Chapter 3 That's Interesting

In that moment, Leanna realized thinking too much was the last thing she could afford.

Her last trace of restraint slipped away almost immediately; instinct drew her body into a tight curl while her fingertips clenched the rumpled sheets, heat flooding her cheeks as her pulse pounded wildly.

Close to her ear, Wesley's low, gravel-rough voice brushed against her skin. "You're in bed with me, and your mind's still wandering somewhere else?"

Silence was the only response she managed.

Shallow breaths rushed from her lips in quick, uneven bursts as the relentless pace of his movements swept her under, leaving her far too overwhelmed to cling to any stray thoughts.

Throughout the room, the charged atmosphere thickened with every passing second.

Leaning closer, Wesley seemed entirely absorbed in her, his fingers lifting her chin with firm gentleness while his dark gaze sharpened. In a quiet murmur he said, "I'll remember you, little one... along with the Wheeler family."

As the last thread of awareness slipped away from her grasp, Leanna faintly sensed him leaning in to whisper something against her ear.

Perhaps it had been a name. Yet when everything finally blurred into darkness, not a single word remained in her memory.

Exhaustion pulled her into a deep, dreamless rest that lasted until six the following morning.

Morning light filtered into the room as Leanna stirred awake, immediately noticing the dull soreness lingering between her legs.

Yesterday had been her first time, yet he had continued again and again with relentless stamina.

His intensity had been overwhelming, leaving her body aching even now.

Turning her head toward the other side of the bed, Leanna realized the man had already left.

Resting on the nearby table lay what looked like a placed note.

Rising from the bed, she felt the blanket slide down her shoulders, revealing the scattered marks their wild night had left across her skin.

After quickly putting her clothes on, she reached for the paper lying on the table.

Only then did she realize it wasn't a note he left at all. Instead, it was a check written for ten million.

A stunned pause settled over Leanna as the realization sank in.

Could the Spencer family truly be this wealthy?

She knew almost nothing about the true scale of the Spencer family's fortune, but one thing she understood perfectly-Carl could never scrape together ten million. Even coming up with a couple million would have drained him dry.

Yet the man from last night had written out ten million as casually as if it were spare change.

Shaking off the spiraling thoughts, she suddenly felt an odd hollowness spread through her chest.

By leaving that check behind... had he meant to cut things off completely, ensuring they would never cross paths again?

The idea made a quiet laugh slip from her lips.

When she thought about it, the arrangement made perfect sense.

After all, what they shared had been nothing more than a fleeting, reckless encounter.

One single night had earned her a check worth ten million-no matter how she calculated it, she had clearly come out ahead.

From here on out, all she needed to do was remain in her own world and make sure she never crossed his path again.

With that money in hand, she was certain she would finally have the means to strike back at Carl and the entire Wheeler family.

After sorting through her thoughts, Leanna folded the check carefully and headed straight for the bank to cash it.

It wasn't a scam after all.

That check for ten million was completely valid and could truly be withdrawn.

What troubled her instead was the way she walked-an obvious limp betraying her, every step sending a dull, pulsing ache through her lower body, as though the strain of the previous night had left her bruised and swollen.

Just then, her phone vibrated with a message from Emilio.

Across the screen appeared a short command. "Come back."

Moments later, another notification appeared-a video he had forwarded.

Within the footage, the gleam of a knife suddenly appeared, its blade creeping forward with chilling deliberation toward someone just out of view.

A moment later, the camera angle shifted, revealing Leanna's mother, Melody Wheeler, lying unconscious in a hospital bed, fragile and motionless, her body surrounded by a tangle of medical tubes. Hovering just above her wrist, the knife glinted, its blade swaying with quiet menace.

Shock slammed into Leanna, her eyes flying wide as the horrifying sight sank in.

A new voice message abruptly appeared on her screen. Emilio's cold, threatening voice rang out. "Did you see that? You have thirty minutes to come back. If you're even a minute late, I'll carve a mark into your mother's wrist. Got it?"

Inside, Leanna seethed with fury at the monster he had become, her fingers tightening around the phone. Anger flared in her gaze, making her eyes burn with fierce intensity.

Ten years ago, a devastating car crash had nearly claimed Melody's life-she had thrown herself forward to shield Leanna, and the impact had left her trapped in a vegetative state ever since.

All these years, the Wheeler family had been the one paying for Melody's hospital bills.

Emilio understood perfectly that the moment Melody's condition remained in his hands, Leanna would have no choice but to return.

And just as expected, she would come back.

With a steady breath, she sent Emilio a brief message before dragging her aching body toward the roadside to flag down a taxi.

...

From the upper floor of the bank building, Wesley stood before the towering window.

Below, through the glass, he watched Leanna struggle slightly as she climbed into the waiting taxi.

Against the surface of the sleek black desk, his fingers tapped in a slow, thoughtful rhythm.

A shadowed intensity settled in his gaze.

Never had he imagined that last night had been her first time.

She was his first as well, and at the start his movements carried a hint of uncertainty.

Yet once their bodies finally met, the dizzying pleasure swallowed every trace of hesitation, and he found himself unable to stop as one heated moment slipped seamlessly into the next.

By the time it ended, her fingers trembled weakly against the rumpled bedsheets, barely able to hold on.

To her, the night had at some point become nothing short of a grueling trial of endurance.

Though it was her very first time and he hadn't exactly been gentle, she stubbornly pressed her lips together, biting down hard to keep even the faintest cry of pain from escaping.

A quiet stab of remorse stirred inside him when he realized how much she must have endured.

As he stood quietly before the wide glass window, Wesley's gaze slowly sharpened. Shifting back a little, he murmured her name under his breath as if savoring its sound. "Leanna Wheeler... the Wheeler family, huh? Now that's interesting."