Stunning!

His eyes were fixed on the woman descending gracefully down the stairs. She wore a black dress with a long slit that ran almost the entire length of her left thigh. Her ears, neck, and wrist sparkled with diamonds that screamed her opulent lifestyle.

"You look absolutely captivating." Using his sweet tongue, he sang her praises as she joined him at the foot of the stairs.

His date stood before him with the air of entitlement that most heiresses were born with. A confidence and arrogance that had been honed into their every bone, even before they could stand.

"You don’t look bad either." Her eyes swept over him, sizing him up from head to toe. From the glint in her eyes, she seemed satisfied with what she saw.

Proudly, he straightened his stance. Showing off his tailored-made suit that he carefully selected for this occasion.

Just like his date, he also played his part as a narcissistic, pompous heir. He believed it was the only way he could win this woman’s trust by acting like they were made of the same cloth.

"Shall we?" He held her by the elbow as he guided her toward the door. "Can I call you Eliza?" He asked as he escorted her to his brand-new Bugatti.

"Eliza... Sure." She nodded as her eyes glanced at his car, giving him a sign of approval.

Half an hour later, he ushered her to the hottest restaurant in town that took six months just to get a reservation. But since he knew the owner, he had secured a table in just a few minutes.

"Impressive." Again, the smile that painted her lips gave him the sense that he had passed her standards. "Aaron, I am beginning to think that you like me."

Honestly, he almost rolled his eyes upon hearing her bold and cocky statement. But he held himself, stopping his tongue from uttering a brash response.

Stupid bet!

That was all this was to him. Although he would admit that Elizabeth Winston was indeed beautiful and came from a solid family, she was not his type. He would not be sitting on this table with her if not for that bet.

"Fuck, Oliver!" He silently mumbled to himself before putting the biggest fake smile on his lips as he ordered the most expensive dish and wine on the menu.

But if his cousin thought he had won, Oliver was dead wrong. He was not done with him yet. But for now, he had to go along with his cousin’s plans.

For an hour, he had endured countless chatters about bags, shoes, her nails, and the other women in the restaurant who fancied her attention, either enviously complimenting them or openly mocking their flaws.

Of course, as her compliant date, he readily agreed with her. Even though he couldn’t care less what she was blabbering about. He still let her rant, even if it felt like his eardrums were about to burst from her pitchy, bitchy voice.

Finally, the date was almost over as he breathed a heavy sigh of relief after she had declined to have dessert. Again, she could not stop talking about the number of calories a piece of cake could do to her body.

Another woman who would rather starve herself to death than gain a few pounds. Suddenly, his thoughts reminded him of Sophia. How she had enjoyed those muffins without a care.

What a shame!

If he didn’t lose on that bet, Sophia should be the one sitting across from him. Anyway, a bet was a bet.

Kring! Kring! Kring!

Right on cue, his mobile rang. Excusing himself, he quickly answered it. "Are you sure? Isn’t there anything you can do?" He said on the line, sounding tense and anxious before ending the call.

The call was staged. It was just a carefully planned alibi to end the night.

"Is there a problem?" Eliza asked, mildly showing concern as she extended her hand to touch him.

With a practiced expression of apprehension, he covered her hand with his and said, "I’m sorry, but an urgent problem came up. I have to go and deal with it personally." He informed her, patting her hand gently. His eyes were quite apologetic.

"Oh!" Surprised and disappointment mixed on her expression. "I thought we could go to a club for a nightcap." Her eyes looked down.

All the while, her voice sounded upset.

Drooping his shoulders, he pouted, acting upset that they had to end their date soon. "Maybe some other time." In truth, he could not wait to ditch his date.

So far, he had gotten nothing from their conversations. Either Elizabeth was just a dumb bimbo, overly spoiled by her father, or she was much cleverer than he gave her credit for.

He had no idea if she was the mole, working inside the Morton Group to gather information, or just another heiress forced by her parents to work for Oliver in the hope of catching a big fish.

