Billionaire's Abandoned Love Slave

Ophelia's POV

"Lia, can you bring two bottles of beer to table 17? It seems Sir Arnold wants to have a little chat with you," Ava Castillo, my best friend, and a co-bottle girl at the strip club said to me as she stepped into the dressing room.

I sighed in frustration on hearing the name of the club's most valued patron and one of the numerous old men who had proposed to be my sugar daddy from the first day I started working at the "Sex in a bottle" strip club.

"Okay, I'll go now," I feigned a smile at her, to which she nodded as she walked up to me and stood at my back with a calm mien.

I looked into the mirror and mentally cringed as I took in my sultry outfit which consisted of a tiny black leather short, with half of my ass cheeks exposed, and a leather bra, which had a luscious amount of my soft boobs exposed.

I slowly ran my fingers down the leather strap which was joined from my shorts to my boots and sighed again. The make-up I had on my face made me look like a whore and honestly, I felt like one even though I was merely a bottle girl at the club.

Right from when I was five years old, I had always wanted to be a chef at a Michelin-star restaurant but the universe had other plans for me as my mum died barely a month after I clocked ten, and that sudden grievous occurrence took both my dad and me off guard and our peaceful and harmonious lives went spiraling downward as dad started indulging in bad vices and decisions.

He became a chronic chain smoker and an alcohol addict. Not to mention how he used half of his settlement fee which was paid to him after he was laid off from work to gamble and you bet me, he lost and about half a million dollars went down the drain just like that.

But he still managed to save a reasonable amount of money which he would use to send me to culinary school and that was the only reason I still felt happy with him.

I thought I would attend culinary school, graduate at the top of my class, talk my dad into getting a loan for me with his connections and then open a five-star restaurant but my sixteen years old dream never came through.

A day before I was supposed to take the entrance examination into culinary school, my dad suddenly had a life-threatening seizure and was rushed to the hospital. On getting there, he was resuscitated and we were given the heart-shattering news of his diagnosis.

My dad had stage three and stage four of both lung and liver cancers respectively.

He finally got the reward of smoking and drinking alcohol like a well.

There and then, I knew my dream to be a chef was as good as dead. I had to devote my time to taking care of my ailing Dad. It wasn't as if he had any other family apart from me anyway, and just like that, I, Ophelia Alvarez gave up my passion to be a chef and got myself registered in a cheap-ass university, training to be a teacher.

"Lia, Ophelia!" Ava's voice drifted into my ears in form of a high-pitched tone and jolted me out of my reverie.

"Yes, what's wrong?" I tilted my head sideways with confusion washing over my face to ask her.

In response, she scoffed, "What were you thinking so deeply about?"

"Nothing much, I was just mulling over how blissful my life is and how proud my mum must be watching me walk half-naked, and serving drinks to old perverts in a strip club. She must be so elated and proud to have a whore as a daughter," I muttered, trying to sound nonchalant.

"Ophelia, we both know that you are everything but a whore. I mean, you and I both, aren't doing this just because we want to. We are only doing this because we have to and we don't have connections and the qualifications to get a respectable job elsewhere. Your mum would understand everything. Stop beating yourself too much over this. Everything will be fine, Lia. You are supposed to be the optimistic and mature friend between the both of us, why are you suddenly so dejected?" Ava turned me to face her as she interlaced our hands together.

I smiled at her and shook my head. "I don't know either. I just feel very miserable today. I checked my savings balance and realized that I've barely saved one-third of the required amount for Dad's surgery which is in a month. What am I supposed to do when the time comes? Will Dad also die and leave me alone? Am I a good daughter? I can't even do anything for my dad," I full-on started crying as I said the last word, I didn't care that I had spent almost two hours on my makeup. I just wanted to let it all out.

My frustration and distress.

"Lia, I can help you with that. I already told you several times and you told me you don't want my help. Why don't you? I'm sure we can save more than enough together for his surgery before the due date. Let me assist you, babe," Ava sighed, gently squeezing my hand.

I shook my head and with the back of my hand, I cleaned my tears off, "No, it's fine. I'll be fine. I can do it. I'll ask Rodrigo to allow me to work overtime, starting tomorrow. I can't bother you, Ava. I'll be selfish to do that," I politely declined her offer, which made her roll her eyes in a mixture of exasperation and frustration.

Ava was also like me and I mean, she was motherless and had a scumbag as a father. He'd beat her up and forcefully take the money she made from the club whenever he was in one of his foul moods and gamble everything away. So, I knew better than to bother her for money, even though I was sure she'd give me if I said the word.

I didn't want to be a burden to anyone, especially not to my best friend.

"But always remember that I'm here for you whenever you need me, okay?"

