Chapter 1

Chaptee 1

Inside Room 809, the air felt so thick, laden with a cold silence and an artificial lavender scent that made Aurely’s stomach churn.

Aurely sat on the edge of the king-sized bed covered in dark gray silk sheets. Her cold fingers clasped together in her lap, trying to stop the subtle trembling that radiated from her knees. Inside her mind, visions of Leo’s anxious face awaiting his final semester’s tuition fees and Mia’s soft crying as she faced expulsion from her private school spun continuously like a broken tape.

Twenty thousand dollars. The figure written on the anonymous draft contract she had received two days ago at a quiet cafe. A figure that was equivalent to the price of her dignity tonight.

Click.

The soft sound of the electronic lock behind the thick teak door made Aurely’s heart leap into her throat. She reflexively stood up, her slender body—clad in a thin champagne-colored satin dress—feeling stiff.

The door opened.

A man stepped inside, bringing with him the chill of S City's night air that immediately cut through the pseudo-warmth in the room. His body was tall and sturdy, wrapped in a designer black suit that fitted perfectly across his broad shoulders. However, it was not his appearance that first stole Aurely’s breath away, but the pure aura of dominance radiating from him. A sharp, fresh citrus scent mixed with the masculine fragrance of expensive tobacco invaded Aurely’s sense of smell, crumbling the remaining courage she had gathered since the afternoon.

The man was Charlie Ralph. The cold-blooded predator who ruled the largest cosmetics line in the country.

Charlie did not approach immediately. His dark eyes, as sharp as an eagle stalking prey, scanned Aurely’s figure from head to bare feet resting on the fur carpet. The corner of his lips curled slightly into a smirk that resembled a threat more than a greeting. He unbuttoned his suit jacket one by one with extremely slow, deliberate movements, as if knowing that every wasted second was torment for the woman in front of him.

"Have you been waiting for me too long, Aurely?" Charlie's baritone voice echoed softly, so deep that its vibrations could be felt directly in Aurely’s chest.

"N-no, Sir," Aurely whispered, her voice nearly drowning in the silence of the room.

Charlie tossed his jacket onto the lounge chair in the corner of the room. He stepped closer. Every step he took felt like the ticking hands of a clock counting down the end of Aurely’s freedom. When the distance between them shrank to a mere few inches, the heat from Charlie’s body immediately hit Aurely’s goosebump-covered skin.

Charlie reached out his hand. His rough thumb brushed against Aurely’s trembling jaw, demanding her to look up, forcing her rounded, tear-filled eyes to stare directly into his black obsidian gaze that glinted with hunger.

"You are very beautiful," Charlie whispered, his warm, mint-scented breath hitting Aurely’s half-parted lips. "And very terrified."

Before Aurely could process those words, Charlie pulled her slender waist with one muscular arm, drawing her thin frame flush against his broad chest without a gap. The sudden skin-to-skin contact sent a burning electric shock through her. Aurely gasped; her hands reflexively rested on Charlie’s chest, feeling his calm yet constant heartbeat behind his white silk shirt, which was now wrinkling under her gripping fingers.

"Sir—"

"Shh," Charlie whispered against her lips. "Don't ruin this expensive night with unnecessary words."

Charlie bent down, claiming the right he had bought. His lips brushed against Aurely’s, initially with a soft, probing devour, as if sampling the rarest honey. However, Aurely’s trembling surrender only fanned a wilder fire inside the predator’s chest. The kiss quickly deepened, becoming demanding and possessive. Charlie sucked on Aurely’s lower lip, forcing his tongue inside to explore the warm cavern within, stealing her breath and awareness until she felt weightless.

Aurely let out a helpless sigh, tilting her head back in resignation as Charlie shifted his kisses along her jawline down to the sensitive dip of her neck. The touch of Charlie’s warm lips and tongue there caused Aurely’s body to arch limply.

