“Mr. Bowles, I’m sorry, but I’m not an escort here.” Flora said as she tried to move to the side to avoid his hand, but instead of dodging, his hand landed directly on her leg.
“You—” She retreated with slight annoyance. Fortunately, at that moment, the door opened.
“Mr. Bowles—” Flora looked back happily at Tina, who was followed by a young woman. “Mr. Bowles, she’s new here. Why don’t you let her keep you company tonight?”
Flora gratefully smiled at Tina, but from above, she heard Dylan’s cold voice, “Get out.”
Flora quickly stood up, although her legs were a bit numb, she forced herself to stand. Thankfully, Tina had arrived just in time.
But before she could turn around, she was thrown onto a nearby couch by a powerful force.
“I didn’t ask you to leave,” Dylan glanced at the two people at the door, “Get out and close the door.”
Confused by the situation, Flora quickly sat up and pulled her skirt down.
Tina hurriedly approached with a smile, “Um, Mr. Bowles, Flora, she’s not a staff member here, she…”
“Get out.” Dylan’s voice had no hint of anger but was chilling enough to make one shiver. Those who had dealt with him knew this was the prelude to his fury.
“Yes, yes, yes…” Tina, flustered, didn’t dare to resist any further. She hurriedly urged the woman behind her to leave and, as she closed the door, cast Flora a meaningful glance.
In the chaotic environment of Desire, some situations caught people off guard. Since Flora had come this far, she had to have the ability to bear it.
Desire would never offend a powerful guest for the sake of a waitress. Especially when that guest was Mr. Dylan Bowles.
Dylan looked at the cautious Flora, a smile playing on his lips, “Don’t worry, I won’t force you to do anything with me. I don’t like coercion.”
Upon hearing this, Flora’s heart eased a little.
Dylan took out an exquisite gold pen from his pocket, which shimmered with cold light, and wrote a series of numbers on her delicate thigh, “Take ten days to think it over and call me if you change your mind. I doubt it will take that long.”
Flora glanced at the numbers, even the digits seemed luxurious, and they were easy to memorize at a glance.
Just like last time, Dylan took out a wad of cash. However, this time, he didn’t stuff it into her underwear but between her closed legs.
Feeling the scorching temperature, Flora’s smiling face hid her gritted teeth. She wished she could slap him hard.
She had seen many lowly people, but never one like him.
Her hands, resting on her knees, clenched tightly.
Every time, she forced herself to smile and accept the tips from others.
She told herself: don’t be disgusted, don’t feel wronged. Flora, with a stomach that couldn’t be filled, no matter how bitter you felt, you had to swallow it. Money wasn’t a bad thing.
She took a deep breath, her throat tightening even more.
But this time was different now; she would have a new job tomorrow and could support herself.
Dylan got up and left the private room. Flora stared at his retreating figure, thinking that money indeed shaped one’s taste, which was undeniably true.
She then threw the money at Dylan’s retreating figure.
Back in the break room, Flora tidied herself up, changed into her clothes, and went home. Thinking about starting her new job tomorrow, her stifled mood improved for a bit.
Early the next morning, Flora grabbed her bag and rushed to catch the bus.
With her long hair tied up and dressed in simple attire—jeans, a light jacket—her face radiated a fresh glow. Gone was the seductive allure of the night, replaced with innocence.
Many commuters were on this morning bus. Flora looked at the address on the business card for a long time but finally found the location before nine o’clock.
It was a small office of about 20 square meters, with a few desks and computers inside.
Natalie was at the desk near the door, typing away, with a bag of milk in her mouth.
Seeing Flora, she quickly put down her work and greeted her. Then she said to someone, “Hey, let me introduce our new colleague, Flora.”
The one at the other desk headed up and smiled, “Hi, I’m Alex.”
There were only three people in the office, including Flora.
“Flora, you can sit here.” Natalie pulled out the seat next to her, “The other three have gone out on business.”
“Alright.” Flora began flipping through the materials on the desk to familiarize herself with the company.
The advantage of a startup was that everyone minded their own business, with no additional troubles.
Flora picked up this kind of work quickly. Plus, when in college, her design drafts had already participated in urban construction competitions and won awards.
Lunch was ordered takeout, and everyone gathered together, finally relaxing their tense nerves.
“I’m exhausted.” Natalie rubbed her sore back, her face filled with pain.
“You want to be a strong woman with this attitude?” Alex teased her, although he was also exhausted.
