Chapter 5: A Stranger in the Dark
She remember in the Hallway how she stumbles toward the room number she thought the receptionist had whispered to her.
Her eyes blurred, heart pounding—half from alcohol, half from dread. She needed to escape. From her stepmother's smug smile. From Sophia's cruel manipulation. From the sickening idea that her body was some bargaining chip to be traded for a business contract.
She didn't go to that director's room.
She wasn't going to give herself to some man her family
She look at the man in front of her, how does he got here or she entered the wrong room.
Valerie didn't know this wasn't her assigned room. She didn't know fate had quietly rerouted her path.
"So, you choose me." The man voice came pushing her out of her reverie. Well this man is handsome, the man that his cologne drives her crazy when he passed the bar.
She even want to come devour him and give her innocence to him for free.
The heels she is holding, she let them fall to the floor. The carpet was warm beneath her bare feet. Her body was burning up from all the wine and shame and exhaustion. Without thinking, she began to strip—pulling her dress over her head and letting it crumple to the floor beside her.
"Too hot…" she mumbled, wandering toward the bathroom in nothing but her black lace underwear.
She never made it.
The bathroom door is opened.
King block her from entering the bathroom.
Steam billowed around the tall figure, who stepped into in the front with a towel slung around his waist, water glistening on his sculpted chest. His hair was damp, his jawline sharp, and his eyes—those dark, brooding eyes—froze her where she stood.
Both of them stared.
For a moment, time fractured.
Then he spoke. "Why are you here again?"
Valerie blinked. "I… I thought this was my room…"
King Albanian stiffened. This again.
Was she another one?
Had Kwok sent her, too? Another test. Another woman to humiliate him. To confirm whether the damage done to his body years ago was still irreversible. Another pawn.
His voice dropped, dangerous and cold. "Get out."
Valerie didn't move.
She was dazed—not just from alcohol but from the sight of him. Not lustful, not calculating. Just… stunned.
"You're beautiful," she whispered.
King's brow furrowed. No one had said that to him—not with honesty—for years.
"You're not supposed to be here," he said tightly.
She looked down at herself. Half-naked. Alone. Drunk.
And he… wasn't attacking. Wasn't smirking or leering. He looked… guarded. Almost offended.
"I needed a place to forget," she said. "I couldn't go to the room they booked for me. I couldn't be what they wanted."
"What do they want?" he asked, not even knowing why he cared.
She gave a bitter laugh. "To sell me off like some signature bonus. They want me to give myself to a man I don't even know. For a deal."
His fists clenched. That sounded too familiar. That kind of filth ran deep in his world.
"I didn't come here for you," she added quickly, stepping back. "But now that I'm here… can I just… stay? Just for a while. I won't touch you."
King opened his mouth, then closed it again. The room felt warmer somehow. Her presence wasn't seductive. It was… calming.
Then she did something odd.
She reached into her small purse, fumbling until she pulled out a tiny, black velvet pouch.
"You look tense," she slurred. "Let me give you something. It helps with… sleep. I made it."
Before he could stop her, she pressed the pinch of herbs against his lips and smiled. "Taste it."
He inhaled, involuntarily. Earthy. Warm. Something herbal. And strangely… familiar.
"What did you—?"
"It's not poison," she said, yawning. "It helps calm the body… and the mind."
His body feels off, off. He has never felt like a Man for two years. He was declare impotent and has not felt like this since then.
She dropped onto the bed beside him. Her head rested against his shoulder.
His muscles tensed, but… didn't move away.
Then she spotted it.
A silver bracelet, thin and elegant, on his wrist.
"Beautiful," she whispered, her fingers tracing the engraved crest. "This doesn't suit you. It suits someone softer…"
And she unhooked it.
Slid it into her palm.
He didn't stop her.
She shifted again, her breath brushing his cheek. And then, just as he looked down—
She kissed him.
Softly.
No hunger. No manipulation.
Just a soft, grateful kiss.
"Thank you… for being real," she murmured.
Then her eyes fluttered shut, her body going limp beside him.
---
King Albanian lay still.
He stared at the ceiling.
He can feel his body responding to this woman scent.
She was asleep—truly asleep. For once, not a single game, no agenda. Just a woman who needed a place to fall asleep.
And the oddest thing happened.
He fell asleep too.
No insomnia. No restlessness.
Just silence.
The herb had worked. Or maybe it was her.
He hadn't slept a full night in seven years.
---
Morning.
He awoke to warmth.
The space beside him… was empty.
The bracelet was gone.
And a faint scent of her lingered on the pillow.
His heartbeat echoed in his ears.
"Who the hell was she?"
---
Next Chapter Tease (Chapter 6):
Valerie wakes in a hallway, half-dressed, hungover, and clutching a silver bracelet she doesn't remember stealing. As fragments of the night come back, she realizes something's changed — not just in her, but in the man she left behind. Meanwhile, King orders his secretary Wayne to track down everything about the mystery woman who didn't try to seduce him… but still managed to break him open.