The next morning, Mia opened her eyes. At first, her vision was slightly blurred, making it impossible for her to see her surroundings clearly. She had to scrunch her eyes and count to three before opening them again.
However, just the very second she opened her eyes, Mia knew that something was wrong. The pearly white ceiling above her was certainly different from the warm one that she had in her room. The room was too cold when Mia liked to keep the dial of the thermostat high enough to make sure that the chill never crawled into her room.
And worse of all, she could hear someone breathe right against her neck.
Startled, Mia sat up straight and the quilt that covered her body slid down. She looked at her bare upper body and blushed heavily when she saw the many ambiguous marks on her skin.
Even if Mia had never sung in an opera, she knew how things went down there.
She didn't even have to use her head to know what went down last night.
Countless memories had already flooded her mind when she woke up. From the second Henry and Ronald schemed against her to how she and this stranger ended up in the bed.
Heat burst in her cheeks but she suppressed it.
Mia closed her eyes and took a long breath. She couldn't believe it. Even if she wanted to play it casually, she couldn't. She was not one to do one-night stands; her father had taught her better than this.
She hated Henry and she hated herself and this man for what happened but then she calmed down and realised that there was no point in giving a real substance to this emotion. Especially towards this man. He was only trying to save her and if anything, she should be grateful to him for saving her.
However, once Mia calmed down, she started to panic. She had dragged a man into her mess for no reason; not only did she feel guilty, she also felt a bit uncomfortable facing him.
Thus, she took out the dollar bills that she was carrying in her clutch and wrote down an apology letter before putting both things on the side of the bed where the man was sleeping. She hoped that this little money would be able to help the man and he wouldn't come looking for her.
It was quite an embarrassment for someone like Mia, who grew up as a socialite, to have a one-night stand. Once she was done, Mia turned on her feet and picked up her clothes before dressing up and rushing out of the room.
She hoped that this was the first and last time she was seeing this man.
As she stepped out, she took out her phone and noticed the many calls that Henry had made. However, Mia didn't bother to call him this time around. After what this man had done to her last night, the last bit of emotion that Mia had in her heart for him had fizzled out.
Instead of calling him, she sent him a text.
[I did what you wanted, so you better release my dad as you promised.]
Fighting the temptation to hurl a myriad of curses, Mia pocketed her phone and rushed to the elevator. She needed to hurry and see if her father had been released; if not, then Mia didn't mind making Henry Holman and Jamie Hudson the talk of the city.
…
The sound of a ringtone broke the silence of the room and Lucas reached out to pick it up without even looking at the number.
"What's the matter?"
"Have you forgotten where you are supposed to be at the moment?" A crisp female voice spoke from the other end of the call and Lucas hummed in response before saying, "No, I haven't. I am getting dressed."
"Then be quick."
The woman then hung up the call without letting Lucas say anything else. As the man pushed himself off the bed and ran his fingers through his hair, he looked at the other side of the bed, which had long turned cold, and smirked.
"Dine and dash, tsk tsk. I didn't take you as someone who refuses to pay their debts," muttered Lucas as he threw down the phone in his hand and slid down the bed. As he crouched down to pick up his clothes, his eyes fell on the green bills that were sitting on the cabinet with a small piece of paper.
A tad bit curious despite knowing what it was, he still picked up the paper and read the content written on it.
[I am sorry for what happened last night. However, I was not in the right state of mind, if you want to hold someone accountable then here is the number: XXXXXX7632. You can use it to ask for any kind of compensation that you want.]
[I apologise for the discomfort I might have caused you last night once again.]
Once he finished reading, Lucas burst out laughing. Though Mia seemed to have written a decent apology, that little sly fox still pulled a sneaky move. She actually wrote down Henry Holman's number and left without leaving even the smallest hint about who she was.
As for whether she was hoping that he would call this number or not, Lucas had no idea. Maybe she was, maybe she wasn't. After last night, he could never see her in the same light as before.
That, Mia Wills, who was always prim and proper about things, not only demanded him to take her harder, she definitely broke all the perspectives that he held about her.
He looked at the five hundred dollar bills and snickered. Five hundred dollars for his first time, was the woman looking down at him or was she complaining about his skills?
Mia Wills, was it?
We will meet again soon, he thought with a light chortle. If she thought that she had seen the last of him, then she was very wrong.
He brought the piece of paper to his lips and smiled wickedly. He wondered what kind of reaction that woman would have when she sees him again?
Thinking about it, he couldn't help but look forward to their meeting again.
It will definitely be interesting.