"Okay," I nodded with a grin.

"You look hideous, Lia. Your make-up has been smudged with mascara. You're not by chance planning on going out to serve your loyal customer while looking like that," Ava feigned an aghast expression, and this time, it was my turn to roll my eyes.

"I would if I could to get that man away from me but I sadly can't because I need money," I muttered as I plop down on the chair in front of the mirror to redo my makeup.

"We both know that man will always have heart-eyes for you even if you were dressed in the trash. So, that statement of yours is impossible," Ava laughed, and I just snorted as I retrieved my makeup supplies from my cosmetics bag.

"Fuck, I almost forgot I had a client to attend to," Ava squealed with wide eyes.

"Bye, I gotta go now," And with that, she sprinted out of the dressing room, leaving me to stare at my distorted appearance in the mirror.

+++

"Flower, you are late," Mr. Arnold, "my most loyal customer" and the most respected patron of the club smiled at me as he outstretched his hand to take mine into his with a lustful smile playing at the corner of his wrinkled lips.

Mr. Arnold had to be well over seventy but he had lied to me that he was sixty-two years old. Even though he lied, his wrinkles spoke for themselves.

"I had an emergency," I feigned a remorseful countenance as I gingerly slipped my hand into his aged one.

"Oh, it's good you're here now. Pour me a drink and sit on my thighs," He patted his wobbly legs and I internally cringed as I gazed at his crooked, brown teeth on display and the way his lips seemed to slack at the corners as if he had lost proper functioning of them.

I bit back the laughter that bubbled in my throat and smiled at him as I poured the liquor into the beer mug, "I'd love to sit on your lap but sadly I have another emergency to attend to. But don't worry, Mr. Arnold, when I'm done with my affairs, I'll join you in your private room for the rest of the night," I winked at him, and I watched in amusement laced with disgust as he smiled back at me and nodded his stiff and big head in understanding.

"Alright, flower. I will hold you to your words and wait for you," He delivered a harsh smack to my ass and grinned at me.

I suppressed the urge to deliver a befitting slap on his face with anger bubbling inside him as I smiled through my teeth at him before I took the empty beer bottle with me to the backroom.

Fuck it, I hated my life.

Ophelia's POV

I hummed to myself as I flung my makeup supplies and bottle uniform into my bag. Afterward, I draped my bag around my chest and trudged out of the dressing room.

I retrieved my cell phone from my jogger's pocket and connected it to my headphones as I walked towards the entrance to the club as various unhinged thoughts assailed my mind.

I had gotten a call the night before from the doctor who was in charge of his treatment to report to the hospital as soon as I could because she had something important to discuss with me. When I heard that, my heart almost flew out of my chest in worry, I couldn't sleep throughout the night as I tended to overthink everything.

"Lia, wait!" I heard someone yell my name from behind and I halted in my steps as I whipped my neck around to deduce who it was.

A small smile adorned my face amidst my worries when I saw that it was my kind boss at the club, Rodrigo Fernandez.

"Rodrigo," I greeted him with a nod as I took an airport out of my ear. He had insisted that we–the workers–all called him by his name without adding formalities.

We freely conversed with him like friends did and I was extremely grateful to have such a kind hearted man like him as my boss.

"Lia, what's this I hearabout you?" He ignored my greeting. I gulped nervously when I realized that his face was devoid of its usual cheerful and warm smile.

What had I done wrong? I thought to myself as I gazed up at him.

"What?" I squeaked.

"You want me to give you overtime at the club, knowing how hard you work and study at the same time. Do you want to die of stress, huh?" He yelled at me, and I was momentarily taken aback by the cruelty of his voice but I quickly reshuffled myself with a sigh.

"There's nothing I can do other than that, Rodrigo. My Dad's surgery and chemotherapy have to begin as soon as possible and I don't even have up to half the required amount saved up yet. I have to do everything and anything I can to make my dad hale and hearty again. He is the only family I have left in this world," I calmly replied to him with a plain mien.

"My goodness, Ophelia. You could have just asked me to give you a loan and I would have willingly agreed to do so. I'm not trying to be negative or anything, but we both know that even if you work all day long at the club for a year, I don't think you can have up to the required amount you need. Stop pressuring yourself so much, let me help you. Okay, I'll give you the required amount you need and I'll deduct the money from your wages every day until it's completed. How's that?" Rodrigo suggested, with a gentler tone and I just heaved a deep sigh.

