LOGINShare
Chapter Four: A Deal with the Devil
Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56“Miss Laurence?” his voice repeated and I really really wanted to hang up, move to another country hell another continent. This was insane.
“What do you mean you know who I am?” I managed to push out the words, clattering clumsily out of my mouth as my heart beat in my throat and I began to twist my fingers into my hair, only barely resisting the urge of pulling out the dark strands.
“Please Miss Laurence, did you really think that I, one of the most revered CEOs in the business world would not know about the woman that Niklaus Artymov made sure no one would hire?”
His tone was patronising and I wanted to strangle him through the phone. I clenched my fists and took a deep breath.
“If you know that why do you want to hire me, Mr Emerson, why take that risk?”
It was then I heard the most strange sound a sound I didn’t think possible from the stern business, a rumble of laughter, a deep chuckle that though it came through the phone reverberated around my room.
“There are so many reasons why you being in my company would be advantageous,”
My voice was tight, “Care to elaborate.”
“All in good time.”
I huffed and put on my business boots ready to kick down whatever plan he had in mind, “Well Mr Emerson, it appears that you might actually need me, which as you will know in the business world gives me a significant amount of leverage,” I had pressed the buttons, opened Pandora’s box as I heard a cold voice respond.
“You are playing a dangerous game, Miss Laurence,”
“Oh really, Mr Emerson,” my voice was coy, “I thought you would be used to playing dangerous games. You seem to do it so well with all your rivals or should I say, enemies.”
“You do not have as much of an advantage as you believe. Though you may think you are necessary you are in fact not.”
The words punctured my heart as my mind was filled with how many times Niklaus had made me feel worthless.
“Fine. Sure whatever, I am after all nothing to everyone and everything,” the anger in my voice was burning up with each word and I couldn’t even think straight as I just began to vomit out all the feelings I had been bottling up for years, “You’re just another in a long list of people who think I am worthless. So fine go ahead, destroy my life, just like he did. You are all the same. So goodbye.”
My finger was poised over the end call button and I was seconds away from pressing it and throwing my phone out of the window, but the sharpness of his voice, the anger and resentment that flooded through each word gave me pause.
“Do not ever compare him to me. You must know how twisted he is, more than most. He has always been like this, and I intend to make him pay for everything he has taken from me.”
I sounded much more personal than just business.
“What did he take from you?”
He didn’t answer and I hadn’t expected him to, “I know you know what it feels like to have everything stripped from you, by a man who has no regard for those that he destroys. Maybe, I have gone about this the wrong way entirely,”
“Whatever do you mean?” my response was dry and laced with sarcasm which I am sure he didn’t appreciate.
“I think that given the opportunity you would leap at the chance of revenge against him. Maybe I shouldn’t have threatened you.”
“You think?”
He brushed over my bashfulness.
“So Andrea Laurence, do you want to take Niklaus Artymov, down strip him of all that is his like he did you?”
I shouldn’t do this.
The more rational side of me pleaded with me to listen to it, to not dive in too deep back into a world of deceit. With a man, I barely knew.
But hatred made you do stupid things.
And the thought of taking down Niklaus was enough to spur me on, “Yes. Of course, I do. I hope he suffers. On one condition though.”
He didn’t sigh or object, I was sure he had expected me to have my own stipulations.
“Of course, what is it.”
“You pay me fairly. The same as anyone else. You say you judge by talent and not biology so prove it.”
“Deal.”
