Three

Amanda's POV

I winced as I downed my third shot of alcohol, feeling it burn my throat. "Another!" I yelled to the bartender over the loud music. 

He looked at me doubtfully, as if trying to imply that I'd had enough, but I shot him a glare sharp enough to slice him clean into two. Holding a hand up as if in surrender, he began to mix me a cocktail. 

My head spun as I buried myself into the chinc environment of the club. I had never been one to party or turn to alcohol, but things were obviously different tonight. After my encounter with the loan sharks of my agreement to pay off the loan tomorrow, I needed to clear my head somehow. 

My chest still ached from thoughts of Logan and all the pain he had caused me. At intervals, tears would fill my eyes, but I immediately shook them off and downed another glass of the tasteful-tasting

"Here you go, sweetheart. Take it easy though…" the bartender said loudly over the music, sliding the shot over to me. 

I snatched up the glass. "Mind your fucking business!" I slurred, pouring the drink into my mouth and tossing the glass back to him. 

I turned away from the bar and struggled to get to my feet. My legs were so wobbly and unsteady that I had to hold on to a chair to keep myself from falling. I snorted loudly at the stupid situation I was in.

"Woah…" I stopped myself right before I fell. Sighing, I made my way to the dance floor. Thoughts of Logan still plagued me. I needed to feel better, whatever way it took. 

As the DJ shifted to a more upbeat tune, I began to sway from side to side. I smoothened down the hem of the tiny black dress I had on. I had purposely picked out the shortest dress in my wardrobe for tonight. I wanted to feel sexy and confident, and that was exactly what I was going to do. 

The alcohol coupled with the music released some of the tension in my muscles until I fully began to dance. I was just getting into the groove of the moment when I was distracted by the vibration of my phone in my purse. My hands unstable, I managed to slip out my phone and swiped to answer on seeing that it was my best friend calling. 

"Hey, Nessa!" I slurred into the speaker. "What's up?!"

"What's going on? Why is it so noisy there? Where are you?" Vanessa's voice floated in through the speaker. 

"It's just some music!"

"Music? Amanda, where the hell are you? Please don't tell me you're at a nightclub!"

"So what?" I shot back. 

"Jeez, Amanda. What's really going on? This isn't you. You don't like loud music or clubs…what's happening? Please talk to me. Go somewhere quiet so we can talk."

Hearing the sympathetic voice of my friend mellowed me down a little bit and I tearfully stumbled out of the club and to a more quiet place outside. 

"Okay," Vanessa hummed her approval. "Now…talk to me. What's wrong?"

"That motherfuck has been cheating on me!" I blurted out before I could help myself. "This whole time he has been playing me for a fool!"

"Logan? He cheated on you, that fucking bastard! I swear I'm going to kill him!"

I said nothing. My chest was beginning to hurt again. "It's no use, Vanessa. You can't do anything about it. He's your boss, remember? He could get you fired with a click of his finger."

Vanessa sighed. "Fuck, I'm so sorry Amanda."

I waved off her words. "It's fine. You were right, I shouldn't have trusted him. This is all my fault."

"Don't say that–"

"It's fine. He and Candace are perfect for each other," I laughed bitterly. "Me, on the other hand, I'm going to party hard tonight and kill all thoughts of that asshole."

"Amanda, wait. Where are you? Let me come get you."

"Bye, Nessa!" 

And in the middle of her protests, I hung up.  I was stumbling back to the club when I saw two figures emerging from the dark alley. My vision was blurred but I was able to make out the figures of two men. Immediately I headed in the other direction, not interested in any encounter right now.

"Hey sexy, where are you running off to?" One of them called out to me. 

I walked faster, but my legs were so shaky that I could not make it very far. In a split second, the two men had cornered me to a wall, grinning as they looked at me over. 

One of them snaked his fingers around my waist. My skin crawled as I let out a yelp. 

"Don't touch me!" 

But it was no use. 

"Shhh.. it'll be over very quickly."

"No, no!"

They were unzipping their jeans when a thunderous voice echoed through the alley. 

"Get the FUCK away from her?!!"

They froze. My head snapped in the direction of the voice to see the outline of a tall, well-built man, I  could  not see his face because it was so dark. 

"And who the hell are you?" One of the men snarled. "Wait in line, fella. You'll have your turn–"

He was cut off when a fist connected with his jaw. I gasped as blood spurted out of his lips from the impact. Everything else seemed to happen in a daze. The stranger beat up the two men to a pulp until they managed to escape. 

"Are you okay?" The man asks, placing a hand against my shoulder gently. 

My heart clenched when my eyes met his icy blue ones. I gasped, recognition suddenly surging through me. I walked closer to him on unsteady legs. 

"I..know y-you.." my words were slurred and I had to cling to him for support. 

"You do?"

I nodded childishly. "You're Electric Eyes.." I said the first thing that came to mind. His eyes were a shade I had never seen before and it had made an impression on me. 

The stranger laughed. "Okay, you're drunk. You need to get going."

I stumbled away from him, suddenly remembering the picture Logan had shoved in my face. 

"I don't need your help," I spat. "It's your fault!" I rushed to him, poking my finger in his chest. "It's your fault Logan broke up with me. It's your fault that I feel so much pain!"

The stranger said nothing, only staring at me with those almost mesmerizing eyes. 

"All because I helped you that night. I should've just left you there. Because of you, my boyfriend cheated on me with his best friend!"

The stranger cocked an eyebrow. 

"Yes!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands in the air. "You won't believe the way she insulted me, she ridiculed me, rubbed it in my face, and made it seem like she was better than me!"

"Come on, you're upset. I'll take you home." He wrapped his hand around my wrist.

"No!" I pulled myself away from him. "I don't need your help."

With that, I hobbled away. I was so dizzy that I did not realize when I stepped into a small ditch. 

"Ahhh!!" I let out a scream. Just before I fell, a strong pair of arms pulled me up.

"Alright, I'm taking you home." Despite my protests, the stranger hoisted me up on his shoulder and dragged me out of the club and into the car. 

I gradually stopped my protests and relaxed into the soft leather car seats. Against my will, my eyes grew heavy and my eyelids closed shut. 

"What's your address?" I heard the stranger ask before the sounds dimmed and I faded into unconsciousness.

***

My heavy eyelids fluttered open and I groggily looked around, realizing I was laying. I tried to get up and instantly regretted it when a sharp pain shot through my head. 

"Ow…" I hissed. After giving myself time to recover, I hobbled over to the living room of the hotel suite I found myself, wondering what the hell happened last night. 

As soon as I set my eyes on the blue-eyed stranger, last night's incident came rushing back to me, filling me with anger. 

"I didn't ask for your help!" I hissed. "Stay the hell away from me. You've done enough, and I hope I never see you again!"

I turned to walk away, ignoring his comments. 

"Marry me."

I froze at the spot, whipping around to look at the stranger. 

"W-What? What the hell are you talking about?"

"Marry me," he repeated. "For Two year. And in return, I'll clear off all your debts and make you the talk of the town."

My eyes widened. How the hell did he know about the debt? "How did yo-"

"I have my ways," he cut me off. 

I stared back at the stranger. At this point I could tell that he was obviously a man of power and influence. His offer to wipe off my debt was tempting. But what proof did I have that he was sincere?

"What if I say no? What if I tell you I'm not interested?" I folded my arms across my chest.

"Then you would be losing your one and final shot at saving your family home."