Beastbound

No Proof

The assistant and I stood frozen at the entrance. The interruption made Nathaniel's face fall, and his amber eyes fired a look at us. "Get out!"

So even a guy like Nathaniel would do something steamy in his office. Awkwardly, I said, "S-Sorry."

I was just about to leave with his assistant when Nathaniel said, "You stay."

He was talking about me, of course, but why'd he want me to stay while he was snogging someone else?

The assistant closed the door. The girl hadn't turned around at all. She was in a sexy dress and had a slender body.

I could only see her back, but she was sitting astride on Nathaniel's lap. 'Maybe she's too shy to show her face,' I thought.

"So…" I organized my words, my eyes still on the girl. "You have a girlfriend now?" That was for Nathaniel.

"A girlfriend?" Nathaniel's lips curled into a smirk as he looked at the girl. "Yes, she is. Would you like to have a look?"

"I…" I took an involuntary step back. Something about this screamed odd to me. I was supposed to be blackmailing him, but now I felt like running away.

Nathaniel noticed what I was trying to do, and he narrowed his eyes, but the sharp glint within only grew colder.

He pushed the girl away, and she fell to the ground but never got back up. The crash she made sounded oddly familiar. The doll I possessed the night before.

Nathaniel kicked the doll away and approached me. A hint of pain throbbed within me, as if I still shared the doll's senses.

I blurted, "Can you not manhandle her—"

He grabbed my hand and gave me a judgmental look.

"Are you calling me rough? You're defending my doll now? Didn't peg you as that kind of saint. You interrupted me, you know that?"

Then, he clasped his hand around my chin. Something in his eyes glinted. I then noticed that his ears were getting a bit red.

"First time you came to my company. So, how are you making it up to me?"

He was asking for compensation? Even though I had dirt on him, it felt like he had the upper hand. I shoved him away and cut to the chase immediately. "I have business with you."

Nathaniel crossed his arms and leaned on the wall. "And that would be?"

Anticipating his response, I said, "I know your secret. You're a beastfolk." I approached him. "You're a snake, aren't you?"

Nathaniel chuckled, and a sardonic smile curved his lips. "Why don't you prove it?"

How was I supposed to do that? Tell him I possessed his doll last night? As if anyone would believe that. They'd think I had gone mad.

Nathaniel observed me closely, and he twirled my hair. "I can help you with evidence collecting." He then lowered his voice and whispered into my ear, "You claim I'm a snake, and snakes have two of a certain part. How about you touch me and see if that's true?"