"I’ll have the driver take you wherever you want to go. I’ll just take a taxi." He helped her into the passenger’s side before seeing her off.

Meanwhile, another car was already waiting for him.

As soon as he entered the car, he instructed. "Follow her." He immediately settled in the backseat, took off his jacket, and loosened his tie.

On the seat, he found a folder that was already waiting for him. It was the information that his men had dug up regarding their intern.

Daughter of the tycoon magnate, Gregory Winston.

Sole heiress to the Winston Group.

"Blah, blah, blah..." He found nothing unusual in the report. Again, Elizabeth was just another typical spoiled princess who had more money and time to waste.

So, what did Oliver want from her? Why did he want her investigated?

After reviewing the entire report, he set it down on the empty leather seat and closed his eyes for a second.

It had been an exhausting night. But going home was far from his agenda. Not yet.

A while later, his driver informed him that Elizabeth had gone to a club. His driver pointed to the one frequented by young socialites.

Private. Exclusive. Expensive.

"I guess she was not ready to go to bed just yet." He casually conversed with his driver. "Wait for me. I won’t be long."

A few minutes later, he walked into the dimly lit establishment with only a few flickering lights to light his way. Of course, he was familiar with the place.

"Hey, man." An acquaintance greeted him as he passed by.

"Aaron, it’s been a while." Another of his old friends patted him on the shoulder as he moved to the bar.

But his eyes still hadn’t found who he was looking for. Although the place was crowded, he knew he could easily spot her, but so far, she was nowhere in sight.

"One scotch." He ordered from the bartender and took it to his usual spot. In the VIP lounge.

Standing on the mezzanine floor, he should easily see her amongst the crowd. But still, she was not on the floor.

Until—

She emerged from the corner of his eyes, clinging to another man.

"Well, she moved fast." He thought as she had easily replaced him. He guessed she really wanted an action tonight as he watched her dance provocatively with the new guy.

Dumping his drink in one go into his mouth, he was ready to leave. There was nothing else to see. He was not interested in watching her make out with that guy.

"Ew!" That would be disgusting.

But before he could actually turn to leave, something caught his attention. In the periphery of his eye, he saw a glimpse of a familiar feminine face lingering in the shadow.

It could be a coincidence. It could be nothing. But when the woman appeared to be waiting for someone. When her eyes seemed to be watching somebody in particular, he knew he had to wait and see.

He settled on the seat near the balcony where he could clearly see them, but they would not notice him. Then, he signaled one of the waiters.

"You see her." He pointed to the woman in the corner in a red dress. Then, he whispered instructions in his ear. With that said, he pulled a hundred-dollar bill from his wallet and stuck it in the boy’s pocket.

The boy immediately left him alone.

Soon, another drink was placed in his hand as he waited for some action.

Why was she here?

But that was not the most intriguing part.

Why was she alone? Who was she meeting?

A drink and a half later, he finally saw someone join her at the table. His patience had finally paid off as he watched the two ladies share a drink and a serious conversation.

"What are you two up to?" He asked, but sadly, he could not hear them from where he stood. He could only speculate what they were discussing in this kind of place.

As the report indicated, there was no way those two could be close friends.

Again, he waited silently in the dim light, careful not to be seen until the two shook hands and parted ways.

"It seems it’s a done deal." Whatever that was.

Then, a minute later, the waiter he had paid earlier strode hastily toward him.

"Sir Aaron, I heard that they were talking about a woman... Hmm..." The boy slightly paused as if recalling something. "Yeah... Sophia... I think."

Soon, the boy related everything he understood from the conversation. "I’m sorry, it was hard to hear everything since the music was loud. But that was everything."

He quickly pulled another few hundred bills and folded them into the boy’s hand. "For your effort." Then, he dismissed the boy, and he immediately walked out of the club.

After a few more minutes of driving around the city, he got out of the car and thanked his driver. He would not need his services for tonight.

Soon, he was in the elevator on his way to his last stop for the night.