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Damion smirked slightly. “Isn’t Olivia your girlfriend? Why did you assume I was talking about Ellie?”
"Don’t fuck with me right now, Damion," Sawyer snapped. "Tell me where she is. Is she hurt?"
“No, she’s not hurt. Don’t worry.” Damion’s tone turned serious. Sawyer exhaled sharply, some of the tension leaving his shoulders. His grip on the phone loosened slightly, but he was still ready to dash out of the office any second.
“Did you know she has an uncle? He adopted her a few years ago. He needed emergency surgery, so she’s here taking care of him."
Sawyer went silent. “No. She never mentioned an uncle.”
"Well, the operation is ongoing," Damion said. "It looks like it’s going well. He should be out in an hour."
Sawyer was silent for a moment before muttering, "Thanks. I owe you one." He ended the call.
But the moment the call ended, Henry, his assistant, spoke up hesitantly.
“Mr. Stark, Miss Ellie must be in trouble right now. How is she going to pay the bill? You blocked all her cards.”
Sawyer reached for his phone, instinctively about to call the hospital and Ellie, but his hand paused mid-air.
His face hardened, his fingers hovering over the screen.
Then, slowly, he put the phone down.
“She will call me,” Sawyer muttered, his jaw tightening. “She needs money, so she’ll have to ask me for it. And when she does, she’ll have no choice but to obey me. When I tell her to stay away from other useless men, she’ll have to listen.”
Sawyer was still furious at how she had chosen Jeremy over everything—how she had dared to talk to him. But knowing that the operation was already ongoing and things would be fine, he could use this as an opportunity to bring Ellie back in line. That foolish woman had surrounded herself with models drowning in reckless lifestyles and bad habits. And that Jeremy? He didn’t look like a saint from any angle.
Now, she would have no choice but to call him for money. And when she did, she would have to obey him.
His eyes flickered up suddenly, landing on Henry. He frowned.
"Come here."
Henry stiffened, then walked over with a nervous, toothy grin that didn’t reach his eyes. "Mr. Stark?"
Sawyer clamped a firm hand on Henry’s shoulder, his grip tighter than usual. His voice, deceptively light, carried a sharp edge.
"Why the hell do you remember more about my girlfriend than I do? Are you her boyfriend, or am I?"
Henry let out an awkward, forced chuckle. "M-Mr. Stark, how could that be? I was just helping you, sir. Just helping."
Sawyer narrowed his eyes, studying him, then turned him around and delivered a swift kick to his backside.
"Get out."
Henry scrambled away without a second’s delay.
Sawyer sat down, grabbing his phone. He turned the call volume all the way up, leaning back in his chair, waiting.
But the call never came.
Evening turned into night. He sat there, phone in hand, eyes heavy, until exhaustion won. He fell asleep in his office chair, waiting.
The next morning, the sharp sound of his office door bursting open jolted him awake.
"Mr. Stark!"
Sawyer groggily opened his eyes, his body heavy with exhaustion. He rubbed his face, then looked up with a tense, annoyed expression.