THE BILLIONAIRE'S REVENGE: RUTHLESS REDEMPTION

ARI'S POINT OF VIEW

He was moving.

Through the crowd. Past the swaying bodies and neon haze. Coming right at me.

My stomach dropped. “Oh my God. Wendy… this guy—”

I turned, expecting her smug grin, but the seat next to me was empty. She’d vanished. Seriously? Now?

I swallowed hard, forcing my shoulders back as his shadow fell over me. “That’s… uh… that’s my friend’s seat.”

He didn’t even glance at it. Instead, his voice came low, smooth, almost teasing. “Then I’ll borrow it until she comes back.”

Before I could protest, he slid onto the stool, a presence too big, too magnetic, filling the space. The bartender, apparently in on the betrayal, set a fresh glass in front of him like it had been waiting.

He raised it slowly, eyes never leaving mine. “So…” He tipped his chin toward the dance floor, where the crowd pulsed to the beat. “You’re just gonna sit here all night? No dancing?”

The question was casual, but there was an edge in his tone—like he already knew I wasn’t the type to play along, and he wanted to see if I’d surprise him.

I blinked at him, trying to gather my words, but the alcohol was buzzing too loud in my head. “Dance? What, with a stranger?”

His lips tugged into something halfway between a smirk and a challenge. “Stranger, huh? I guess no one warned you that strangers are more fun.”

I laughed despite myself, covering my face with my hand. “Wow. That’s your line?”

He leaned in, close enough for his cologne to tangle with the alcohol fog around me. “You want me to use a better one?”

I rolled my eyes, but my lips twitched. God help me, he was charming. “Depends. Do you have better ones?”

He didn’t miss a beat. “I own Meyer Enterprises. That’s better, right?”

The name slammed into me like ice water. Even through the haze, I knew that name. Derek had cursed it enough times, pacing our bedroom, spitting venom about his “snake of a competitor.”

Meyer Enterprises. Adrian Meyer.

I stared, heartbeat stumbling. My drunk brain wanted to laugh at the irony, the ridiculous cosmic joke of it all. My husband’s rival. Sitting inches away from me, watching me like I was the most interesting thing in the room.

“Interesting,” I murmured, leaning back in my seat, trying to mask the sudden spark inside me. “Very interesting.”

“So…” I dragged the word out, tilting my glass toward him. “Meyer Enterprises, huh? That’s… big. What’s it like being you?”

He smirked, sipping his drink like it was water. “Dangerous question. I might tell you, and then you’ll never look at me the same.”

I leaned in, curiosity outweighing sense. “Try me.”

His gaze flickered over my face, too sharp for comfort. “How about you? What’s your name? Or should I just call you… mysterious stranger?”

I hesitated, biting down on my lip. Introduce yourself, Ari. Don’t overthink it. He doesn’t need to know.

“Ariette,” I finally said, my voice steadier than I felt.

“Ariette.” He repeated it slowly, like he was tasting it. “Beautiful name.”

Something fluttered in my chest, but I quickly masked it by tossing another question his way. “So why’s the big CEO sitting here, poking at strangers in bars?”

For the first time, his smirk faltered, just a little. “Because I’m freshly single. Girlfriend’s out of the picture.” He shrugged, casual but not really. “Guess heartbreak makes you thirsty. What about you? What’s your excuse?”

The truth burned in my throat, but I forced a laugh, shaking my head. “Guess we’re in the same boat then.”

He studied me, too closely, like he could peel me open with his eyes. My head throbbed from the alcohol, but I couldn’t look away. For a moment, it felt like the world shrank—just his eyes, my pulse, and the loud ache between us neither of us wanted to name.

One second, we were staring. The next, his lips crashed against mine. It wasn’t gentle—it was fire and hunger, sharp enough to drown the ache inside me.

I gasped against his mouth, fingers curling into his jacket, and before I even knew what I was doing, the words slipped out in a whisper against his lips. “Let’s find a room.”

His eyes darkened, a flicker of surprise and heat crossing them, but he didn’t hesitate. His hand slid to mine, firm and commanding, and he pulled me through the crowd like the rest of the world no longer existed.

The door shut behind us with a heavy click. I barely had time to breathe before his mouth was on mine again, harder, deeper. My head throbbed from the alcohol, but my body didn’t care—it wanted this, wanted him.

His hands were everywhere—tugging at the straps of my dress, brushing over my skin with reckless urgency. My fingers fumbled at his shirt, desperate to feel more, to forget more. The taste of whiskey lingered between us as he pressed me against the wall, stripping away every piece of hesitation with every kiss.

His lips trailed down my neck, hot and urgent, and my head slammed back against the wall with a soft thud. My breath came out in shaky gasps, every nerve in my body alive as his hands roamed like he already owned every inch of me.

The room spun—maybe from the alcohol, maybe from him—but I didn’t care. I didn’t want to care. My husband had thrown me away, my kids had chosen someone else, and here I was—choosing this.

I clung to him, nails dragging down his back as he lifted me effortlessly, my legs wrapping around his waist like it was the most natural thing in the world. His mouth claimed mine again, hard and desperate, while his body pressed into mine with an urgency that burned away every thought.

Clothes fell away—his shirt first, my dress slipping down in a rush, his hands skimming my bare skin like he was memorizing me. I moaned against his mouth, lost in the rhythm of his touch, the heat of his breath, the way he whispered my name like it already meant something.

And when he finally sank into me, the world disappeared. There was no Derek, no betrayal, no divorce papers—just the rough, relentless pace of his body against mine, the tangled sheets beneath us, the heat building until it consumed us both.

My thoughts blurred into nothing but sensation—his hands gripping my hips, his mouth devouring every sound I made, the way we moved together like we had been waiting for this moment all our lives. I felt alive, raw, wanted. For the first time in forever, I wasn’t invisible.

And the rest… the rest, as they say, was history.