Bet Of Love

Chapter 18

Bria

Eventually, the private jet takes off from London back to New York. Not soon after the sound of someone lightly sleeping catches my attention. Valen is sprawled out in his seat with his arms crossed and looking more vulnerable than I've ever seen him before.

He's pretty when he's asleep. I can't seem to rip my eyes away from the sight of his face.

"Anyone won the bet yet?" Rei whispers next to me, as to not wake him up.

"It's still on."

"I can't believe the great Valen Hayes spent a whole two days with a woman day and night and didn't do anything. A part of me assumed he would've tried something."

"He could've "tried" all he wanted, but he most certainly wouldn't have succeeded." Yeah right...

"Valen's really been going after you but you couldn't care less. I didn't know women like you existed." He seems amused by my response.

"You're being dramatic. There's billions of women in the world."

"Of course. But all the women I've encountered so far have found Valen irresistible." I can't deny that he possesses that quality. "Although you're very different from the women he usually spends his time with...."

He's not going to say what I think he's going to say right...

"...He might actually have real feelings for you."

Rei seems to be trying to get me to lose my cool, so I flash him a confident smirk. "Doubt it." Internally though, it's more difficult for me to pretend the things he's saying aren't affecting me.

It may be that he's enjoying his time with me more than the time he's spent with other women for now. But that's only because I'm good competition. I'm giving him a run for his money.

Rei glances at Valen then to me, "Want to a hear story?"

"A story?"

"It's a story that only a few people know."

Hearing this would mean I would have an advantage. It wouldn't be fair, but I don't have the luxury of worrying about what's fair right now.

Reading my expression, he starts the story without me saying anything, "Once upon a time, there lived a happy prince..." He has the tone of someone telling a fairytale. "His days were full and fulfilling with his parents. But one day, mysterious powers had brought his family to a ruin." He's talking about Valen... "Having lost everything, the prince was forced to wander the dark back alleys to survive. His privilege charmed life was over; he had fallen to rock bottom. Without a home or parents, he experienced what it was like to be truly destitute. Shivering in the cold, he didn't even have money to buy food. Fearing everyday would be his last, he lived his life wandering the streets." His life was smooth sailing, being born into a wealthy family, but then his family lost everything and nothing was certain. His life changed and he didn't even know if he'd live to see the next day. "But then one day, a wealthy investor plucked the boy from that grimy existence."

A man you'd never think would've had to experience hardship ended up homeless. Alone. It was because he's known the terror of isolation that he built hotels that never sleeps... all so he could feel other people's lively presence nearby, never having to feel alone again.

I'm gradually starting to understand his nature, and the unfortunate circumstances he had to endure that's made him into the man he is today.

So he learned that one loss is all it takes to lose everything... No wonder he's so insistent on winning.

Rei's eyes are filled with pity and mirth, "His heart was what he lost."

"His... heart?"

"The part of his heart that allowed him to love and trust. After what he went through, he was forced to give that up. Otherwise he wouldn't be able to survive in the world he lives in. He used every means to amass an unimaginable fortune, but even with everything at his disposal, he's never once felt complete." He lets out a small dry laugh, "It's like he's cursed with an indelible sadness, isn't that just the most pitiful thing you've ever heard?" Something sick and dark in Rei's smile sends a chill down my spine.

Rei... may actually be more frightening than Valen is.

His smile fades as quick as it was shown and he chuckles at my wariness. "I'm going to be in trouble if you don't win this little game."

"What kind of trouble is it that you're so cryptically alluding to?"

"That's a secret for now. You'll know when it's over." He picks up the bottle and refills his glass in a lighthearted manner.

It dawns on me that all of his actions are of a person who's known hardship and pain. If there is something I can relate to, it would hardship and pain.