#predatorweek

“La Céleste, was it?”

“I’m off the stage, you can just refer to me as Serena.” She gestured toward the lone chair in the sitting room, urging him to take that seat as she took the lounge couch for herself, her long dress draping off to the side, her ankle bare. She watched his eyes wander to the slightest bit of bare skin, trying not to laugh at how a flicker appeared in his eyes. This was always an easy capture, and this nobleman would be just like all the others. “Now… what can I do for you, My Lord?”

The house was gaudy, filled to the brim with expensive art and decorations and interior. Lavish walls and expensive furniture – there was even a fountain to the side which he was slightly thankful for as it helped bridge the silence. A slight annoyance built within him as the servants entered the room, setting down a tray of tea and little snacks. It was much too late in the evening for this, what was she doing toying with him? She tried to raise a cup toward him, and he shook his head. “This is hardly a social call.”

“Oh? You’re sitting on my chair, in my sitting room, under my roof. I served out the good tea for a man of your… stature, Lord Yuri – what else is this but a social call?”

Yuri chuckled, leaning forward as his lips quirked upward. “Bold of you to call any of this yours, La Céleste.” Her nostrils flared and she slammed the teacup down; match point to him. This was bound to be easier than he thought. He cleared his throat. “No, I’ve come for a bit of a proposition. I’m sure a woman of your stature is in no position to refuse me.”

The anger that flashed in her eyes as she raised herself up, the straps of her dress falling so gracefully off her shoulders and the bottom of her dress finally flared over her ankles. One part covered for another.

It was like that dress was sentient. “Just say what you want – you’re boring me.”

He scoffed, reaching into his pocket and threw out a pouch that skited across the table in a loud clunk. It was filled to the brim and Serena knew the familiar sound and look of such a pouch. A generous handful of gold coins were tossed so carelessly toward her, the pouch itself broke open and gold coins were across the table. “That’s not bound to bore you. No, I’d say you’re much better off accepting that and me as your patron. I’ve heard you are desperate for one and it’s not like those less than perfect dancing skills can keep you relevant for long.”

“Desperate? Me?” Serena blinked once, twice – the noise of the fountain deafening around them. “I uh… I think you’re mistaken.”

“No, I’m-”

Serena stood up abruptly, removing the ribbon holding her hair up high and allowing it to fall gracefully down her back, amused heavily by how Yuri was easily silenced by the sight her flowing hair. But he still watched her, strolling over to a well-sized box – one that appeared too heavy for her dainty arms, but she lifted it with such ease and even turning back and her dress flaring out behind her. Her hips swayed back and forth and hair bouncing; graceful in every movement.

She stopped in front of him, opening up the chest and turning it over and dumping all the contents – hundreds of gold coins spilling out onto Yuri’s lap and he winced in surprise and pain from the sudden impact. She had such a large amount of money in one small room, out of the hundreds that were in this gifted palace and he threw out such a meager amount. “This… this was paid to me for a kiss on my hand.”

“I-”

“And,” she didn’t allow him to speak, dropping the chest by his feet, “kings have traveled for a dinner with me. Emperors have groveled at my feet. This roof you say doesn’t belong to me…” Serena lifted her foot up to his chest, pushing him back slightly and giving him more of a peak of her bare leg. “All this in exchange for sharing a champagne bath with the richest man in the continent. Incredibly uncomfortable but I think it’s worth it, don’t you, Lord Yuri?”

His mouth was dry, riddled with embarrassment.

There she was, the most prominent dancer, the most coveted woman… the one nearly all his friends and acquaintances had eyes on, and he blundered within a moment’s notice. He hated it. Hated, hated, hated that upon seeing her once on the stage was enough for a mild crush of all things to spawn. The crush grew from something annoying and slightly inconvenient to fire in his blood at the very thought of pushing her down back on that lounge couch and sliding off that tease of a dress to show more than just bare shoulders and a glance at an ankle.

“Name your price then.”

“I don’t deal in desperate.” She removed her foot from his chest, allowing him freedom and a deep breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

He wasn’t desperate. No, desperate were the men who had come begging with flowers and chocolates and gifts and flattery. He was nothing if not blunt about his intentions and desires – he wasn’t desperate. Desperate meant he would go groveling at her feet and begging for her to accept him. But he was stubborn to a fault and defeat wasn’t a word in his vocabulary.

