actually worked? You actually got hard for some random girl and DID IT?!"

His voice was high with disbelief and joy.

"Shut up, Jake," Marcus growled, but his voice wasn't angry.

He held up what he'd been studying, a work ID card with the girl from last night’s photo on it. His eyes burned as he stared at it, his thumb tracing over the picture.

"She was in such a hurry to escape," Marcus said, His eyes fixed on the photo. "She dropped this."

His fingers gripped the card tighter.

"Now the question is... how do I approach her to be my personal comfort without sounding like every other rich asshole who thinks he can buy women?"

Jake stopped laughing and leaned forward, suddenly interested. His eyes got serious as he watched his friend.

"Wait, you actually want to see her again? he said shaking his head. "This is serious."

Marcus studied the ID card more intensely, reading every detail like it held the secrets of the universe: Aurora, Part-time Server, Riley's Bar.

A smile spread across his face like a wolf spotting prey. He reached for his phone with one hand, never taking his burning eyes off Aurora's photo.

"Marcus," Jake said slowly, his voice getting worried. "What are you doing?"

Marcus's finger hovered over his phone screen. He stared at jake and had a smirk on his face that made Jake's skin crawl.

"Making sure," Marcus said in a voice that sent ice-cold chills down Jake's spine, "that the only woman I've ever met in five years who made my impotency dissolve doesn't slip through my fingers again."