Chapter 1 THE GIRL IN THE RAIN

The rain didn't just fall that night - it poured.

The kind of storm that made the city blur into streaks of silver and shadow.

Elena Cruz pulled her jacket tighter around her shoulders, though it was already drenched. Her shoes squished with every step as she hurried down the lonely road. She'd just finished her late shift at the café, and the buses had long stopped running.

"Just a few more blocks," she muttered, teeth chattering.

But the wind had other plans. It ripped through the street, bending the umbrella she'd borrowed from work and soaking her completely. Her bag slipped from her hand, spilling coins and a few crumpled notes onto the wet pavement. She sighed, crouching to pick them up one by one.

That's when she saw it - the gleam of headlights cutting through the storm. A sleek black car slowed beside her, engine humming softly.

The window rolled down, and a man's voice - smooth and deep - called out.

"You'll catch a cold out here."

Elena straightened slowly. The man inside looked like he belonged in another world. Dark suit. Sharp jawline. Calm eyes that didn't seem bothered by the weather.

"I'm fine," she said quickly, brushing a strand of wet hair from her face.

"You're not," he replied. "Get in. I'll take you home."

She hesitated. Everything about him screamed trouble - or at least, the kind of person who had nothing to do with someone like her.

"I can't pay you," she said, voice small but steady.

He tilted his head, almost amused. "I didn't ask you to."

The rain hit harder. Elena looked down the empty road, then back at the stranger. Her mother always said pride didn't keep you warm.

After a moment, she opened the door and slid in.

The inside of the car smelled like leather and rain. She sat quietly, clutching her bag.

"Where to?" he asked.

"Greenwood Apartments. Near the old market," she said.

He nodded. His voice was calm, his hands steady on the wheel, but there was something about his silence - not cold, not impatient - just... controlled.

After a few minutes, he glanced at her again.

"What's your name?"

"Elena."

"Elena what?"

She gave a tiny shrug. "Just Elena."

He smiled faintly, almost to himself. "I'm Adrian."

The rest of the drive passed in silence, except for the soft rhythm of rain against the car. When he finally stopped near her street, she turned to thank him, but he was already looking ahead, lost in thought.

"Thank you... Mr. Adrian."

He chuckled quietly. "Just Adrian."

She smiled for the first time that night. "Then thank you, Adrian."

And with that, she stepped out into the rain, not realizing that the man who had just given her a ride wasn't just Adrian.

He was Adrian Cole, the youngest billionaire CEO in the city - a man whose world had no place for a girl like her.

At least, not yet.