Vegas was supposed to fix heart break and make one forget their sorrows, not hand Ashley a husband. She'd come for the Tequila, neon and a night of forgetting, that the end of her father's company was gradually near.
Ashley had promised Brooke, her best friend, that she'd be reckless and live for the both of them throughout the duration of her trip. She'd specifically said "Be stupid. For once in your life be stupid."
So Ashley put on the shiniest gown she owned, let her curls run amok ready to drown in alcohol, and forget because Vegas didn't care tonight. The fountains flung diamonds. As she stepped into The Bellagio, Her phone buzzed, it read… " Touch down yet? Don't forget, turn your brain off.
Julian Blackwood stood across the room, quietly, reserved, composed and observing her. He looked like he was in his element. He didn't raise his voice, he didn't need to because every movement, every tilt of his head, carried authority and control. The kind that demanded immediate attention, respect and compliance.
"You really want to do this?" His voice was deceptively soft, but there was a steel undertone beneath it. Almost like a warning. " You've been staring at the phone all night, contemplating joining the party or not?" He said as he handed her a cocktail, like she was his companion.
Ashley met his gaze and swallowed hard, he was too gorgeous a man to deny.
" Do you always hit on strangers at the bar?" she responded playfully.
"Why? Do you think I'm hitting on you? There was a spark in his eyes, sharp, witty and unyielding. His question felt more like a challenge and dares.
" I'm Ashley Ashford and you are?" she said, extending her hand.
" Julian, nice to meet you." He gripped them in a very hand shake , which took her by surprise
He didn't bother with his last name, she noticed. It felt more like a deliberate omission.
He toasted, " Here's to questionable judgement and a 'yes night'.
She smiled and they drank.
Her instincts told her to run, but she was feeling particularly mischievous tonight. Isn't that what she came to do? To unwind and let go. She was now vested in seeing how far the night would go. The possibilities, all too tempting.
"Anyways, come loose money with me" he said in a casual way.
They adjourned to the table, he didn't hover, he played like a man who enjoyed the game and the dare more. Ashley matched him in keeping her promises to Brooke.
After a series of dares together, she whispered "This is insane," .
He stepped closer, closing the distance with unnerving ease. "Yes. But I can tell you're Interested, ain't you? "
"But are you sure you can handle another one?" he quizzed further, without waiting for her response. The corner of his mouth lifted in a teasing curve.
Ashley rolled her eyes but couldn't stop the heat from rushing up her neck. "I've handled worse," she said, shrugging her shoulders in an attempt to sound chilled and casual.
This was a blatant lie, she hadn't handled worse , not until tonight. This stranger was everything she shouldn't want. Unpredictable, with an air of mystery , impossibly handsome, the kind of man whose presence alone made her pulse race, what could go wrong? she wondered.
"Good," he said, stepping closer. The air between them thickened with tension so sharp it almost made her knees wobbly. He smelled of expensive cologne and something else, something primal, dangerous and thrilling.
Ashley took another shot, the burning liquid, shot down her throat, and she felt bold enough to meet his teasing look. Julian's smirk widened as if he had been waiting for this challenge all night. "You're braver than you look," he murmured, his voice low and rough.
Braver? Bold? Reckless? Words like that sounded like invitations when they came from him. Ashley swallowed the lump in her throat and found herself leaning just a little closer. Her pulse thundered against her ribcage as the chemistry between them became impossible to ignore. His eyes found hers, dark and unsettlingly focused, the world around her blurred again. Time narrowed. Heartbeats became deafening. She didn't just feel watched, she felt assessed, measured, and found desirable.
Julian smiled at her, knowingly , like he was letting her in on a secret she wasn't sure she wanted to know. "Tonight… nothing is safe."
"I'm not here to gamble," she whispered, almost to herself, doubt suddenly creeping in.
"Everything's a gamble," he said, voice low enough that her stomach tightened with tension. "Every choice. Every mistake. Every heartbeat."
"Okay," she said, trying to sound confident, "what's your game, Julian?"
"No game for now," he replied smoothly. "We'll just continue with the truth or dare."
"You're playing with fire," she fired back with a warning, though her lips curved into a smile, she didn't intend to resist.
"And I'm enjoying it," he countered, his smirk progressing into something darker and intimate. The kind of smirk that promised trouble… and pleasure.
Then came the kiss.
One fleeting, electric brush of lips that seared across her senses. It was nothing like she'd expected. Julian's kiss wasn't tentative, it was bold, claiming, daring, and full of reckless abandon. Ashley's knees buckled slightly, and she had to grab the edge of the counter to steady herself. Heat flared in places she hadn't known could feel this alive.
She pulled back, gasping for breath, and he didn't release her. His hands framed her face with gentle insistence, thumbs brushing her cheekbones. "Don't fight it," he murmured. "Not tonight."
Ashley laughed, breathless. "You make it sound like a rule."
"Rules," he said, tilting his head as his gaze darkened with intent, "are for people who don't really want what they can't have."
Something inside her twisted. She did want him, and God, it terrified her. But tonight wasn't about fear. Tonight was about surrender, about the thrill and fun, even if just for a few hours. So she surrendered.
They kissed again, by the time she came back to her overly conscious senses, her hands were already on his muscular chest, hard as marble, tracing the lines of his shirt beneath her fingers, memorizing every part of him. Julian's hands slid down her arms, over the curve of her waist, and she shivered, melting under his touch. Every nerve in her body came alive in a way she'd never experienced before. leaving no room for doubt. Her heart raced, and she realized with startling clarity that she had no control over this night, this man, or the reckless path she had stepped into.
Then he pulled back, she was almost protesting and he whispered something into her ears.
Ashley blinked at him, stunned, she wasn't sure of what she'd just heard "What?" she asked just to be sure
"Marry me," he repeated, his smirk replaced by something almost dangerous. He was dead serious, she realised.
His eyes bored into hers, compelling, daring "Tonight. Right now. Let's make this night unforgettable. His gaze didn't waver, steady as a lion's gaze while hunting its prey.
Her heart raced, every rational part of her screamed Run! Every instinct warned, he's trouble. And yet, every rogue pulse in her body screamed yes!
There was something about Julian Blackwood, something wild, untamed, and utterly thrilling that promised addiction. And for the first time in her life, Ashley Ashford craved to live in the moment and let go of the weight crushing her, after all that was why she'd come to Vegas specifically.
The reckless, thrill-seeking part of her in collaboration with her heart, screamed yes!
Yes to bad decisions.
Yes to excitement.
Yes to a man who made every nerve ending in her body hum with tension and anticipation.
Yes, because she was tired of rules.
Yes, because she wanted the spark, the fire, the impossible thrill that Julian Blackwood offered easily.
The ceremony was a blur. Neon lights, the soft murmur of the officiant, the faintly amused expression of a man who looked like he had seen it all before. Ashley's mind refused to process anything beyond Julian's gaze, intense and unwavering.
She grabbed a pen and scribbled her name on the license, feeling the intoxicating rush of defiance and mischief. Julian caught her hand, twirling her into a dizzying spin that ended with a kiss that promised fire, heat, and a night she wasn't supposed to forget.
They both had no idea of how the night was going to alter their life forever. She didn't know the mess, the heartbreak, the chaos that awaited her. But in that moment, standing in a sequined dress, heart pounding, fingers entwined with a man who could destroy her with a glance, she felt alive.