In the Clayton Hotel's Presidential Suite, clothes were strewn haphazardly across the floor.
Despite the passing night, the tension between the man and woman lingered in the air.
Struggling, Jenna Gourley massaged her slender waist and managed to sit up on the bed. She pulled the quilt tightly around her, fixing her intense gaze upon the man standing beside the bed.
Dressed impeccably in a sleek black suit, he exuded an air of elegance with his tall stature and long legs. Retrieving a pen from his chest pocket, he delicately clicked the pen and swiftly inscribed something on the check.
Jenna understood that this check was her compensation for the one-night stand.
As the thought crossed her mind, the sound of tearing paper resonated from above, revealing a check worth two million dollars right before her eyes.
Jenna casually picked up the check, her fingers tapping against it, producing a crisp sound.
She then directed her gaze toward the man standing above her and uttered, "I don't want the check."
Now she was facing Dale Jenkins, the CEO of the esteemed Jenkins Group. Dale, the second-born of the influential Jenkins family and the wealthiest man in Mattishall City, possessed the authority to cause seismic shifts in the nation with a mere gesture.
Yet, he had personally gifted her an astonishing sum of two million dollars.
Any other woman in Jenna's position might have been overwhelmed with joy.
However, Jenna didn't have a one-night stand with him for money.
Dale's face was clouded with a somber expression, and his piercing eyes bore into her without a hint of emotion. "Do you consider it insufficient?" he asked.
"No, it's not about the amount!" Jenna shook her head, her captivating eyes fixed upon him. "I want you to marry me!"
Dale's gaze turned frigid as he responded, "In your dreams!"
Uttering those three words with icy detachment, Dale turned around and left without casting a glance back.
Jenna, however, remained unperturbed by his demeanor. A glint of shrewdness flickered in her eyes as she retorted, "Dale, we will meet again."
There wasn't a man in the world she couldn't get.
Just wait and see!
Dale paid no heed to her words and swiftly left the room.
Humming a tune, Jenna retrieved her clothes from the bed and dressed herself. Afterward, she left the hotel and made her way back to the Gourley family house.
......
Upon returning to the Gourley family house, Jenna spotted her stepmother, Jillian Gourley, and step-sister, Leona Gourley, seated on the sofa.
Unconsciously, a surge of hatred welled up in her heart.
Three years ago, Jenna had been a simple country girl, living a carefree and blissful life alongside her septuagenarian grandfather, Francis Craig.
However, one fateful day, upon arriving home, Jenna discovered Jillian leaving her house in the company of a group of people.
They had accused her beloved grandfather of being a fraudulent healer responsible for someone's death.
As Jenna stepped into the room, a devastating sight awaited her - Francis lay motionless on the floor, his body paralyzed and his mouth stained with blood.
He continued to mutter, insisting that there was nothing wrong with the medicine he had prescribed.
Before his final breath, Francis handed Jenna a letter, revealing a heart-wrenching truth.
It unveiled the tragic loss of her mother, who had died in a car accident while pregnant. The letter also disclosed that her mother had met Jillian before her untimely demise.
From that moment onward, Jenna made an unwavering vow.
She would unravel the truth, clear her grandfather's tarnished name, and uncover the real circumstances surrounding her mother's death. Justice would be sought, and the truth would prevail.
"Oh, you didn't come back last night. You were with a man, weren't you?" Jillian's face was full of disgust, and her tone was mean.
Jenna glanced at her indifferently, a hint of coldness flashing in her cold eyes.
After her grandfather's death, she had been taken back to the Gourley family, but the Gourley family did not like her. Even her biological father put her into an arranged marriage and used her as a tool for his own benefit.
However, she did not care. She knew that she was capable of doing anything to achieve her dreams, even if it meant sacrificing her own happiness and comfort.
"Isn't it obvious? She must have been fooling around with a guy. Tsk. Just look at her slutty face. She must have had an amazing night of fun last night!" Leona glanced at Jenna with a touch of disgust in her gaze.
Upon hearing that, Jillian glanced at Jenna coldly and said, "Jenna, you are going to marry Mr. Dominic soon. If he finds out that you were fooling around with another man a few days before your wedding, he will not let you off!"
Mr. Dominic was the son of the Armstrong family, a wealthy family in Mattishall City. It was said that he was extremely ugly. He was covered in sores and was not only a playboy but also a pervert who tortured women to make himself feel good.
Jillian and Leona had been waiting eagerly to see Jenna make a fool of herself.
Jenna folded her arms across her chest and raised her chin with a hint of disdain in her eyes.
"You needn't concern yourself with that anymore. I have found someone else to marry. Perhaps Mr. Dominic would be a more suitable match for you than me."