Pampered By the Billionaire

Hannah's POV

I stared at my beautiful face in the mirror. My colleagues always praise my beauty. They admired my almond-shaped amber eyes with especially long and thick eyelashes, while Emily, my best friend, liked my tall, delicate nose matched with my natural pinkish lips. However, there was an explicit sorrow in my eyes as I looked at the white gown I was wearing.

Right at this moment, I was trying on the bridal gown that I would wear for my wedding next week. I would marry Robert Shaw, my long-time suitor, even though it was against my will. He's the son of the gambling lord in the city and known as an asshole. I was not able to pay my father's debt to his father, so I was forced to marry him.

"You look beautiful, Ma'am. The fit was perfect for your slim figure." I heard the bridal shop assistant say. She's smiling at me, but I couldn't manage to smile back.

I noticed that she felt how depressed I was as her smile faded. Then, she looked around before she handed me a small piece of paper. I was confused, especially when she gestured to me to stay quiet and read the note written on the paper.

My eyes gazed at her with a questioning look after I read the note. I couldn't believe what it said.

'Run to the 3/L Parking Area. Black car.'

She nodded at me, and we quickly changed my dress. Then, she secretly led me to the other exit of the bridal shop.

"Thank you," I uttered softly before I swiftly ran to the elevator. I wanted to ask her a lot of questions as I didn't understand what's happening, but I knew that she was trying to help me.

When I arrived at the 3rd level of the building, I immediately ran to the parking area as stated on the note. As I was about to reach the exit towards the parking area, I heard a man shout.

"She's there!"

My heart raced as I looked back and saw Robert's men. They already found out that I escaped. So, I continued to run.

"Black car, black car," I whispered as I gasped for air, searching for the black car in the parking area. However, there's a lot of black cars parked. I didn't know which car, so I hid behind a black SUV before they were able to catch me.

Then, I heard running footsteps. I was catching my breath. My heart was pounding so hard in my chest as I crouched behind the SUV. The footsteps suddenly halted.

"Search everywhere! She has not gone far yet." I heard the leader ordered his men.

"Yes, Sir!" The four men answered as they searched the parking area.

I crawled to the other side as I peeked to see where the men chasing me were. Unexpectedly, the door of the black BMW opened as a hand quickly covered my mouth and pulled me inside the car.

My eyes widened in shock when I recognized who the man was.

--------

One month ago.

It was Friday evening. I left the office at exactly nine o'clock. It was my daily routine. Going to work in the morning and going home at night.

Sigh. It's very tiring, but do I have a choice? I need to earn money for my family, so I have to work hard. My salary as a Secretary in this small firm was just right for our daily expenses. I was doing the job of others so that I could spend overtime as I needed to earn extra. Sadly, still not enough.

I felt so exhausted with my life. They said hard work pays off, but why am I still broke?

I took a walk as I didn't want to go home yet. I continued walking until my feet led me in front of a pub. I made a turn. I went inside to drink. At least, I could say that I treated myself even once in my entire life.

I sat down in the corner, far from the crowd. I called the waiter and asked for a bottle of vodka. I started to drink alone. My face turned sour as I took the first shot, but nothing could beat how bitter my life was. Then, I took another gulp until it reached ten.

My tears slowly dribbled down my face. They said that drinking alcohol would make you forget all your problems and wash all the pain. But why do I still feel as though my heart was being stabbed?

My tears continued to flow. Thinking that I only have a month to pay all the debts of my father. I was feeling hopeless and helpless. Because if I failed, I should marry the son of the gambling lord in the city. Should I give up and accept that it's my destiny?

No, you shall continue to fight. Do not lose hope. Do not give up. My competitive self said. I asked, is it worth fighting for? Of course!

I looked around. I saw a couple cuddling on the other table. I felt jealous. At the age of twenty-five, I never entered into a relationship, even though I had a lot of suitors. I never had time as I was busy struggling to become successful. Funny, as no matter what I do, I'm still broke.

Moreover, I'm waiting for my first love, Lance. He'd been my pen pal when I was twelve. He became my crying shoulders for almost two years. We promised that if we met someday, we would marry each other. However, we stopped writing when he went abroad. Since then, I had never heard anything from him.

Then, I glanced at the woman on the other side. She looked rich. I smirked. I was envious of her. If only I were born into a wealthy family, I would not feel this kind of agony.

Suddenly, my eyes caught the man on the other table. He was so handsome in his white sweatshirt. However, he was like some kind of a happy-go-lucky guy who was wandering around, enjoying his nonsense life. I chuckled. Was there anything worse than my life?

I imagined what my first love looked like. Funny as I fell in love with him even though I hadn't seen him even once. Nevertheless, I was not here to hunt for a lover. I was here to forget and have some fun. I didn't realize that I was staring at the man already. I just saw him staring back at me, and his cold eyes gave me chills.

