The Black Card Bride

JULIAN

God, of all nights, I managed to be in the worst moment for everything to completely fall apart. I was buried in the VIP at the Elysium lounge, bass thumping hard in my chest, with Sable Ravencroft perched across my lap, looking like the queen of the room.

And honestly, she basically was. Sable and her twin sister, Seraphine, always turned heads - you just couldn’t miss them. They had porcelain skin, jet-black hair, and those sharp eyes that made sane men do stupid things.

Online, they are known as these untouchable influencers living the high life. In our inner circle, though, everybody knows the stark reality: the Ravencroft twins are basically escorts, only interested in the ultra-rich and powerful. They were wildly expensive and wildly popular in wealthy circles, and appreciated as they were very discreet and didn't air out your dirty laundry afterwards. I’ve been with both of them - sometimes together, sometimes alone. They were my go-to women when I wanted to give myself an extraordinary experience.

Sable had her fingers at the collar of my shirt, her lips against my ear, voice low.

“You always know how to make a girl feel special, Juls.”

I grinned and whipped out my matte black card - thirty-two years, and that thing has never let me down. I handed it to the waitress.

"Charge me double of what I usually spend tonight. I'm with my baby".

Then I said to Sable

“Anything you want is yours tonight, sweetheart. You know Julie boy knows how to take you to cloud nine.”

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the waitress showed up, way too quickly, wringing her hands.

“Sorry, Mr. Dale… your card was declined.”

I laughed out loud. Really laughed. Because, really, that shit doesn’t happen to Julian Dale. Or, in fact, anyone with the Dale surname. My father was wealthy. Stinkingly and unfairly wealthy, and even my surname was enough to get me free passes and perks.

“Try it again,” I said with a steady smile, sure it was an error.

She did. Twice.

Both times, the machine gave the same depressing sound of rejection.

Beep.

Sable went rigid on top of me. That look in her eyes was one that I had seen before. A flash of calculation, then she just shut off and pulled away without a word. All around us, people had started whispering, and heads had started turning. A few were actually trying not to laugh. My face burned with embarrassment. And to tell the truth, embarrassment is not a feeling I am used to.

The month had barely started, and my bill tonight was supposed to come to about $200,000, which was nowhere near my monthly limit. And even if I had spent beyond my monthly spending limit, the bill would just roll over to the next month, and not lead to a failed transaction. Something was desperately wrong.

My phone buzzed hard against the table.

Father.

The evil old man who always wanted to kill my vibes by reminding me how I don't have any money of my own and how all of my money is actually his. I thought this wasn't the right time to pick up his call, but then I realized he very likely could give me the answers I needed.

I grunted and slid out from under Sable, mumbling, “Hang on,” and slipped into a side hall.

When he answered, I just spit it out without even thinking.

"Dad, what the hell is happening?”

He always sounded cold to me, but tonight, he sounded colder than usual, even though there was a hint of amusement in his voice.

“Enjoying and eating off of your old man as always, eh, Julian. You were playing with your toys, weren’t you?”

“This isn't the time for that. I'm somewhere important, and my card just got declined. All my accounts-”

“Frozen. Everything. You’re thirty-two, Julian. Your sisters are out there adding valuable stakes to my empire. You just take, fuck around, and spend my money mindlessly.

He stopped talking and lowered his voice, and I immediately knew he wanted to throw some venom my way.

"This is why Sarah left you, too. She finally saw how truly worthless you are".

I was right, he did want to sting me with his words, and truth be told, that burned, especially after Sarah, my ex-fianceé for over 7 years, ditched me and called me a “beautiful parasite.” But my dad wasn't finished. He kept going.

“There’s one way out,” he said.

“One way to prove that you are worthy of the Dale name and the Dale resources."

"What is it?" I asked.

His voice grew even colder now.

"Marry Rosemary Laurent, the heiress of the Laurent fortune and empire. Six months. It would solidify our alliance and lead to unprecedented growth. In exchange, you will get your card back, and this time, it will have a limit of $25 million a month, compared to the $2.5 million a month card you just lost. Also, it would have no oversight, meaning not even our most sophisticated trackers can know what you spent your money on".

My head started spinning, and I suddenly became good at math. I was currently spending about $30 million a year, though I blew the money as fast as it came and was never too sure about what I spent it on. It never seemed enough, too. But now, I would be upgraded to $300 million a year in family empire money, plus no one, especially my nosy father and sisters, would know what I had spent my money on. I stalled my breath and tried to sound unmoved.

"Marry her for 6 months? I could do that."

He let out a laugh that sounded like mockery.

"This is why I like your sisters. They always ask me what the secret condition is when I give them an increase or a promotion."

I frowned.

"What is the secret condition?"

The laughter was gone now, and his voice lowered.

"You will seduce her, not just marry her. You would get her to sign papers that give us about fifteen percent more shares in her father's empire, which would elevate us to one of its largest shareholders. I don't care how you do it ... Seduce her, drug her, blackmail her, it's none of my business. Just get the job done. Do that, and I will hand you greater access to my fortune. Screw it up… and you become worse than the nobody that you already are now”.

Click. The line was dead.

What the hell? I thought to myself.

I winced and walked back to the VIP section, and Sable was already gone. The Ravencroft twins never hung around broke men. I mean, I knew that, but seeing it happen to me hit me harder than I’d admit. I thought maybe they had even some tiny feelings for me outside the money.

This night sucked badly. But then my mind went to the heiress I was now to seduce, like she was some corporate whore, and a certain wave of hope and intrigue washed over me. Maybe this could be fun after all.