บท 11: Tessa Wilder

The whole hotel was at a standstill—like someone hit pause on reality. The commotion had frozen everything, and now management was stepping in to settle it. Fast. They pulled the security footage, and sure enough, it played on the screen in front of everyone.

"Right here," the Front Office Manager, this sharp-dressed guy in a crisp blue suit, pointed to the screen. His voice was all business. "You can see it clearly—Ms. Tessa Wilder…" He paused for dramatic effect as if Tessa needed reminding of what she'd already seen. She bit her lip, her face heating up like a neon sign.

"...Was pushed toward—or, to be precise, pushed into—Mr. Parker Black's space to give this gentleman here room." He gestured toward a massive guy, built like a freaking mountain.

Calling him The Rock wouldn't even be a stretch. Towering. Silent. Intimidating.

It all clicked now. Tessa had freaked out, dodging away from the giant like her life depended on it. That dodge landed her square in Parker Black's zone, and somehow, she'd decided the best move was to scream pervert and slap him. Genius move.

"I... I'm sorry, Mr. Parker," Tessa mumbled, her voice barely above a whisper. She looked like she wanted the floor to swallow her whole. The crowd, of course, had done a full 180 and was now throwing shade her way, calling her shameless and a drama queen.

Parker? He couldn't care less.

He shook his head, letting out this low, almost bored, "Uh-uh. Not like that, Ms. Tessa." But the way he said it, it wasn't angry—it was like he was tired. Like, this whole situation wasn't worth his energy.

The Front Office Manager stepped back, all calm and collected, ready to jump in if things went sideways. Meanwhile, Parker looked at Tessa Wilder who was still trembling right now from embarrassment.

But then, the giant—Tower, as Parker always called him—decided now was the perfect moment to break his silence.

"Hey, kid," Tower rumbled, his deep voice rolling out like thunder.

Parker froze mid-step, slowly turning back, his expression saying, Are you serious right now?

"What?" Parker snapped, his tone sharp enough to cut. If there was anyone Parker didn't want to deal with right now, it was Tower—the guy who had been silent as a grave through the entire drama, like he was too cool for any of this.

And now he wanted to talk? Seriously?

The tension in the room cranked up a notch. The storm was coming—you could feel it.

The entire hotel lobby was thick with tension, like a scene from a bad teen drama turned real. Tower's voice cut through the murmurs with a dangerously low tone.

"I think you should let it go, kid. Don't make this worse."

It wasn't a suggestion. It was a threat wrapped in polite words. The kind that said, If you push this, I'll be the one you'll have to deal with.

Parker's eyebrows shot up, a scoff slipping from his lips before he could stop it. "Yikes! I'm scared!" he drawled, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Seriously? This guy? Playing white knight for a girl who just humiliated him in front of a crowd? Parker wasn't buying it.

Either this dude was a simp of epic proportions or one of those pathological women pleaser types who bent over backward for anyone in trouble. Parker hated both kinds, and he wasn't about to let this slide.

Sure, he'd already gotten the rewards from his system. But Parker wasn't the kind to let anyone step on him when he could do something about it. If he couldn't? He'd file it away, keep the grudge warm, and wait for the perfect moment to settle the score.

But now? Oh, now he had all the power. Tessa, Tower, the gawking crowd—they didn't know who they were dealing with.

"No shit, Tower!" Parker snapped, his tone sharp and cutting. "You kept your mouth shut this whole time, watching everything go down, and now you want to play peacekeeper? Hell, you were part of the reason things got this far! I was sexually assaulted, slapped, and called a pervert, and y'all just stood there!"

The crowd gasped audibly at the word sexual assault. Their eyes darted to Parker and back to Tessa, whose face turned beet red.

"Sexual assault?" Tower interjected with a frown. "That's a stretch, young man. It was a mistake, for crying out loud!"

People nodded along, and Tessa shot Tower a grateful smile, her doe eyes practically screaming, Thank you for saving me.

But Parker wasn't done. Not even close.

"A mistake?" Parker's laugh was cold, mirthless. "Oh, so it's a mistake when she slams into me, wiggles her butt on me, slaps me, and then calls me a pervert in front of everyone? But if I'd done half of that, you'd all be calling me a predator, wouldn't you? Heck a lady there was calling police on me sexual harassment!"

Dead silence. Tower opened his mouth to argue, but no words came out.

This wasn't just a slap anymore. It was gender favoritism, plain and simple. If Parker didn't know what to call it, he didn't know anything.

"Let's see what the police have to say about this," Parker said coldly, bending down to pick up his phone.

Tessa froze, her eyes wide. 'Police? Oh, no.' She might escape a sexual assault claim, sure—but the slap? That was on tape, clear as day. There was no wriggling out of that.

"Young man, don't be hasty!" Tower stepped forward and gripped Parker's shoulder, his massive hand digging in like a steel vice.

The crowd barely noticed, but Parker felt the warning loud and clear: Do it, and I'll make sure you regret it.

But then it came.

[Ding!]

The system's interface lit up in Parker's mind.

[Ultimate Choice function activated!

Option 1: Thwart Tower without exposing your connection to Blackstone Tower and punish Tessa.

Rewards: +10 Affection Points from Tessa Wilder & Top-tier Trading Skills!

Option 2: Show off your Blackstone affiliation to scare Tower off and punish Tessa.

Rewards: -5 Affection Points from Tessa Wilder & a Condominium.

Option 3: Let it go and check into your penthouse.

Rewards: -10 Affection Points from Tessa Wilder & Gentleman Aura!

Parker smirked. The last two options? Laughable. He wasn't here to play nice or flash status. Option 1 it was.

The reward hit instantly, and knowledge rushed into Parker's mind like a tidal wave. Stock markets, economic strategies, trading secrets—it was like he could dominate Wall Street in his sleep. But that was for later.

For now? He had a statement to make.

"Get your hands off me," Parker said, his voice icy and unnervingly calm.

Tower barely flinched, his grip firm as ever. He wasn't some rookie to be scared off by a kid.

Parker didn't care. His voice sharpened, cutting through the room like a blade. "That's my last warning. Don't blame me for what happens next."

The crowd buzzed with whispers. A few sharp ones in the audience started connecting dots.

Parker had been acting like he owned the place from the start—ordering receptionists, dismissing managers, staring down Tower without flinching. Maybe, just maybe, the kid wasn't bluffing.

Tower must've picked up on it too. His grip loosened, his shoulders tense. "Fine. Don't overdo it, though. The girl made a mistake."

"Hmmph," Parker scoffed, stepping back and shrugging off the grip like it was nothing. He glanced at Tessa, her face pale as she trembled.

"You're coming with me to the police station," he said, his smirk cold, unfeeling.

Her lips quivered, tears threatening to spill. Was it fear of the police? Maybe. But Parker didn't think so. It was something else. And as for whether he'd really take her to the cops?

Parker's smirk widened. 'Let her stew in it.' The punishment he had in mind was far worse.

*****

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