The Audacious Demand Chapter 1

My best friend and I had just finished dinner and were about to leave when a woman blocked our path, insisting I pay for another table’s bill.

I refused, telling her I didn’t know them. She exploded.

“Damn it, I’m doing you a favor by letting you pay! Who the hell do you think you are, disrespecting the Sterling Corporation in this city? You looking to die?”

Before I could respond, she became even more arrogant.

“Do you have any idea who I am? I’m the wife of Sterling Corporation’s chairman, Rory Sterling! Scared now, aren't you?”

I froze for a second, then pulled out my phone and dialed Rory’s number.

“I hear you have another wife at the company?”

…

The moment I hung up, the woman flew into a rage. She snatched my phone and smashed it on the floor.

“Still trying to call for backup? Believe it or not, I can make sure you never walk out of this restaurant.”

“Stop it!”

My friend, Moya Devaney, pulled me behind her. “Is this how people from Sterling Corporation behave? Harassing strangers for money and getting physical without any reason?”

The woman’s face flushed with anger. “Manners? In this city, the Sterling name is manners! I’m letting you pay my bill because I’m giving you a chance to climb the social ladder, understand? You want to talk about rules? My word is the rule here!”

I laughed out loud, looking up at the woman, whose name I now knew was Ivy Lilley. “Sterling Corporation may be big, but I doubt they taught you how to be a highway robber.”

Ivy snorted, planting her hands on her hips like a common shrew. “I’m giving you a chance to network! Do you know how many people are lining up to buy me dinner? I wouldn’t even give them the time of day!”

A chance to network. As if my family, the Croftons, ever needed to network with anyone in this city. I glanced at Moya, her expression dark. I knew my friend, a princess from the capital’s most elite circles, was shocked to be bullied by someone from a company like Sterling.

Ivy sneered and waved a hand toward the door. “Let me tell you something. In this city, what I, Ivy Lilley, say, goes! Grab these two idiots who don’t know their place!”

The words had barely left her mouth when seven or eight bodyguards in black suits swarmed in, surrounding us. Moya instinctively pulled me back, her eyes sharp and ready for a fight. But there were too many of them. Before she could make a move, two men grabbed her arms, pinning her.

“Moya!” I lunged forward, but a sharp blow to the back of my neck sent darkness exploding behind my eyes.

Through the haze, I saw Moya struggling, cursing them, before a fist slammed into her jaw. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.

I was forced to the ground, helpless, as Ivy kicked Moya in the stomach, spitting insults. “You dare meddle in my business? Today, I’ll teach you that you don’t mess with Sterling Corporation!”

Fists rained down on me, each blow a dull, throbbing pain. Moya had only come to visit, and now she was caught in this mess.

“Ivy Lilley!” I yelled, my voice hoarse. “I am Rory Sterling’s legally wedded wife, Autumn Crofton.” I gestured to Moya, who was still being held down. “And she is Moya Devaney, from the Devaney family of the capital! Let us go now, and we can still forget this ever happened!”

Ivy’s foot froze mid-air. Then she burst out laughing. “Rory Sterling’s wife? From the Devaney family? Did you two get your brains beaten out?”

The people at her table roared with laughter.

“Everyone knows the boss’s wife is Vice President Lilley.”

“She’s really got some nerve, making up stories like that.”

“The Devaney family? From the capital? Never heard of them. Probably just some name she pulled out of a hat to scare us.”

Ivy leaned down and grabbed a fistful of my hair, her eyes vicious. “Say you’re his wife one more time, and I’ll rip your mouth off. I’ll show you what’s real and what’s fake. Only I can say Rory’s name. And I am the only woman who will ever be his.”

Moya, still pinned to the floor with blood on her lips, let out a mocking laugh. “Well, Autumn Crofton, looks like you got married for nothing. This woman is claiming your man right in front of you, and you, the actual wife, are the one left looking like a fool.”

Her words, strangely, made me want to laugh. And I did, though it was a harsh, bitter sound.

Ivy was still pulling my hair. I suddenly jerked my head to the side and bit down, hard, on her wrist. She screamed in pain, her grip loosening. I used the momentum to slam my knee into the groin of the bodyguard behind me. As he doubled over in agony, I grabbed a beer bottle from a nearby table and smashed it over another guard’s head.

By the time Ivy realized what was happening, I was on her, my fist connecting with her face. She stumbled back, stunned by the sudden counterattack, blood gushing from her nose.

“You bitch! You dare hit me?!” she shrieked, clawing at my face. I caught her arm and threw her to the ground. I straddled her, raining down punches.

The Sterling employees at her table, reeking of alcohol, rushed forward to pull me off. “You’re attacking VP Lilley? Are you tired of living?”

Somehow, Moya had broken free. She kicked away a man who was coming at me and yelled, “Beat the hell out of her, Autumn! I’ve never been this insulted in my entire life!”

In the chaos, someone smashed a chair across my back. I grunted in pain but didn’t stop. Ivy was screaming, scratching wildly at my hair. “Sterling security! Kill her! I’ll take responsibility! Triple bonuses for everyone!”

The employees swarmed me like a pack of wolves, grabbing my arms, my waist, kicking at my legs. As I was being pulled back, Ivy kicked me hard in the stomach. I staggered back, and was about to charge again when a voice boomed from the restaurant entrance.

“Everyone, stop!”