Related chapters
Dangerous Games Chapter Five: Honey Perhaps
I had lost my mind. I had gone completely and utterly insane. I guess it was a good thing my body clock never could recalibrate itself. I was always up by six in the morning if that. I was far from a morning person but I had trained my body to wake up at the crack of dawn so that I had the time to both contemplate my life and organise myself into some semblance of a successful woman. That had been the old me anyways before I was destroyed by a man who I don’t think deserves his name even to flicker through my thoughts. I knew I would need my business attire sometime soon, I could feel it in my bones. Of course, I knew a brooding CEO would deliberately blackmail me into working for him so that he could destroy my ex-fiance. What a typical Monday morning for me. I stared at myself, it had taken me forever to decide, a stylish suit or pencil skirt, I knew I was a PA, and the pencil skirt was a safe option but when had I ever played it safe? Never. That was the answer. My reckle
Dangerous Games Chapter Six: Exceptions and Honesty
“I’m hardly late-” I began to try and defend myself but with one withering glance the words dried on the tip of my tongue and I pushed back a scowl.“And if you were a doctor, and you were even a minute late, and a patient died as a result would you say the same?”“I-What?” I stuttered, but his eyes said he was dead serious. I mean, being 30 seconds late to an office job where no one was in danger of dying was not the same as whatever scenario he had just pushed onto me, “It’s not the same. This isn’t life and death.”His eyes raked over my body, in a splintering look that made me want to curl into myself, throw my jacket over his eyes so I didn’t have to see them assessing me, analysing me as though I was pieces of hardware, that had gone haywire.“Maybe you didn’t know Niklaus Artymov as well as you thought then,” the comment was somewhere between offhanded and the most important information ever. A confusing mess of something to process.“You’re telling me this revenge you want to
Dangerous Games Chapter Seven: And that's a Promise
“Why do you ask?” The problem with implementing a sort of test where you assumed the person being questioned would lie is that you didn’t think that far ahead. I had no idea what to say now.“Oh um, well we’re friends, just thought you should know. I mentioned this crazy proposition and she well she knew you, which I mean small world right?”I was rambling, I was nervous, and I didn’t know why.“Not particularly, I already knew that you were friends,” he said so casually as though it wasn’t incredibly weird for him to know so much about me.“I mean- wha-how?” I sputtered.“I make sure that I know all about my prospective employees,”“You’ve been planning this for a while haven’t you Mr Emerson, it wasn’t an accident that you were in that restaurant on the day I was left in charge, so tell me,” I leaned forward bracing my hands against his desk, “How long has this been going on?”“A while,” he drawled as though it was completely normal.“And how long is a while?”“Two and a half years,
Dangerous Games Chapter Eight: Time is Money
“That was uncalled for,” I half yelled the culmination of frustration and exhaustion rippling off of each word, “You could have warned me,”He regarded me carefully before he finally responded, in that ever-cool, elusive tone, “And why ever would I do that?”I glared at him, “Because my douche of an ex-fiancé just walked in and tried to tell me what I can and can’t do with my life. And if I hadn’t slapped him he would have kissed me. Where is HR when you need them?”“He’s neither an employee nor a client, HR can do nothing for you, Miss Laurence.”“That’s not the point!” I threw my hands up exasperated and quite ready to throw my chair at his perfect window. Smashing the glass to pieces because I had a taste for destruction after that encounter. I could still feel the sting on the palm of my hand, which I didn't care about if my hand was hurting, his face sure was. And I still had a drop of blood on my pinky nail, spoils of war I would call it.“And what a mighty fine display of femin
Dangerous Games Chapter Nine: File Friendly
I had come to the conclusion I really, really despised Kendal Groves, which you may say is unfair given the fact I haven’t met her. But rearranging all the important documents that belonged to Corbyn Emerson just to be petty, knowing damn well that he wasn’t going to fix them himself and was just dooming her replacement with the laborious task of making sure everything was once again in the correct order.Sure, she wouldn’t have known it would be me, but it’s the principle of it, by trying to get back at Mr Emerson she just made some poor PA’s life harder, whilst she shared all her secrets with Artymov and Co.It took hours, and I mean hours, this was supposed to be a 9 to 5, well 8 to 5 in Mr Emerson’s case, but it was getting close to 8 and I still hadn’t moved from the store room, a large number of files divided by client and date, the British Date, in tall piles that needed to stay in that exact order or I would go insane.I had spent at least 6 hours, in this cramped space, tryin
Dangerous Games Chapter Ten: Hit the Brakes
I always thought that expensive cars were supposed to be comfortable. I guess it wasn’t really the car that was making me uncomfortable, it was the icicle of a person beside me. I felt like melting into the seat, disappearing into refined leather, and upholstery. I was terrified that my shoes would scuff the glove compartment or nick the edge of the seatbelt, fraying it. “What is the matter, Miss Laurence?” he finally broke the silence. He didn’t listen to the radio or music, it was absolute silence, and on top of the car being expensive, it was a hybrid which meant I couldn’t even distract myself with the purr of the engine. This was probably the only time I cursed someone’s environmental awareness.“Nothing,” I tried to keep my voice light, but my fists were curling beneath the seat, tension rippling through them.“I do not appreciate liars, Miss Laurence, you would do well to remember that,”“Why does everything you say sound like a threat?” I quizzed him. The best way to distr
Dangerous Games Chapter Eleven: What is in a name?
