Payment for the night
2207 Words
The moment that voice echoed behind me, I froze.
Slowly, I turned around.
Damian was sitting on the sofa in the manager’s office, one leg crossed, posture effortlessly regal. His broad shoulders filled the space, and his dark suit clung to him perfectly, sharp enough to cut through the air itself. The last time I saw him, three years ago, he’d been a handsome boy with a quiet, frightening intensity. Now he looked like a man sculpted by power and vengeance, older and impossibly handsome.
His hair was neatly brushed back, showing the strong line of his jaw. The faint scar under his eye was still there, but instead of making him look flawed, it made him look dangerous. Even sitting still, his presence filled the room, commanding and suffocating all at once.
I swallowed hard, unable to look away. My hands trembled.
He smiled faintly, that terrifyingly calm kind of smile. “Long time no see, Lena.”
My throat tightened, and I couldn’t even manage a proper greeting. I just stared, every muscle stiff with panic.
He rose from the sofa. Each step he took toward me made my pulse quicken. I could almost hear the echo of my heartbeat in my ears.
“Why did you bolt out of there so quickly?” he asked quietly. His voice was soft but carried the weight of an Alpha who never needed to raise his tone to be obeyed. “Do you have any idea how agonizing it is for an Alpha to endure his rut without his mate?”
My breath hitched. So… he knew it was me. Then, did he also know about my father? About the accident?
My mind raced in panic. If he knows, he’ll destroy me. He’ll destroy everything left of me.
“I…I had no idea you were—” I stammered, trying to take a step back, but he closed the distance.
He tilted his head, studying me with those piercing eyes. “You had no idea about what? That you were meant to stay and honor your duties?”
Before I could react, his hand caught my wrist.
“Release me,” I whispered. “Please.”
He simply turned and pulled me along, leading me out of the office as if I weighed nothing. I struggled, but his grip only tightened. My heart pounded as the staff looked away, pretending not to see. No one dared to interfere. I could see the fear in their faces. Nobody challenges an S-tier Alpha.
“Damian, stop! Please! You can’t just—”
He didn’t stop until we reached the black luxury car waiting outside. He opened the door and all but pushed me inside. The car door slammed shut.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Finally, he spoke. “You really didn’t sense someone was in heat that night?”
I turned toward him to explain. “I swear, I didn’t! I was just instructed to deliver the drinks, and I had no clue it was you! I didn’t even realize anyone was—”
He cut me off with a low growl. He turned to face me, his stare burning through my skin. “Then why did you vanish three years ago?”
“I…” I couldn’t speak. My lips parted, but no sound came out. My chest tightened as memories flooded back—my father’s voice urging me to run, and the night I left without saying goodbye.
Damian let out a bitter laugh. “So that’s how it is? You’d prefer scraping by in poverty, skulking like a shadow, over being with me?”
Tears burned at the corners of my eyes, but I nodded silently.
His expression darkened. “You deliberately fled, then.”
“I had no other option,” I whispered.
He looked away. “There’s always an option.”
I didn’t dare to speak. Then, suddenly, he reached into the compartment beside him and pulled out a stack of papers. He tossed them onto my lap.
“Sign them.”
I blinked in confusion. “What… what are these?”
“The settlement,” he said coldly. “For sharing my rut. You’ll get a house, funds, whatever you desire.”
My stomach turned. “You’re… you’re compensating me like that?”
“Consider it restitution. Isn’t that what you were after?”
“No,” I whispered. “I don’t want your charity.”
He leaned in closer, his voice dropping dangerously low. “Is that truly your last word on it?”
I nodded, barely able to breathe.
His gaze lingered on me for a moment, then he exhaled sharply and leaned back in his seat. “Very well.”
He didn’t utter another syllable as I stepped out of the car.
The next few days were a blur. The manager fired me. My landlord evicted me when I couldn’t pay rent. Mira offered me her couch for a while, but I was still hunting for a new job day and night.
One night, as I walked down a dimly lit street, a sleek black car pulled up beside me. Before I could react, someone grabbed me and yanked me inside.
When I woke up, I was seated in a luxurious restaurant. And across from me sat a woman with a charming smile—Damian’s cousin, Valeria.
I recognized her instantly. She’d always despised him, seething with jealousy over his success and status.
She greeted me smoothly. “I was starting to worry you’d never come around.”
I frowned. “Why did you drag me here?”
Her smirk widened. “Because you botched the assignment.”
My confusion deepened. “Assignment? What on earth are you talking about?”
She chuckled darkly. “You were meant to file a lawsuit against him, sweetheart. After that evening, the scheme was straightforward: the omega accuses the Alpha, tarnishing his image, and I finally claim what’s rightfully mine. But lo and behold, the omega turned out to be you.”
My blood ran cold. “You orchestrated all of this?”
She shrugged nonchalantly. “It was supposed to be seamless. But you derailed it all. Now, I’m offering you an opportunity to rectify it. Assist me in completing the plan, and I’ll compensate you generously.”
I stared at her in disbelief. “You’re twisted.”
She laughed. “Weigh your options wisely, Lena. You’ve lost it all. What more could you possibly forfeit?”
I said through clenched teeth, standing up. “I’ll never aid you.”
She raised a brow, amused. “We shall see.”
I turned and bolted out before she could say another word. My heart pounded as I weaved through the streets, glancing over my shoulder to ensure she wasn’t following.
