Chapter 3 Charity

David Lewis gave me a sinister smile as well. "You mentioned supporting your business just now. Considering where we are, were you perhaps referring to physical business? "Ha, if it really is something physical, you should take off your clothes first so that we can inspect the goods. If the goods are too disappointing, it would be a loss for us, wouldn't it?" He burst out laughing. I gripped a wine bottle tightly as I glanced at Gideon. He continued smoking in silence. He didn't seem to have heard their foul language, or maybe he didn't care at all. I lowered my gaze. As I placed the bottles of wine on the bar counter, I smiled and said, "You're getting the wrong idea. When I said business, I was referring to the liquor business. For the sake of old times, you can order drinks from me so that I can get higher commissions." "Dang, the high and mighty Ms. Slater is really tight on cash right now, huh?" Jake suddenly flung a card onto the bar counter. Then, he said to me as if he were doing charity, "Here's 30 thousand dollars. If you get on all fours and bark like a dog, the money is all yours. How about that?" As soon as Jake finished speaking, laughter rang out in the private room again. This time, I could even hear some cheeky whistling mixed in. The group of onlookers stared at me in amusement. Even Gideon was looking at me as well. The expression on his face was calm, but as usual, his gaze was so deep that I didn't dare probe further. For a long time, I didn't move a muscle. David suddenly flung another card onto the bar counter. "Here's another 100 thousand dollars. If you bark like a dog and play with us for the night, you can take all the money." I stared at David in shock. My family might have fallen from grace, but I was still his boss' wife. Gideon was sitting right there—how could David dare to ask for something like that? But then again, Gideon might have told them about our divorce, and he might even have said that he hated me. If not, these guys wouldn't have dared humiliate me like that, not with Gideon around. "What's the matter? You need money, don't you? If you can't let go of your dignity, why are you even here?" David scoffed and said, "We're offering you a good price. If you try to sell yourself elsewhere, who knows how many times you'd have to do it to get this much money?" Yes, I needed money, so I shouldn't care about unrealistic things like dignity. However, casting my dignity aside didn't mean that I'd have no boundaries. I felt disgusted when I saw the wicked and leery smile on David's face. Picking up the card with 100 thousand dollars in it, I flung it back to David and said on purpose, "Do you seriously think you can have me for a night just for 100 thousand dollars? If you really mean it, you should at least offer 10 million dollars!" I knew David's character very well. He wasn't really rich, and he was always lounging around doing nothing. He put on a generous front, but in reality, he was a terribly stingy man. He used to follow Joshua and I around to freeload meals, and he was even too stingy to buy his girlfriend a new bag. Even 10 thousand dollars was too much for him to part with. But now, he was willing to give up 100 thousand dollars just to humiliate me. It was obvious how much he hated me. I couldn't help but reflect on my past actions. Had I really been that awful of a person back then? "Haha! David, you're so stingy! She used to be the esteemed Ms. Slater, after all. How could you only offer her 100 thousand dollars for a night?" In an instant, there was mocking laughter in the private room. David's face immediately turned red. He glared at me with hatred and said in disdain, "The way I see it, 100 thousand dollars is too much for someone like her." Ignoring David's mockery, I turned around and picked up Jake's card with 30 thousand dollars in it. Then, I said to Jake, "Do you really mean what you just said? I only have to bark like a dog to get 30 thousand dollars?" Jake was stunned for a moment. By the looks of it, he hadn't expected me to take it seriously. Just like David, Jake was a real miser. That 30 thousand dollars was probably the entirety of his wealth. Jake's expression contorted as he said, "You're a proud and arrogant woman. How could you possibly bark like a dog in front of us? Quit joking." As Jake spoke, he tried to take his card back. Avoiding his outstretched arm, I said to him in a serious tone, "I wasn't joking. It's not that hard to bark like a dog, anyway. If I can get 30 thousand dollars just by barking, it's a fantastic deal no matter how I look at it." A troubled look instantly appeared on Jake's face as he glared at the card in my hand. He probably wished he could just snatch the card out of my hands. David said in a gloating voice, "Hurry up and bark, then. Show us how the great Ms. Slater gets on all fours and wags her tail to beg for pity, just like a dog would!" I no longer had any pride