Alex extended her hand with a polite smile. "Nice to meet you, Miss Leone."
Sierra barely spared it a glance before wrinkling her nose in distaste. "Oh, I don't shake hands with strangers."
Alex fought the urge to scoff, smoothly withdrawing her hand as if the rejection didn't faze her. She had dealt with people like this before—arrogant, entitled, and not worth her time. Just like that, any desire to work with Sierra vanished.
She valued her dignity too much to tolerate blatant disrespect.
Catching Lauren's subtle glance urging patience, Alex took a steady breath and forced a polite smile. "You're getting married?"
"Yes," Sierra gushed, her voice an octave higher with excitement. "My engagement with the CEO of Saintclaire Corporation is coming up soon, and it's going to be the event of the year." Then, her gaze flickered over Alex, skepticism clear in her eyes. "Though, I doubt someone like you could handle something of that scale."
"She handled this birthday party well. You complimented it yourself." Lauren rushed to Alex's defense. Turning to Alex, she explained, "Sierra is a family friend. The Saintclaires extended a marriage proposal to her, and the engagement is set for next month. She needs an event planner urgently."
Sierra's lips curled into a smug smile. "Lauren, I'm sure my fiancé's family will handle it. After all, they were the ones who proposed the marriage. I'm certain they'll find someone more suitable and up to par."
Lauren's face fell at the subtle jab. The only reason she introduced Sierra to Alex was for Sierra's own good.
Alex was quickly losing patience.
Now, she remembered where she had seen Sierra before. She was a top model and the only daughter of the Leone Corporation, a powerhouse in the fashion industry. Her face was in every magazine cover.
As the youngest in her family, Sierra was spoiled endlessly by her father and brother. Her reputation for being difficult was well known.
Alex wasn't one to keep up with celebrity gossip, she left that to Willa. That was why she hadn't recognized Sierra right away.
She almost felt sorry for the poor man marrying this entitled princess. She didn't know who Mr. Saintclaire was, but she silently wished him strength.
"Well, best of luck with your engagement." Alex kept her tone polite, though it took effort. Turning to Lauren, she said with a smile, "I need to check on the catering and make sure everything is running smoothly."
Lauren gave her an apologetic smile and nodded.
Wasting no more time, Alex walked away, greeting guests as she passed. But when she reached the registration booth, she was taken aback by the dozens of women crowding the stand.
As she drew closer, she realized that all the women were flocking around Julian, who looked visibly uncomfortable and on the verge of losing his patience. Without hesitation, she rushed to his side.
"Is there something I can help you with, ladies?" she asked smoothly.
One of the girls turned to her with a bright smile. "Oh! You must be the event planner! My birthday is coming up. Can you plan it? Bring your assistant along."
"Mine too!" another chimed in.
"Can you plan my mom's fourth wedding?"
"My step-cousin's engagement?"
Alex's eyes sparkled with excitement. She turned to Julian, who looked completely bewildered, and barely suppressed a grin. She couldn't believe her luck—she had stumbled upon a gold mine. He was her lucky charm.
***
"Stay still. This will only take a moment."
"Come any closer, and I'll push you off the couch."
"I'm doing this for your own good." Alex groaned, struggling to aim her camera at Julian as he kept turning his face away.
"My good? You're trying to take advantage of me." Julian shot back, glaring at her, making her freeze.
Well… he wasn't wrong. She was trying to take advantage of him, but for a good cause.
Today proved that his face could attract a lot of customers. If she made an ad for her business with him, it was bound to be a hit.
If her business thrived, she'd have more money to take care of them.
The party had been a massive success, and she was overwhelmed by the sheer number of compliments she received. Now, she was fully booked with events, and she couldn't be happier.
"What if I told you this was for a missing person poster?" she added, hoping to convince him. "I could paste it all over town and see if anyone recognizes you."
Julian scoffed and slapped the phone away. "Nice try, but no," he said. "Instead, let's discuss how you ran me over."
Sighing, she set her phone on the armrest and folded her arms, carefully choosing her words. "You're right. The night of the accident, I found out my boyfriend had been cheating on me. Turns out, our entire relationship was just a bet. Sleep with me, and he'd get a Lamborghini in return."
She paused, searching his face for a reaction, but Julian only stared at her, expression unreadable.
"I was furious," she continued. "I stole his keys, planning to crash the car just to spite him. But I lost control, and you… you came out of nowhere. It was dark, and I hit you instead. I'm sorry."
Silence settled in the room. Alex tried to hide the pain in her eyes. Her gaze flickered toward Julian, whose intense stare burned into her.
Blinking away the sting of tears, she forced a small, bitter smile. "But I'm over it now."
"I'm sorry. You didn't deserve that," Julian finally spoke. "He sounds like a shitty person."
"He is," she admitted with a short laugh. "I can't believe I wasted two years on him."
Julian smirked. "Did my body do much damage to the car?"
"You left a small crack on the windshield. I had to finish the job myself," she said, chuckling.
"Really? Not even a dent? I guess I need to hit the gym," he teased, flexing his muscles.
Alex couldn't help it—she threw her head back in genuine laughter. It was the first time in days she had laughed so freely, and for a moment, she felt lighter.
Julian watched her, his smile softening. "I didn't know you could laugh."
"Of course I can laugh. Your recklessness has just been the source of my stress," she shot back playfully. "Which brings me back to the matter at hand."
She grabbed her phone and stood on the couch for a better angle. "Say cheese."
Before she could take the picture, Julian lunged at her, snatching the phone from her grip. The sudden movement threw her off balance, and she yelped as she tumbled forward.
Just before she hit the ground, muscular arms caught her, pulling her against a firm chest. She squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for impact, but the fall never came.
Slowly, she opened her eyes, and they widened when she found herself inches from Julian's face. His blue eyes locked onto hers, dark and intense.
Their faces were so close that if one of them shifted slightly, their lips would touch.
Her whole body was pressed flush against his. Heat crept up her neck from being close to his handsome face.
"I-I…" she stammered, her mind scrambling for words as she squirmed in his grip.
"Don't move," he murmured, his voice low and rough.
Something about the way he said it made her freeze. Her brows furrowed. "Why—"
She paused when she felt something poking at her stomach.
Her eyes widened in horror, and with a sharp gasp, she shrieked, "AH!" and shoved him away.
Thrown off balance, she tumbled onto the floor with a thud. Scrambling to her feet, her face burning, she bolted toward her room without looking back.
Julian ran a hand down his face, exhaling sharply.
"Shit."