Steven Bryant also glanced at me with a sly grin and said, "You just mentioned tips, right? Are you suggesting you will sell your body to earn those tips in a place like this? Haha, if it's really that, you should probably strip down first and let us inspect your assets. If your body is not up to our standard, we'd be at a loss, hahaha..."
I tightly gripped the bottle of alcohol and glanced at Steven.
Lucas smoked quietly as if he hadn't heard their vulgar remarks or simply didn't care.
I lowered my gaze and arranged the bottles on the bar counter one by one, smiling as I said, "You've all misunderstood. When I mentioned receiving tips, I meant the liquor business. Given our past friendship, you can order drinks from me, and I'll make a little extra commission."
"Ah, Miss Ford, are you so hard up for money now?" Richard suddenly threw a card onto the bar counter, looking charitable as he said, "There's six thousand dollars in this card. All you have to do is get down on the floor and bark like a dog a few times, and it's yours. How about it?"
As soon as Richard finished speaking, the private room burst into laughter again, accompanied by suggestive whistles.
Everyone in the room was eagerly eyeing me, including Lucas. While he appeared composed, his gaze held a depth that was hard to decipher.
I hesitated and didn't move. Then, out of nowhere, Steven tossed another card onto the bar counter. "Here an additional twenty thousand dollars. Just bark like a dog a few times and let us guys have some fun with you for the night. All of this can be yours."
I looked at Steven in shock. Despite our family's current hardships, I was still Lucas’ ex-wife. How dare he make such a request when Lucas was sitting right there?
Unless Lucas told them that he had divorced me and informed them how much he disliked me. Otherwise, they wouldn't dare to humiliate me in front of him like this.
"What’s wrong? Aren’t you short on cash?" Steven sneered. "You can't even swallow your pride for a moment and continue to put on a tough facade. The amount we're offering is quite generous. If you were to sell your body elsewhere, how many times would you have to do it to make this much money?"
He was right.
I was short on cash.
What was I doing, carrying around that unrealistic pride?
However, putting down my pride didn't mean that I had no boundaries.
Looking at Steven's wicked, mocking smile, I felt nauseous.
I grabbed that card which contained twenty thousand dollars and tossed it back to Steven, purposefully remarking, "You actually think you can purchase a night with me for this mere twenty thousand dollars? If you're as capable as you claim, pay me two million!"
I knew Steven well. He didn't come from a well-off family and spent his time pretending to be generous on the surface while actually being quite stingy. In the past, he used to freeload off my brother and me, and he couldn't even muster the generosity to buy his girlfriend a handbag.
It could be said that taking just two thousand dollars from him was equivalent to cutting his flesh.
Now, just to embarrass me, he was willing to spend twenty thousand dollars. This made me wonder if I was really such a terrible person in the past.
"Hahaha, Steven, you're too stingy. No matter what, she was once the Ford family heiress. If you're buying her for a night, you can't just offer twenty thousand."
Laughter filled the private room.
Steven's face instantly turned red with anger as he glared at me and sneered disdainfully. "I think she’s not even worth two thousand dollars.”
I ignored Steven's mockery and instead picked up the card containing six thousand dollars, asking Richard, "Was what you just said true? That if I bark like a dog, these six thousand dollars are mine?"
Richard was momentarily taken aback, seemingly not expecting me to take him seriously.
Both Richard and Steven were stingy men. That six thousand dollars must have been a significant sum for him.
Seeing Richard's face twist awkwardly, he said, "You are someone proud and arrogant who looks down on others. How could you possibly bark like a dog in front of us? Stop joking."
As Richard spoke, he tried to take back the card. I avoided his hand that was reaching out and said earnestly, "I'm not joking. Barking like a dog isn't difficult, and to do it for six thousand dollars seems like a profitable deal, doesn't it?"
Richard's face instantly showed regret as he stared at the card in my hand, wishing he could snatch it back.
Steven, reveling in my misfortune, said, "Then hurry up and bark. Let us see how you degrade yourself, wagging your tail and begging pitifully on the ground like a dog."
I had lost my former pride. My mind was filled with the fierce faces of debt collectors, the image of my parents crying in despair, and the sight of my brother working hard.
I took a deep breath and said, "Alright."
Just as I was slowly getting down on my knees, my elbow was suddenly supported by a large hand.
I looked over in surprise and met Lucas's deep eyes, my heart skipping a beat.
"Everyone, leave," Lucas said indifferently, addressing the group of wealthy young men.
Instantly, they scattered, eager to avoid angering him.
As Richard left, he even managed to snatch the six-thousand-dollar card from my hand, which was quite amusing.
Lucas fixed his eyes on me. "Are you really that short of money?"
I withdrew my elbow from his large hand and created some distance between us.
"Mr. Holmes, isn't that a question with an obvious answer?"
After my family went broke and accumulated a mountain of debt, it became common knowledge in Stockton. I didn't believe he was unaware of it.
"Mr. Holmes?" Lucas chuckled, savoring the title.
I didn't know what he was thinking, nor did I have the leisure to entangle myself with him.
Pointing to the bottles on the bar, I said, "Mr. Holmes, here is the drink you ordered. I've delivered it to you. If you think my service is good, you can also reward me with a tip."
Lucas gazed at me silently, his expression always impossible to read.
The tip was just a casual remark; I didn't really expect him to give me anything.
I chuckled and was about to leave when Lucas suddenly said, "I'll give you two million."
I abruptly halted in my tracks, looking at him in disbelief. "What did you say?"
Lucas walked up to me, his eyes gazing deeply into mine. "I'll give you two million if you spend the night with me."
My lip twitched for a moment, and I really wanted to say, "Are you out of your mind?"
However, he had become successful now and was no longer the easy target for anyone to take advantage of.
Suppressing the urge to scold him, I stiffly smiled and said, "Mr. Holmes, please don't joke with me. I have work to do. Goodbye."
"Why is it that Steven can do it, but I'm not allowed?” Lucas suddenly asked in a deep, slightly cold tone.
I furrowed my brow. "What do you mean that? What are you talking about?"
"Just a moment ago, you requested two million from Steven and were ready to spend the night with him. So, now when I offer you two million, why won't you do the same for me?"
I couldn't help but roll my eyes.
I just brought up the two-million-dollar proposal to Steven because I wanted to taunt him, fully aware that extracting twenty thousand dollars from him was already pushing the limit. Asking for two million was practically asking for his life. I hadn't expected Lucas to take it seriously.
Lucas approached me, took a drag of his cigarette, and blew smoke rings. "Aren't you in need of money now? Just accompany me for one night, and two million dollars will be yours. How about it?"
I discreetly tightened my grip on my side.
I understood his motives behind this action. He was simply using money to humiliate me.
Suppressing the bitter taste welling up in my heart, I sneered at him. "So, do you think being rich now makes you powerful? Yes, my family is in need of money, but I won't earn it this way."
After saying that, I hurriedly left the room. My tears had already blurred my vision.
