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"Anything?" he muses, encircling her, and I can't unsee the way his eyes trail down the length of her body, evoking my revulsion.
Eyes wide and frantic, she tracks his movements, hardly able to hold his gaze. "Yes—anything! I mean it. I'll do anything if you just add my name to the developers' credits. I won't tell anyone what you did."
He stops before her, much too close for comfort. "Ohhh, and why would that matter? No one would believe a word out of that pretty mouth of yours."
"I-I..."
A scream lodges in my throat, listening to her stutter, pointing her gaze to her feet, while he runs a hand down her arm.
"T-there have b-been rumors."
Pinching her chin, he lifts her to eye level. "Have there, now?"
"There have."
He chuckles, craning her neck farther back, inching even closer. "I'm listening."
"Online... there's been talk online. On gaming forms." A snicker escapes him, but she pushes ahead. "One of my followers was at DreamScape and recognized the similarities between the games."
He yawns dramatically. "I'm just quivering with fear," he taunts, flashing a wide smile.
"He posted about it—and it's been getting reposted."
Silence descends over the breakroom. Just for a split second—but enough to reveal my father's interest, although Juliana may not notice.
"How cute. You think that's what concerns me, hmm? A little internet gossip from a handful of your fans?"
Another sob rattles through her, then thunders through my bones. Fuck! Move, dammit! I tell my legs, earning no response, as if my mind-to-muscle connection is severed by despair.
"Please..." she blubbers a wet sound, tears gliding down her cheeks. "I'll do anything," she repeats, pleading. "I'll pose as someone else and deny their claims. Start up new rumors as a distraction. Tell my followers it's just one huge coincidence. Even confess to your board, tell them it was me who stole the concept—that the pirate game's been in development longer..."
His head tilts curiously.
Chest heaving on struggled breaths, she powers on. "Just add me to the developers' credits, that's all I ask. I've worked on this game for years, and you've squashed its chances of success. I don't have the resources to compete with yours."
I'm going to be sick, I think, when he catches a strand of her hair, twisting it between his fingers. Juliana shies away, squirming, only for his grip to tighten, reeling her chin back into place.
"Look at me," he murmurs, his voice barely audible to me. "That's it... You're just like your mom. Think you can get anything you want by spreading your legs."
Nonononono...
"W-what?"
"Don't play coy, Juliana. It's just us here, no one else." His voice turns rough as he sweeps a thumb along her jaw. "I saw the way you looked at me at the derby."
Her mouth slackens. "Wha—"
"Don't try denying it." His eyes roam down her figure once again. "Why else would you wear such a low shirt when coming to beg for my mercy, hmm?" he taunts, despite her shirt being perfectly modest.
He tsks at her silence, brushing a hand across her arm as a blush creeps up her neck—and the sight of that red stain... it's twisted. Appalling. And kills a part of my soul. I don't know if she actually feels an attraction toward my father, or if grief has rendered her one last option. Frankly, in this moment, I don't care.
I just need to save her.
Adrenaline surges through me when he leans closer than ever, traveling a hand down the small of her back, his gaze fixated on her ass.
Please, please, please, please, I beg for that cement to crumble.
As he retreats, I swear I catch her cringing, before she masks the look with fright.
