Finding myself sprawled on the cold pavement in front of the hotel was not how I pictured meeting Xander.

My whole body ached, and I could taste blood in my mouth where I'd bitten my tongue during the impact.

Maybe throwing myself in front of a moving car wasn't the smartest plan I'd ever come up with, but when I saw Xander's sleek black vehicle pulling away from the Grandview Hotel, the charity gala obviously over, panic had taken over. It was now or never. My only chance to save Alex was driving away, and I couldn't let that happen.

The driver had jumped out immediately, a mountain of a man in an expensive dark suit who looked like he could crush my skull with one hand. Behind him came what seemed like an entire army of security guards, all talking rapidly into little earpieces and scanning the street like they expected snipers to start shooting from the rooftops.

But not one of them bothered to check if I was actually hurt.

Which I was. Everything hurt so badly I wanted to curl up in a ball and cry like a little kid. But like everything else in my miserable life, I gritted my teeth and sucked it up.

"Fuck, what fucking deranged person would jump in front of a moving vehicle?" one of the guards growled, glaring at me.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?"

"Mr. Romano," I croak out instead, "I need to speak with Mr. Romano. Please."

"The fuck you do! You must be one of those desperate bitches that think they stand a chance with the boss." He scoffed. "Young lady, if you know what's good for you, you'll disappear in three seconds and never look his way again."

Heat flooded my cheeks, but I kept my mouth shut. Let them think whatever him wanted about me. I wasn't here to defend my reputation to a bunch of strangers. I was here to save my husband's life, and nothing else mattered.

The car's tinted window rolled down, and the angry guy wanting to bite my head off approached it, bending down to speak to whoever was inside. I couldn't make out the words, and I held my breath until my lungs burned.

This was it. My one shot. If Xander refused to see me now, I had no backup plan. No other ideas. Alex would die, and it would be my fault for not being brave enough, smart enough, desperate enough to save him.

Finally, the guard straightened up and walked back toward me.

"You want to meet Mr. Romano?" he sneered.

I nodded frantically, probably looking like one of those bobblehead dolls people put in their cars.

"Well, congratulations," he continued, reaching down to help me to my feet. "He's agreed to see you."

Relief flooded through me so fast and so strong that my knees nearly gave out all over again. Hope bloomed in my chest, he'd agreed to meet me! That had to mean something good, right?

One of the other guards snorted. "Yeah, she'll regret that soon enough."

But I barely heard his warning. I was too busy planning what I'd say, how I'd explain everything, how I'd convince Xander to help me. I'd forgive him for everything. All the late nights that kept Alex away from home, all the missed anniversaries, all the impromptu business trips that had slowly been killing our marriage. As long as he agreed to pay the ransom money, I'd never complain about his demands on Alex's time ever again. I'd be the perfect, grateful, silent wife who never asked for anything.

That was what I was thinking as they guided me toward the luxury SUV, all gleaming black paint and chrome details that probably cost more than I'd make in five years. The door was already open, soft amber light spilling out onto the dark street.

"Get in," the guard instructed, his hand on my elbow to help me climb into the vehicle.

I scrambled inside, my bare legs immediately sticking to the buttery leather seats, and the hope all but died in my throat as I took in the scene in front of me.

Mr Romano sat spread out like a king on his throne, suit and tie discarded, his chest visible from the opened bottons of his shirt.

And between his legs was a girl bobbing her head up and down in the familiar gesture I knew was blowjob.

I'd never seen anything like it in real life. Alex and I were... intimate, obviously, but this was something completely different. Something raw and desperate and shameless that made me want to cover my eyes and run screaming back into the night.

"Umm... Mr. Romano," I stammered, trying to look literally anywhere else in the vehicle. "I apologize for disturbing your... your..."

I couldn't even find words for what was happening right in front of me. What was the appropriate term for walking in on your husband's boss getting oral sex from a woman who was definitely not his wife?

I cleared my throat loudly, hoping to get the girl's attention so maybe she'd stop what she was doing, but it only made Xander finally lift his head and look directly at me.

His eyes were dark and wild, pupils blown out with something that made my heart start racing for all the wrong reasons. He looked dangerous, like a predator that had just spotted fresh prey and was deciding which part to bite first.

I tried desperately to look away, but my gaze unfortunately landed on his large hand that was tangled in the girl's hair, gripping it tight and guiding her movements in a way that made heat pool in places it definitely shouldn't.

The girl faltered, and his cock sprung out of her mouth.

The moment might be brief before girl devoured it in again, but I saw enough to know he definitely wasn't shriveled like I'd wished earlier.