I averted my gaze as I picked up the bottle on the table and poured my glass. I noticed that it was almost empty.

"O-one more b-bottle, please," I asked the waiter in a slurred speech. I was feeling dizzy already, but still, I didn't want to stop drinking. I wanted to drink until I got numb.

Five minutes had passed. Then, it became ten, but the waiter was yet to serve my drink. The bottle on my table was already empty. "W-waiter!" I shouted as I tapped my hand irritably on the table.

Then, two men who were like gangsters approached me with a bottle of vodka.

"Hey, beautiful. Can we join you? It's sad to drink alone." The man in a silver jacket asked.

"No, I wanted to be alone," I groaned as I threw them a fierce look.

"Why? We only want to be friends with you. We're worried when we saw you crying. Tell us your problem. Maybe we can be of help." The other man smiled maliciously as he held my hand.

"Leave me alone!" I retorted furiously as I pulled my hand and slapped the man on his face.

The man was about to fight back when four men in black suddenly came out of nowhere. They pulled the two nasty men on their collars and escorted them outside.

I heard the man complain. "Hey, what did we do? We're just making friends with her."

Then, I noticed another man standing in front of me. I looked up with my twinkling eyes and caught his cold eyes staring deeply at me. "Hey, a-are you the w-waiter? Where's my drink?" I asked impatiently. Too late when I realized that he was the man I was staring at the other table earlier.

"It's enough. You're already drunk." The man said in a deep cold voice as he took the opposite seat. I couldn't understand, but I felt like I was being absorbed by an unknown force with his stare. I was lost for a moment.

"I k-know, but I want to d-drink more. W-who are you to t-tell me what s-should I do?" I stuttered, not sure if he understood what I said.

"It seems that you're carrying heaven and earth on your shoulders." He mumbled.

"Huh! A-are you a p-psychic or what? D-do you also know that I'm the unluckiest p-person in the world? Tell me, w-what will happen to me after a month? W-will I end up m-marrying that as*hole?" I laughed bitterly. Then, I burst into tears. I'd rather die than marry him.

The man didn't respond. He was silently looking at me while I was crying. Pitiful me. Crying in front of a stranger.

After a while, I calmed down. I called the waiter again and asked for a drink. Then, I heard the man speak again.

"If you drink another shot, I'll take you home." A deep frown creased his brows.

I sneered at him. "Much b-better than going to my h-home. Huh, s-should I call it home?" My lips curled as I asked sarcastically.

Afterward, I took money out of my purse and laid it on the table. Then, I stood up and left dejectedly. I staggered to my feet, swaying a little. I didn't know how I managed to go to the rooftop of the old five-story building.

"Ahhhhhh!" I screamed to release all the heaviness in my heart.

"I can't take it anymore. I want to die now." I mumbled as tears trickled down on my face. Too tired of my life, I wanted to give up.

Then, heavy rain poured. I smirked. It seemed that heaven was crying with me. I got wet, but I stayed standing in the cold rain even though it made me shiver.

With my blurry vision, I looked down at the cars passing by. However, I felt like everything was spinning, so I leaned on the cold metal railing. Suddenly, my heart raced as the railing got broken.

"Ahhhh!" I screamed. I was losing my balance. The deck was slippery. My hands searched for something to cling to. Unfortunately, there was none other than the broken railing. Slowly, I was going to fall to the ground.

"Is this the answer to my prayer?" I asked. I shut my eyes as I accepted my fate willingly. Then, everything turned black.

The next moment, I woke up with a bad headache. I realized that I was not in my room. The wall was painted white. It was almost bare with only a cabinet and a small table beside the bed where I was lying.

Suddenly, a scene flashed in my mind. My heart beat fast as I recalled what happened last night.

"Am I dead?" I asked myself as I touched my body and felt every part of it.

"No, I'm still alive," I uttered. Then, I looked around the unfamiliar room.

A few seconds later, the door opened. A man in his casual attire came in. Suddenly, I felt as though everything had stopped. My heart skipped a beat when I gazed at the man's exquisite face. He has good looks that every woman would die for.

He had silky black hair properly combed, amazing steely blue eyes paired with thick eyebrows, an imposing hooked, aquiline nose, and thin red lips. He was tall, which was right for his masculine body. How could great looks be this perfect?

"You're awake." He said, snapping out of my trance.

"W-who are you? What happened to me?" I asked softly as I recovered my senses.

His brows furrowed. "How could you forget your savior?"

My forehead creased. "Savior?" I asked as I stared at him. Wait, he looked familiar. Right, he was the man who approached me last night.

"Yeah, you were so drunk last night. And if it weren't for me, your bones would have been crushed by now. If only I knew that you're planning to commit suicide, I'd let you drink until you lose your consciousness."

"What? Me? Suicide? What are you talking about?"

