Chapter 2

LAZARRUS

I sat in my black leather chair behind the large ebony wood desk. I stared at my phone screen, which still showed the message I had just sent.

"Come to my office, Little Doe."

I read the sentence again. Then I opened the employee profile linked to that phone number.

Her name was Celeste Harper. She was twenty four years old and the new intern secretary who had started working yesterday morning. She had replaced Mira, who had resigned.

Yesterday, I sent Celeste a message with my request. It should have been on my desk that morning. But it was not there because she had not arrived yet.

I knew my request sounded crazy. But I was used to asking for unusual things. The people around me were trained not to ask questions. They just obeyed.

Last night, exactly at midnight, my phone vibrated. One video came in from Celeste's number. I opened it without thinking twice.

In the video, she lay on a narrow bed in a simple rented room. Her eyes were red. Her cheeks were wet with tears. Her hair was messy. Her nightclothes were pulled up to her waist. Her fingers moved quickly between her thighs while her mouth kept saying the name of someone called Leon over and over.

She had sent me a video of herself masturbating.

I watched it once. Twice. Three times. Even many times.

For the first time in the last ten years, I felt something stir inside me. I felt horny because of a human girl, not from sex dolls anymore.

The most surprising part was that I felt something in my chest. Something that had been dead for a long time. It was like a monster that had slept for decades suddenly woke up because of the cries and moans of a girl who worked for me only in a day.

For ten years, I had lived in numbness. Women came and went, but none could touch anything inside me. But she managed to make me feel that sense of arousal without ever touching me.

Ten minutes later, the door to my room opened slowly without a knock first. Celeste stood at the doorway. Her breathing was a bit heavy, as if she had just run up the stairs.

I stayed in my executive chair. I only looked at her from head to toe with a gaze that I kept cold.

She looked messy. Her makeup was plain, almost none, just a thin layer of powder that did not cover the dark circles under her eyes well. The white blouse she wore was a bit wrinkled at the shoulders and waist, as if she had grabbed it from a pile of dry clothes. Her hair was tied in a simple ponytail, with some strands loose and sticking to her still red cheeks.

But in that condition, she looked beautiful. She had a raw, fragile, and very human beauty.

Her full lips parted a little in the middle, giving a sexy impression without her realizing it. Her chin was small and soft. It made me want to lift it forcefully so she would look at me directly. And yes, her boobs were big. They stood out behind the tight blouse. Her waist was small, then her hips widened evenly without too much curve.

A proportional body. Perfect.

I did not speak. I just kept judging her and let the silence fill the room heavily.

She stood in the middle of the thick carpet with her hands clasped in front of her stomach. Her head was down, and she did not dare to look at me.

"I am sorry, Sir," her voice was small and almost shaking. "I am late."

I stayed silent.

She swallowed, then continued faster. "And... about your request yesterday, I am really sorry because I have not had time to look for it."

"I promise today I will find that doll. I will search until I get it,” she added panicky.

I stayed silent and let her words hang in the air that grew thicker. Her eyes stayed down. Her shoulders bent a little, like she was waiting for punishment. I liked seeing her like that. Fragile. Helpless.

I moved. I stood up slowly from the chair. My steps were calm as I walked around the desk until I stood right in front of her. Our distance was now so close that I could hear her short and fast breaths.

"Lift your face, Little Doe," I said softly.

She looked surprised.

But she obeyed my request. Her almond-shaped eyes, still red, met mine. There was fear in them, but also deep shame. Her cheeks turned redder. Her lips trembled a little.

"Did you know why I called you this morning?" I asked.

She nodded quickly. "Because... because I am late, Sir. And because I have not brought the thing you asked for yesterday."

I smiled thinly. "Not only that."

I stepped closer until our chests almost touched. She automatically stepped back half a step, but her back already touched the edge of the desk.

"Last night," I said while looking straight into her eyes, "you sent me something."

She jerked immediately.

I took my phone and showed her the video she had sent.

She quickly covered her mouth and kept saying sorry over and over.

"Sir, forgive me. That—"

I cut her words right away.

"No problem. I like this video," I said with a smile.

"So, I want to offer you a deal because I really like this," I added.

She looked scared.

Ah, my little doe looked even sexier when she was scared like that.

"W-what kind of deal, Sir?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"A dirty deal," I answered.