Chapter 3 Offer Up My Body As Payment

• Noelle had been scolded more in the past few days than she had ever been in the last twenty years. Her father, her only true family, was no exception either as he refused to give her a chance to explain.
• Hence, the only way to relieve her pain was to drown her sorrows in alcohol.
• “That’s it?” The man snapped the magazine shut as he took his time giving the woman a once-over. “How insincere!”
• As he wasn’t that far from her, the light fragrance coming from her body managed to overpower the smell of the hospital’s disinfectant. This familiar scent was very pleasant to his nostrils, and it brought Dominic Pierce back to the passionate night that occurred a week ago.
• “What were you expecting?” Being stared at by a devilishly charming man like him made Noelle’s heart gallop in her chest. She forced her lips into a faint smile as she joked, “Did you expect me to offer up my body as payment?”
• Dominic raised his brows as though he was truly considering the idea.
• “I’m just kidding!” Noelle Hooper! Your reputation is already as bad as it is, but here you are, going around making such crude jokes. Are you trying to humiliate yourself?
• “No words can express my gratitude to you. I owe you a debt and I’ll be sure to return you the favor in the future!” She lowered her gaze and attempted to get herself out of the embarrassing situation.
• “In the future? It seems like you’re eager to see me again.” The man chuckled lightly but the expression on his handsome face remained indecipherable.
• “No...”
• “I don’t like owing people, neither do I allow people to owe me! What I hate, though, are empty promises!”
• “Then... What would you propose?” Noelle was at a loss for words. It’s not like I asked him to save me. Does he have to act like he’s out for my blood?
• “Mmm...” The man tapped his chin with a slender finger and had a pensive look on his face.
• Noelle was lying on the bed at an inclined angle. When the man’s eyes swept over her, she felt the intensity of his gaze pressuring her from all sides, making her so nervous that she didn’t even dare to lift her head.
• Suddenly, a blaring ringtone cut through the silence. Noelle was saved by the person who was calling Dominic’s phone.
• “The media is on the way here?” Dominic’s brows furrowed as he glanced at Noelle on the bed before stepping out of the door. “Stop them!”
• His voice grew softer beyond the door until it vanished completely. With that, Noelle heaved a long sigh of relief.
• What the hell is wrong with me? He saved my life but he didn’t ask for anything in return. And why am I this nervous?
• On the phone, he had said something about the media coming here. Don’t tell me that they’re refusing to let me off the hook even while I’m hospitalized.
• Noelle hesitated for a while before she lifted up the blanket and hopped out of bed. Then, she clutched onto her wound and staggered out of the door.
• I’m a walking disaster now. Getting involved with me means bad luck. I should leave the hospital right now before I land that man in a heap of trouble!
• By the time Dominic returned to the ward, there wasn’t a single trace of her.
• “Should we look for her, Mr. Pierce?” queried his assistant, Clinton White, who had been following closely behind. The response he got in return was a dismissive wave from Dominic.
• “There’s no need for that.”
• His mouth was saying one thing but his brows had knitted into a frown. As the wheels began to turn in his head, Dominic soon asked his assistant, “Clinton, have I met her before?”
• “Who?” When Clinton realized that Dominic was referring to Noelle, his mouth opened slightly in surprise. “Ah... You mean that lady from earlier.”
• “Clinton!” Dominic narrowed his eyes dangerously at his assistant who was feigning cluelessness.
• “No, Mr. Pierce. You have never met her!”
• Never? If that’s the case, why does she smell so familiar?
• “N-No... Mm...”
• The man’s heavy panting was so sexy that it brought her shivers of delight. He had a handsome profile and buried his face into her shoulder, taking in the smell of her black hair which was glossy and a little damp to the touch. She looked extremely enticing to him. Noelle was shy but she was completely ensnared by the man. She had tried to push his sturdy body away more than once, but she was so weak that she couldn’t gather enough strength to even lift a muscle. All she could do was allow the man to have his way with her again and again...
• An ear-piercing ringtone bombarded Noelle’s senses, jolting her out of her dream. After she regained her bearings, she realized that her forehead was beaded with sweat.
• It was but a dream.