It was very much alive and working perfectly fine, which sent a bitter, confusing feeling straight through my heart.

Why couldn't he just be a normal, boring billionaire who sat behind a desk all day counting money?

I could still feel his eyes on me, watching my reaction, so I forced myself to keep talking even though my voice came out higher and more strained than normal.

"I can come back tomorrow when you're less... busy with important business matters."

"You wouldn't have thrown yourself in front of my car if you wanted to wait until tomorrow," he said.

I tried to ignore how hoarse his voice sounded. Maybe he wasn't completely heartless after all. Maybe he understood that this was urgent, that I wouldn't have done something so dangerous and stupid unless it was a matter of life and death.

"You must be dying to seduce me."

"What?" My eyes snapped open in shock. "No!" The words exploded out of me before I could stop them. How could he even think such a thing?

Yes, he was undeniably handsome in that dark, dangerous way that probably made women line up around the block to throw themselves at him. And yes, what I could see of his body would probably make most women weak in the knees. But that wasn't why I was here at all!

"No? Your choice of outfit could have had me fooled."

I looked down at myself and realized how this must look to him. I was sitting in his car in the middle of the night, wearing nothing but Alex's oversized hoodie over my anniversary lingerie. The hoodie had ridden up during my dramatic encounter with the pavement, exposing my bare thighs and probably giving him glimpses of the red lace underneath.

I probably looked exactly like the kind of desperate woman who would throw herself at a billionaire.

I crossed my legs tightly and yanked the hoodie down as far as it would go, cursing myself for not grabbing some actual pants before I ran out of the apartment.

"I'm married," I said quietly, hoping that would end this horrible misunderstanding.

“Apparently, vows don’t mean much these days,” his tone suddenly turned dark. “You, of all people, would know about that… wouldn’t you, Mrs. Grey?”

“It’s… it’s Morrison,” I whispered, correcting him before I could stop myself. And what was that supposed to mean?

Then it struck me

“Wait.” My voice shook. “You… you know who I am?”

“I make it my business to know everything about my employees,” he murmured. “Especially the ones with a… unique relationship.”

I stared at Xander, trying to make sense of what he'd just said, but the words kept bouncing around in my head.

Vows? I don't know about others, but I take my vows pretty serious. And what does he mean by unique relationship?

He can't possibly know anything about my relationship with Alex, can he? We'd never met before, I was absolutely certain of that.

Xander Romano wasn't the kind of man you'd forget meeting, not with those dark eyes and that dangerous presence that seemed to fill up the entire car.

And Alex... Alex wasn't the type to share personal details about his home life. He barely talked about work when he came home exhausted each night, let alone discuss his marriage with his boss.

The only explanation that made any sense was that Xander had run some kind of background check on Alex, but even then, why would he dig deep enough to learn my last name before I married Alex?

"Did you look into us? Why?"

His mood have been getting darker, but something in my question seemed to flip completely flip a switch in him. His entire demeanor changed in an instant, and he grabbed the girl's shoulders, shoving her away from him so roughly that she let out a small whine of protest.

“I’m the one asking questions here, not you." He growled, tucking himself back into his pants, and I found myself looking anywhere but at him as he zipped up. "So cut the bullshit and tell me—why the fuck are you here?”

He reached for a crystal wine glass that had been sitting in a holder beside his seat, his knuckles turning white from how tight he gripped it, and suddenly I wasn't sure if coming here had been the best decision of my entire life.

The fact that I wasn't here to seduce him must've rubbed Xander Romano the wrong way, cause now he looked like he wanted to throw me out of the moving vehicle.

I took a shaky breath and forced myself to get straight to the point. There was no time for small talk or trying to figure out what how he knew me.

"My husband," I said, forcing myself to meet his gaze. "Alex has been kidnapped."

I watched as he poured dark red wine into his glass, waiting for some kind of reaction. Any kind of reaction.

"So?"

I blinked at him.

"He... he was taken three days ago. On his way back from the business trip." My voice grew smaller with each word. "The kidnappers are demanding ransom money."

Xander's dark eyes remain fixed on mine and I realized he was waiting for me to continue.

"Fi-five million dollars." The words caught in my throat, coming out as barely more than a whisper.

He took a slow sip of his wine, never breaking eye contact. The silence stretched between us until I thought I might scream just to fill it.

"Well then," he finally said, his voice carrying a bitter edge that made my skin prickle with unease. "Why are you here wasting time with me instead of scraping together five million dollars to save your precious husband's pathetic life?"