"Yes, if I didn't arrive on time, probably you're now dead."

"Wait, you don't understand. I didn't plan to kill myself. It was just an accident."

"Whatever, I still saved your life. Meaning you owe your life to me. By the way, here are your clothes." He said as he put down my uniform neatly folded.

My eyes widened when I saw my uniform and undies. That's the only time I realized that I was only wearing a loose white shirt. It was obviously a man's shirt. I blushed as I anxiously pulled the quilt to cover my body.

"W-who-" Before I could finish, he spoke as if he was able to read my mind.

"Don't worry. I didn't look when I changed your clothes." He mumbled as he grinned maliciously.

My face suddenly flushed red in shame. The way he smiled, I could sense that he was telling a lie.

"I-I need to go. Thank you for saving me." I said as I pi ¹ up my uniform and got up from the bed. However, he blocked my way to the restroom.

I felt conscious when his eyes darted on me, looking at the loose shirt I was wearing that was like a dress on me.

He gulped as he walked near me.

"Thank you? What if I told you that I don't need your thank you?"

My heart ran wild as I looked into his cold, steely blue eyes. There it goes again. I felt the unknown force as if absorbing my whole being. However, I didn't feel right. What did he mean by his words? I swallowed as I moved backward.

"W-what do you want?" I anxiously asked.

"I want you." He replied solemnly.

My eyes grew wide as I stared at him in horror. I bit my lips as I guessed what was running on his mind. I need to get out of here. I thought. Then, I pushed him and hastily ran to the restroom.

As I quickly changed my clothes, I heard him laughing, which made me more nervous. Why am I so unfortunate? Of all the people who are going to save me, why did I end up with this pervert? I panicked, thinking about what he did to me while I was sleeping.

Never mind. What's important was to get away from him. After I changed my clothes, I sneakily went out of the room. Luckily, he was not there. I was able to get out of the room without his knowledge.

As I went out, I learned that the man brought me to a condominium. Who would think that a pervert like him had a condo unit?

Three weeks later.

"Frienny, what should I do?" I asked Emily, my best friend, on the phone. I only have a week left to pay for the debt of my father. However, I only have fifteen thousand dollars in my savings. I still need twenty thousand dollars. I tried to apply for a salary loan, but for an unknown reason, it was denied.

"Frienny, I have ten thousand dollars in my savings. I'm sorry, that's all I can help with." She replied on the other end of the line.

"I understand, frienny, that's a big help already. And I thank you for that, but I know that you also need it for the operation of your mom." I uttered dejectedly.

"Frienny, it's alright. Just accept it, okay? I couldn't bear to see you marrying Robert."

Hearing his name, goosebumps sprang over my arms. I let out a deep sigh. As much as I wanted, I don't want to get married to him.

"I know, but do I have a choice? If I don't marry him, they will imprison my dad."

"What if you tell your parents that Juliet will marry Robert instead?"

"Frienny, I'd rather marry Robert. I don't want to see my younger sister marrying that rascal just to save myself."

"Frienny, you're in big trouble."

"You're right,"

"So, what are you going to do now? You only have a week."

"I don't know yet," I mumbled.

After I hung up the phone, the General Manager summoned me to his office.

"W-what???" My face grew ashen as I heard that my manager would end my contract. In short, I was fired. I lost my job. Why did it happen so suddenly when I needed it the most?

"Sir, what did I do wrong? I'm doing my best, and I'm always ensuring that I meet your expectations." I cried out. I thought it was unfair. They should at least give me a valid reason.

"Sorry, Ms. Simons, but the decision came from upper management. And I was told that you're always coming to work late."

"Sir, I only got three tardiness. I-I promise, I won't be late again."

"I'm sorry, but you know the rule.

Today is your last day." He said as he turned and left.

I was left in his office crying. Why is this happening to me? Why am I so unfortunate? What did I do in the past for me to suffer like this? Am I a bad person? I asked myself.

"Y-you?" I asked in disbelief when he removed his hand from my mouth.

He was the man that saved me a month ago. How unlucky was I? I was able to get away from Robert only to end up with this pervert.

"Yeah, two points for me. I saved you twice." He grinned.

I rolled my eyes as I sat up straight in the passenger's seat. "Was it you who gave the note to the bridal shop assistant?"

"Who else?" He asked with a silly grin as he looked around.

I sighed. "But why are you doing this? Who are you? And how did you know that I was here? Are you following me?"

His brows furrowed. "Wait, just one question at a time."

I sighed again. "Okay. First question, who are you?"

"I'm A-Alfred. Call me Alfred."

"How did you know that I was here? Are you following me?"

He laughed. "Of course not. It happened that I passed by the lobby of the hotel when I saw you entering the bridal shop. I could see on your face how dejected you were, so I secretly talked to the assistant and gave her the note."