• One year had passed since the wedding scandal, but she had been haunted by this nightmare more times than she could count. Every time she had this nightmare, she would try to discern the features of the man lying on top of her. Unfortunately, her efforts had been futile.
• Her phone was still ringing incessantly.
• “Noelle, you were supposed to reach the set at eight-thirty! Look at the time now!” Her manager, Sophia Smith, roared across the line.
• Noelle’s alarm clock indicated that it was half-past ten. She smacked her forehead and cursed silently before replying, “I was having a tummy ache the entire morning, Sophia. Don’t be upset, okay? I’ll be there right away!”
• With that, she sped all the way to the recording studio in Shining Entertainment. When she arrived, the shooting had just begun.
• “I’m sorry, I’m sorry...”
• Looking at Sophia’s frosty expression, Noelle was quick to apologize. In spite of that, her manager merely shot her a glare before snapping, “That’s enough! Go and get your makeup done this instant!”
• “Understood!” Noelle gulped. When she turned around, she was immediately pressed into a chair by the makeup artist.
• The studio was filming a low-cost web series and Noelle merely had a minor role in it. Even so, Sophia had to beg the producer for a long time before she successfully landed Noelle this opportunity.
• Back in the day, Noelle had a promising future. She even managed the win the title of Best Actress in the International Film Festival just after filming her first movie. Shining Entertainment had planned to focus on grooming her, but after the wedding scandal her acting career was destroyed beyond the possibility of making a comeback.
• She didn’t have any films, endorsements, or commercials to shoot. If it weren’t for the odd jobs that Sophia had gathered for her, she wouldn’t even be able to afford a meal.
• “Mistress Hooper, don’t you know how to act? What’s with the expression? Are you trying to gobble someone up?” Sharon Puttnam, the actress whom she had a scene with, made them retake the shoot several times. It was obviously Sharon who couldn’t get into character, but she kept putting the blame on Noelle.
• “I’m sorry, but please call me Noelle.” Ever since the wedding scandal went viral, Noelle had been cursed at by the netizens for the entire year. Even her name had been replaced with “Mistress Hooper”. Everyone wanted to trample over her; nevertheless, Noelle wasn’t a pushover.
• In this scene, her character was seeking revenge on Sharon’s character, so of course she had to put on a fierce front and carry a vicious expression to portray her resentment for the other woman.
• She had gone through a total of five retakes, each one better than the last. From the look of approval on the director’s face, Noelle knew the problem wasn’t her. It was Sharon who couldn’t play her character well.
• “As for my acting skills, the director knows better!”
• “You...”
• “Forget about it. You should go and prepare for your next scene, Noelle.” The director, Francis Peele, called out before things got out of hand as he waved for Noelle to leave.
• Noelle sighed in relief before she took off. In spite of that, Sharon’s voice soon resounded behind her, dripping with sarcasm. “What are you so smug about? You are nothing but a used toy that nobody wants. Do you think you are still the best actress? You are more like an epic failure!”
• “Say that again!” Noelle turned around and glared menacingly at Sharon.
• “Gladly! Mistress Hooper, you’re nothing but an epic failure!”
• “Heh...” Noelle folded her arms across her chest as she stared unflinchingly at the arrogant woman in front of her. “I do admit that I’m an epic failure. You, on the other hand, have been cast in many big productions before. I wonder when will you be bagging the Best Actress award?”
• She knew about Sharon’s background. Sharon had relied on her wealthy godfather to land film roles, but her acting was simply unbearable to watch. All the actors in the shows she acted in had already made it big, with Sharon being the odd one out.
• “What’s so great about being Best Actress? I... I’ll become famous sooner or later!”
• “Sure, I’ll be waiting. Don’t let me wait until I’m old, though!”
• “Say that again!”
• Sharon jumped to her feet in anger while Noelle smirked upon having successfully antagonized her as she made her way out of the studio.
• “Your petty temper is back again, Noelle. I told you to keep a low profile. Why did you have to provoke Sharon? You should’ve told me sooner if you were trying to get yourself banned. I would’ve stopped working my ass off trying to help you.” Sophia witnessed the entire incident from earlier and was upset at Noelle for whipping out her sharp tongue. Doesn’t she know Sharon has strong backing?