MK Hotel.

Autumn Sinclair hesitated for a second, then clenched her teeth and walked toward the presidential suite with the door left slightly ajar.

She was here today to find her fiancé, Ethan Whitmore.

With a soft click, the door opened.

The room was dim, but not so dark that she couldn’t make out the man inside. He was tall and solidly built, with broad shoulders, a lean waist, and long powerful limbs. Tight muscles covered his body, like he was pure walking testosterone.

“Ethan…” Autumn called softly, a little unsure.

The figure by the bed froze for a beat. Then a cold, razor-sharp voice spat out one word. “Get out…”

That voice was thick with hostility, every syllable carrying a terrifying edge, like it could cut someone open on the spot.

Autumn shivered hard.

That voice…

Way too scary!!!

For a split second, she almost turned and ran without looking back. But the moment she remembered why she had come, she forced that panic down.

“I’m not leaving…” Autumn pressed her lips together, stubborn to the bone.

Right now, she had no room to back off.

The man immediately took out his phone and made a call. “Mr. Calloway…”

Crap. He was calling someone to throw her out.

At once, Autumn thought of Leo…

No.

For Leo, she absolutely could not leave!

With that thought, Autumn instantly threw away every bit of a woman’s restraint and pride. Gritting her teeth, she rushed forward and wrapped her arms around the man. “No matter what you say, I’m not leaving tonight!”

The man’s body went rigid, like he’d actually been caught off guard.

Then, like he’d just stumbled on something unbelievable, he turned around and faced Autumn Sinclair.

The next second, a pair of long, well-defined hands locked around her waist.

"You said that yourself..." The man’s breath was hot against her face, low and dangerous.

Autumn looked up, and under the pale moonlight spilling in through the window, a face so stunning it felt almost unreal came into focus in her eyes.

Her pupils shrank instantly. Her whole mind snapped awake.

He... he wasn’t...

He wasn’t Ethan Whitmore, the man she was engaged to!

He was Ethan Whitmore’s uncle, Victor Whitmore!!!

Victor Whitmore was the president of the Whitmore Group, the uncrowned king of A City. He was only twenty-seven, ridiculously young, absurdly handsome, and for five straight years he had basically been every woman’s dream husband. If you asked around, there probably wasn’t a woman alive who wouldn’t want to marry Victor Whitmore.

But the rumors around him were terrifying.

People said Victor Whitmore despised women to the core. No woman was allowed within three meters of him. Any woman who dared get close, throw herself at him, or try to seduce him would vanish without a trace.

No body. No person. Nothing.

How could it be him?

This room was obviously supposed to be Ethan Whitmore’s.

"M-Mr. Whitmore, you..." Autumn’s eyes went wide, her voice trembling.

"It’s me." The man curled his lips into a dark, wicked smile.

...

No one knew how much time had passed.

When Autumn finally woke up again, every inch of her body ached like she’d been run over.

She opened her eyes and realized the person beside her was already gone.

But she could clearly hear the sound of running water coming from the bathroom, and almost on instinct, she turned to look in that direction.

The bathroom door hadn’t been shut all the way. Through the gap, she could vaguely make out the man’s body—perfect proportions, the kind of build that could make an international supermodel look average.

But Autumn Sinclair had zero mood to admire any of it.

The second it hit her that she’d mistaken the person and walked into the wrong room, her scalp practically went numb with stress.

What was she supposed to do now?

Her thoughts were a total mess. She had no idea how to face Victor Whitmore.

She didn’t even dare imagine what would happen if her fiancé, Ethan Whitmore, found out about this...

Even though she never truly wanted to marry Ethan, right now, he was still the only lifeline she had.

He absolutely could not know.

The moment that thought landed, Autumn hurriedly grabbed her clothes and threw them on, moving as fast as she could, desperate to get out of the hotel before things got even worse.

But to her shock, she had only just finished dressing. She had barely crept to the door, hand almost reaching the handle, when a cold, dangerously charming male voice came from behind her.

"So you’re just leaving like that?"

Victor Whitmore’s voice made her freeze on the spot.

If she didn’t leave, then what?

With someone like Victor Whitmore, was she seriously supposed to ask him to take responsibility?

Autumn’s mind was in complete chaos. For a moment, she genuinely didn’t know how to react.

While she was still struggling to think, Victor spoke again.

"You did sleep with me just now..."

Autumn went speechless.

If anyone had gotten the short end of the stick here, it was obviously her.

She bit down hard on her lip. She knew she couldn’t just bolt like this. No matter what, something like this had to be made clear.

She had to talk to Victor Whitmore and settle this properly. Otherwise, if what had just happened got out—if a third person other than her and Victor Whitmore found out—it would be a complete disaster.

"Mr. Whitmore, I..." Autumn Sinclair turned around and had barely opened her mouth when she slammed straight into the man's solid chest.

"Mm... that hurts..."

She seriously had not expected Victor Whitmore to be standing that close.

The impact was so hard it felt like the bridge of her nose was about to snap.

Autumn was annoyed, really annoyed, but she didn't dare lose her temper at him.

Covering her nose, she forced herself to speak. "Mr. Whitmore, you know very well what kind of relationship I have with Ethan. What just happened was an accident. I won't hold onto it, and I hope you won't tell anyone either."

After summoning all her courage to get that out, Autumn immediately tried to slip away.

But before she could leave, a large hand with distinct knuckles shot out and locked around her arm.

Autumn jumped in fright and instantly struggled. "Mr. Whitmore, what are you doing?"

Victor let out a cold laugh. In one move, he caught her flailing hand and pinned her against the wall behind her. "You don't actually think you can provoke me and still walk away like nothing happened, do you?"

Autumn couldn't break free from Victor's iron grip. At that moment, she knew this mess was not going to end nicely.

Her eyes turned red with grievance as she said softly, "Then... what do you want? I... I really didn't mean to. I wasn't doing it on purpose..."

"What I want..." Victor stared at her, his voice low and forceful. "Is for you to be my woman!"

"I..." Autumn froze in shock.

What had just happened was only an accident. How could she possibly...

How could she agree to something like that?

"If you refuse, I still have ways to make you say yes." Victor spoke slowly, unhurried, as if he already had everything under control.

Autumn looked at the man in front of her, so cold, so ruthless, so impossible to reason with, and her heart dropped.

He wasn't joking.

If she didn't agree...

No.

For Leo’s sake, she couldn’t afford to lose this bet. Not even a little.

"Fine, I’ll do it, but..." Autumn Sinclair paused, her fingers curling tight at her side before she forced the words out. "Three months. That’s the most I can give you."

Three months.

She had to save enough money within those three months, no matter what.

By then, even if Ethan Whitmore found out, it wouldn’t have anything to do with her anymore.

"Alright..." Victor Whitmore agreed without hesitation.

Whether it was now or three months later, he was absolutely sure of one thing: Autumn Sinclair would never be able to slip out of his grasp.

The deal was made.

Autumn looked at him, her voice tense but trying to sound steady. "Now you can let go of me, right?"

Victor’s lips curved up slightly, that lazy, dangerous smile flashing in his eyes.

"I need to check the goods first..."