Elina
The hospital waiting room smelled like disinfectant and despair.
I sat alone in a cracked plastic chair, the weight of my brother's medical report in one hand and a treatment bill I could never afford in the other. ₹7,80,000. My entire world reduced to a number I couldn't reach.
No job. No family left but him. And time slipping away like water through clenched fists.
Then my phone buzzed.
> Interview Confirmed - Salvatore Enterprises. 11:00 AM.
I had applied blindly, desperate for anything that paid. I didn't care what it was. I just needed to survive.
---
The Tower
Salvatore Enterprises stood like a blade cutting into the sky - cold, high, and impossible.
The lobby gleamed in marble and silence. Everyone in suits. Everyone important.
I didn't belong here.
But I walked in anyway, heart pounding, palms damp. I needed this job.
> "Elina Gilbert?" a voice said behind me.
I turned.
And saw him.
---
Damon Salvatore
He stood tall in a charcoal suit, the cut sharp against his broad shoulders. His black hair was perfectly messy, his jawline sharp enough to bruise, and his eyes...
God, his eyes.
Dark. Cold. Dangerous.
I felt my breath stop in my chest.
> "Follow me," he said. Not a smile. Not even a glance. Just command.
I followed.
---
The Office
His office was glass, steel, and shadows. No photos. No warmth. Just control.
He sat behind a massive desk and opened a folder.
> "You're here for the contract position," he said.
> "Yes," I whispered, unsure why my voice shook.
> "You're broke," he said bluntly. "Your brother is sick. You'll do anything."
I flinched. How did he know?
He slid the folder toward me.
> "Read it."
Chapter 1- The offer
My fingers trembled as I opened it. Legal terms. Conditions. Rules.
And something else.
> "This isn't a regular job," I said, looking up.
His lips curved slightly - not a smile. A warning.
> "You'll work for me. Live where I tell you. Wear what I approve. Obey when I say."
> "This is... personal," I whispered.
> "No," he said, voice smooth as silk. "This is ownership."
---
I looked at the last line of the contract.
> By signing this, you agree to surrender all personal boundaries to Damon Salvatore.
I swallowed hard.
> "Why me?"
He stood up and walked toward me, slow and deliberate.
When he reached me, he leaned in so close I could feel the heat from his body.
> "Because you're desperat
e, Elina," he murmured. "And desperate girls make the best toys."
---
To Be Continued...
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