Chapter Three: The Test.

A loud explosion tore through the room.

Leila jerked awake so violently that her entire body slammed against the mattress before she even understood where she was.

Her chest rose sharply.

Another explosion blasted through the suite.

Her pulse nearly stopped.

Then she realized it wasn't real.

The massive television mounted across the room flashed bright red numbers.

10:00 A.M.

The sound was the alarm.

Leila stared at the television in disbelief.

“What kind of maniac uses bomb sounds as an alarm?” she muttered breathlessly.

Only one man came to mind immediately.

Zane Rogers.

The memory of last night crashed back into her instantly.

Leila sat up slowly and pressed a hand against her forehead.

For a second, she almost convinced herself none of it had happened.

Then she looked around the luxurious suite again.

Reality settled heavily inside her chest.

This was real.

Every terrifying part of it.

Leila pushed herself off the bed and walked toward the large glass windows to get some fresh air.

The second she pulled the curtains aside, her stomach tightened.

A black SUV was already waiting downstairs.

One of Zane's bodyguards stood beside it, dressed in an all-black suit with his hands folded behind him like he had been standing there for hours.

Waiting for her.

Leila closed her eyes briefly.

“Damn it.”

She was late.

Very late.

The thought of keeping Zane Rogers waiting sent unease crawling through her instantly.

Leila rushed toward the bathroom.

Twenty minutes later, steam still lingered faintly against the mirrors as she stepped out, dressed and fixing her earrings.

She kept her makeup light.

She wasn't trying to look rich.

She wasn't rich.

And pretending otherwise felt stupid.

She settled for her fitted blue bum short with made her perfect bum cleavage speak for itself, white sneakers, and a soft beige long-sleeve crop top that hugged her figure just enough without looking overly intentional.

Just simple 

Leila stared at herself one last time in the mirror.

“You can survive this,” she whispered quietly.

Though she wasn't sure, she believed it.

Minutes later, she hurried downstairs.

The bodyguard opened the backseat door for her without a word.

Leila entered quickly.

The ride was silent.

Uncomfortably silent.

Chicago blurred past the tinted windows while her mind replayed every dangerous thing that had happened within the last twenty-four hours.

The kidnapping, the murder 

Zane.

Especially Zane and His unbelievable offer.

Nothing about him made sense to her.

A man capable of taking a life and looking completely calm while doing it.

Is he that inhumane?

He says he wants to stop trafficking and laundering, yet he kills people without hesitation 

Is the mission actually what he told me it is?

Leila was still in her thoughts when the SUV finally slowed before pulling into another section of the massive building.

Leila barely had time to steady herself before the bodyguard beside her opened the door.

“This way.”

She followed him through another long hallway.

Her heartbeat grew heavier with every step.

The bodyguard pushed open the final door.

Leila stepped inside.

The room was enormous.

Floor-to-ceiling windows stretched across the walls, overlooking the city below.

And there he was.

Zane Rogers sat with his back partially turned toward them in a black rotating chair near the windows.

One arm rested lazily against the armrest, composed.

The moment the door opened, the chair slowly rotated.

Zane turned toward them.

Everything happened in less than two seconds.

The gun appeared first.

Then the shot exploded through the room.

Leila flinched violently as the hot bullet tore through the air beside her.

The bodyguard behind her cried out in pain as the first shot found his right chest.

Before her brain could fully process what had happened

 The second shot grazed his ear, flew past him and buried itself in the wall behind him.

Leila could feel cold sweat leave her thighs as the bodyguard dropped instantly to the floor, shaking in terror 

The sound still rang violently inside her ears.

The metallic scent of blood spread through the room almost immediately.

“Oh my God”, she whispered, as her breathing turned uneven.

Zane stood slowly from his chair.

“He was late,” Zane said coldly.

The words snapped something inside her.

“It wasn't his fault!”

The sentence escaped before she could stop herself.

Zane's eyes shifted toward her slowly.

The temperature in the room seemed to drop instantly.

Leila swallowed hard but forced herself to continue.

“I was the one running late,” she said quickly. “He came for me on time. I just needed extra time to get ready.”

The room fell silent.

One of the other guards moved nervously near the door.

Zane just kept staring at her.

Not blinking.

Leila suddenly became painfully aware of who exactly she was talking to.

Then one of the remaining guards quickly dropped to his knees.

“Lord Rogers, we're sorry,” he said immediately. “The delay was not intentional.”

Zane didn't even look at him.

Instead, he raised one hand lazily.

The guards instantly moved.

Two men dragged their colleague out of the room while another cleaned the blood with terrifying efficiency.

Within less than a minute, it was like the shooting had never happened.

Except for the blood still pounding violently inside Leila's ears.

