Chapter 3

"Yo, isn't this Mr. Hodgeson's wife, Ms. Tarbor? Did you come here to drink? Wait… Why are you wearing the work uniform here?" As soon as the man finished speaking, laughter erupted in the private room. I tightened my grip on the cart's handle and took a deep breath. Forget it. Since they had seen me and intended on humiliating me, there was no escaping it now. It was better to face it head-on. Maybe I could even earn a little tip from them. With the daily pressure of debt collectors, Dad constantly lamented about not wanting to live, Mom was in tears all the time, and Sam worked tirelessly as a delivery driver. I couldn't afford to care about my pride right now. I pushed the cart over while forcing a stiff but polite smile. "What a coincidence! Since you're here, why not support my business? If you're enjoying yourselves, maybe you could leave a tip for me." Gavyn Beasley immediately shook his head and laughed scornfully. Back then, Gavyn used to flatter Sam and me, treating us with great respect. But now that my family was in ruin, he was showing his true colors. I wanted nothing more than to slap him. But now was not the time for recklessness. Making money was what mattered. I kept smiling and remained silent. Gavyn suddenly leaned in. He put on a gleeful look as he said, "Look at her. Are you really the Ms. Tarbor who used to look down on everything? How did you end up like this?" He clicked his tongue. The room erupted in laughter again. Another man, Darien Lawson, grinned wickedly at me. "You said to support your business. Are you selling your body in a place like this? Haha! If so, then you'd better strip and let us inspect the goods. If they're no good, wouldn't we be losing out?" I clutched the bottle of wine tightly and glanced at Zane. Zane was quietly smoking, seemingly indifferent to their lewd comments, or maybe he just didn't care. Lowering my gaze, I placed the bottles of wine on the bar counter and said with a smile, "All of you seemed to have misunderstood. My business is selling drinks. Given our past connections, you can order from me if you want to drink, so I can earn more commission." "Wow, Ms. Tarbor, are you really this broke?" Gavyn tossed a card on the counter with a condescending look. "This card has 30 thousand dollars on it. If you get down on all fours and bark like a dog, this 30 thousand is yours. How about it?" As soon as Gavyn finished, the room erupted in laughter, accompanied by taunting whistles. Everyone seemed eager to see me humiliated. Even Zane was watching me. His face was calm, but his gaze was as deep and inscrutable as ever. I hesitated, and Darien threw another card onto the counter. "Here's another hundred thousand. If you bark like a dog and let us have some fun tonight, it's all yours." I stared at Darien with widened eyes. Even though my family was in decline, I was still Zane's wife. How dare Darien make such a demand with Zane sitting right there? Unless Zane had already told them about our divorce and expressed his disdain for me, they wouldn't dare insult me like this in front of him. "What's wrong? Can't let go of your pride even though you're short on money?" Darien sneered. "We're offering a good price. Do you know how many times you'd have to sell yourself to make this much money elsewhere?" Yes, I needed money. What good was clinging to unrealistic pride? However, letting go of pride didn't mean abandoning my principles. Looking at Darien's malicious grin, I felt sick to my stomach. I took the card and threw it back at Darien, deliberately saying, "Are you really offering just a hundred thousand dollars for one night with me? If you have the guts, put up ten million dollars!" I knew Darien well. He didn't have much money, was constantly idle, and pretended to be generous while actually being quite stingy. He used to mooch off me and Sam. He wouldn't even spend on his girlfriend's handbag. Asking him to part with ten thousand dollars was like asking him to cut off a piece of his flesh. Yet, he was willing to spend a hundred thousand dollars just to humiliate me, which showed how much he despised me. It made me wonder, was I really that awful a person before? "Haha! You're so stingy, Darien. No matter what, she used to be the heiress of the Tarbor family. How can you offer just a hundred thousand dollars for one night with her?" Laughter erupted in the private room. Darien's face turned red with anger. He glared at me and said, "One hundred thousand dollars is already too much for her." Ignoring Darien's sneer, I picked up Gavyn's card and asked him seriously, "Do you really mean it? If I bark like a dog, this 30 thousand dollars is mine?" Gavyn was momentarily stunned, not expecting me to take him seriously. Gavyn, like Darien, was tight-fisted. This 30 thousand dollars was probably a big deal for him. He looked at me with a mix of hesitation and anger. "You're always so proud. How could you possibly degrade yourself like that?" Gavyn tried to take back the card, but I avoided his hand and said with all seriousness, "I'm serious. Barking isn't that difficult. It's a good deal if I can earn 30 thousand dollars for a few barks." Gavyn's face instantly showed frustration. He glared at the card in my hand, wishing he could snatch it back. Darien, enjoying the show, said, "Go on. Show us how you bark like a dog and beg us for money." With my former pride gone, my mind was filled with images of aggressive debt collectors, my parents in despair, and Sam working tirelessly. I took a deep breath and said, "Alright." But just as I was about to get down on my knees, a large hand suddenly supported my elbow. I looked up in surprise and met Zane's deep, dark eyes. My heart skipped a beat. "Everyone, get out," Zane said coldly, addressing the rowdy group. Fearing his displeasure, the group quickly left. As Gavyn was leaving, he snatched his card from my hand. What a joke he was. Zane's gaze was fixed on me. "Are you really that short on money?" I pulled my elbow from his grip and distanced myself from him. "I think you know the answer, Mr. Hodgeson." The fact that my family was in financial ruin and in debt was well-known in Jorvane. I couldn't believe he didn't know. "Mr. Hodgeson?" Zane chuckled as he repeated the address with a hint of amusement. I didn't know what he was thinking and had no time to indulge in further entanglement with him. I pointed to the drinks on the bar counter and said, "Here are the drinks you wanted, Mr. Hodgeson. If you think my service is good, you can consider leaving a tip." Zane stared at me silently. His gaze was always impossible to decipher. I was only mentioning the tip casually and didn't really expect him to give one. I smiled and was about to leave when Zane suddenly said, "I'll give you ten million dollars." I stopped in my tracks and looked at him incredulously. "What did you just say?" Zane stepped closer, his dark eyes locking onto mine. "I'll give you ten million dollars if you spend the night with me."