left in me. My mind was filled with the ferocious faces of the debt collectors, the despairing scenes of my parents seeking their own death, and thoughts of Joshua working himself to the bone. Taking a deep breath, I said, "Alright." However, as I slowly lowered my body, a large hand suddenly supported me by the elbow. I looked in surprise to see the deep gaze in Gideon's eyes. My heart suddenly skipped a beat. "Get out, all of you." Gideon's voice was calm. He was talking to the other guys in the room. All the other guys instantly went outside, fearing that they might offend him somehow. When Jake was leaving, he even wrestled his 30-thousand-dollar card out of my hands. What a joke. Gideon stared at me with his dark eyes. "Are you really that desperate for money?" I pulled my elbow out of his grasp and put some distance between us. "You know the answer very well, Mr. Lane." After my family fell to ruin, we were knee-deep in debt. Everyone in Streamford knew that. I refused to believe that he was completely oblivious. "Mr. Lane?" Gideon chuckled as he repeated those words in amusement. I didn't know what he was thinking, nor did I have the time or energy to deal with him. Pointing at the liquor on the bar counter, I said, "Mr. Lane, here are the drinks you ordered just now. I've delivered them, so if you're satisfied with my service, I'd love it if you could tip me." Gideon stared at me silently. I could never fathom what he was thinking. In reality, I wasn't serious about the tip—I never counted on him paying me. Smiling, I was about to leave when Gideon suddenly said, "I'll give you 10 million dollars." I suddenly paused in my tracks. Then, I looked at him in disbelief. "What did you just say?" Gideon walked up to me, looking at me with his deep, dark gaze. "I'll give you 10 million dollars to spend the night with me." Feeling annoyed, I wished I could just tell him that he was out of his mind. Unfortunately for me, he was rich now. He was no longer the naive and honest fool anyone could bully. Suppressing my urge to shout at him, I smiled stiffly and said, "Mr. Lane, please don't tease me. I have something else to attend to, so I'll be off now." "If David can do that, why can't I?" Gideon suddenly asked in a dark tone. There was a hint of coldness in his voice. I frowned. "What do you mean by that? What are you talking about?" "You told David just now that you'd spend the night with him if he paid you 10 million dollars. I'm offering you 10 million dollars right now, so why won't you spend the night with me?" I couldn't stop myself from rolling my eyes. I'd only said that because I knew that 100 thousand dollars was the most David could afford and that he'd rather die than pay someone 10 million dollars. I'd mentioned 10 million dollars on purpose just to piss David off; I'd never expected Gideon to take that seriously. Gideon walked up to me. Taking a drag from his cigarette, he puffed as he said, "Your family is in dire need of money, right? If you spend the night with me, 10 million dollars is yours for the taking. What do you think?" I discreetly clenched my hands at my sides. I knew why he was doing this all too well. He was humiliating me with money. Trying my best to suppress the bitter feeling welling up in my heart, I smiled coldly at him and said, "Do you think you're all that just because you're rich? You're right—my family is really desperate for money, but I refuse to earn it this way." With that, I hastily ran out of the room. Tears were already blurring my vision. Emotions could be really interesting. The people I used to hang out with were humiliating me now, but I never felt upset about it. However, Gideon was different. When he humiliated me, it took no time for the humiliation to induce a numbing bitterness and pain in my heart. I ran all the way to the lobby on the first floor. To my surprise, I saw Jake, David, and the others surrounding and degrading Joshua, who was wearing his delivery uniform. For the sake of cash, Joshua was kneeling before them. In an instant, the dignity and pride I'd been upholding instantly crashed to the ground. I covered my mouth as tears streamed down my face continuously. Joshua was willing to go this far for money, but I only had to be humiliated by Gideon to get 10 million dollars. What was I defending my pride for? I suddenly turned around and dashed upstairs, hoping that Gideon hadn't left yet. When I dashed into the private room, I immediately spotted Gideon sitting on the couch. He was smiling like he knew I'd come back. Walking up to him, I asked, "You hate me, right? You hate me because I kept degrading you in the past, don't you?" Before Gideon could say anything, I continued, "Fine. As long as you can help my family clear our debt, you can humiliate me however you like and for as long as you please." Gideon lowered his gaze, looking at the wine in his glass. Smiling, he asked, "So I can ask you to be my lover too?"