Chapter 52
No.1
The three-hour drive to upstate New York was a blur of dark asphalt and aggressive acceleration.
The deep grey Porsche 911 GT3 turned off the main highway and approached the massive, wrought-iron gates of the Belmont Resort Estate. The tires crunched over the pristine white gravel of the circular driveway.
Elisa killed the engine. She tossed the key fob to the waiting valet without a word, grabbed her leather overnight bag, and walked through the towering glass doors of the lobby.
The interior was an explosion of French neoclassical wealth. Crystal chandeliers hung from vaulted ceilings, casting a warm, expensive glow over the marble floors.
Elisa walked straight to the mahogany front desk.She slid her heavy black Aethel corporate card and her phone across the polished wood.
"Checking in. The reservation is under an LLC. Here is the VIP confirmation code," Elisa said, her voice flat.
The front desk manager, a man in a tight suit, typed the code into his terminal. He paused. His eyes darted from the screen to Elisa's face. A flicker of deep,uncomfortable hesitation crossed his features.
"Is there a problem?" Elisa asked.
The manager cleared his throat, forcing a plastic smile. He picked up the black card and handed it back to her with both hands.
"No problem at all, Ms. Wilder," the manager said smoothly. "In fact, your room has been complimentary upgraded by Mrs. Germaine Chambers.You are in the Presidential Penthouse on the top floor."
No.2
Elisa's fingers stopped inches from the card.
Her stomach muscles tightened. Germaine Chambers did not do favors. Germaine was a venomous spider who spun webs of public humiliation. Upgrading her to the penthouse was a blatant, flashing red warning sign of a trap.
+120 Points at most
But causing a scene in the lobby of a Chambers-sponsored event would only give Germaine the ammunition she wanted.
Elisa's face remained a mask of absolute indifference. She picked up the card.
"Fine," Elisa said. She took the heavy, gold-plated
keycard he offered and turned toward the elevators.
As soon as her back was turned, the manager immediately picked up the discreet black landline on his desk, his voice dropping to a harsh, urgent whisper as he dialed the head of hotel security to
warn them of the inevitable collision course on the
top floor.
No.3
She swiped the card in the private elevator. The doors slid shut, cutting off the ambient noise of the lobby. The cab shot upward, her stomach dropping slightly with the speed.
The doors opened to a private hallway lined with thick Persian carpets that swallowed the sound of her footsteps.
Elisa swiped the gold card against the electronic lock of the heavy double doors. The lock clicked green.
She pushed the doors open.
The penthouse was absurdly large. Floor-to-ceiling windows offered a panoramic view of the dark,forested mountains. The air smelled of expensive cedár and citrus room spray.
The long drive had left a dull, throbbing ache at the base of her skull. She didn't bother to inspect the massive living room or the dining area. She dropped her bag on the floor and walked straight into the master suite, heading directly for the marble bathroom.
She needed hot water to wash the tension out of her muscles.
Twenty minutes later, Elisa turned off the rainfall showerhead. The bathroom was thick with hot,fragrant steam.
She grabbed a massive, fluffy white hotel towel and wrapped it tightly around her body, tucking the end securely above her breasts. She grabbed a smaller towel and began rubbing the excess water from her short,jagged hair.
She pushed open the frosted glass door of the
No.4
+120 Points at most
bathroom and stepped out barefoot onto the plush wool rug of the master bedroom.
The blood in her veins instantly turned to solid ice.
Sitting on the edge of the silk-upholstered sofa at the foot of the king-sized bed was August.
His suit jacket was thrown carelessly over the back of the sofa. His tie was loosened, the top two buttons of his crisp white shirt undone. He was holding a crystal tumbler of amber whiskey.
Hearing the bathroom door open, August lifted his head.
His dark eyes slammed directly into Elisa.
He saw her wet skin, the water droplets sliding down her collarbone, and the tight white towel clinging to her curves.
August's pupils dilated violently. The hand holding the whiskey glass froze in mid-air. His jaw went completely slack. He had absolutely no idea she was going to be here.
Elisa's brain processed the data in a fraction of a millisecond.
No.5
The upgrade. The gold keycard.
Germaine hadn't just upgraded her. Germaine had deliberately booked her into August's private suite,trying to force a disgusting, intimate collision between them to humiliate Elisa further.
Elisa didn't scream. She didn't cross her arms to hide her body.
She stood perfectly straight, her posture radiating absolute, lethal authority. She looked at him with the exact same expression she would use to look at a dead rat on the subway tracks.
"Get out of my room," Elisa said. Her voice was a freezing,razor-sharp whisper.
August snapped out of his shock. The whiskey sloshed in his glass as he slammed it down on the glass coffee table. His massive ego instantly kicked in, twisting the reality to fit his paranoia.
"Your room?" August sneered, his voice a low,vibrating growl. He stood up, his massive frame dominating the space. "This is my private suite. You tracked me here. You are completely out of your mind."
+120 Points at most
Elisa let out a dry, hollow laugh. She walked over to the nightstand, picked up the gold keycard, and threw it like a throwing star. It hit the center of August's chest and dropped to the floor.
"Go ask your mother," Elisa said, her eyes dead. "She altered the reservation. Now, take your pathetic delusions and get out."
No.6
August looked down at the card on the floor. He saw the resort's VIP upgrade stamp on the magnetic strip. The reality hit him. He had been set up by his own mother.
But his arrogance refused to let him back down.He took a heavy, deliberate step toward her. The sheer physical mass of him ate up the oxygen in the room.
His eyes dropped to the water glistening on her bare shoulders. He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing sharply.
"You walk out here dressed like that," August said,his voice dropping to a dark, husky register, "and you expect me to believe you aren't trying to prove a point?"
Elisa's stomach churned with pure nausea. She
+120 Points at most
opened her mouth to verbally eviscerate him.
Before she could speak, a sharp, cheerful chime echoed through the suite.
Someone was ringing the doorbell in the living room.
A second later, Allena's high-pitched, sickeningly sweet voice pierced through the heavy oak doors.
No.7
"August? Baby, are you in there? I know the code, I'm coming in!"
August's face went completely, deathly pale. The arrogant predator vanished, replaced instantly by a man drowning in sheer, absolute panic.
Elisa watched the color drain from his face. A slow,incredibly cruel smile curved her lips.
"Well," Elisa whispered, her eyes gleaming with dark amusement. "Looks like your real problem just arrived."