The 50th floor of Malory towers had a banquet hall so spacious that it dwarfed the town hall of Norwich. Ten years back, when the 50th story had been constructed, Jake's late father, Richard Grayson, had named the cavernous den Chive hall after a street he grew up on. Chive street belonged to rural Scotland. The name was reminiscent of his journey from a hapless boy on the streets of central Scotland to the wealthiest man in one of the leading cities in America. His rags to riches story was fit for a movie screenplay.
Unfortunately, Richard suffered a heart attack three years back, leaving his staggering empire for Jake. His son was a swashbuckling businessman and took Grayson Enterprises to greater heights. However, he did not share the same roots of sentimentality characteristic of the founder of the company. The previous year, Jake had renamed the banquet space, Elysium Hall. Tessa may or may not have shared inputs on the christening.
Regardless, Elysium Hall lived up to the grandeur of its name. The ceiling, fifty feet high, was made entirely of tinted mosaic glass. Elysium’s interior decor was something out of a luxury bridal magazine. The furniture, the marble and vitrified tiles, the indoor fountains, the sculptures, paintings, and murals on the walls- the palatial bearing was something only the Graysons could afford to build. A regular billionaire would go bankrupt in a month with the maintenance of the hall alone. It was frequently made use of by the Graysons to make filthy displays of wealth to the world through parties and feasts.
At the moment, the north section of Elysium Hall had been cordoned and had a different vibe compared to the usual baroque appearance. Fifteen liquor bars had been set up in squares, and guests buzzed around each of them.
Over five hundred select few thronged the party hall, enjoying the spread of varied entertainment. Waiters and waitresses moved around, offering finger foods to every guest. There were pool tables, DJ stations, foosball tables, club dance floors, and hookah bars. Strippers, both male and female, danced around disco balls and erected poles.
The occasion was Jake Grayson's engagement bachelor party. Guests had been filtered on the grounds of age and proximity to Jake. The city's blue bloods were present, but none of them were oldies. The billionaire did not let anybody above forty into his social circle.
There was a VVIP area in another chained enclosure where multi-billionaire Jake Grayson hung out with his close friends and aides.
"Where is he?" a young woman asked. She had just returned from the washroom after freshening her makeup. The girl was clad in a black bodycon dress that did not reach her knees. Not that she needed attractive clothing to garner attention.
Claire Fox was Miss Norwich World of 2021. Technically, she was the hottest woman in the city, and then some more. She felt uncomfortable in the overtly seductive dress, but her manager had insisted she dress slutty that night. He had categorically gotten her an invitation to Grayson's bachelor party. Claire was fresh out of the contest, and the party organizers readily agreed to let her in.
Her manager wanted to strike the iron while it was hot. And why wouldn't he?
The Graysons owned the largest television production house in the city, and Jake was the golden ticket to becoming a signed actress with them.
Rumors about the playboy billionaire having slept with every studio actress were likely true. The more astonishing feat was how he kept all the affairs secret from his long-time girlfriend.
Ashley Palmer.
'She must be a dumb bitch,' Claire thought.
"Claire, baby, are you listening? Where are you?" her manager interrupted her thoughts. He had been speaking for a while. Claire had learned to tune him out. His buttery feminine voice was annoying as well, but he was a hell of a manager. She would still be a small-town beauty pageant girl if it were not for him.
"Yeah, I am right here, Bono."
"Stay alert. Do not let the smile leave your face. All your life, you have been working hard for this day, baby. Tonight is do or die!"
Jake was going to be engaged to Ashley the following day. Bono's ploy was that she slept her way into a contract with Grayson studios. However, Claire had bigger plans. She was confident that she could break Ashley Palmer's spell over the billionaire and make him hers.
'I have been taking care of my body since I was five,' she mused. 'Nibbling on salad while my friends had pizza. Dabbing my food with napkins. Working out daily as if my life depended on it. Using sunblocks and scrubbing my skin raw. I am entitled to seduce a top billionaire.'
At some point, for hardworking girls like her, the sacrifice pays off.
Claire's victory in the Miss World Norwich contest was no fluke. The judges had unanimously voted for her. She was genetically gifted, with her nordic blue eyes, facial symmetry, high cheekbones, and flawless skin. Her Swedish descent from her mother's side had mixed well with her father's Connecticut genes to produce a one in million beauty. Claire had crafted her god-given gifts into a masterpiece.