Chapter 7 #2
The Olympus CEO gave me a tight smile in return.
“Perhaps not the best choice of words, hmm? Nonetheless, our agreement had stated that you would take all reasonable measures to keep your past personas—-usernames, gender, and profiles—-confidential. And yet I have come to discover that this is not the case, which leads us here to this meeting.”
Stunned, I squinted at the pale man in confusion. “What the fuck?” I blurted before Jared gave me a very pointed glare to shut the fuck up.
“What Noah means, Sonny, is that you’re entirely—-and perhaps deliberately—-missing the point.
Her identity was made known to Mr. Hart under extreme duress, and indeed I believe it was done in an attempt to save his life.
Mr. Mura made the discovery himself while performing CPR to revive Noah after she drowned while rescuing Mr. Hart from the pool, and quite simply put, none of this would have happened if your security had not allowed the perpetrator onto the property in the first place.
According to our contract…” Jared slipped comfortably into his zone, quoting subclauses of our extensive legal document with Olympus Corp from memory.
Kelly had gone to town highlighting exact phrasing and promises within the documents that proved Olympus had breached the contract first.
Sonny Flickman sat there silently while Jared made his case, and the lawyers squirmed a little.
Ace just stared at me like he was offended I’d tried to quit his team.
The hypocrisy was enough to make me nauseous.
Jared and Sonny’s conversation faded into the background as I met Ace’s gaze unflinchingly.
This asshole thought he could intimidate me? Fuck that.
As if he could read my mind, his eyes widened a fraction and one brow twitched up. Then that blood--boiling micro--smile touched his lips again, like he thought I was being cute, and I needed to clench my fists on the arms of my chair to keep from launching across the table and punching him.
“How are your ribs?” he asked in a whisper, his gaze dropping to my chest for a moment before returning to my face.
How the fuck he could say so much with that small gesture, I had no idea.
But I inhaled deeply as heat flooded through me.
Anger or arousal, I wasn’t totally sure. Both? Was that possible?
“Eat a dick,” I whispered back with venom.
His lips curled up more. “I can’t. You don’t have one.”
Jared nudged me, saving me from needing to find a snappy response to that because I had nothing. “Noah, are you listening?”
Ace’s smug smile shook me to my core as my face heated and I jerked my attention back to my manager and the undead prick who was dictating my future. “Uh, yes. Of course.”
“So you’re okay with what Sonny is proposing then?
” Jared asked with a frown. “I want to make sure you heard everything, so humor me while I summarize. Olympus Corp are supposedly very concerned about your safety after the actions of Percy Donavon and feel it’s in your best interest to maintain the illusion that NoFear is one of the boys. ”
I cast a disbelieving glance at Flickman and Leight, who just watched me with zero expression at all. Creeps. “I see. So I am to remain on the team, then?” This question was directed at Ace, since he was the one with the power to release me.
“Yes, until I decide otherwise. But for now I see no reason why my team should be penalized for your deception. We’ve worked too hard to lose the Clik Games now.
” Ace’s tone was less dickish, but my chest tightened at his statement because he wasn’t wrong.
They didn’t deserve to lose out because of the moronic decisions of their management.
I swallowed hard, giving a small nod. “Agreed.”
Ace’s brows shot up in surprise. “Good.”
“So that’s it, then? Nothing changes, and we pretend nothing happened?” I definitely intended for him to read between the lines on “nothing happened,” and his clenched jaw told me he heard me loud and clear.
“Yes,” Jared agreed, “if that’s what Olympus wants—-”
“There is also the matter of the team itself,” Sonny added with a thoughtful hum. “Our original agreement is still in effect, Noah. You are not to reveal your personal situation to any additional team members.”
That made me jerk. “What?” He wanted me to keep faking it for the team when half of them knew the truth? That was a horrible idea. “No. That’s stupid.”
“That’s necessary, Noah,” Ace replied, his voice hard and unyielding.
“Torin and Skye will be required to sign similar NDAs to protect your identity, but you are expected to maintain the illusion.” He repeated the phrasing Flickman had used, and my lungs constricted with panic.
“I don’t think you want to be found in breach of this contract, Noah. Do you?”
My heart dropped to my feet. Did he fully understand what he was saying?
Did he know that Flickman was blackmailing me with my brother’s freedom?
Of course he did. Ace had a lot more control than the fans ever credited him for.
If he hadn’t reacted so badly, I’d have thought he knew about the whole messy deal from day one.
“To be crystal--clear,” Ace continued, leaning his elbows on the table, “August, Minho, Xavier, and Z do not know who you really are, and it needs to stay that way. If you truly entered into this agreement with no ulterior motives, this shouldn’t be a problem for you.”
Ah. There it was. He had been so determined I’d orchestrated this whole charade as some kind of revenge for something he thought had happened with Z or Xavier.
This was his way of trying to tie my hands and protect his friends.
Stupid man was still operating under the assumption this was a petty personal vendetta when it had nothing to do with them. Any of them.
“Fine,” I agreed, calling his bluff. “So be it. But when this game is over and the contract’s dissolved, I’ll be sure to let them know you were the one who insisted on keeping them in the dark.
I sure hope your friendship is strong enough to survive that…
especially with Xavier.” Because when he finally found out that I was not only a girl but Peaches herself?
He was going to be furious and not just at me.
Ace shrugged. “We’ll see.”
I was too stubborn to back down now because I needed to prove he was wrong.
That my disguise had nothing to do with his friends.
But as the lawyers slid the paperwork across the table, I found sweat dripping down my spine and bile rising in my throat because I desperately needed to come clean to Minho, and this agreement prevented me from doing that.
What the fuck was I going to do now?