Chapter 3

Sterling Group was swamped with work, so Alexander headed to the office.

Sterling Manor was huge. After wandering around aimlessly for two hours, I finally settled on where I'd be staying from now on.

It turned out to be a storage room.

Actually, I'd planned to ask Thomas to put me in the servants' quarters.

But after looking around, I realized even the Sterling family's servants all lived in three-bedroom, one-living-room apartments.

Given my current status as the daughter of a farmer in a poor area, I figured the storage room was more my speed.

Thomas looked at me, his words catching in his throat. "Ms. Grant, well—"

Despite his confusion, he still went ahead and made the arrangements for me.

At 10 p.m., I got a call.

It was Andrew. He demanded, "Haven't you gotten the hell out of Riverside yet?"

I hung up coldly, yanked out the SIM card, and snapped it in half.

I would have to figure out how to get a new one tomorrow.

The sound of a car door opening and closing came from the manor courtyard.

I leaned over the railing. Alexander was back.

So I hurried back to my room, slipped into the freshly laundered clothes from earlier when I got caught in the rain, and, still in my slippers, obediently went downstairs to greet him.

"Welcome home, Mr. Sterling," I said.

A servant took Alexander's coat before I could do anything.

With nothing else to do, I could only resort to this method to get his attention.

Alexander shot me a glance and said, "I paid for a sugar baby, not a house greeter."

My lips twitched uncontrollably. Damn it. Was this bastard saying I was not good enough as his sugar baby? What the hell else did he want me to do?

Fine, I might be down on my luck.

But I still had a shred of dignity left.

Of course, all of that was just me screaming in my head. There was no way I could actually say any of it out loud.

Alexander was my sugar daddy.

I needed to know my limits, not push my luck.

I trailed behind Alexander and said, "Sorry, Mr. Sterling. I didn't do well enough. If you're not satisfied, you can dock it from my pay."

Alexander took a sip of water and nodded slightly. "How resourceful of you to negotiate benefits for yourself."

I was busted.

I stuck out my tongue awkwardly.

By mentioning docking it from my pay, I was proving I was a dignified working professional.

Rather than just being a sugar baby, this made my relationship with Alexander seem more equal.

After coming home, Alexander didn't bother telling me what he expected from me next.

But based on all those steamy web novels I had read, a sugar baby was definitely supposed to spend the night with her sugar daddy.

I happened to hear the sound of running water coming from the bathroom. Alexander was inside, taking a shower.

This only confirmed my suspicion.

He must be getting ready to enjoy me.

I smirked and caught sight of the white dress shirt Alexander had just taken off.

After a brief internal struggle, I swiftly ditched my frumpy clothes and slipped into Alexander's dress shirt.

This was the classic innocently alluring shirt, the third button undone, my fair neck peeking out. Honestly, I thought this was exactly the must-have look for any late-night romance novel heroine.

After changing, I scurried into Alexander's bedroom and burrowed under the covers to warm up his bed.

What a dutiful, obedient sugar baby I was.

I lay under the covers, my lips curling into a smug smirk, crooked enough to look like the Nike swoosh. I was feeling pretty pleased with myself.

This money was as good as mine.

Alexander emerged, his hair still dripping wet, wearing nothing but a towel slung low on his hips.

Under the dim bedside lamp, my eyes totally betrayed me. There was no hiding the conflicted desire in my gaze.

Oh my god.

Who knew Alexander wasn't just blessed with a godlike face, but also had a body sculpted by the gods?

I could practically feel my drool soaking into his sheets.

Not wanting to shortchange myself, I stopped hiding, threw off the covers, and made my grand entrance.

Alexander was startled by my sudden appearance.

Alexander narrowed his eyes. "Are you trying to please your patron, or scare him away?" he said.

Well, he really had a sharp tongue.

I put on my most coquettish act, batting my eyelashes. "It's our first night together. I just wanted to surprise you," I said.

Alexander snorted coldly, "All show."

I let my body go soft and threw myself right into Alexander's arms, making sure he could feel every bit of me.

And while I was at it, I couldn't resist sneaking in a few cheeky touches.

I had seen plenty of six-packs on those gigolos back in my nightclub days.

Now that I had touched Alexander, I realized just how starved I'd been before.

"I must've really been starving before," I blurted before I could stop myself.

Alexander froze for a moment. "Hungry, huh? What are you hungry for?"

I pouted, "Can I have you for dinner, Mr. Sterling?"

No sooner had the words left my mouth than Alexander abruptly shoved me away. "That'll cost you extra," he said coolly.

I whined dramatically, "No matter what it costs, doesn't it all come out of your pocket anyway?"

My little reminder seemed to finally jog Alexander's memory. He was the actual patron here.

"Get out. I'm going to bed," Alexander snapped, his face flushing with a mix of embarrassment and irritation.

Alexander shoved me to the door.

Still undeterred, I purred playfully, "Mr. Sterling, let's sleep together. You know you won't sleep soundly without me."

Only this time, the only response I got was the whoosh of air as the door slammed shut in my face.