“You don’t have to walk me to my door, you know that right?” My voice was back to its peppy tone, a little like I was tipsy but I was just tired. Drunk on work, I wasn’t much of a drinker, I hated the idea of not being able to control myself, or remember what had happened. That was one of my greatest fears.“I feel obliged to,” he spoke carefully in a much softer tone as though he didn’t want to scare me. I hated that I had cried, it was pathetic totally and utterly.“So I’m an obligation now, you really do know how to make a girl feel special,”He gave me a look that couldn’t be more disapproving if he tired. A permanently etched-on, half smile that wasn’t a smile. If that made any sense.So he walked me to my door, and not just that, he didn’t just stop and the gate that led to my flat, he continued following me up to my floor.I mean I couldn’t just tell him to get lost, that would be rude. “Do you live alone Miss Laurence?”“You sure that information isn’t in that file you defini
Dangerous Games Chapter Twelve: Lacks the Confidence
“YOU’RE ALIVE!” I don’t think there has ever been a day gone by since Tobias and I met that he hasn’t shouted something absurd. But I loved that about him.“No thanks to you,” I teased, it was the early morning, and there weren’t many customers at the restaurant it was more of a lunch and dinner venue anyways so I thought I’d pop by to make sure that Tobias hadn’t burnt the place down.He grinned at me, leaning against the counter, “You want to know something awesome?”“When have I ever been anyone to say no to awesomeness,” I chided and his smile just widened.“I passed the LNAT, I’m officially going to go to law school, get that degree and kick some ass like you.”“That’s amazing!” I gushed genuinely proud of him, this had been his dream forever, “But what do you mean like me, I’m not a lawyer.”“Yeah, but your really great at breaking boundaries, you know women in business, must be hard.”“Then what are you worried about?” the concern was fragrant in my voice, as his face fell dipp
Latest chapter
Dangerous Games Chapter Thirty-Four: Pulled Back
The night ended in laughter and not a trip back to the office, but there was something more, something else in Corbyn’s eyes. He was on edge, a difficult breath pulling through him as he waved a hand through hair that had become increasingly dishevelled over the past couple of days, nothing like the perfectly combed hair I had seen on my first day.It wasn’t only him that could make keen observations.I was still hung up on the fact that he had known I liked strawberries. It wasn’t the most unusual like, but I hadn’t told him which made it different, that he had paid attention.It also meant he was staring at you eat.I stifle to bark of laughter that tries to escape my mouth at the thought.“Well,” Valerin begins, “I’ll have to leave you too here, CEO duties call.”“It’s the middle of the night,” but Valerin just gave me a mirthful look.“Ask Corbyn there is no rest from work,”“I would say that,” was the drawl of a response, “If you had any work ethic at all.”“I have work ethic, I
Dangerous Games Chapter Thirty-Three: Milkshakes and Moods
“Doesn’t it feel kind of awful for you to have her back at work?” Valerin had gushed over me as soon as I had entered the room, my wound healed enough that it didn’t require a bandage but still a brazen purple that peaked through a layer of concealer that appeared to accentuate it more than conceal.“When she is here, in my sight, I know she is safe,” Corbyn bristled, looking up from his laptop momentarily to glare at Valerin, “And Ms Laurence, is here for pretences only, I have not made any demands of her.”“That’s where your wrong,” I quipped, “You demanded that I stay here sat in your office, even though mine is right there, and is completely transparent. I would be-““You stay here,” and there was no argument about it.“And you,” he spoke to Valerin, “Leave.”“No. I’m not leaving not when Drea is in danger, because of that utter dick.”Corbyn’s mouth pressed into a thin line.“At least let me do something, I’m going to die of boredom if I sit here. And it’s rather misogynistic to
Dangerous Games Chapter Thrity-Two: Promises and Plots
“Drea!” my thoughts were pulled from a dreamless sleep, a familiar light voice tumbling into my eardrums, a voice that was impossible.My eyes cracked open, assaulted by a blast of bright light and a garish looking balloon primed in the fingers of my sister.“Day?” was the confused croak that left me.She flung herself forward, wrapping me in the tanned bronze of her arms.“Hey Dee,” I saw the lopsided grin of Dayna’s boyfriend Hiro, leaning over.“How are you here?” I tried to sit up, shuffling the blankets from beneath me.“Well, uhm…” her eyes darted to Hiro who shrugged, “Your boss?”“What?” I almost flung myself from the bed frame had I not been eased back down by Dayna.“Easy there, Dee, stop being dramatic. I’m your emergency contact you were in an emergency so he called me.”I felt a wilted sickness in the base of my throat.“But you’re your supposed to be home, in Malaysia, you’re-““Well, we took an expedited flight. Corbyn got us here.” Hiro said in his matter-of-fact way.
