Chapter 2: Hiring a Bossy CEO to Show Off

Seeing how handsome this gigolo was in front of her, spending some cash to have him accompany her for the night seemed like a pretty good deal. Tristan's eyes narrowed dangerously as he stared at Nova, and he asked in a measured tone, "What did you say? Charge? " By the hour? What did she think he was? A gigolo? Or a male escort? Leaning against the wall, Nova was losing her patience. Was this dude playing dumb? This place was crawling with gigolos. Even with a buzz, she was clear, "Look, you're easy on the eyes, so I'll pay by the hour. Just keep me company tonight and make me happy." Her voice was sultry, but to Tristan, it sounded like a provoke. No woman had ever talked to him like that before. He grabbed her chin, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "I'm not some cheap thrill. You can't afford me." He squeezed a little too hard, and Nova winced. Nova's brow furrowed; she was running out of patience. Waving her hand dismissively, she snapped, "You're fussing like a lady. Can you even deliver? I'm not gonna know if you're worth it until you show me. What if you're all talk?" Now Nova's head was pounding, and she was getting more and more annoyed. Tristan, with a taunting smirk, locked eyes with her. "Let's find out then. But be careful, you might not be able to handle it." Next thing she knew, he was carrying her over his shoulder. In the dark room, with her head spinning and her senses fuzzy, she clung to Tristan instinctively. He didn't say a word as he pressed her down on the bed, his cool lips silencing her protests with a kiss that was a mix of booze and wildness. Nova felt completely overpowered, her fingers gripping his sleeve the only part of her that could move, like a tiny boat lost at sea, her mind completely consumed by his fiery kiss. When she woke up the next morning, her body felt like it had been through a war. She squinted against the glaring sunlight and sat up with a throbbing headache. The messy bed and his tie made her freeze – she'd actually spent the night with a gigolo! And they hadn't stopped all night... She felt a twinge of regret. Why had she let herself go like that? Damn the drinks for making her lose control. Tristan, who had been awake for a while, watched the play of emotions across her face and laughed quietly. He felt a weird urge to poke fun at her. "Not happy with my performance?" "Although, you seemed pretty into me from the start. I must have given you quite the deal. Let's settle up." Nova's face burned with embarrassment. She was the one who wanted to hire a gigolo, but now it felt like she'd been played. Watching him act all innocent after getting the upper hand made her blood boil. But she couldn't lose her temper. She took deep breaths. Stay cool. And then she reminded herself, this was all because of that awful ex and his new girl! "Hey, your phone was going off a bunch." Tristan was already getting dressed to leave. He just wanted to chill out last night, didn't expect a wild night like that. Nova looked up and saw the scratch marks on his back, her face got even hotter. She reached for her phone to hide her embarrassment. She didn't notice the mirrors all around the bed, but Tristan saw her shy look in them. That actually piqued his interest. Nova saw the flood of messages from her ex and his new flame on her phone, reminding her not to miss today's reunion. As Tristan was about to walk out, Nova had a quick thought and stopped him. "Wait." "What's your name?" she asked, kinda stiff. Tristan turned and gave her a casual look, "What, you want a sequel or something?" "No, just be my fake boyfriend for the day, same as last night, by the hour!" "I'll pay you for both days together." Tristan wasn't thrilled, he was about to say no – his time wasn't cheap. But seeing her expression in the mirror, he thought it might be fun. Playing pretend boyfriend for a day? This chick was gutsy. "Okay." Nova was relieved; Tristan was a knockout, way better than her ex Ashton. But she couldn't just grab a taxi, could she? No way would a big-shot CEO be caught dead in a cab! She thought about renting a fancy car just to flex and it hurt more than paying for the gigolo! Tristan was pretending to do up his buttons, just to watch Nova squirm. Everything about her was written all over her face. He smirked a little, finding this pretty entertaining. "You're willing to drop big money for a day with me, so I won't disappoint." "The name's Tristan Alastair, don't forget it." "I'll handle everything, you just take it easy." Nova couldn't believe her luck. Was this hitting the jackpot? A full-service package, it seemed. It seemed he really was a very professional… Gigolo… "Mind if I get the cash first?" Tristan said. Taking gigolo to the next level must be tough. "Okay, here you are." "Look, I'll head to the reunion spot first. You get the car and meet me there." Tristan said. Tristan watched Nova's face change shades and figured she was overthinking again. "I've got this," Tristan added. Nova took a quick peek at the time, briefed him on his cover story, and their fake romantic how-we-met tale, and then dashed off. Left Tristan alone in the room, he looked at the number on the screen and made a call. "Meeting's been bumped up." Nova went all out, hair, spa, the works, head to toe, all to slap her ex's face with her glow-up. Just reached the door, and there's that voice. "Nova, thought you bagged a rich guy? Why still rock up in a taxi? He ditch you already?" Selena Voss was all snuggled up to Ashton Wilde, casually showing off her new bling. "Ugh, what's that smell? Oh, just someone's garbage mouth." Nova spun around, hand over her nose like she just noticed they were there. Ashton's eyes were glued to Nova's figure in that sleek black dress, clearly impressed. Shame he never had his chance! "Nova, please don't tell us you're hiding some old sugar daddy and just made up that whole handsome, rich CEO boyfriend story?" Selena was being salty, especially after catching that look from Ashton. She knew, everyone knew, Nova's looks were top-notch, and Ashton, well, he wasn't over her. Nova didn't miss a beat, "Selena, old sugar daddy? Your favorite? So what? Better than your pussy boyfriend. "