Dafney's POV.
I woke up with a headache and next to a stranger.
The ceiling above was smooth, high, and probably hand-painted. Most importantly, I didn't recognize it. The second thing I noticed was the arm hung across my waist like it belonged there. warm; heavy, unfamiliar. And that was when the third most horrifying realization hit; I was very, very naked.
"shit"
I made the mistake of standing up too fast and nearly blanked out. The arm slipped away as I scrambled for the sheets, stepping on a suspiciously expensive pair of men's shoes in the process. My dress was on the floor, my heels were halfway across the room, and my underwear - well, it had apparently fled the scene.
Behind me the man stirred. Golden-skinned, dark hair, muscles built like a Greek god. way above my league.
I didn't wait to see if he had woken up.
I quickly grabbed my dress, and in the most ungraceful way known to woman shoved myself into it, found my purse under a crystal table, and tiptoed out of the suite like a thief in heels. uh and also there was a chandelier in the fricking bathroom - how normal.
This wasn't me, i didn't do things like this, but then again this hadn't exactly been a normal week. It started forty-eight hours ago with a text.
My fiance dumped me via text message. After five years and a few months of wedding planning, i got a text message that read:
"Daf, I think we're on diffllerent paths. the problem is not you, it's me. I need space to figure things out. Also am taking the kettle"
I stared blankly at it for a full minute before my brain rebooted. Then I cried and after a while of thinking I laughed . And then I seriously thought about setting the couch on fire.
And as if the universe wasn't done spitting on my face, my boss laid me off the next day, Budget-cuts he said. if the earth had opened up and swallowed me at that moment then it would have been a favour.
And there i sat - in my favorite grief hoodie, sitting on the floor halfway through a pint of ice cream when Cassarae blew into my apartment on heels while dressed lavishly
she didn't knock before entering - she never did
"oh hell no gurl" she said, holding two iced lattes and a bottle of tequila. "you're not crying over a man who dumped you with the stupidest excuse ever heard and then stole your kitchenware."
" I'm not not crying," I mumbled. " I'm ... dissociating."
" Well, dissociate into this dress, whatever that means,"she said, yanking open my closet. "put this on we're going out, i hope you know when you called me here i wasn't coming here to grief with you right?"
"Cass, I just got dumped and fired" I said, trying to feign annoyance.
"Exactly. two funerals that means double the drinks , time for a resurrection. club, music, dance, and make bad decisions. You know? - The therapy you can afford.
...
The club turned out to be not what I expected at all .
No chaotic movements, sweaty bodies or music that shook the floors. Instead Everyone reeked of luxury, self importance and old money. I shot Cassarea a glance that asked "can we even afford to breathe here?"
But that was the least of my problems because after three drinks in, I had already accepted the reality that making some bad decision tonight was inevitable and that was when cass elbowed me so hard I nearly baptized my heels in vomit.
"two o'clock.." she hissed. "'that man"
I turned.
He was in a booth that looked like it belonged to royalty- dark suit, sipping something that probably cost more than my student loans. He looked like the kind of man that wrote checks with roman numerals.
cassarea's eyes sparkled."Tell me am wrong''
"you don't even know him" i said
" Rich, I am telling you. Dangerously rich" she said. " he's giving 'owns-chains-of-hotel' energy. He has to have at least one or two jets. probably an island named after his dead dog. She said with enthusiasm.
"He looks older" i said
" 37 max, " she said. " that is still within the hottest rich dating bracket, that's a blessing in this economy."
i gave her a look ,"i'm not sleeping with some random dude for some brunch money"
"I'm just saying - temporary income replacement. Smile. Flirt. pretend you understand how the stock market works."
I rolled my eyes. She grinned and shoved me in his direction..
He was drunk. Definitely, but charming in that dangerously, effortless way that made you feel like he was the only one in the room. I didn't remember everything we said. i just laughed. He laughed. The drinks kept coming, so did the compliments.
And somewhere between my fourth cocktail and his third monologue about building empires - i apparently forgot all my morals ... And my bra
...
Back in my apartment
I collapsed onto the couch like a broken doll.
Cassarea was already there scrolling through her phone and eating with the grin of someone watching the final episode of my life.
" I cannot believe i did that," I groaned, burying my face in a pillow.
" what would you rate it out of ten?" she said with a creepy grin
" i don't remember"
"Gurl"
"I panicked. he was older"
" 41 years isn't older. it's called being seasoned or mature, pick a poison"
"I just ... i couldn't stay, it felt all weird"
" You know what's weird ? leaving a billionaire before breakfast"
" i guess he is rich but i wouldn't but i would say billionaire - also how were you so sure of his age" i said frowning my face in suspicion
"cause i Googled him, all that empire yap he spilled while being drunk naturally made me curious, so that was the first thing i did when i got home, turns out he's quite loaded" she replied smugly
Jeremy Ceaser - 41 years old ceo of the Grand Canyon group. Owner of a six star hotel Enor Splendor. Top shareholder in the Bluefin Voyage. Net worth ?
my mouth opened. Closed. Opened again. " i slept with that man?"
"You fled from that man,"she corrected. "in a dress you couldn't even zip right"
"i hate you" i said, in between my sobs
"No you don't," she smiled. " You love me, I rescued you from your ice-cream despair and pointed you at rich men like a guided missile".
I stared at the ceiling wall like it might drop some answers."just last week i had a three-year plan, Cass. Marriage. promotion. stability. Now i have a hangover, a possible STD, finally a real reason for therapy"
Cassarea handed me a bag of popcorn like it could console me. " you also had and expensive night with a man whose jawline would probably put Gigachad to shame"
I sighed. "should i text him."
she paused. "would it make your life any better.''
"probably not" i said disappointed
"Then no. Besides, mystery is sexy and also it makes you seem desperate" she said in a kind of convincing tone.
I curled deeper into the couch, strangely feeling both amused and pathetic. A week ago I had a life and knew where I was headed. Not perfect. But it was normal. Now, everything seems so wrong. I don't even know if I am breathing right l.
Some part of me wanted to chase that chaos. To see what will happen if I set it free and let the event just unfold, but not today. Today, I needed to update my resume, pay my rent, get shit going like it used to.
Tomorrow?
Maybe.
But first, Let me survive Monday. I needed a plan, I needed my life back, and preferably my damn Kettle.