__________
Damian’s POV:
I sat behind my desk, my fingers drumming lightly against the polished wood. Papers lay untouched in front of me. I hadn’t been able to focus all morning since that night.
Her scent still haunted me—a faint floral whisper. The scent I’d been deprived of for three long years.
The door opened quietly. My assistant stepped in, hesitating as if unsure whether to speak.
“What is it?” I asked without looking up.
He cleared his throat. “Sir, we’ve concluded the investigation into what transpired that night… at your cousin’s hotel.”
I finally lifted my gaze. “And?”
He swallowed. “You were correct. It was a deliberate setup. Your drink was spiked with a heat inducer. The goal was to provoke your rut and send an omega to your room, fabricating an assault scandal to ruin your standing.”
“My cousin Valeria again?”
“Yes, sir. All signs lead to her. It was her event, her employees, her substances.”
I leaned back in my chair, letting out a bitter laugh. “Naturally.”
I had suspected as much. She’d been plotting for years, coveting the corporation, eager to dismantle the empire I’d rebuilt from ruins. Still, the confirmation didn’t quell the rage simmering in my chest.
She had dared to drug me, to force me into a rut like a beast. And worse, it involved the very omega I’d sought for three years.
Lena.
Her name echoed in my mind like a curse and a salvation. But how had I missed that she was employed at her hotel? She was so near while I scoured distant places.
“I should have seen it coming,” I muttered under my breath. “Too coincidental by far.”
My assistant hesitated. “There’s additional information, sir.”
My gaze snapped to him. “Out with it.”
“We monitored Miss Lena afterward,” he said cautiously. “She rendezvoused with your cousin at a restaurant. We suspect they conversed privately for nearly half an hour.”
I froze. “What?”
“Yes, sir. It’s conceivable they’re collaborating. Perhaps she was complicit in the scheme.”
My eyes darkened dangerously. “Are you certain?”
He swallowed hard. “T-That’s what our operative reported. He couldn’t overhear the discussion, but the meeting is confirmed.”
My reflection stared back at me in the glass.
Lena… what are you playing at?
I wanted to believe she was innocent, that she hadn’t gone there willingly. I wanted to believe she was still the quiet, soft-spoken girl who flinched at loud noises and apologized for things that weren’t her fault. She’d been my friend since childhood, the only one who didn’t view me as a monster when we were kids.
But then she vanished. Disappeared without a trace three years ago, right after I discovered she was my mate. I was so furious I even contemplated locking her away in my home to prevent another escape. I had searched everywhere—furious, bewildered, desperate—but she had evaporated.
And now, suddenly, she reappeared.
I clenched my fists. The memory of her scent hit me again, so potent it nearly ached. The way she had trembled beneath me that night. I had felt it too—the magnetic draw of her omega essence against my Alpha drive. It had demanded every ounce of my restraint not to succumb entirely.
But if she had orchestrated it…
“Sir?” my assistant prompted, breaking the silence.
My voice came out low. “You mentioned a restaurant meeting.”
“Yes.”
“Did she accept anything from her? Funds? Papers?”
“Regarding that, we lack evidence, but we’re pursuing it. We delved into her last three years. She’s juggled countless menial jobs, as it’s tough for an omega to secure better employment despite qualifications. Could she have grown weary of the struggle and opted for a quick payout by allying with your cousin?”
I exhaled slowly, resting my elbows on the desk. “Desperate enough to conspire with the woman who seeks my downfall? I doubt she possesses the nerve.”
I rubbed my temple, closing my eyes briefly.
I wanted to trust that she wasn’t entangled, that she’d wandered into the snare unwittingly. But doubt gnawed relentlessly.
If she hadn’t known who occupied that room, why hadn’t she approached me afterward? Why no explanation? Why flee once more? If wealth was her aim, why reject my offer?
My thoughts twisted, torn between fury and yearning.
“She claimed ignorance,” I murmured, almost to myself. “She insisted she didn’t even know the room was occupied.”
He remained silent.
My gaze hardened. “I don’t believe she’s culpable. If she were, why no lawsuit yet? That was the objective, wasn’t it? She had ample opportunity.”
I stood abruptly, the chair scraping softly against the floor. I walked to the window, watching the rain streak down the panes. “She wouldn’t betray me like that.”
A memory surfaced—her laughter from our childhood, her bright eyes gazing up at me during study sessions, her shy nervousness around me that bordered on reverence rather than fear. Everything had been harmonious.
So why did she run?
“Have someone shadow her,” I ordered.
“Yes, sir.”
“And Valeria?”
“She’s been dormant since the encounter. Likely anticipating your move.”
My lips curved into a cold, humorless smile. “She won’t wait long.”
He bowed slightly and exited, closing the door behind him.
Silence enveloped the office once more.
I sank into my chair, my mind a whirlwind of rage and bewilderment. My hand grazed the papers on my desk—the same documents I’d once flung at Lena, proffering her security, wealth, solace—and she had spurned them.
If greed drove her, she wouldn’t have departed empty-handed.
Yet… she had met with Valeria.
I exhaled slowly, the tension lines etching deeper around my eyes.
I required answers.
I needed to hear from her own lips why she fled, why she consorted with my enemy, why she persisted in escaping when the bond between us would eternally bind her.
I pressed my fingers to my temples, closing my eyes.
“Lena,” I whispered softly. “What secret are you guarding from me?”
- Writer