Soon, only she and Zane remained.

The silence became unbearable.

Then Zane started walking toward her.

Slow.

Measured.

Controlled.

Leila fought the instinct to step back.

“You defended him,” he said.

She tried to steady her breathing.

“He didn't deserve to die for that.”

Zane stopped directly in front of her.

“You're in no position to decide what people deserve.”

He said that with a mischievous smirk, looking straight at Leila’s eyes.

The words hit hard.

Leila clenched her jaw.

Then something stubborn rose inside her.

No.

She refused to let this man reduce her to fear every single second.

If she was going to survive around him, then she needed control somewhere.

Any control.

Leila lifted her chin slightly.

“You wanted to test me, right?”

One of Zane's brows lifted faintly.

Leila carefully stepped closer to Zane.

Inside, her heart was beating so hard it almost hurt.

Three seconds into it, she tripped and fell face-first on the floor 

Seconds later,

She felt her cheeks burn red as she looked up, only to see Zane backing her and his shoulder doing something that looked like he was laughing at her.

The self-embarrassment made her butt muscles stiffer by the second–

Yet she forced confidence into her expression, stood up and approached him again.

This wasn't new to her.

Men were easy to get and lost focus easily 

She knew this game.

Or at least she thought she did.

Leila slowly reached for his shoulders from behind, letting her fingers brush lightly against the fabric of his suit.

Zane stayed completely still.

That alone unsettled her.

She moved around him carefully until she stood directly in front of him.

Close enough now to notice the sharpness of his jaw.

The faint shadow of exhaustion beneath his eyes.

The height difference between them suddenly felt more obvious standing this close.

Leila placed one hand lightly against his chest.

Still nothing.

No reaction.

No movement.

That somehow made her more nervous.

She leaned closer.

Her fingers slid slowly upward toward the back of his neck.

His gaze remained fixed on her face.

Cold.

Leila swallowed once before brushing her lips softly against the side of his neck.

For the first time, Zane moved.

One hand slid slowly upward from her waist.

The movement sent heat rushing unexpectedly through her body.

His fingers tightened slightly against her side.

Leila's breathing caught.

Then—

He stepped away.

Just like that.

The loss of contact hit harder than she expected.

Leila looked up at him, confused.

“Isn't this what you wanted?”

A quiet scoff left him.

Not amused.

Disappointed.

“You think seduction means throwing yourself at a man carelessly?”

Heat flooded her cheeks instantly.

Zane adjusted the sleeve of his watch calmly.

“If you behave like this at the ball, Thomas Veil will identify you as bait within seconds.”

The humiliation landed sharply inside her chest.

“I wasn't—”

“You were.”

His voice stayed calm.

Which somehow made it worse.

“You're trying too hard.”

Leila felt her face burn hotter.

Oh God.

This was humiliating".

Zane studied her silently for a second before continuing.

“I don't need a prostitute beside me at that event.”

The words hit like a slap.

Leila immediately stepped back from him.

Anger flashed through her embarrassment.

“You don't know anything about me.”

“No,” he agreed calmly. “But I know the performance when I see it.”

“Shut the fuck up, you stupid moron, you think you can ride on me as you want, go to hell for all I care – I quit ”

That was exactly what she wanted to let off her lips.

But his right tho–

And she hated that part of her knew he was right.

She had panicked.

Tried too hard.

And embarrassed herself in the process.

A faint sound escaped Zane then.

Brief, almost silent,

But unmistakably a laugh.

Leila wanted the floor to open and swallow her whole.

Zane checked his watch.

"Enough training for today."

She frowned immediately.

"What?"

"We're leaving."

Leila blinked.

"Where?"

"The mall.”You'll need a dress for the ball.”

“I can choose my own dress.”

“No.”

The answer came instantly.

Leila crossed her arms.

“Yes, actually, I can.”

Zane finally looked at her again.

“There will be a tracking device inside the dress.”

She froze.

“A what?”

He didn't even look her way.

Leila stared at him.

“Are you serious?”

He said nothing.

Zane pressed a button on the desk.

Several guards entered immediately.

“Prepare the car.”

The men nodded and disappeared again.

Leila shook her head slowly.

“No one talks to people the way you do.”

One of the guards standing close to the door visibly stiffened at her words.

As if waiting for punishment.

But surprisingly _

Zane only stared at her for a long second.

Then the corner of his mouth shifted very slightly.

Not a smile.

Something dangerously close to interest.

“Hmm –” he said.

Then he walked past her toward the door.

Leila stood there for a moment before following behind him.

And somewhere deep inside her chest, beneath the fear and humiliation and confusion—

something else was beginning to grow.

Something she knew was dangerous.

Curiosity.