"I'm very appreciative of your kindness towards me, Rodrigo but I'm sorry I can't accept it. I don't want to bother anyone with my problems and I mean it. I don't know if I'd ever be able to pay you back and I don't want a situation whereby we'll become enemies-"

Rodrigo cut in "But Ophelia, can't you see it? I'm just-"

"It's fine, Rodrigo. Really. I don't need you or anyone's help. I can do this myself, okay? Please stop acting like I'm a damned damsel in distress. If you don't want me to work overtime then I guess I'll look for another part-time job, that shouldn't be a problem for me. Thanks for your concern and I mean it. I'll be on my way now because I have an emergency, take care," I rambled out in one big breath and darted a slight quirk of lips at my boss before I turned around and continued my walk to the bus stop, ignoring the manner my conscience tugged me for not accepting my boss's deal.

Yes, I inherited my stubborn trait from my dad and I'd rather die than seek help from others.

+++

I stepped into my Dad's ward with a forlorn sigh and clammy hands.

My eyes became fuzzy with melancholia as I gently slammed the door shut with my eyes trained on the unconscious state of my sick dad on the bed.

I eased my bag onto the sofa which was placed next to the bed before I plopped down on the other chair next to him and slipped his cold, frail hand into mine.

I sighed for the umpteenth time that day as I gazed at the numerous beeping machines that were connected to him. I fiddled with his fingers as bitter tears rolled down my cheeks.

"Dad, I'm here again. You're still not conscious. When will I get to see your beautiful eyes again?" I whispered through my croaky voice as my gaze swerved to his tightly shut eyes and pale lips.

"Please just wake up once when I'm here so that I can tell you everything I failed to say before you fell sick. Please get well soon for me. I love you, Pops and I will be back soon," I muttered as I wiped my tears off with the back of my hand.

I had observed something, my dad was never awake whenever I visited him. Even if I planned on paying him a surprise visit, I'd still never meet him awake and that prompted me to conclude that he probably didn't want to see me and that made my heart ache badly.

I gazed at him for a while as I gently stroked his hand before I reluctantly hoisted myself up to go to the doctor's office with a heavy heart.

I clutched my bag tighter to my chest as I trekked into the doctor's office. I took a deep breath to mentally encourage myself to be hopeful and it seemed to work or maybe I just gaslit myself into thinking it worked.

"You came so early today. That's good, have your seat," The doctor cast one of her numerous kind, gummy smiles at me, to which I stiffly nodded as I tentatively flopped my butt on the chair opposite to her.

"So, you asked to meet me for an important matter. What's going on? Is Dad okay? Is something wrong with him?" I couldn't help but babble every thought that floated into my head in my state of frenzy.

"Calm down, Miss Ophelia. Yes, I called to meet you for something. We carried out a thorough body examination on him yesterday and discovered something," The doctor answered and my heart plunged deeper into the pit of my belly as cold sweat broke out on my skin.

"I know I said we were going to start full treatment and operate on him in a few weeks but I'm sorry to inform you that it can't be possible anymore. We discovered metastatic kidney cancer yesterday and we don't think we should delay his treatment any longer," She stated and the air in my throat choked me when she finished her utterance.

I coughed wildly and patted my chest to relieve myself as my eyes burned with choked-up tears. Fuck it, what was I going to do?

Where would I go from there?

"Are you alright, Miss Ophelia?" She asked me with concern conspicuous in her tone and I managed to nod.

"So, when exactly are you planning to start his treatment?" I whispered.

"In a week. We'll have to set everything up throughout this week after you make the down payment," She replied, and I let out a mirthless chuckle.

That seemed to be the best measure in my situation.

After a while, I heaved another deep sigh, "So, would a quarter of the fees be enough for the preparation? I don't have the complete fees yet but I can assure you that I'll try my best to get the remaining amount as soon as possible. Please allow me to pay a quarter of the fees," At that moment, tears had started flowing down my cheeks and I was one step away from shamelessly kneeling next to her and clutching her ankle to get her help.

"I don't know about this, let me ask the hospital. The hospital will have to decide on it as I don't have enough rights to help you even though I want to," She uttered, and with that, I rooted myself on the chair as I shook with sobs.

What was I going to do? How was I supposed to get two million dollars in a week? I mentally questioned myself.

"Okay, fine. We'll take a quarter of the fees," The doctor's exasperated voice broke into my train of thought, and instantly, my tears stopped.

"Thank you so much for helping me, I can assure you that you won't regret doing this for me. I will keep to my words and bring the rest of the payment next week," I cried as I reached across the table to squeeze her hands.

"You're welcome, I've seen how dedicated you are to helping your dad get better," She beamed at me.

I nodded silently at her as I released her hand from my hold with one question prevalent in my mind.

How was I going to earn as much as two million dollars for the rest of Dad's treatment in a week?

Ophelia's POV

"I'm sorry I didn't inform you before I left the club, don't get angry at me, Ava. It was an emergency and I needed to see the doctor as fast as I could," I spoke into the phone with a sheepish grin twisting my lips upward.