When he had interested in a rising product, he bought the rights straight under the manufacturer and creator from a sheer whim. A nice property with an owner not interested in selling? Easy, all Yuri did was buy up the surrounding properties and cause the property taxes to go up and forcing the owner out. There was no such thing as a dirty or underhanded trick – just long games. When he had his eyes set on something, he’d do all he could to have it.

And his eye was settled on Serena.

Yuri grit his teeth. All he needed was something quick and he could move on with his life. He didn’t necessarily need to possess her, just… a grin slowly formed as he stood up, running his hand through his hair. “Consider that a deposit then. A promise of more to come, you didn’t really think I’d be that stingy and cheap?” Serena raised a brow, her expression not changing to that of an interested woman. But she wasn’t closing him off yet and he stood up, the gold coins spilling from his lap. He picked up a single coin, flipping it up in the air as his confidence grew by the moment. “No, I’ll give you a sum and more so monthly with interest.”

The slightest bit of a smug smile.

She was softening toward him.

“To the tune of a total of…?”

Everyone had a price and hers… hers was worth every penny he had to offer. “I think a cool million has a nice ring to it – or is that much too low for La Céleste?”

Her eyebrows went up so high, nearly into her hairline and her eyes even, those emerald eyes were clouded with shock. Serena was in such disbelief over how the Yuri had turn the tables in such a short amount of moments.

… or so he thought. The first thing she thought when she heard Lord Yuri of the Hortus family, Heir to the Hortus fortune was interested in an audience with her; she saw dollar signs all around. And the moment he appeared in front of her door, handsome and well-dressed with all the demure of a gentleman, she was sure she struck gold. But then he opened his mouth.

And he was nothing but a horror.

Snide and condescending and thinking she was just some cheap whore off the streets who was merely in the façade of renting a mansion rather than being the most accomplished dancer and sought-out woman. She wanted to break him and it would be so easy now that he was openly playing into her hand… and to such an extent! He surprised her with his offer; that number she hadn’t expected. “… well, I suppose… for that amount, I’m sure we can come to a bit of an arrangement. But unless you even have half that amount right now, I’m not giving you anything.” Serena began to walk away, turning her head slightly to pick back up her tea but Yuri was fast in grabbing onto her, pulling her back to him.

He brought a servant with him. She only noticed him standing in the back after Yuri snapped his fingers; the servant taking out a large chest, larger than the one she dropped on Yuri, and delivering it right to the table, his head bowed the whole time as he opened the contents. A large sum of money indeed, the small bag that Yuri prepared was nothing compared to the number of gold coins within there.

Was he… was this planned on his end?

She was so sure it was a desperate ploy.

Yuri nodded to his servant who promptly left, now out of sight as far as Serena could tell. “Now, I’ve paid my end of the bargain. I’m sure there’s some quality you have worth that much, Serena.”

Serena sneered; there was that mouth of his again bringing out her spite. She could see it in his eyes and how they traveled down her body, all but saying exactly what he expected from her now. But she wouldn’t play into his hands.

No, she was not so cheap.

She pulled her hand away and pushed him back to his chair, ready to wipe that conceited smirk off his face. With no effort and without breaking eye contact, Serena raised her fingers to the straps holding her dress together and Yuri sucked in a deep breath as he watched the dress fall completely to the ground, where it looked much better and left her standing in front of him completely naked.

His heart raced and his fingers twitched, licking his lips as his eyes wandered down from her bright eyes to her parted lips and down to her perfect breasts that were begging to be touched. The moment he reached out to try and grab her and pull her into his lap, Serena grabbed a pillow and smacked him across the head, causing him to fall back to the chair. Though it did nothing to quell the desire he felt, there was now a mix of annoyance within there. “The hell?! I paid-”

“-to see me naked. To do any more than that, I’ll require much more. I’m not cheap, Lord Yuri and if you wish a prize like me, then you’ll pay whatever I ask. Just as you said.”

He could curse her; what a vile woman!