Editor's note: this story contains scenes of non-consensual or reluctant sexual situations.
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(Content warning: Power differences, blackmail)
"Honestly, Tamara... I'm appalled at your lack of progress this week."
Tamara stood there, clutching one arm with her other hand and averting her eyes from Saskia's icy cold glare, her words incinerating and aggressive. Tamara always found it in her to do her best at work, not just to keep a steady paycheck but also to avoid being put into this very situation. Saskia might have been a successful businesswoman, but she didn't get there through any sort of kindness or altruism. She was fearsome, and ten times more scary while going at Tamara the way she was.
"I'm... I'm sorry," Tamara murmured. Her words were achingly soft after around 30 minutes of Saskia's rampage against her. Tamara originally tried to hold her ground, reaffirm her good points and her care for the position of Saskia's Executive Assistant, but after the 10 minute mark that resolve in her dissipated.
"You should be," Saskia scoffed, looking at Tamara's review papers and writing something down. "Your negligence is holding this company back, and providing an unwelcome nuisance to my work. Do you really care for this position? Or is that all just talk too?"
"It's... it's not," Tamara said, her voice barely above a painful whisper. "I really do want to do well. I promise."
Saskia couldn't help but let out a smirk. It was clear she was amused by Tamara's feeble attempts to secure her job, and win Saskia's praise. In a way, being laughed at by Saskia was a worse feeling than being yelled at by her. "You do, huh." She put the papers down and looked back up at her subordinate. "I've gotta say, you have an... interesting way of showing it."
Tamara couldn't do it. She couldn't look at Saskia anymore. She almost started tearing up, but she managed to stop herself before Saskia could have another reason to laugh at her.
"I've, either unfortunately or fortunately, got to reconsider your place at this company," she continued. "Maybe hire someone who can do more than get my coffee order right 50% of the time."
"Please, I promise... I can improve. I'll do better."
"Really? You've said that quite a few times, but what have you done to do better? Scan things to the wrong folder? Lose important papers regarding the annual budget, again? Spill coffee on the marketing coordinator? Please tell me, what more are you going to fuck up?"
Tamara didn't have a good read on Saskia, ever, despite usually being an empathetic person. However, she could at the very least tell that Saskia was getting some sort of sadistic enjoyment out of this, out of insulting Tamara until her skin crawled.
"I... I can prove myself. I can do better. Please, just give me one more chance," Tamara pleaded.
Saskia's smirk became an even wider grin at this. "Really? Any suggestions for what you can do to amend this?"
"I'll... um... I-I'll learn to be more diligent. I'll write things down more so I don't forget them. I'll... organize my desk better."
"So... things you should have been doing this whole time, then?"
"I... um..." Tamara was beginning to realize she had to take drastic measures — she had to do something, anything to rectify this. The next few words poured out of her mouth without her thinking.
"I'll do anything you want." Once a long enough pause passed, with Tamara seeing Saskia's grin turn into a more neutral expression, she continued. "Anything. Say it, and I'll do it."
"...Really. Anything," Saskia echoed.
Tamara nodded. And then Saskia broke out into cruel, cold laughter, making Tamara even more ashamed, more embarrassed of what she just said. She wasn't willing to do anything, right? No. No, she was.
"Fine," Saskia chuckled through the single word. "Then I'll take you up on that offer." She put Tamara's review papers down and ushered them to the side of her desk. Leaning over on her hands, she gave another inhumane smile. "See, I've been rather unhappy here. I don't have time to date people, or spend time with my friends. Unlike you, I actually put time and effort into my job. So you could say I've been a bit... repressed, huh?"
Tamara nodded. She wasn't entirely sure what to say, though a part of her didn't like where this was going.