Page 71 of Suddenly Desired
“It’s your word against mine,” he said. “You never copyrighted it, you never patented it. You left all your ideas and code lying around in those stupid little notebooks of yours for anyone to read. Which means it’s as much mine as yours.”
“No,” said Ellie. She looked at Blake, tears in her eyes. “They can’t do that.”
“They wouldn’t dare,” Blake said.
“Oh, it’s already done,” David said. “We signed a deal with Josh this morning. Say hello to your soon-to-be-millionaire ex-boyfriend.”
Chapter 35
ELLIE
Ellie’s head spun, her heart pounding so hard she could feel it in her throat. She stared at David, his smug smile spreading across his face like oil over water, staining everything it touched. Beside him, Michelle crossed her arms, her icy smile cutting through Ellie like a blade.
She turned to Josh, hoping against hope that he would laugh, say this was all some sort of joke. But his wet grin was all the confirmation she needed.
“You’re disgusting.” Ellie’s voice trembled with rage. “You’re all disgusting. How could you do this?”
“I’ll happily take you back, Ellie, if you beg me.”
Blake was on the move before she even knew it. He towered over Josh, his arm raised, his fist clenched, ready to pound him into the dirt.
Ellie grabbed Blake by the shoulder and pulled him away.
Josh squeaked, scampering back. “I’ll sue you,” he whined. “I will, just you try it!”
“Sue me for what?” Blake said.
Josh looked for a moment like he might be about to hurl another insult at Ellie, but suddenly she was standing right in front of him. Then she slapped him across the cheek, hard enough for the sound of it to echo around the room. He dropped on to his knees, howling.
“You are the very worst person I know,” she said. “The weakest, most despicable excuse for a human being. You deserve everything that is coming to you.”
“Oh, save the outrage,” Michelle sneered. “You were careless. You didn’t protect your precious idea. That’s on you, sweetheart.”
Ellie clenched her fists, her nails biting into her palms. “You can’t just steal my work.”
“Actually, we can,” David said with infuriating calm. “And we have. Josh here was kind enough to supply us with everything we needed. The code, the concept, the pitch — it’s all ours now.”
Ellie turned to Blake, whose face was a storm of fury and pain. His jaw was set so tightly it looked like it might snap. She saw his hands tremble for a moment before he balled them into fists at his sides.
“This is illegal,” Ellie snapped. “You can’t just take someone’s intellectual property. It’s theft!”
“Prove it.” David spread his hands wide as if daring her to argue. “You didn’t copyright it. You didn’t trademark it. You have no leg to stand on. And before you think about a legal battle, remember we have the resources to bury you.”
Blake took a step forward, his broad frame towering over David. “You really think this is going to work?” he growled. “You think people won’t see through you?”
“They won’t,” Michelle said, her confidence unshaken. “And even if they do, it won’t matter. Perception is reality, Blake. You of all people should know that by now.”
Blake’s shoulders heaved as he took a deep breath, and Ellie could see the war raging inside him. She placed a hand on his arm. “We’ll fight them,” she said, her voice steady. “We’ll take them to court.”
“Sure,” David said with a chuckle. “Fight us. Drag this through the courts for years. By the time you even make a dent, we’ll have rolled out LifeWrite as part of Heartbook, and you’ll both be bankrupt.”
Ellie’s gaze darted back to Josh, who was hanging at the edge of the room, looking less sure of himself now. His smirk had faltered, replaced by a furrowed brow.
“Wait a minute.” He stepped forward. “You never said LifeWrite would be a part of Heartbook. You promised me CEO, a board seat. You said I’d have a say in—”
“Oh, Josh,” Michelle interrupted with a laugh. “Sweet, stupid Josh. Did you really think we were going to let you anywhere near the decision-making table? You were a means to an end. Nothing more.”
Josh’s face flushed and he clung to the back of a chair to keep him upright.
