You're Playing Me
"Thanks for offering your thigh to be my pillow. At least you look kinder and more innocent than the previous ones."
The man's eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled as he twirled the stem of his empty champagne flute with his index and middle finger.
Violet narrowed her eyes at him before she stole a glance at her knee which he just patted, contemplating if she felt harassed.
This current feeling she had would soon determine how she would react next.
Should she treat him as a sexual offender and shame him for his unwarranted familiarity?
She expected her stomach to churn in discomfort but it didn't occur.
Honestly, she didn't think she was sexually harassed to the point where she wanted to send him to jail.
It was clear that he wasn't attracted to her in that way after mentioning that she was 'too young' and 'plain'.
She just disliked his extreme entitlement.
Just because the light-blonde, green-eyed man was hot didn't mean that he was free to touch whomever he felt like at the first meeting.
And, if he thought of her as a stepmother, then should she demand huge respect from her old 'stepson' even just for the misunderstanding's sake?
It would take two to tango.
Violet hid her smirk when she raised her head to look at him.
'Should I make a fool out of you, rude boy?'
"You're staring at me again. Please stare as much as you want." The man tilted his head, whispering. "I'm not going anywhere."
Suppressing a retort, Violet pressed her lips tight and met his gaze head on.
She wasn't going to back down even if her face, neck and ears felt impossibly hot.
When his free hand clutched her upper arm, she tried to pull back just in case he might attempt something strange and, indeed, her gut feeling was right.
All at once, he pulled her close enough that their lips almost touched and she couldn't breathe. But then, he stopped short and turned his cheek towards her and leaned in.
'What the hell?' She intended to say that out loud but for some reason, she couldn't.
Violet's body remained froze in place even as the insolent man withdrew to scrutinize her expression.
He didn't exactly kiss her.
The chairman's son just leaned forward to lightly touch his cheek with her cheek.
Why did he do it?
"Your ears are red. You're eyes are blue. How come a simple greeting affected you?" He said in a sing-song voice, trying to look innocent.
Still, Violet could tell that he was relishing the silly reactions he had evoked on her despite keeping his face blank.
Of course, the bastard just wanted to play with her emotions.
The man even dared to say while chuckling, "You look like a carp out of the water."
How dare he mock her?
Violet clenched her fists as she glowered at him.
"I--I----"
The dimples in both of his cheeks every time he grinned made it hard for her to clap back.
Shit.
Why was he the one making a fool out of her instead of the other way around?
She expected to meet her tentative father first not this handsome man.
Well, actually the replacement wasn't that bad until he started insulting her looks and taking liberties on her person.
Did she really ride the right limousine?
Was she in the right company and situation?
"You---"
"Don't misunderstand." The man raised both hands close to his chest as if to show he was harmless. "I just want to greet you like that since we are going to be a family in the future."
Oh hell, yes!
Violet was burning with determination to make that happen... with her as his stepsister from hell rather than his stepmother.
Even if fate wouldn't allow her, she would find ways to get even.
She would engrave this humiliation to memory.
The chairman's son noted Violet's flaring nostrils and said, "You look mad, though." In a snap of a finger, his green eyes turned round and large to appear pitiful. "I won't do it next time if you don't like it."
The man sounded apologetic.
Violet knew this was all an act but she could sense her raised hackles slowly dropping down.
Why did he have to look so cute?
Ignoring him was like getting blood from a stone.
"I--I don't like it." She told him.
"Hm."
Violet expected him to promise that he would never do it again but the only response she got was a hum.
Her ire made her grind her teeth as she watched him divert his attention to the mini bar integrated to the wall to his right.
He pulled a champagne bottle from the ice bin, uncorked it and poured it on his champagne flute, half-full.
Then, he drank the entirety of his glass swiftly without offering her some... which was surprising. With every glass he drank from, her eyes widened even more.
Didn't he feel dizzy and nauseated from drinking too much or did he have a high alcohol tolerance?
Violet had never seen someone treat alcohol like water that she could only observe the man in a daze. His esophagus must be burning right now.
His liver, destroyed.
It would be a shame for the chairman's son to die early because a lot of girls would probably miss his good-looks.
She frowned.
Women would probably find his good looks useless if he was an alcoholic.
Sensing her silent yet intense rumination, he suddenly stopped drinking and glanced at her.
It was slightly amusing how he did a double take as if it surprised him why she was still there after dismissing her to focus on drinking.
"The candidates, who wanted to become our stepmother, are usually women in their late forties. That is the old man's personal preference. The youngest woman he had a fling with, one he was willing to break rules for, was eight years older than my oldest step brother." He began to share and she hang unto his every word in case the information might prove to be useful in the future. "My father had been cursed by his first wife that he would be unlucky with women after she died of depression and, indeed, it came true. He got divorced from all of her previous wives——"
"—don't tell me he was quite unlucky with his girlfriends, too?" She quipped.
"Those flings would only last three months at maximum the instant he sensed they were only after his money and reputation. " His mouth quirked into a wry smile. "Are you sure you are still willing to become the fourth wife?"