"So, should I thank you for that?"

"Didn't I tell you that I don't need your thank you?"

"Then, why are you doing this? If you're going to tell me that you want me, then just leave me alone." I exclaimed and opened the door as I was about to get down the car, thinking that the men chasing me were gone already.

Unfortunately, one of Robert's men saw me. I didn't notice that he was just around near the car.

"Boss, she's here!" The man yelled.

I was going to close the door, but the man immediately pulled it. I nervously looked at Alfred, asking for help.

However, he just shrugged his shoulders. I was saddened that he didn't want to help me anymore.

"Alfred, please help me one last time," I begged.

"Didn't you just tell me to leave you alone?" Alfred responded coldly.

Then, Robert came and the rest of his men. His face was dark in rage as he grabbed me from the car.

"Hannah, do you think you can escape me?" He asked angrily as he squeezed my arm.

"Robert, please, I don't want to marry you," I pleaded, disregarding the pain caused by Robert's grasp.

"Why, Hannah? What are you afraid of marrying me?"

"B-because I'm pregnant, Robert. I'm in love with someone else." I uttered falsely. I didn't know where I got the words. It just let out of my mouth.

Robert laughed out loud, not believing what I said. "Pregnant with whom, Hannah? We both know that you never entertained any of your suitors."

"W-with him," I responded as I pointed to Alfred, sitting in the car. I didn't dare to look at him as I was scared to see his reaction.

Please, please, please, Alfred, just ride on. I prayed silently.

"Hannah, are you kidding me? There's no one in the car." Robert laughed again in arrogance.

What? I was stunned that I instantly turned my head to look if Robert did telling the truth. Indeed, there's no one in the car. I suddenly felt hopeless. Then, a deep cold voice filled my ears.

"Are you looking for me?" Alfred asked.

I suddenly turned my head in the direction of the voice. I looked at him as though I saw a glimpse of hope.

Robert's brow creased as he asked.

"Who are you?"

"Let go of Hannah first," Alfred commanded in a rather authoritative voice.

"Are you dictating me?" Robert smirked. Then, he ordered his men.

"Men, get him!"

I anxiously looked at Alfred. I was worried that he would get hurt because of me. Suddenly, a group of men in black surrounded us. I saw how scared Robert's men were as though their tails were curled at thesight of the group of men that outnumbered them. I also noticed the shock on Robert's face.

"Who are you?" Robert asked again, baffled.

"It is not important who I am. Let go of Hannah." Alfred ordered once again.

I ran towards Alfred as soon as Robert released my arm from his grip. I was startled when Alfred wrapped his arms around me.

Nevertheless, I knew that he did it as part of the act, and I needed to act as well like we're a real couple, so I buried my head on his masculine chest as I hugged him back.

My heart skipped a beat as I felt a jolt of electricity surged in my veins caused by the warmth of his body. I also smelled his manly scent that gave an unknown sensation to my being.

"You won this time. We'll see each other again." Robert muttered. Then, he turned to me. "Hannah, I'll give you until tomorrow to pay for your father's debt. And make sure that you are pregnant. If I found out that you're just deceiving me, you know the consequence. " He said in a threatening tone as he smirked at me.

Afterward, Robert left with his men. However, I felt more depressed by his warning. My knees weakened, so I suddenly bent down on the floor.

"Let's go." Alfred uttered as he pulled me up. I was not sure, but I seemed to see the concern in his eyes.

"W-where are we going?" I asked, confused.

Alfred didn't respond as he led me to his car. Then, he told something to the men in black before they all left.

Afterward, Alfred got in the car, started the engine, and we left the place. I was silent the whole journey as I was figuring out how to pay my father's debt. Moreover, how could I bear a child?

"Don't worry. I'll help you," Alfred uttered, returning my thought. I glanced at him and saw how serious he was. He seemed to be a different person now.

"How? Don't tell me you'll lend me money to pay my father's debt?" I questioned.

"Exactly." He confirmed.

My eyes sparkled. Did I hear it right? This stranger was going to help me?

"Really?" I asked eagerly.

Alfred stopped the car.

"In one condition. Marry me, Hannah Simons." He proposed in a deep cold voice, staring deeply at me. But my eyes grew impossibly wide. I stared at him in an unfathomable stupor.

What was he saying? Was he crazy to propose to a random stranger? And how did he learn my full name?

It seemed that he read what was on my mind. "I got your name on the ID on your bag when I saved you that night." He explained.

I sat frozen in my seat. I was confused. What should I do? Did I run away from Robert just to marry a stranger?

"A-Are you insane? You're proposing to marry me? We're total strangers." I asked as I recovered my senses.

"It was you who told Robert that you're pregnant, right? And that you're in love with me. So, I'm just helping you out. "

He was right. It was my idea, after all. Oh, Lord. What trouble did I enter this time?