The Billionaire And The Stripper. ARI LEVINSON

Chapter Six

Warnings: Mature content. Mention of the objectification of women (slight)

Author's note: No proofread. All mistakes my own. Let me know your thoughts about this chapter after reading. Enjoy it!! Also, huge thanks for the donation!!❤️

Ari

There’s no sound in the house. It’s always been that way, but not in a good way. Is that silence that is almost as scary as a horror movie.

Silence. Ari doesn’t like silence. It allows his mind to wander, to put those memories again. And Ari hates that.

He loses track of time when he realizes the water that drops from the shower dissolved the steam that covered the whole bathroom. He closes the shower and dries himself quickly, tossing the towel aside on the laundry bin, he walks to the closet and picks up a navy-blue T-shirt with black joggers.

“Good morning, Ari.” Lilah, the maid, places his black coffee and a small tray of fruits on the table.

“Thank you. But you don’t have to do this every day Lilah. I’m not five anymore”

Lilah laughs. She’s been Ari’s maid since he was little. Lilah has always been there for his family. For them.

Of course, long after…that Ari kindly offered the position to which she accepted. She always had a special spot for Ari. She is the only one he trusts enough, the only woman who he now can call family.

Lilah never had kids, and she was widowed a long time ago, so she accepted without doubting.

Ari knew she noticed the change on his persona when she saw him again, but never asked, never judged.

“I want to. Besides, you didn’t eat yesterday’s dinner.” She gently scolds him.
“Is something wrong?”

Ari shakes his head, closing his eyes for a brief second.
A lot of things were happening in his mind.
First, the nightmares, the memories.
And then, you.

He can’t understand why he can’t take you off his mind.

The way you were yesterday at the restaurant, he knew. He knew you were desperate for the job.
That night at the store you seemed defeated, tired and helpless.

Ari shakes his head. He shouldn’t worry about that.

He only needs you to distract himself from the nightmares. They have come again.
Fragments of a past he had long tried to forget.

Son of a Russian Oligarch, groomed from a young age to inherit the empire, to carry on the legacy of power and wealth that had been passed down through generations.

Of course, having to be the responsible to carry the empire come along a lot of problems. But he did what he had to do. There were sacrifices to be made, alliances to be forged, and enemies to be vanquished. All to maintain an empire he didn’t want to be part of. But he didn’t have a say in that. He never had.

He remembered the cold, harsh winters of his childhood in Rusia, the bitter struggle for survival in a world where weakness was met with ruthless cruelty.

He recalled the day his father did what he did. He remembered the fear in her eyes. Their eyes. The desperation, and the last, comforting, words she whispered to both before…

And he remembered the vow he had made that day, the vow to never again be at mercy of others, to claw his way to the top by any means necessary.

Years had passed since then, years filled with blood, sweat, and tears as Ari built his own empire from the ground up.

Ari is taken to reality when his phones starts vibrating on the table. He picks it up.

“Yeah?” It’s all he says to Andy, his right hand.

“I received the contract. She signed it.” Andy affirms from the other line.

“I will be there in an hour Barber.” He replies quickly.

“Okay”

Andy ends the call.

In that moment Ari knew one thing for sure—Now that Y/n’s in, there would be no turning back.