Chapter 1
Chapter 1 — The Billionaire Walked Into My Bookstore
The first time Amelia Hart met Ethan Vale, she accidentally insulted him.
To be fair, he deserved it.
The rain outside Manhattan was brutal that night, slamming against windows and flooding the streets with silver reflections. Inside Bellamy Books, the heater barely worked, the lights flickered every ten minutes, and Amelia was surviving on iced coffee and pure determination.
“Remind me again why we work here?” Nora groaned from behind a shelf.
Amelia shrugged while organizing romance novels.
“Because apparently suffering builds character.”
“No,” Nora corrected. “Poverty builds character.”
Amelia laughed softly.
Bellamy Books wasn’t fancy.
The shelves were uneven.
Some books were older than she was.
And the store cat slept more than the employees worked.
But Amelia loved this place.
Because unlike Manhattan’s luxury towers and fake smiles, Bellamy Books felt real.
The bell above the entrance suddenly rang.
Cold wind swept inside.
And the entire bookstore went silent.
A man stepped through the doorway wearing a black coat soaked with rain.
Tall.
Sharp jawline.
Dark hair.
Expensive watch.
Dangerously handsome.
The kind of handsome that looked illegal after midnight.
Amelia recognized him instantly.
Everyone did.
Ethan Vale.
The billionaire CEO whose face appeared on magazines, business websites, and every “Most Desired Bachelor” list in America.
Rumor said he bought companies for fun.
Rumor also said he once fired a man during a meeting without even looking up from his coffee.
Basically?
New York feared him.
Women obsessed over him.
And somehow… he was standing inside a tiny romance bookstore at 8:47 p.m.
Nora nearly inhaled a bookmark.
“Oh my God,” she whispered aggressively.
Ethan ignored everyone as he walked through the shelves.
But Amelia noticed something strange immediately.
He looked exhausted.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
Like the weight of the entire world sat on his shoulders.
That surprised her.
Because billionaires weren’t supposed to look lonely.
After a few minutes, Ethan approached the counter holding a romance novel.
Amelia looked at the title.
Then at him.
Then back at the title.
And before she could stop herself—
She laughed.
Ethan slowly raised an eyebrow.
“Something amusing?”
“You.”
His expression remained calm.
“That’s usually not an answer.”
Amelia leaned against the counter.
“You look like a man who sends emails that ruin people’s lives.”
Nora choked somewhere behind her.
Ethan stared at Amelia for a long moment.
Most people probably avoided eye contact with him.
Amelia accidentally challenged him instead.
Then something unexpected happened.
The corner of Ethan’s mouth lifted slightly.
Not a full smile.
Barely even close.
But wow.
That tiny smile should’ve been illegal too.
“You always insult customers this confidently?” he asked.
“Only billionaire ones.”
Another small smile appeared.
And suddenly Amelia understood why half the internet was obsessed with this man.
Because when Ethan Vale smiled, it felt rare.
Like witnessing something nobody else got to see.
He glanced down at the romance novel again.
“My assistant recommended this.”
“That means you’ve never read romance before.”
“No.”
“That’s honestly tragic.”
A quiet laugh escaped him.
Warm.
Deep.
Real.
And Amelia’s heart reacted very badly to it.
She quickly grabbed another book from the shelf and handed it to him.
“This one’s better.”
Ethan looked at the cover.
The Art of Falling in Love.
“A recommendation?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Amelia studied him carefully.
Because now that she looked closer…
She noticed it.
The loneliness hidden behind his expensive appearance.
The kind loneliness that came from having everything except the right person beside you.
“You look emotionally unavailable,” she admitted.
Ethan actually laughed this time.
“You’re surprisingly honest.”
“You’re surprisingly alive.”
That made him pause.
The teasing faded from his expression slightly.
“What does that mean?”
Amelia shrugged softly.
“The media makes you sound like a robot in a suit.”
“And now?”
She met his eyes.
“Now you just look lonely.”
Silence filled the bookstore.
Heavy silence.
The kind that suddenly made everything feel too personal.
Ethan’s gaze stayed on hers longer than necessary.
And for one strange moment, Amelia felt like she could see straight through him.
Not the billionaire.
Not the CEO.
Just the man underneath all of it.
His voice became quieter.
“Most people don’t talk to me like this.”
“That’s because they want something from you.”
“And you don’t?”
Amelia smirked.
“I want you to smile properly at least once before you leave.”
For the first time—
Ethan Vale smiled fully.
And Amelia completely forgot how breathing worked.
God.
It changed his entire face.
The coldness disappeared instantly.
He looked warmer.
Younger.
Dangerously attractive.
And suddenly the tiny bookstore felt way too small for the amount of tension between them.
Ethan shook his head slightly.
“You’re trouble.”
“You noticed already?”
Their fingers brushed accidentally as she handed him the shopping bag.
Electricity shot through Amelia immediately.
Real electricity.
Sharp enough to make her inhale softly.
Ethan noticed.
His eyes darkened slightly.
And suddenly the air between them felt different.
Closer.
Hotter.
More dangerous.
Then his phone rang.
The softness vanished from his face immediately.
The billionaire mask returned.
“Yes?” he answered coldly.
Amelia watched the emotional walls rebuild around him in seconds.
Like he was used to hiding himself.
Used to being untouchable.
After ending the call, Ethan looked back at her.
“What time do you close?”
Amelia blinked.
“Why?”
“Because I want to take you to dinner.”
Nora dropped an entire stack of books.
Amelia stared at him.
“You don’t even know me.”
“I want to.”
Simple answer.
But something about the way he said it made her heartbeat stumble.
Amelia crossed her arms carefully.
“Do you usually ask random girls out after five minutes?”
“No.”
“Then why me?”
Ethan held her gaze.
And suddenly his voice lost all confidence.
All arrogance.
All billionaire perfection.
“Because you looked at me like I was a person.”
The words hit harder than Amelia expected.
For a second, neither of them spoke.
The tension between them felt terrifyingly real now.
Before Amelia could answer, another man rushed into the bookstore.
“Mr. Vale, the investors are waiting.”
Ethan didn’t move immediately.
His eyes stayed locked on Amelia’s.
“I’ll come back tomorrow,” he said quietly.
Then he walked away.
The bell above the door rang again.
And just like that—
He was gone.
Amelia stood frozen behind the counter staring at the rain outside.
Her heartbeat still hadn’t recovered.
Nora grabbed her shoulders dramatically.
“AMELIA.”
“What?”
“You just flirted with a billionaire.”
Amelia swallowed slowly.
Because deep down…
She already knew this wasn’t going to end like a normal love story.
And somehow—
That only made her want him more.
