Chapter 14

Ethan slouched on the couch, eyes glued to his phone, but made zero move to answer it. His odd behavior didn't go unnoticed. A guy nearby plopped down next to him, casually slinging an arm over Ethan's shoulder. "Dude, what's the deal? Your phone's blowing up. Why aren't you picking up?" Ethan curled his lip. "Just my girl being clingy. Let her cool off a bit." His tone was laced with smugness, like he was showing off. Honestly, he hadn't called Anna here to spend time with her. He just wanted to mess with her, make her think twice before trying to pull anything on him again. "Haha, totally, man!" the guy next to him chimed in quickly. "You can't spoil women—give them an inch, and they'll take a mile." Hearing someone back him up made Ethan grin even wider, and he started warming up to the guy. "Come on, let's go hit the karaoke bar. I'll introduce you to my uncle after." "Your uncle? Julian?" At the mention of the name, the guy's eyes lit up. He tried to play it cool, but the excitement was obvious. Ethan smirked at the reaction. He wasn't surprised. Julian had always been someone others envied and looked up to in the business world. People would jump at the chance just to get a minute with him. Too bad he kept a low profile, so not many actually got the chance. This guy probably made his way close to Ethan hoping for just that. Not that Ethan cared. He gave the man a friendly pat on the back and chuckled. "Saw my uncle at Night Charm a bit ago. Haven't caught up with him in days. Figured I'd say hi and maybe drop a name or two." "Haha, Ethan man, you're a real one! I'm buying you a place at the coast—seaside view, a cozy little villa. Not much, just a token of gratitude..." The two shared a laugh, totally in sync. The phone on the couch kept ringing, its cheerful ringtone ignored like it wasn't even there. ... "Achoo..."Anna crouched in the hallway, phone in hand, and let out a loud sneeze. Still no answer. Great—probably caught a cold too. She rubbed her nose in frustration. "Seriously? What bad luck did I step in today? " Frowning, she hit redial for what felt like the millionth time—okay, 55th. "Thump, thump..." Footsteps echoed in the empty hallway. She looked up. Bald. Short. Chubby. Middle-aged guy. Ugh. Not even decent-looking. Fail. Anna just thought it was some random passerby and went back to battling her broke-ass phone. But to her surprise, the guy actually stopped right in front of her. Huh? Was she in the way? Still crouching, she glanced around. Plenty of space. Definitely not blocking him. "Hey, girl. How much for the night?" Just as Anna was wondering whether she was in his path, the guy squatted down too, leaning in with that greasy look on his face. Ew. Her brows scrunched, and she scooted away in disgust before standing up. "Excuse me? Who the hell are you calling that?" She turned to leave, but he grabbed her wrist and chuckled, standing up too. "Playing hard to get? I like that." Anna stared. Are you kidding me? What kind of cursed day was this? She tried pulling her hand free, but his slick, sweaty grip was like a slimy tentacle. She shuddered. As she struggled, the guy seemed to think she was into it. "See? That's more like it. I'm loaded, babe. Just name your price—100k? 200k?" "Are you out of your damn mind?! I told you I'm not that kind of person! Try anything else and I swear I'm gonna scream!" Anna yanked harder, face tense and eyes glaring, trying to scare him off. Deep down though, panic was already creeping in fast. She was terrified.