Riding The c**k Of My Hockey Ex’s Hot Daddy

CHAPTER 013: ROOM 1704 2

JADA

“Now is exactly the time,” I countered, stepping toward him again. “Every single memory I get involves men deciding what I should know and when I should know it. I want the Brooks Elite records, the client lists, the sponsorship deals, and every single pending contract before Mila and my mother take everything I have left.”

Horace looked at me for a long moment, evaluating my posture. “I will not give you full mainframe access while you are still recovering.”

“Horace—”

“But,” he interrupted, “I will allow you limited access to the active client spreadsheets under Jordan’s monitoring.”

I let out a dry, sarcastic breath. “There it is. The leash with a laptop.”

Horace did not look offended. A tiny, almost invisible smirk touched the corner of his mouth. “Use it well and I’ll make it last for a lifetime.”

“Careful,” I replied, looking him dead in the eye. “You almost sounded proud of me.”

Before he could answer, the front door of the penthouse opened with a loud thud from the foyer.

A woman walked straight past the security panel, dropping two heavy paper grocery bags onto the floor before tossing a cheap canvas overnight bag onto the bench. She looked entirely ready to fight the building security guards with her bare hands if anyone touched her jacket.

“Where is she?” the woman demanded, her eyes scanning the suite until they landed on me.

I stood up from the desk, completely confused. I did not recognize a single feature on her face.

The woman froze when she saw my empty expression. Her tough posture dropped, and for a split second, her face completely broke as she realized the news reports were true. She swallowed hard, blinking back a sudden rush of tears.

But instead of crying or making me feel guilty, she took a deep breath and stepped closer into the room.

“Okay,” she said, her voice rough but steady. “You don't remember me. Fine. I remember enough for both of us, Jada. I’m Nora, your roommate and best friend all the way from college. And the first thing you should know right now is that Zayden has always had the emotional range of a wet sock.”

A sharp, sudden laugh came out of my throat. It was the first time I had laughed since waking up in that hospital bed, and the mere relief of it felt huge.

Horace was standing near the window, watching us. The moment my laugh echoed through the room, his eyes flicked to my face, and he quickly looked away toward the city view, his shoulders tightening like the sound had physically touched him.

Nora walked over to the desk to drop her car keys, but her hand stopped in mid-air. Her entire body went completely still as she looked down at the paper where the text message photo had been printed out.

The color drained from her cheeks instantly.

“Where did you get that?” Nora asked, her voice barely a whisper.

I walked over to her side, looking at her reaction. “Do you know about Room 1704, Nora?”

Nora slowly turned her head to look at me, her eyes wide with real fear. “Jada, that was the night you called me crying and said you’d finally made Horace lose control.”

The words felt like ice water flooding my veins.

I turned my head slowly to look back at Horace. His face had gone completely cold, his features turning to pure stone as he met my gaze across the quiet room. The suspicion came back fast, heavier and darker than before, cutting right through everything he had told me.

“What do you mean by that?”