“Ah, who knew starting a business would be so difficult?” Natalie quickly ate a few bites of her meal, “I wonder if they got any orders.”
“I doubt it. The competition is fierce out there. Our small, just-started company, no, our little cute office, can’t have it that easy,” Alex said, picking up a nearby newspaper and glancing at it. “Look, family businesses are different. They don’t even have to worry; money is just handed to them.”
“What?” Natalie snatched the newspaper and looked at the guy on it, saying, “Whatever. I bet this guy won’t achieve anything. I mean, look at his eyes, they’re those every playboy would have. I tell what, this guy is going to ruin his family. He’s too handsome to be a big shot.”
Flora took a few bites and glanced at the newspaper. The man seemed familiar. However, upon closer inspection, she couldn’t help wondering on her mind, “Wasn’t he the ‘Mr. Bowles’ from Desire?”
After resting for a while, they went back to work. Flora picked up the newspaper, wrapped the distinguished face around her lunch leftovers, and threw it in the trash.
That made her feel a little more comforted.
“We’re back!” With a cheerful laughter, three young men entered the office.
Lucas, the one in front, went straight to Natalie’s desk and picked her up as soon as he entered.
“Luke, what are you doing?” Natalie feigned an angry look and threatened him with her fists.
“We got an order! It’s not that big, but if we succeed, we might make forty to fifty thousand,” Lucas said as he put her down and noticed Flora, “Who is she?”
“Flora, the new member I mentioned to you yesterday,” Natalie introduced her happily, “Luke, this is our first big order since the company started.”
“Finally, some motivation!” Alex, who had been working on something, joined the conversation.
“We only have five days. If we don’t win the bid, we’ll be celebrating for nothing,” Lucas grabbed a bottle of water from the table and took a big gulp.
“No problem, our startup will be victorious,” Natalie confidently made a victory sign with her fingers and grabbed Lucas’s bag.
“Is this the one?”
Lucas nodded and took the documents, “This is a real estate company’s project. Our job is to design an extraordinary advertising campaign in five days, a make-or-break situation.”
These young people had the energy to jump right into tasks and keep going nonstop.
Flora liked this feeling too, the feeling of giving her all.
She didn’t give up her job at Desire, though; and she hadn’t seen Dylan in these few days.
The boss behind the scenes didn’t give her any more trouble either.
Flora stood at the end of the corridor, looking towards the dance floor.
On the lifting stage, the pole dancers were dancing energetically. In front of them, on the wall facing the audience, the wall was carved with niches that resembled floating buildings, where girls in tube tops and short skirts freely expressed themselves.
Flora turned her gaze to the dance floor, where people who had been repressed during the day unleashed their energy with fervor.
Modern cities can be so suffocating. Sometimes, a place like Desire doesn’t seem so bad as it can temporarily alleviate worries.
Flora stood in the hallway, watching waves of people in the dance floor: the fallen, the pleasure-seekers, the escapers… Eventually, they would all return to their homes after the party was over.
“Whether their homes were warm and comfortable or cold and lonely…” Flora thought to herself and suddenly had a flash of inspiration.
The next day, Flora designed a set of beautiful and trendy renderings.
Everyone gathered around, happy and supportive, without excessive praise, but with timely affirmation.
Five days later, the bidding went unexpectedly smoothly, making the young entrepreneurs genuinely happy.
“Let’s celebrate tonight?” Natalie turned off her computer early and happily started rallying everyone.
“Sure,” Alex replied, busily organizing the documents on the table.
The other guys didn’t have any objections either. Flora checked her watch, and it seemed like they still had time.
Her shift at Desire didn’t start until 7 p.m.
“How about we go all out and enjoy ourselves at Desire?” Lucas suggested, getting a bit too close to Natalie, only to be immediately hit on the head with a pen.
“Desire? Please, fifty thousand dollars won’t even cover it. You’re such a rich kid.”
After some debate, they eventually chose the most affordable small restaurant for their celebration.
The restaurant was located in a bustling area, and although small, it was quite elegant.
Most importantly, it was close to Desire, so Flora wouldn’t have to rush to work.
The lively dinner took nearly an hour.
Flora hastily said goodbye to her friends and went to Desire.
As soon as she left the restaurant, she felt a cold wind flooded into her clothes. She quickly tightened her collar and dashed towards the street.
Moving too fast, she nearly stumbled when an expensive sports car stopped just beside her.
Flora looked displeased as the car door opened, and a man in a silver-white suit stepped out.
It was him again, Dylan.
