Please Me Daddy (Gracie) novel Chapter 123

I’d pick the dead option

Grace

I think I should be asking you that, mister. Who the hell are you, and why the fuck do you look like me?

That was what I wanted to say. The words were on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn’t get them out. My brain was too busy trying to make sense of what I was seeing.

A man stood there, and for a second, it felt like I was staring at my own reflection, except it wasn’t me. The resemblance was uncanny, and unnerving. Same sharp jawline. Same shape of eyes. Even the same little crease between the brows when he frowned.

My chest tightened, a strange feeling blooming there. Why does he look like me?

Before I could open my mouth, a soft gasp made me turn.

The little girl had frozen, her eyes wide in fear as she stared at the man. That was enough to snap me out of whatever haze I’d fallen into. I turned back to him sharply, Genesis’s voice echoing in my head.

“He got a tip about it. Our men have been protecting the girl ever since, but she hasn’t eaten or spoken a word. The doctors have been keeping her stable with IV nutrition, but if she doesn’t start eating soon, she might not make it. And worse, if we don’t find whoever’s behind this, she could be next.”

My stomach dropped. My eyes widened, and I glared at the man. He didn’t even flinch. He just stood there, calm, and bored, like he’d been waiting for me to talk.

I studied him, but he was doing the same, watching me with those cold eyes. His hands were shoved into his pockets, his posture lazy and indifferent, as if none of this mattered.

Every instinct in me screamed danger.

Without thinking, I stepped in front of the girl, spreading my arms protectively even though I knew it was pointless. He was taller, broader, he could knock me over with a single push if he wanted. Still, I didn’t move.

“Doctor?” I asked, my voice hard. “Are you sure you’re a doctor? What kind of doctor doesn’t wear a coat?”

“The rich kind.”

I blinked, caught off guard. What?

What kind of arrogant, nonsensical answer was that? The way he said it, with that nonchalant look on his face, made it ten times worse.

I clenched my jaw. “If you’re really a doctor, why have I never seen you around before?”

He tilted his head slightly, as if the question bored him, then shrugged. “Why would the owner play house when he’s very busy?”

I froze. “Huh? Owner? Play house?”

He didn’t bother to explain.

Owner? What did he mean by that? Was he claiming he owned the hospital? That couldn’t be right. This was the

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I’d pick the dead option

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largest medical center in the country, there was no way he could be the owner. Yet the ease in his tone, the way he carried himself, the authority in his stance, and his complete calm in the face of my suspicion made me question my own logic.

He turned away like I was a fly and looked at the girl instead, eyes slow and calculating as if she were a problem to be inspected. He scanned her up and down, then let his lips curl into something that tried for a smile but landed as mockery.

“You must be the little one who refuses to eat or talk,” he said. “Are you planning to keep up this tantrum? You could die any day, kid.”

Heat flared through me. Was this guy serious?!

“Are you insane?” I snapped before I could stop myself.

He glanced at me with an unhurried look. “How did you come to that conclusion? I have nothing to show I’m crazy, at least not yet.”

I felt my fingers ball into a fist at my side. “Of course you’re crazy. How can you say that to a child? To a patient?”

He sighed, the kind of indulgent breath people use when correcting a child. “I didn’t lie. She will die if she doesn’t eat.”

“There’s a better way to say it,” I said. “Aren’t you a doctor? Is that how you speak to your patients?”

He studied me like I’d said something mildly amusing. “You didn’t believe I was one though,”

I shut my mouth because arguing with him felt pointless and because my throat had thickened. This ridiculous, infuriating man had an answer for everything, a posture for everything, a line that slid under my skin like ice. Annoying didn’t begin to cover it.

I reached into my pocket, fingers numb with anger and pulled out my phone. “I’m calling the police. You need to walk away now. You are not coming near her.”

“You’re not very smart, are you?” he said.

“What did you say?” I demanded, stepping forward even though my whole body told me to flee. I kept my arms wide, still shielding the girl as best I could.

He matched my movement with a single, slow step forward.

“If I were a killer,” he said flatly, “you wouldn’t get to see the cops. I’d finish it before they ever showed.”

My reply came out small. “What do you mean?”

He looked over the room as if taking inventory. “You’d be surprised how many ways there are to stop someone.”

My brows drew together. “What?”

He gestured toward the side of the bed. “For example, that ventilator beside you, you could use it to create enough space between you and your attacker. Then grab something sharp.” His tone was instructional, which made it worse. “People think hospitals are the safest places in the world, but they can also be the most dangerous. There are plenty of sharp objects here if you know where to look.”

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I just stared at him, utterly baffled. Was this man seriously teaching me how to injure him?

His voice carried on, as if he were giving a lecture. “And if it’s a strong attacker, you don’t show mercy. Strike where it’ll count. Somewhere that’ll leave him unconscious, or dead.” He tilted his head slightly, those blue eyes fixed on me. “Your choice. I’d pick the dead option.”

My pulse quickened. I met his gaze squarely and said, “Thanks for the lesson. Maybe I’ll try it out on you.”

He laughed, the sound sending a shiver through my chest. “You can, I’d like to see you try.”

For a second, neither of us moved. The air felt thick. Just when I thought we were going to be staring at each other for a long time, a startled voice broke the tension.

“Oh my God–sir, you’re here!”

I turned toward the sound, but the man didn’t. His eyes stayed locked on mine.

A nurse stood in the doorway, wide–eyed as she took in the scene. “I–is everything okay?” she asked, her gaze darting between us.

Before I could say a word, the man replied, “Yes, it is.” He stepped back, glancing briefly toward the girl. “The child fell. Tend to her wound.”

The nurse bowed quickly. “Yes, Director.”

Director?

I froze.

He didn’t say anything else as he turned and walked toward the door. I watched him go, unable to look away even as he disappeared into the hall.

My heart was still hammering in my chest.

What the hell just happened? And worse, why did some part of me want to stop him from leaving?

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