[Third Person Perspective]
Stephen had grabbed Tony's ass hungrily, and one of his fingers was sliding in dangerously close to his hole when Tony shoved him away, hard. The movement sent Stephen stumbling back a step. Tony's breath caught in his throat. He stood frozen, heart thudding in his ears, chest heaving with disbelief.
What the hell just happened? It was subtle enough to seem accidental to a casual observer, but was it?
He'd been harassed before: leering eyes, sleazy men brushing too close, the occasional drunk reaching out to grab his wrist or kiss him. But this wasn't some sleazy idiot in an alleyway. This was a man who dined with world leaders. A businessman from a powerful family. A man who'd shaken hands with presidents and held fundraisers for orphanages, and had just tried to finger him like some club whore in a goddamn hotel lobby.
Tony stared at Stephen, wide-eyed, trying to process it all until a furious voice exploded from behind him:
"How dare you disrespect my guest!"
Tony turned and saw the Chairman storming forward, eyes aflame, jaw clenched so tightly it looked like his teeth might shatter. Ricardo Walker looked ready to kill.
Tony's stomach sank.
It was a setup.
Stephen's assault hadn't been a spontaneous, sick impulse. It had been an orchestrated bait. Tony had taken it. He swallowed hard and bowed instinctively.
"I'm terribly sorry, sir. It was my clumsiness."
"Clumsiness?" Ricardo snapped. "Do you call that clumsiness? What kind of pathetic training have you received?"
"Sir, I—"
"He's nervous, sir," Diana cut in from the side, trying to defuse the tension. Her tone was placating, professional. "This is his first time hosting an event of this scale. He meant no disrespect."
Ricardo turned his glare on her. "So we're making excuses now? Shall we expect every guest to be manhandled going forward? Or is that a special service?"
"No, sir, I didn't mean—"
"Call your event manager. Now." His voice dropped in volume, but it was all the more threatening for it.
Tony felt every eye in the room turn to them. Whispers flitted like insects between the glittering glasses and black-tie guests. The Chairman's wrath was rarely public. This was a spectacle; a humiliation. And Stephen stood there in smug silence, untouched.
Tony saw the stricken looks on Andrew and Diana's faces, his only support here, and he couldn't let them be dragged into this mess. He stepped forward and spoke directly, firmly, with as much poise as he could summon.
"I take full responsibility for the incident, sir. Please don't reprimand my colleagues. The fault lies with me."
Diana's lips parted in silent protest, but she didn't speak. Tony's heart thudded in his chest. He expected Ricardo to slap him across the face, or worse, fire him on the spot. Instead—
RING.
Ricardo's phone buzzed in his pocket. The tension in the room snapped like a pulled thread. He looked at the screen, intent on silencing it, until he saw the caller ID.
Ashley.
He answered without moving away, voice clipped. "What is it?"
"Rick," Ashley's voice was cool and composed. "Am I hearing it right? You threatened Robbie with divorce?"
Ricardo's jaw twitched. "What else did your precious son tell you?"
He glanced at the surrounding guests and that damnable omega, watching him like prey awaiting judgment. His grip tightened on the phone.
"He said you're trying to destroy his relationship with Tony," Ashley said, still in that too-calm voice. "And that's why he left."
"You knew?" Ricardo hissed.
"About Tony? Yes," she replied without hesitation.
Ricardo's blood boiled. His own wife, siding with their disobedient son, the same son who had fathered a child with that disgraceful omega. "So it was you," he snarled. "You and your legal team, interfering in the custody hearing for Twen. Encouraging this filth—"
"Enough, Rick." Her tone sharpened like ice. "Your hatred of omegas is so deep that you're willing to sacrifice your son's happiness just to feel righteous?"
"Hatred?" he spat. "You expect me to accept him as Robbie's spouse? The heir of the Walker family reduced to this?"
"Do what you want," Ashley replied, unshaken. "But if you push Robbie any further, I'll have no choice but to ask my parents to pull their support and their shares from the Walker Group."
Ricardo's mouth went dry. "You wouldn't."
If there was anything Ricardo valued the most, it was the Walker family business that was built from years of sweat and blood of his ancestors. His marriage to Ashley was based on the support and investment of her parents. They held seventeen percent of their shares!!
"I won't stand by while you try to force our son into a miserable life, like the one you gave me."
He couldn't speak. Rage pulsed through his body like molten lead.
"I'm done playing the obedient wife," Ashley continued. "For once, think like a father. Not the Chairman."
The line went dead.
Ricardo stared at the screen, seething. His hands trembled. He wanted to throw the phone against the wall, destroy it, anything to make this moment unreal.
How dare they?
How dare both of them?
He turned back to the crowd, breathing heavily, trying to compose himself. All eyes were still on him, waiting for the final blow to fall.
He glared at Tony.
"You're still standing there? Get back to work!" he barked. "You've already turned the whole event into a farce with your pathetic clumsiness."
Tony blinked.
That was it? No punishment? No final insult?
Diana didn't wait. She pulled Tony by the arm and led him away before Ricardo could change his mind. As they walked, she whispered to him quickly, "Go back to the kitchen. Let me handle the rest."
But Tony shook his head. "No. I won't let you take the heat for me. I'll finish what I started."
Diana looked at him, a mix of admiration and concern in her eyes, but said nothing. They returned to their tasks, Tony hosting, quietly, politely, avoiding Ricardo's line of sight.
Stephen watched from the side, baffled. Ricardo had just…let him go? No punishment, no firing, not even public humiliation? He leaned closer to his friend, eyes sharp.
"You let him walk?" he asked under his breath. "After all that?"
Ricardo didn't answer. He slammed three cocktails back, one after the other, before muttering, "Shut the fuck up."
Stephen said nothing more, though the smirk on his face returned as he watched Tony weaving between tables. He was a skinny little thing. But when he'd pressed against him, he wasn't just skin and bones. He was soft and warm. That ass had real shape. And those eyes...
He wanted to see those eyes welling up in tears. Wanted to see Tony panting, helpless, bent over. How would he sound when he begged? Would he moan? Would he scream? Would he bite his lip until it bled?
Stephen was already getting hard just imagining it.
When Ricardo's voice sounded, low and sinister,
"You want him?"
Stephen turned slowly. Ricardo's bloodshot eyes were fixed on him, a twisted smile pulling at his lips like a razor blade.
Stephen's grin widened. "What if I do?"
Ricardo's voice was venom. "Then take him. Do whatever you want. Just make sure that when you're done, he never appears before my son again."