Chapter 5
The necklace Cade had given her was a masterpiece, a one-of-a-kind piece by a famed designer. It was worth a fortune. The high-end jeweler on Fifth Avenue recognized its value instantly, but he also recognized her desperation. He offered her seventy thousand dollars for it, not a penny more.
She sneered at the irony. Seventy thousand dollars. That was the price of a man’s heart.
Still, it wasn't enough to cover Leo’s next round of treatment. She was still short forty thousand.
Her phone rang as soon as she arrived back at the hospital. It was Cade.
He was gripping his phone so tightly the veins on the back of his hand stood out. Her betrayal still angered him, but at the same time, the thought of her walking alone in the downpour had unsettled him. He had sent his assistant, Logan, to follow her, to watch her. Only to discover that she had sold the necklace that was once their token of love.
She had sold their love for money. All to save the child she’d had with another man. His heart, it seemed, no longer meant anything to her.
The thought of her heartlessness provoked him. He wanted to see just how far she would go to keep her and Julian Kinsley’s son alive.
“Cade, what is it?”
“Aria, I have an important business dinner tonight. I need a hostess. I need you to entertain my guests.”
Her face went ghostly pale. Her hand trembled so badly she almost dropped the phone.
The sheer audacity of his request was staggering. “Cade, what did you say? You want me to be… a hostess?”
“What’s the big deal? You’re already selling your body. My only request is that you play hostess for one night. How bad can it be?” He twisted the knife with total contempt. “Aria, do as I say, or the money stops.”
She swallowed back her tears. Her voice was hoarse when she finally agreed. “Alright. I’ll do it.”
She knew it was more than just being a hostess. A few drinks wouldn’t be enough to keep these men happy in an exclusive club. But she had no choice. She needed the money to keep Leo alive.
Cade was infuriated by her lack of protest. He slammed the phone down. He wished he could cut her heart open just to see if it was hollow.
The woman he once loved had become so utterly debased. He disdained her.
When they arrived at the private room in a chic Meatpacking District club, the guests were already there.
She hadn't lost her allure, despite the years in prison. There was still an aura of elegance and mystery about her.
Her face was sweet, a stark contrast to her cool, distant demeanor. She sat quietly to the side, aloof from the crowd. Her eyes were beautiful, but it was the deep well of emotion within them that made her so captivating.
The men in the room looked at her like a prize they were eager to claim. They began to fantasize about her. A beauty like this was impossible to resist.
Every man in the room had the same thought. Get her drunk, take her back to a hotel, and do whatever they wanted with her.
After a few glasses of hard liquor, the burning in her stomach became a severe, gnawing pain. She looked at Cade, a desperate plea for help in her eyes, but he made his disdain for her clear, turning away.
A man named Thane offered her another glass of brandy. She had no choice but to accept. She gulped it down, her throat on fire. He seized the opportunity, pulling her onto his thick lap, his hand gripping her waist firmly.
Her body went rigid. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t bear the close, intimate contact with another man.
Desperately, she looked at Cade again, her eyes begging. “Cade.”