Selene sat in the passenger seat, feeling completely out of place.
“This car…” she started, trailing off.
“Seven years ago, I bought it at a Christie’s auction,” Adrian replied. “To get it, I went all in–I set the ceiling bid.”
The so–called “ceiling bid” was auction lingo: no matter what anyone else offered, whoever set the ceiling would always outbid them. It meant the buyer was determined–nothing would stop them from taking home their prize.
The sports car, “Solarius,” had shattered global price records at that auction seven
years ago.
Selene smiled. “So, you were the one who bought it.”
She reached out and ran her hand along the car’s sleek frame, her touch lingering, full of nostalgia.
“You know this car is-” she began.
Adrian finished her sentence for her. “I know. You were Solarius’s very first owner.”
He didn’t just know–he’d once seen Selene behind the wheel, tearing up the racetrack, unstoppable. He remembered the moment she pulled off her helmet, her face alight with life and victory.
Nothing struck him more than her smile in that moment.
Adrian kept his eyes fixed on the gray sheets of rain ahead and asked quietly,
“Selene, do you still hold onto your dreams?”
Selene’s wide, dark eyes glistened, her damp fingers tracing the door of the Solarius
over and over.
She’d never imagined she’d see the Solarius again.
The days of racing seemed lost forever.
A soft whimper escaped her throat.
“I’ll earn the money to buy it back,” she whispered. “But I don’t know if Mr. Shaw would be willing to part with it?”
Adrian smiled. “I’ll be waiting for you.”
L1/3
10:23
When Selene arrived at the Shaw family estate, she barely bothered to wipe the rain from her coat. She sat straight down at the desk, opened her laptop, connected to the internet, and applied to resume the ALI Math Competition.
For the sake of fairness, the organizers sent her a different set of problems–a version B. She had to finish the new exam with whatever time remained.
Adrian leaned against the doorway, arms folded, watching from afar as Selene focused intently on the screen, her fingers flying over the keyboard.
In that moment, he couldn’t get enough of watching her.
Vaughn Enterprises Headquarters
“Mr. Vaughn, ma’am just left in Mr. Adrian’s car. She’s gone to the Shaw estate,” the secretary reported.
Harrison let out a bitter laugh. “Does she know we changed the code at Azure Vista Villas?”
The secretary nodded. “The property manager called–she told them to throw out her and Miss Daph’s things.”
Harrison scoffed. “Found herself a new place already, huh? Figures.”
Just then, his phone buzzed. He picked up, only to hear a strange man’s voice:
“Harrison, you’ve passed the first round for our Golden Radiance Club’s gentlemen’s escort division! With your looks and build, you can start taking clients tomorrow!”
A flush of anger shot straight to Harrison’s head; a vein pulsed at his temple.
“Do you have any idea who I am?”
The man on the other end clearly didn’t.
“Harrison, just come to Golden Radiance Club tonight. Thirty grand a month plus commission. By the way, you got pecs? Send me a few pics…”
Harrison slammed the phone down, exhaling frostily through his nose. He barked at his secretary, “Get me the owner of Golden Radiance Club–fire their entire HR department!”
But how did a club’s HR guy get his private number?
2/2
10-23
Chapter 49
Then it clicked–he’d only mentioned Golden Radiance Club recently, during a call with Selene.
She must’ve submitted his info as a résumé for the gentlemen’s escort division.
She was dancing on his last nerve.
Harrison pressed his hand to his forehead, his face thunderous.
Selene sat at the computer, typing furiously as dusk crept in.
At the preschool:
Daph sat quietly on her chair, backpack on, hands folded in her lap.
Other kids were being picked up one by one; she waved goodbye as their parents arrived.
Dames lounged beside her, slouched so far he was practically melting into his seat, legs stretched out.
“Why isn’t Flick here yet?!” he groaned.
