Chapter 19 A BARGAIN WITH HIM
“Come, Vanessa.”
I walked towards him, matching up with his pace and he didn't move an inch or turn away until I had reached him.
His men followed after us, maintaining a decent distance to give their master privacy.
“Shopping?” I suddenly exclaimed at him, driving him back to the conversation we hadn't concluded as we walked into the complex together.
It was more of a sarcastic word than a rhetorical question, but he answered me anyway.
“Of course. I have to splurge some money on my woman to make her happy. After all—” he paused, turning his attention to me. “All of my fortune belongs to you.” He continued with a loud smile breaking on his lips.
I huffed.
Not believing those words that were coming out of his mouth.
Was he teasing me with his words or did he mean every word of it?
Men understood this— that women falter at their words and the sound of their voice, so he was probably playing this trick with me.
It was dangerous that he was aware of himself as almost perfect and this could get me into trouble if I fall for his charms.
“You can't be serious.”
He suddenly mounted to a stop, turning at me sharply while also closing the space in between us.
I tried to pull backwards immediately, but he had grabbed my waist, pulling me closer to himself so that our bodies jammed into each other.
My hand landed on his chest as I tried to push a rift in between us, but it only made it look a little bit more romantic and his men were forced to turn their attention into other directions away from us.
Some had to clear their throats urgently and I thought of that as unprofessional.
Why would I think about that?
“What makes you think I would play games with you, Vanessa?” Rafael breathed at me with a question.
“Because it's you.” I shot back at him, my little irritation holding up again at such close proximity with him which was really electrifying as heat began to pool in between my legs.
“Don't you see it, Vanessa? I rented the whole building for you just so you can make your picks and buy whatever you want without any one disrupting your haul.”
“Oh please, spare me that!” I said, rolling my eyes at him, my hand still firmly pressed against his chest. “Whatever this is, it's definitely more than just shopping or buying the whole complex for me.”
Like I had caught him right by the horn, he heaved a sigh and I was glad I was leading the game at that moment.
It really was more than shopping for dresses and fancy skirts or shimmering accessories, I could tell already and the look that dawned on him confirmed this.
“Alright, Nessa, this time, you win.” He finally admitted.
“So… what is it?”
“There is a party— in two nights and I want you to be there— I want you to be there with me.” He confessed, a line of worry which could pass for a desperate plea settling on his forehead.
A party.
This might just be a card I can play against him if I said yes to his offer.
After all, it was just a party and I could get what I wanted from him because he'd never refuse me except on matters that could lead to my freedom from him.
But what if I took counter measures and slowly built the perfect escape plan?
Make him loosen up and let my actions towards him make him believe I would never leave him?
And when the timing was right and he had totally let his guard down around me, I would strike when he least expected it.
Just the very moment he'd think I'd never want to be away from him.
In my head, I thought I might be one step closer to orchestrating the most perfect escape plan and the excitement of this thought drew a line on my lips.
I was ready to name it— a condition of mine if he wanted me at ‘this’ party.
“And what do I get in return for attending this party with you?” I asked, my voice softening into a lewd and callous tone.
He raised an eyebrow at me, surprised I was issuing a bargain.
“Whatever you want, name it, as long as—”
“Shh!” I stopped him, pressing my index finger against his lips to shush him up.
“I know what I want.” I smiled. “The girls that will be assigned to work for me in your mansion, I want them to be of my own picking.”
“This has to do with that girl Leah, right?” He asked, not considering pushing my finger off his lips, but rather, he answered regardless of the position I had had him stuck in.
I was equally surprised he knows her name and he probably knows about what happened that night already.
For a minute, I dreaded the fact that he might be up to something without telling me since I had also refused to tell him who had hurt me that night.
There was no doubt he had found out the whole truth already, but why wasn't he saying anything about it to me since the last time?
And the fact that he remembers the name Leah was terrifying.
I hoped he hadn't done anything bad to her.
I finally gave him a response, nodding my head to confirm it was Leah I was talking about and he smiled as if he was going to say; ‘If that makes you happy, you can do whatever you want with her.’
“Is that a yes from you?” I asked again to confirm his thoughts were aligned with mine.
It was brief, but he stole a kiss at my finger before I pulled away, finally giving a response.
“Yes.”
'Very well.’ I marveled in my thoughts.
It was just the beginning and Rafael, with his approval to my maid of choice, had just helped me cement my first block to construct the unexpected towering escape plan from him.
I couldn't wait to watch his entire world crumble when he realized how stupid he had been to let me have whatever I wanted.