CASSIAN
God, he looked perfect like this.
Kneeling at my feet. Face damp with sweat. A single tear clinging to the corner of his eye. That desperate, pleading expression that made something dark and satisfied coil in my chest.
Noah Bennett.
My brave little fool.
Every threat I'd made was real. Completely, entirely real. One phone call, that's all it would take. One call to my lawyers, and this trembling mess of a man would be hauled off to a place that would teach him survival wasn't about being brave. It was about being smart. About knowing when to bend before you broke.
And he would break in there.
Fast.
But watching him now, seeing that flicker of pure desperation mixed with something else, something sweeter, sharper, a kind of resentment simmering just beneath the surface, barely contained...
It made me want to keep him.
Just like this.
"What... what option?" he whispered, voice trembling.
I let the silence stretch, savoring the way his breath hitched, the way his eyes searched mine for answers he wasn't ready to hear.
Finally, I spoke.
"It's simple," I said, voice smooth. "I want you to be my plaything."
His eyes went wide.
Full panic mode.
I watched as his brain scrambled to process what I'd just said, the words clearly not computing.
"I... what?" he stammered. "What do you... what does that—"
I stood slowly, deliberately, letting him crane his neck to follow me as I rose to my full height.
"Don't play stupid, Noah," I said, adjusting my cuffs. "You're not. You understand me perfectly well."
"I don't—"
"But if you need it in plainer terms..." I looked down at him, expression cold now. Clinical. "... you'll become mine. To do with as I please. When I please. How. I. Please."
His mouth opened. Closed. Opened again.
"I already own your labor," I continued, circling him slowly. "I sign your paychecks. I control your career. So you might as well give me the rest of you."
The look on his face was priceless.
Pure, unadulterated shock. His green eyes blown wide, lips parted in disbelief, a flush creeping up his neck and into his cheeks. Like he'd just been slapped across the face with something he couldn't quite process.
He probably wasn't expecting that kind of offer.
Or maybe he was, and that's what scared him.
Maybe he'd been with men before and thought he could hide it. Maybe he hadn't and was terrified of what that meant.
Either way, the surprise, the confusion, was delicious.
"I—I can't," he finally choked out. "I can't do that."
"That's your choice," I said mildly, moving back toward my desk. "I understand perfectly."
I let my gaze drop.
To his pants.
To the very obvious bulge he was desperately trying to hide by shifting his weight, pressing his thighs together, hunching forward slightly.
"Though I must say..." I tilted my head, smirking. "... you seem to have a thing for being cornered. Or maybe you're just a little pervert."
His face went red.
Bright, burning red.
"It's not—" He stammered, hands flying up defensively. "It's not what you think! It just... it just happens when I'm nervous!"
I raised a brow, clearly unconvinced. "Is that so?"
"Yes!" he insisted, voice pitching higher. "I swear, it's not... I'm not..."
"Mmm." I turned away from him, moving toward my desk. "Well. Either way."
"I can't do what you're asking," he said again, voice firmer now. Desperate. "I can't."
"I heard you the first time," I said coolly, picking up my phone from the desk.
I unlocked it. Scrolled to my contacts. Found my lawyer's number.
And hovered my thumb over the call button.
Noah's breathing quickened behind me.
I glanced back at him. "What are you still doing here? You can leave. Your severance pay will be forwarded to you within the week. Though—" I paused, letting the words hang. "—I doubt it'll be enough to cover the lawsuits."
His face drained of color.
"You can go now," I added, turning back to my phone.
"This isn't fair!"
I stopped.
Slowly, I turned to look at him.
He was glaring at me now. Actually glaring. Fists clenched at his sides, jaw tight, tears still clinging to his lashes but his eyes burning with something that looked almost like defiance.
I chuckled.
A low, dark sound.
"Fair?" I repeated, amused. "Life has never been fair, Noah. Surely you already know that."
"You've already taken enough!" he shot back, voice cracking. "You already got my girlfriend... the woman I love... and now you want to take my life and my dignity too? Haven't you done enough damage already?"
I stared at him for a long moment.
Then I smiled.
Cold. Empty.
"You're absolutely right," I said simply.
His expression flickered with hope.
"I am a greedy bastard," I continued, stepping closer. "And I don't stop until I've completely devoured my targets. Until there's nothing left."
The hope died instantly.
His bravado crumbled like wet paper, and he shrank back, the fire in his eyes snuffed out just as quickly as it had appeared.
"Please..." His voice broke. "Please, there has to be something else. Anything else. Just... just not that."
"What else do you have to offer?" I asked, genuinely curious.
He opened his mouth. Closed it. Looked away.
Nothing.
He had nothing.
I sighed, already tired of this back-and-forth.
"For the last time, Noah," I said, voice flat now. "You can spend the rest of your pathetic years in jail, fighting for your life every single day. Or..." I leaned forward slightly. "...you can be a good little employee and do as you're told. Keep your job. Keep your dignity. Well..." I smirked. "...what's left of it, anyway."
I straightened.
"It's a simple choice, really."
Silence.
He stared at the floor, trembling.
Finally, his voice came out small. Broken.
"How long?" he whispered.
I paused.
Tilted my head.
"How long will it last?" he clarified, still not looking at me.
I smiled.
Slow. Wicked.
"Until I'm sick of you, of course. And I found a better toy."
His shoulders sagged.
And I knew I had him.