After Their Deaths

When I came to, someone had fished me out of the sea. Sophia, my sister-in-law, covered me with a blanket. She was still shuddering from the fall. "You scared me, Bianca. Are you sure this will work?"

"It will."

Sophia and I traveled to a seaside town in the south and bought a villa. We turned it into a bed and breakfast business.

At the same time, the Lawson brothers were still looking for us. She was a little uneasy. "They're going all in on this. Look at the reward they're promising. What if someone does find us and turns us in for money?"

"Nah. Charlie already has a daughter out there, and Christopher has a mistress. This is all for their company's image. I bet Lorelei's going to be released in a couple of days, and she's the 'mastermind' here."

Gossip flew everywhere. The Lawson brothers sent out a lot of people to look for us after we fell into the sea. The guests on the ship saw everything, and the cops took Lorelei away quickly. She was pale as paper and kept saying she was innocent.

Christopher glared at her with hatred, but I knew it was fake. There were no cameras nearby, and even though he did see Lorelei push us into the sea, he'd forge evidence for his lover.

Sophia's concern was unfounded. All I said was the truth, and as I'd predicted, Lorelei was released after 48 hours. I saw traces of fear on her face when she got out. A group of bodyguards stood around her, and no one could get more of her pictures.

Sophia went into a tirade. "Are they fucking blind? For Charlie, I can understand! We've been married for more than a decade. He neglects me and has a daughter out there because he lost his feelings for me, but Christopher? You guys have only been married for three years, and he's already sick of you?"

I did not look happy at all. Sophia patted the back of my hand. "Out with the old, in with the new. There are plenty of men out there! And we're rich. We have a lot of options. I saw some sexy models going into the bar over there. Let's check them out tonight."

That lifted my mood. "Yeah, let's get into romance again."

Sophia and I exchanged a smile. Small towns were the best. Life was slow, and we'd get a lot of tourists when that season came.

…

Tons of hot guys swarmed the street's nightclubs. Quality men, all of them. When I got into the club the first time, I was almost blinded by how flashily beautiful the men were. Sophia almost refused to go back. She dragged me around to flirt with the guys. The woman even went after the club's owner.

…

Three days later, she figured out his whole profile and tried to play matchmaker for me. I stopped her. "I don't mind having fun. We're both rich now, so best not fall for anyone."

Sophia patted my head. "I'm already forty. More than half of my life is gone, so I don't care about marriage anymore, but you're still young. Don't give up on marriage just because one asshole hurt you. Find someone who'll treat you nicely."

Yeah, I know she had a point, but first, we had to deal with our business problems. It was tourist season, and the rooms were all full every single day. I got a big client too. They booked for a whole month. Two guys, and they paid us 15 grand.

I laughed happily and went with Sophia to get some groceries and necessities. Two guys. I asked, "Wonder if they're a couple, Sophia. What if they get too rowdy?"

Caught

Sophia fell silent. Then, she said solemnly, "Then, get some disposable stuff and sheaths. Also, write something and put the slip somewhere they can see. Make sure the hints are subtle. They're adults, so let them be."

Our rooms were on the first floor. The guests had the second floor, and the third floor was where they could move. Everything was decked out. When we finished our work, I thought my back was giving up on me.

Night came, and Sophia said, "We won't be going to the club tonight. The club's coming to us." She made a call, and the club's owner came with some of his escorts. They brought drinks and music too. Once the lighting work was done, the villa became a mini club.

Well, it was certainly an eye-opening experience. The escorts's abs were chiseled. The club owner was a talented man, and he managed to make Sophia and me laugh our socks off.

Then, I saw the owner trying to record a video. "Wait, I'm not showing myself to the camera!"

"It's alright. Just the side. Promotional purposes, see. My club's business is great, but this whole street's competition is stiff. Your bed and breakfast combined with my club? And male escorts on-demand? Perfection."

Yeah, that was a good idea. I nodded, and Sophia had no objections. Though we brought a lot of money, we couldn't just live off that forever. We had to have a stream of income.

The video went viral, of course. Business boomed again. I was a little scared. Good thing the video only showed my side profile, and the lighting was dim. No one recognized me, probably.

We got more and more guests coming on, so we had no choice but to buy the unit next door and renovate it.

The day was out, and Sophia took me to the club. "Mr. Quincy told me they got some new guys. We should check it out."

I thought it was fine. I should let my hair down, so I went with Sophia. The moment we went inside, a group of models came to us.

Mr. Quincy said, "New guys. Anything from a pure and innocent heartthrob to a dark and mysterious alpha. And we've also got a super obsessive lover over here. Anything you want."

I sat down, and the 'pure and innocent heartthrob' came to me, holding a glass of wine. "Here. I picked this for you."

The man on my right looked at me. "Tonight, I'm yours."

Oh, this was heaven. "You've got some great business skills, Mr. Quincy. Where'd you find these guys?"

"Hey, customer satisfaction is what I care about. You can have anyone you want. Have fun. I see more guests coming."

Sophia and I exchanged a smile. The escorts were serving us, and it was bliss. We were generous with our money, so the escorts loved us. Then, our big client called us. Oh, yeah, their booking was later that night.

I texted, 'I'm at the club. You can do whatever you want. The door's passcode is eight sixes.'

I tossed my phone aside and returned to the fun. The escorts were trying to serve me wine, and I got a little lost in my ecstasy.

…

In my drunken episode, I saw a couple of guys coming toward me, and my eyes lit up. "Mr. Quincy must've spent good money. These are perfect guys."

Sophie raised her head and nodded. "The older one has this refined and reserved air, but the younger one is colder, sharper. Ooh, looks scary, but also handsome. Uh, they look familiar, though."

Then, the model told us, "They're not our colleagues."

Sophia and I exchanged a bemused look, and then a bad feeling hit us. The men were getting closer, and when we saw their faces, we shouted in unison, "Run!"