He sounded... hurt. Like the idea of me trying to save my husband personally offended him somehow.

"Actually, that's why I'm here," I said. "I was wondering if you'd..."

"Talk, woman." His voice dropped to a dangerous whisper that made goosebumps break out across my arms. "I don't have all fucking day."

"I was wondering if you'd give me five million dollars." I blurted.

He simply stared at me, swirling the wine in his glass like he was thinking about something completely different, and I realized I'd never felt smaller or more pathetic in my entire life.

"As a debt, of course," I added quickly, the words tumbling over each other in my desperation to fill the awful silence. "I'll... I'll pay you back. Somehow. I promise I'll find a way to pay you back every single penny."

“The fucking audacity…” He scuffed, cutting my rant.

I flinched at the vulgarity, shrinking back into my seat like he'd physically struck me. Nobody had ever spoken to me like that before, with such raw contempt dripping from every word.

"Of all the people you could’ve turned to… you came to me." He continued, his voice rising with each word. "Why?”

"I... I don't know who else to ask," I stammered, tears already starting to blur my vision. "You're rich and wealthy, and we're already drowning in debt. The bank can't help us, and I can't tell the cops or he'll die."

I was rambling, I knew I was rambling, but I couldn't stop myself. If I stopped talking, he might tell me to leave, and then what would I do? Where else could I possibly turn?

"Well, let him die," he said flatly. "That way you'll be free to find someone who actually deserves you."

The tears I'd been fighting finally spilled over, hot and shameful as they rolled down my cheeks. How could he say something so horrible? How could anyone be that cruel and heartless?

"How can you say that?" I whispered, my voice breaking. "He works for you. To be honest, you're partly at fault he's kidnapped."

Something dangerous flashed in his eyes. “Is that what you think? That I’m to blame?"

"Yes, you heartless monster!" The words exploded out of me before I could stop them. "Because of your stupid business trip, he's kidnapped. He should be at home celebrating with me, but instead you sent him away. And now you're just going to abandon him?"

I watched his jaw clench, the muscles in his neck going rigid with tension. His hands slowly curled into fists at his sides, and every line of his body screamed barely contained violence. I'd struck a nerve, I realized with a sick twist of fear in my stomach. I'd called him a monster, and now he looked like he was about to prove me right.

"Why should I care?" he said, his voice deadly quiet. "I'm a monster after all."

There was something in his tone that I couldn't identify, something that almost sounded like... hurt? But that was impossible. Men like Xander Romano didn't get hurt by people like me.

"What even makes you think he was on a business trip?" he asked suddenly, leaning forward in his seat.

The question caught me completely off guard. "He... that's what he told me. Why else would he travel?"

"And you believe him?" He sneered at me like I was the most naive person he'd ever encountered.

Of course I believed him. Alex had never lied to me about anything. We might have our problems, but dishonesty wasn't one of them.

"Typical," Xander scoffed. "Absolutely fucking typical."

"And here you are, begging for help from a monster. If I'm the conceited shit you think I am, why the fuck should I help you?"

"Because... because... you're..." I struggled to find words that might reach whatever humanity was left inside him.

"Don't give me that " I'm rich" bullshit," he snapped, making me flinch again. "Tell me a solid reason why I should help someone like you."

Someone like me. The words hit harder than they should have. I knew exactly what I was, a nobody waitress married to his secretary, drowning in debt and desperate enough to throw myself in front of moving cars. But hearing him say it out loud made something inside me shrivel up and die.

I was just wasting my time. Xander Romano was exactly what I'd always thought he was, a cold, heartless bastard who didn't care about anyone but himself. There was no point in continuing this pointless conversation. My pride, what little I had left, could only take so much abuse.

"You know what, you can just drop me off here," I said quietly, wiping the tears from my cheeks with the back of my hand. "Sorry for wasting your time."

The car began to slow, and I reached for the door handle with shaking fingers. At least I'd tried. When Alex died, at least I'd know I'd done everything I possibly could to save him, even if it meant humiliating myself in front of the man who'd made our lives miserable for three years.

"Wait." His voice stopped me cold.

"I can help."

I whipped around so fast that the world tilted sideways for a moment, my hand still gripping the door handle like it was the only thing keeping me anchored to reality.

"You... you would?" The words came out as barely more than a breath.

"Yes." He took another sip of his wine, watching me over the rim of the glass. "On one condition."

Relief flooded through my veins like liquid fire. He would help. Despite everything I'd said, despite calling him a monster, despite throwing myself in front of his car like a complete lunatic, he was actually going to help me save Alex.

"You'll be mine."