With an intensely dominant movement, Charlie pushed Aurely’s body backward until she fell flat onto the cold, dark gray silk sheets. In an instant, Charlie caged her body, positioning himself between her trembling thighs.

Charlie gripped both of Aurely’s wrists, pinning them above her head with one large hand, restraining her movements without the slightest chance to escape. Charlie’s free hand began exploring the curves of Aurely’s body beneath the thin satin. His warm fingers crept up from her waist, across her ribs, to gently squeeze her chest, which rose and fell rapidly with her labored breathing. Every touch from Charlie felt like a tendril of fire burning away Aurely’s sanity, leaving an intense scorching sensation on the surface of her skin.

Aurely squeezed her eyes shut tightly, a thin tear escaping from the corner of her eye, not only out of fear, but because her treacherous body had begun responding to this stranger’s touch with raw, dense passion.

"Open your eyes, Aurely," Charlie commanded, his voice husky with a passion that demanded release.

Aurely opened her wet eyes, staring up at the handsome face above her that looked so wild in the dim yellow glow of the nightstand lamp.

Charlie gazed at her with an intensely possessive look, his thumb brushing over Aurely’s lips, swollen and wet from his kiss.

"You sold your night, Aurely," Charlie whispered, his tone so provocative, stabbing straight into the deepest depths of Aurely’s self-respect. "So stop trembling as if I were torturing you when your own hand is squeezing my shoulder like that."

Those words felt like a slap that burned Aurely’s face, yet she could not deny them. Her fingers that were free from his grip were indeed clutching Charlie’s firm shoulder tightly, seeking a anchor amidst the sensory storm that was taking her soul.

Charlie leaned down again, reuniting their lips in a rougher kiss while his hand swept Aurely’s satin dress above her waist. Skin met skin. The extreme, pure warmth made Aurely utter a muffled squeal mid-kiss.

Charlie released his grip on her hands, allowing Aurely’s fingers to dig into his neat black hair as he positioned himself over her body. The air inside Room 809 seemed to evaporate, leaving behind a boiling, wild passion. With one firm and absolute thrust, Charlie joined their bodies in an intense, hot, and raw physical union.

Aurely gasped sharply, her eyes widening as a sharp, burning pain tore through her innermost defense. She cried out, hiding her face in the crook of Charlie’s neck, biting his shoulder to hold back the scream that almost escaped. Her hands scratched the sturdy back above her, squeezing Charlie’s skin in a dense, agonizing surrender.

Charlie froze for a moment over Aurely’s body. His breath was ragged, feeling heavy and hot against Aurely’s ear. However, the passion that was already burning refused to stop. He began to move, slowly but surely, guiding Aurely’s body into a pounding, intimate rhythm, turning the pain she felt into a dizzying whirlpool of sensual pleasure under the dim lights of the quiet hotel room.

Several dozen minutes passed like a beautiful nightmare.

Inside the room that was now filled only with the lingering sound of ragged breathing and unstable heartbeats, Charlie slowly pulled his body away. A thin layer of sweat slicked his exposed, broad chest. The man sat on the edge of the bed, raking his messy hair with fingers that trembled slightly—a physical reaction he rarely experienced after lovemaking.

Aurely lay on her side, hugging her chest with the silk blanket she had pulled up to her chin. Her face was pale, her eyes staring blankly toward the glass wall washed over by drizzling rain.

Charlie turned, intending to put his clothes back on and leave the promised sum of money. However, as his gaze fell upon the white silk sheet exposed beneath Aurely’s body, the movement of Charlie’s hand suddenly locked in midair.

The CEO’s eagle eyes widened, staring in disbelief at the deep red stain drying in stark contrast against the hotel's pristine white sheet.

The first bloodstain.

Charlie was stunned, his chest heaving violently as he realized the reality of what he had just felt. The girl he had just so roughly and wildly dominated on this bed... had been completely pure before this night began.

TO BE CONTINUED ....