SOPHIA

Upon arrival at the venue of the event, I see alot of people gathered at the entrance.

"The other entrance." He says to his driver, who nods in understanding and drives pass the crowd.

"Thank you so much, Eric" he says and we step out of the car. I see an entrance with no one present. He brings out a red card that had the letter L bodly written on it with black  ink.

He swipes the card at the door entrance and it slides open to reveal a well lit hall way, we walk straight and in front of us was a big hall with alot of people.

Eyes turn towards our direction as we walk in and I could feel alot of women glaring at me. We walk towards a gathering of three men who from my research are his closest friends.

"Sophia, meet Lucas, Nicholas and Fabian, the organiser of this event." He officially introduces me to his friends.

"Hi." I say to the three men, smiling at them. They nod back and give André a meaningful look.

"We'll be having a short meet up now, just mix with the crowd and socialise. Enjoy the event, call me if you need anything." He whispers to me and leaves with his friends.

"Hi." I hear someone say behind me. I turn to see who it is.

"You look familiar. Did we by any chance meet in Paris during my vacation?" He says.

"No, you have the wrong person. Excuse me." I say and walk ahead, no particular place in mind. He still keeps up with me.

"Alright, how about we grab a drink by the bar?" Persistent, are we? I raise an eyebrow and study him before finally caving in. I have nothing to loose, anyways and this is an open place so nothing could happen.

"Okay, then." I reply and he takes me to the bar across the room.

"Let me order, it's my treat. What would you be having?" He said and smile, I just went with the flow to allow him have the say, afterall, he initiated the talk.

"I'll have Mojito if there is any, if not Aperol float is fine." I say, for someone who once worked in a strip club, I needed to know these things. He pulls a chair for me to sit and takes a sit beside me, facing the bartender.

"We'll have one shot of Mojito and two shots of vodka." He says to him. He nods briefly and focuses on making our drinks and serves it shortly afterwards.

"I'm Alex Winston, by the way. What is your name?" He says.

"Sophia Farley." I answer back, placing my purse on the table. I take a sip from my drink, still looking forward.

"So, what do you do? I see you accompanied André Dumont." He's currently checking me out, I could see that from the corner of my eyes.

I smirk and turn in an attempt to focus my eyes on him, sitting down two seats before us was 'The boss'. To say I am shocked is an understatement, I quickly stand up, trying my best to not catch his attention.

"Excuse me." I say, walking as fast as my legs could carry me. Before I could even reach the door, I feel a strong hand hold me and pull me back.

....

ANDRÉ

The ball was going fine and the evening seemed cool and relaxing.

"That is your housekeeper? The Sophia Farley?" Nicholas asks.

"Yes, she is." I answer.

"Man, you are in alot of trouble." Lucas chuckles.

"That's one hell of a female you have over there. The men are drooling, even Alex is walking up to her now." He adds, laughing slightly.

I watch as they both converse and walk towards the bar. I almost crushed the cup I was holding as Alex flashes me a grin, unknown to her.

I have always disliked Alex, he is my cousin but a very greedy one. He has had this habit of going after any woman he sees me with but Sophia is off limits to him and I'll make sure of that.

"Easy on the cup, man. It's very fragile." Nicholas says, laughing at my situation.

I closely watch her take a sip from her drink, next thing she stands up instantly and starts moving fast, towards the entrance. What exactly is going on here. I notice she keeps looking behind her as if scared of something.

"Later, guys. I have a date to be with right now." I say to my brothers.

"Enjoy the night." Nick says loudly, clearly emphasizing on the double meaning behind that statement. I just ignore and follow her.

She's about to reach the entrance when I finally catch up with her and pull her arms, I quickly use my other hand to close her mouth to prevent her from screaming.

Her eyes still keeps searching the crowd, fear clearly written in them. I have only seen this look once and I intend to get to the bottom of this tonight. I drag her towards the other entrance and call Eric to wait for us there.

"Home." Eric nods and drives to our place of residence.

"Do you mind to tell me what is going on?" I ask her. She has been looking down since we arrived and has said nothing. She keeps mute for a while and when she looks up, I see the strong demeanor all gone. All that is visible is a woman in pain, a lone tear fall from her already red eyes and she opens her mouth to talk.

"My dad was an alcoholic and a gambler. I have always been with him partly because he was my dad and also I had no where else to turn to." She sobs, as she speaks then her face changes to a cold expression.

"Five years back, the worst happened. Apparently, he gambled and made a bet on me and lost. The men came and took me away to a strip club. There, I became a worker till the night I escaped and that was when I met you." She adds. I could not take in what I just heared, anger consumes me as I try to process it. Who in their right senses bets on their child? As she continues speaking, I knew the worse was yet to come.

"It was always the death of one person or the other, the place was not safe. Rumour has it that there's an illegal human trafficking ring and that the club is just a disguise. It was almost my turn, from what I heared after sneaking up on them one day. Already, I had been saving up and planning my exit. So that night I left and tonight, I saw 'The boss' again at the ball. Mena, my roomate over there called me to be very careful, I'm on their wanted list. " I gently place my hands on her face and wipe the tears on her eyes.

"Nothing is going to happen to you, I promise. Even if that is the last thing I do, be rest assured nothing will happen." She nods her head, exhausted. I take off her shoes and lift her up from the chair, taking her upstairs to her room.

She goes into her bathroom to change and comes back in a nightgown and no make up on her face. She looks so vulnerable at the moment. I slowly kiss her to sooth her pain, no one deserves to go through this. As I stand up to go to my room, she holds me back.

"Please stay." She says, I could see the silent plea in her eyes. She didn't need ro repeat it, I took off my jacket, shirt, belt and shoes. I was left with my just my trousers plus singlet and I proceeded to join her on the bed.

I place her in my arms and kiss her on her forehead.
"Goodnight, doll." I slowly whisper as we both drift into sleep.