Page 6 of Power

Amelia

The next morning was brutal. I had tossed and turned in bed all night, despite needing sleep to cure my hangover.

My eyes were puffy, and bruises had formed on my neck from the assault the night before. I had them covered up with a scarf to avoid any probing questions from my coworkers. Thank God it was Friday, and I could catch up on sleep this weekend.

I was miserable. I had the biggest migraine from drinking too much. I felt nauseous about almost being raped by some ogre and embarrassed with how I threw myself at my new boss. The last part disturbed me the most because I was notthatgirl. I didn’t grind on random guys, let alone alleged drug dealers, in dark hallways of clubs.

Ugh. It sounded even worse the more I thought about it.

Thankfully, I was able to keep my mind busy by writing and polishing code all morning. Nat must have been feeling like crap too because she barely spoke to me when she trudged into the office. Most of her responses to coworkers came out as incoherent mumbles.

Jason called for our attention just before lunchtime. I glanced up from my monitor at the sound of his voice.Shit!

Hewas standing right next to Jason. Dressed in a navy suit and black tie, he looked fresh and polished, as if he hadn’t had me pressed up against a wall just last night. Meanwhile, I had stumbled into the office with ripped jeans and a Pink Floyd concert t-shirt. I tucked my scarf closer to my neck for comfort.

“I’d like to introduce you all to one-half of Sethi Tech, Mr. Shyam Sethi.” Jason gestured to Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Sexy enthusiastically.

Shyam.I hadn’t known which brother he was up until now. And now that I’d heard his name, it made sense. It suited him. Strong and mysterious.

“Mr. Sethi is here to see the progress we’ve made,” Jason continued. “Shyam, would you like to say a few words?”

It was difficult to read Shyam’s expression. He didn’t seem angry, but perhaps he was irritated to be here.

“Thank you, Jason,” he began. “I would like to commend all of you on your hard work.”

This was the first time I had heard him speak more than two words. His tone was business-like, yet deep and dangerous. And he didn’t have an American accent, but it wasn’t quite Indian either. It was more British, I supposed. Whatever it was, it made me feel that familiar tingle between my legs when I heard it. Why did he have this effect on me?

“Asking you to complete this project in a limited amount of time is not ideal,” he continued, “but it is necessary. For this reason, I will be meeting with each of you individually today to discuss your progress.” His gaze settled on me when he said that last part.

I panicked and diverted my gaze down to my shoes to avoid his penetrating stare.

“Please be prepared to present your features in a concise manner,” Jason interrupted. Shyam tightened his jaw, most likely because he didn’t appreciate being cut off.

“Shyam, if you’ll follow me, I’ll show you to the conference room.” Jason ushered him away.

Great. First, he rubs his dick against me and then turns me away. Now, I have to be alone with him to bask in my humiliation. I should have called in sick.

•••

It was late and I had yet to be called in to present. I tried to focus on the task at hand and rehearse all the specifications I had worked on in my head to calm my nerves. If I took my focus away from presenting to Shyam and just concentrated on the work, then I would be okay.

It was a little after six-thirty and I was the last one in the office. I assumed Jason had left too, since the lights in his office were turned off.

Dave came out of the conference room and collected his laptop and bag. “Good luck,” he said as he headed out the door.

It was my turn. I stood up and gathered my laptop. I walked slowly to the conference room, praying my feet would get me there even though they felt like running away. When I reached the door, I raised my fist to knock before entering.

“Come in,” Shyam’s voice echoed through the door before I had the chance.

I followed his order. The privacy blinds had been drawn to prevent anyone from seeing into the room. It was intimidating to be in here with no view of the desks and chairs beyond the windows.

Shyam sat with perfect posture at the head of the table. He gestured to the opposite end and commanded, “You may begin, Ms. Becker.”

I took a deep breath to steady my shaky legs as I approached the front of the room. My stomach was filled with butterflies.

I connected my laptop to the screen projector on the wall and pulled up the app onto my screen. All the while, he sat focused on me, with one arm across his chest and the index finger of his other hand pressed against his lips. A silver ring flashed on his finger as he waited for me to start.

I cleared my throat and willed myself to speak.Just focus on the work.“Most tracking data collected from various apps collect bits of information, like a person’s name or username. For example, Facebook will collect information that is entered, like a username and phone number, and associate it with a specific account. Facial-recognition software offers another dimension to collecting data. When users upload photos to any app, we can use the embedded coordinates of where the photo was taken to ask the user to check in to certain locations or rate and review local businesses where the photo was taken. But I’m sure you know this already.” I realized this was all probably redundant for him.

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