Love In High Stakes

Chapter 7

 "I can't believe this!" Amelia burst out after listening to Olivia's story.

"Me neither," Olivia replied.

The two girls were at Olivia's apartment after Amelia finished her shift. Nonetheless, Olivia never disclosed to Amelia how Lucas made love to her and how much she enjoyed each moment spent in his company. She only said that they chatted, watched a movie and then slept. Olivia was feeling embarrassed and guilty.

"I think Lucas is in love with you. If you ask me, we may be misunderstanding this guy," Amelia said after she sipped her coffee.

"But, I don't love him. Besides, if I marry him, I'll lose the art gallery and I can't allow this. In any case, he will be the only winner," Olivia told her friend.

"Strike another deal with him then. Ask him to leave the Art Gallery under your family name. Since he did not touch you, I doubt he will do so without your consent. So, you are safe. What else do you need?" Amelia smiled.

"I know what I need to do. It's time to get help from someone I met recently," Olivia declared.

"Who?"

"Mr. Sterling, of course. He owns so many properties and I can ask him to appoint me as the interior designer for one of his projects. I need to take a chance," Olivia expressed gladly.

"From one billionaire to another?" Amelia chuckled.

"I'm single and choose to stay so until I become independent. But, I'm not into billionaires. I want a simple and peaceful life," Olivia said.

"Then give me any of them," Amelia winked.

"Feel free to steal them from me," Olivia laughed heartily.

Olivia and Amelia had dinner together and when Amelia departed, Olivia decided to call Alexander Sterling.

After five rings, when he did not pick up, she stopped, "Maybe he's in a meeting. I'll try again later."

It was around nine o'clock and Olivia decided to head for a shower, before hitting her cosy bed. As she disrobed, her eye lay on the love bites Lucas left on her body last night. When Amelia had visited earlier, Olivia had made sure to cover up.

Standing in front of the long mirror, the love bites looked more like an adornment. Closing her eyes, everything came back to her mind. Unconsciously, her fingers moved onto every part that was touched by Lucas. He had made sure that her first time was memorable and he had even told her that she could run back to him when she needed him.

Needed him? No! She was thirsty for him.

'No, Olivia! Don't fall into his trap!' she mumbled to herself.

Then she put Lucas at the back of her mind, hopped in for a shower and got out ten minutes later. As she came out of the bathroom, she saw two missed calls from Alexander.

"Shit! My phone was on silent!" she cursed.

This time, when she called back, he picked up on the third ring.

"Hello, yes?" his husky voice echoed.

"Mr. Sterling, this is Olivia Montgomery, the girl at the Walmart parking lot," Olivia said.

"Oh, yeah. Of course, I remember you," he laughed.

"Can I meet you tomorrow at your office? I'm actually looking for a job as an interior designer and when I saw that you're into properties, I called you up to check if it's fine with you."

"Let me check my schedule. Could you please give me a minute?" Alexander asked.

"Certainly," Olivia replied.