Daddy's Little Girl

The Game Starts

Chapter 4: The game starts.

The news hit like a grenade.

AMARA REYES MAKES PUBLIC APPEARANCE — MEETS WITH SENATOR HALLAM

BLACKWOOD SCANDAL: IS SHE MOVING ON WITH POWERFUL FRIENDS?

PUBLIC DARLING OR PR STRATEGIST?

Whatever the world thought, Amara Reyes was done hiding.

The black SUV rolled to a stop in front of Blackwood Tower, its mirrored windows reflecting the swarm of reporters already surging forward. Zoey adjusted her earpiece beside her, murmuring, "Three o’clock, blond with the TMZ mic—she’s the one who called you ‘unstable’ last week."

Amara’s lips curled, this was perfect.

She adjusted her sunglasses as she stepped out of the car, Zoey stood beside her in a sleek black pantsuit and her driver flanking the other side. The Blackwood Tower loomed above them, all steel and ego, daring anyone to challenge it.

Reporters swarmed before security could react. Microphones extended like spears and cameras clicked like gunfire, voices shouting over each other:

“Miss Reyes, are you seeking legal action against Liam Blackwood?”

"Is this a publicity stunt?"

“Is it true you’re dating Senator Hallam?”

“Are you here for revenge?”

“Why apply to Blackwood Corp after everything?”

"What are your true motives for coming back?"

Her driver raised a hand to shield her, while Zoey squared her shoulders, ready to swing a purse like a weapon, Slowly, she lowered her sunglasses, the bruises under her eyes had faded, but the fire in her gaze was new, she raised a hand.

And they stopped.

With one graceful step forward, she lifted her glasses to reveal the calm defiance in her eyes. “Let me be clear,” she said, her voice poised and smooth, “I have no ties to Liam Blackwood, not now, not ever again. Whatever existed between us ended the day truth met the sunlight.”

She let that hang in the air before slipping the glasses back on.

Then she walked through the front doors of Blackwood Corp like she owned the building.

Blackwood Tower’s lobby was a cathedral of cold ambition—marble floors polished to a killing shine, security guards with eyes like sniper scopes. The receptionist’s smile froze when she saw Amara’s name on the list.

"You’re... with the internship group?", she stuttered in disbelief

Zoey smirked, "Surprise."

They were herded into an elevator with twelve other applicants, all wide-eyed MBA grads clutching file folders. Amara leaned against the mirrored wall, watching their reflections fidget. One girl whispered,

"Oh my god, that’s her," as if she were a ghost.

The doors opened on the 21st floor.

"Ms. Reyes," a PA announced, staring at her tablet like it had betrayed her, "You’ve been reassigned to the executive review panel, please proceed to the boardroom on the 23rd floor now."

It was supposed to be routine especially with the position being discussed, a brief introduction, a quick scan by the PA and thank you, we’ll call you.

But things shifted the moment her was name registered and confirmed to be hers.

Zoey’s grip tightened on Amara’s arm. "This is a trap."

Amara pried her off gently. "No, this is the game". And it was f*****g perfect.

Inside the marble-walled boardroom, Richard Blackwood watched her enter. He sat at the head of the boardroom table, fingers steepled, watching her the way a lion watches a hyena encroaching on its kill. The other executives stiffened, she recognized the CFO from Liam’s yacht parties, the one who’d always leered at the waitstaff.

She was poised and unshaken, a woman who had faced hell and returned stronger.

“Miss Reyes,” he said, rising from his chair. “Let’s begin.”

The interview lasted all of twelve minutes.

She spoke with precision, clarity, and control. Her resume was solid, but it was the way she analyzed the company’s growth model that turned heads. Her idea on brand rejuvenation through grassroots innovation had Richard nodding before he realized it.

She dismantled Blackwood’s PR strategy and pointed out the bleeding edges in their European markets, the demographic they’d alienated by clinging to Liam’s "playboy philanthropist" image. When she suggested a rebrand centered on

"Women who rebuild," the CFO snorted.

"Bit on the nose, don’t you think?"

Amara didn’t blink. "Only if you’re afraid of powerful women."

Richard’s laugh was a dry c***k of thunder.

She didn’t just want to work, she wanted to matter.

When the rest of the applicants were dismissed, Richard remained seated, his eyes lingering on her.

“Miss Reyes, stay a moment.”

She did, Of course she did.

He folded his hands on the table, voice level, “You could’ve gone anywhere, taken Hallam’s offer without even being referred here, gone into politics with your visibility, knowledge and your connections...So why here?”

Amara tilted her head, thoughtful. “Because I know what it feels like to be underestimated and because little drops of water, over time, create oceans. I’m starting again, but not from scratch, instead from experience.”

Richard was silent for a moment, then nodded slowly, “Your internship application has been upgraded. You’ll report directly to me.”

She blinked, carefully neutral. “That’s unusual, isn’t it?”

“I like unusual,” he replied, “It’s the only thing that moves the needle in a predictable world.”

With that, he stood

“You’ll receive the necessary information before day’s end, you're dismissed, Miss Reyes.”

Amara stepped into the reception again, where Zoey and her driver waited.

Zoey’s eyes lit up when she saw Amara’s expression. “You did it, didn’t you?”

Before she could answer, the glass doors at the end of the corridor burst open.

And in walked Liam Blackwood.

Zoey muttered, "Oh shit."

His eyes locked onto hers instantly and he froze, fire meeting ice.

The entire room seemed to shrink. She didn’t flinch, look away or blink

Instead, she turned to Zoey and murmured with a

sly, steel-laced smile:

“Well... here comes the drama queen.”