Just like I had expected, Ava was quite pissed at me because I didn't wake her up to tell her that I was leaving the club before her, she was such a baby at times. I thought to myself even though I knew I couldn't say it aloud to her face.

"Okay, I'm not mad anymore. So, how is your dad feeling now? Is he getting better? What was the emergency you were called for?" Ava questioned me, and I sucked in my breath through my teeth to repress the resurgence of panic inside me.

I had almost forgotten about the fact that I needed to get two million dollars in a week. I had transferred everything in my bank account to the hospital for the treatment to commence on my dad and I only had about fifty cents left in my account balance.

I had no idea how I was going to start conveying myself to college and the strip club.

I could manage to miss classes sometimes because luckily for me, Ava and I were in the same department and year and I knew Ava was always attentive and present for every class, so she'd explain everything to me before our tests and exams began.

"I'll explain everything to you later when I get back from the hospital and everything is fine, you don't have to worry," I managed to utter with a surprisingly steady voice even though my throat currently felt clogged with tears.

"Oh, okay. Are you sure everything is fine though? You sound weird. Anyway, I'll head over to sex in a bottle after I'm done with classes, don't forget to take care of yourself, I love you," She responded.

"Love you too," I croaked, and the line went dead on the other end.

Afterward, I stared mindlessly at my phone for a while before I yanked myself out of my reverie and slipped the device back into my bag.

As I took a left turn towards the narrow alley that led home, a graphic poster that was pasted on the wall caught my attention and caused me to halt in my steps.

I trekked up to the wall to get a closer view of the lewd picture of a sexy woman who was naked save for the thong and a tiny rope which I deduced was meant to be a bra but it didn't do anything to cover her as I could see her large boobs and nipples.

I averted my gaze from her picture and inwardly read the message printed next to her. I gasped in shock as my hands flew to my mouth when I finished scanning through the sentences.

"Sell your virginity, what the fuck is that?" I huffed to myself as I read through the words again

On the paper, it was written that there was a strip club somewhere and they were having a strange auction where some retarded, wealthy men would buy the virginity and an opportunity to have their ways with virgins for a price of two million dollars.

It was quite sickening to think about the fact that they were some people who had enough money to waste on unreasonable stuff like that while I was broke with just my bottle girl uniform, some of my worn-out clothes, and college textbooks left to my name.

Life was unfair.

I shook my head and made to trek away from the poster when a horrible idea suddenly struck me like a flash of a lightning bolt.

"No, Lia. Get a fucking grip and banish that idea this instant," I yelled as I smacked myself by my temples.

There was no way that lewd thought just crossed my mind.

But then again, the offer seemed mouth-watering. A voice in my head spoke to me and I walked back to the poster again and gazed tentatively at it.

I wasn't going to lose anything if I sold my virginity, right?

It was just my virginity, the mere dignity of my womanhood. It wasn't as if I was going to sell myself forever to them. In just one night, I would be done with it and I'd get two million bucks deposited in my account for just spreading my legs open for a perverted old man.

I may even get lucky and escape untouched by my buyer. I'd just have to make up a sob story for them and they'll be touched and saddened by the cruelty of the universe towards me, so they'll take pity on me and give me the money without doing anything to me.

I could leave with my virginity still intact and the money in my account. I negotiated within myself as an accomplished smile bestowed my features.

Fuck, I was just too smart. I praised myself as I grinned from ear to ear and typed the number that was displayed on the poster into my phone.

Then, I placed a call to them and waited silently in the dark alley for a response. Just as I was about to hang up and place another call to them, a groggy male voice resounded into my ears.

"Hello, this is the virginity club, how may we help you?" He asked, to which I gulped in a mixture of nervousness and shame.

"I-I called to enquire about the auction," I stuttered, clasping my phone tighter against my ear.

"Oh, you called just in time. We were about to put an end to it this afternoon," The man responded and I heaved a deep breath, while internally thanking my stars.

"So, what next?" I whispered.

"I'll send the address to your line right now, come over as soon as possible. The auction is happening this evening and there are a lot of preparations to do," The man elaborated, to which I nodded and squeezed my eyes shut.

"Okay, I'll be on my way now, thanks," I muttered.

"By the way, what is your name?"

"Ophelia Alvarez,"

"Alright, we will be expecting you," The man concluded and just before I could respond, he hung up.

Fuck, what was I getting myself into? Was the auction even legal? I thought to myself as I rooted my gaze on my phone, waiting silently for the message.

Soon enough, my phone beeped with a message and I quickly memorized the address before I trekked to the bus stop and got into a cab.

I had no time to waste.