Dangerous Games Chapter Thirty-One: Neither
“Get away from her,” rough voice that sounded as though it was drowned flitted between my ears. My eyes were heavy, and there was a burning in my chest, I felt a laboured breath escape my lips.“She’s waking up-““All non-family members must leave the room,” confusion rippled through me as my eyes creaked open to be met with sterile white.“That means you Corbyn.” My heart sunk, in the pits of my stomach, why was he here, what had happened?“And what right do you have to be here?” the voice was calloused.“I’m her fiancé,” and that pushed me to wake.I heaved, and coughed, sputtering and keeling over the side of the bed.“God she’s going to be sick,” and I felt my brain melt.Kendal.She rushed over holding a bed pan, that I upchucked what little was left in my stomach into the brown vomit catcher.I was too busy being sick to glare at her.“Urgh,” I groaned lifting myself up, and reaching for the box of tissues at my side, wiping off the gunk at the side of my lips.I looked less th
Dangerous Games Chapter Thirty: A Spectre of Before
I wanted to take it back. Rip the words from reality as I stared into those eyes that were so good at concealing emotion that I cursed them for not doing that when I needed his indifference the most.“Ok,” Valerin spoke softly, “We’re all going to sit down, and calm down. Is that ok Drea,” I couldn’t speak so all I did was nod.I sat across from him, the impenetrable thicket of his eyes, burning away, as a sadness over took his gaze.“Say something,” I finally rasped.“I can’t.” was all he responded and everything crumbled, there were tears in my eyes, the fresh wound of his death wrenched open. I had mourned, I had grieved and accepted that Arthur my Arthur was gone.And now I couldn’t comprehend that he was alive.“Ok. That’s,” I stuttered out the words, “That’s fine. This is all. I-, I need to go,” I lifted myself, Valerin’s eyes imploring me to stay, I felt a whisper of hurt as I tore my gaze from him, still torn by how he too had lied to me.All this time, every moment we had shar
Dangerous Games Chapter Twenty-Nine: Shards
“I-““Mr Dupont, you cannot enter, Mr Emerson is having and important-“Valerin came skidding into the room, a look of pure glee and mischief as he stared at us, impossibly close, as though he had caught us in the most compromising of situations.“Am I interrupting?” he laughed boisterously slinging an arm over Agnes’ shaking shoulders. The receptionist with an affinity for doing everything by the book look flustered in his presence, even more so with the added physical contact.Mr Emerson turned backing away from me, putting much needed space between the two of us. I didn’t mind it, there was no lack of warmth, no detachment just the space that needed to stay between the two of us.“Don’t worry about this delinquent Agnes, I will deal with him,” she gave a curt nod, glad to get out of the clutches of Valerin Dupont, who had a taste for chaos.Hastily I wiped my tears, putting on my practiced waitress smile, the one that never reached my eyes and whispered, “Hey Valerin, how are you?”
Dangerous Games Chapter Twenty-Eight: Black and White
I didn’t know how to speak anymore; I was sure I held more resemblance to a guppy fish than a person at that point.“Nothing to say, Miss Laurence, that is a first,” he joked as if he hadn’t just turned my whole life upside down.“Don’t do that,” I hissed, and he seemed surprised, as I stood, jabbing a finger in his direction, “Don’t you dare make a joke, when you just-“I couldn’t find the words, I wanted to the scream.So, scream I did.“Arghhh, you infuriate me to no ends, Mr Emerson, or should I say Arthur,” there was venom around his name and soon he was up. His imposing figure, tall and broad and so much all at once, he walked over to me, his hands ready to frame me, to put back together the shattered pieces whilst he still held the mallet in his hand.The weapon of destruction, the key to my undoing those damn lips.“Likewise, Miss Laurence, I know you are upset,”I steeled myself, “Upset? Upset?” I charged at him, and I don’t know what came over me, I started punching him, and
Dangerous Games Chapter Twenty Seven: By Design
You can tell a lot about a person based on how long they take to answer a question that you know they don’t want to answer.The curl of the lip, prepared to lie and I knew it, “Really think before you answer,” and then with all the nicety of a starving fox, “Mr Emerson.”“Your drawing conclusions based on conjecture, Miss Laurence,” he spoke calmy, but I wasn’t having any of it.I let out a bitter laugh, so bitter I could taste the acridness on my tongue, “Are you seriously gaslighting me right now?”For the first time since we had met, I saw him falter. There was a spark in those usually measured eyes, a flicker that was soon gone.“No? Nothing?” I walked over to him my arms crossed and my eyes as analysing as possible. I wanted him to cave so badly even though I knew that was a fantasy that would never be fulfilled. But even seeing the reserved slab of stone I knew crack under the pressure of me just looking at him. There was so much he wasn’t saying and so much I could no longer ig
Dangerous Games Chapter Twenty-Six: Far too Coincedental
I called Dayna during my lunch break just to put my mind at ease, “Hey Drea, what’s up.” It was a blessing in itself to hear her voice.“Nothing much, just on my way to take down a conglomerate, a normal Tuesday afternoon if you ask me,” I didn’t need to lie to my sister, it would be remis of me to do so anyway. She needed to know so she could avoid anyone that might be associated with my arse of an ex.“Your kidding right?” Dayna had always been the more rational of us two, which was odd given her profession. You would think a savvy business woman would have more realistic ideals that an glamorous actor, but as always my younger sister had the better brain. She was a bundle of joy, bouncing off the walls with energy but she knew the importance of quiet. How it could sway a room, so the only voice being listened to was the whispers dripping from her mouth. It’s what made her such an incredible actor.It also made her very aware of the world around her, so I wasn’t the least bit surpri
