The LAN was being hosted at Thunderstruck’s office. My heart was beating so intensely that I thought I may not make it therein one piece. I’d taken a higher dosage of my anti-anxiety medication, and even then, I wasn’t sure it had worked. Or maybe it was, and if I hadn’t taken it, I’d simply have expired from a heart attack.
On wobbly legs, in my worn-out Converse sneakers, I made my way toward the building entrance. The front glass doors were open, and I stepped inside, being immediately engulfed in upbeat music and excited chatter.
I’d never been to a LAN before. I had no idea what I actually needed to do, so I clutched my backpack straps as if letting people know I brought a laptop along would somehow make me more acceptable to them.
A woman and man, dressed inOverpowerT-shirts, sat beside a doorway at a small table. “Hi,” the woman said with a wide, toothy grin. “Are you here for theOverpowerLAN?”
I nodded, my eyes scanning every man who passed me.
The problem was there were lots of men here who had slightly darker shades of skin, and plenty of the people here wore glasses too.
But none of them was Lincoln Carden.
Crap.
“Username?” the woman asked, pulling me from my daze.
“My username?”
“The one you signed up with.” Her eyes studied me and softened. “Your identity stays anonymous. We know how these things go.”
I nodded again. “Pancakes are elite. Lowercase, no spaces.”
The woman chuckled, as did the man beside her. “Would you like a name tag or username tag?” She gestured to the blank stickers and markers in front of her. I considered using my name, but it would then connect my identity to anyone else with an interest in the Gordon-Bettencourts.
And I couldn’t have that.
I didn’t want to think about that at all.
Tonight, I wasn’t Elizabeth Gordon-Bettencourt.
Tonight, I was Lily.
The woman strapped a bright blue band around my arm. “You can go on in. Table F12. A plug point will be available, and the Wi-Fi password and all other details will be stuck on the table’s surface. You’ll see it.”
The main gaming area seemed to be the company cafeteria. There were rows of desks and chairs set up, and almost every table had a laptop on it. Some even had desktop computers. There were small groups bunching together chatting in high-pitched voices and plenty more gamers who were already in the middle of some game.
I navigated the aisles to Table F12 while looking around. At the front of the hall, a small crowd had gathered, and something told me that in the center I’d find the creators ofOverpower,@wheretheresawilliamand his fiancé,@theresarose.
Would it be the same people I saw at the presentation?
“I’m so pumped,” a girl muttered to herself beside me.
I, on the other hand, was on the edge of throwing up.Deep breaths, Lily.
I pulled out my laptop and logged in using the details on the desk. I accessed the group and scrolled through the members looking for the name that controlled my heartbeat.
@theanswerisnowas online.
He. Was. Here.
My head shot up to people-watch, nay, person-search.
If he was friends with@wherestheresawilliam, he’d probably be near him. I stared at the group surrounding the power couple until person by person the crowd thinned.
A dark-haired man who looked a lot like the man from the presentation and a lot like@wherestheresawilliamleaned down to speakto someone seated at the desk beside him. A side profile so familiar to me by now, I could spot it from anywhere.
A shiver danced down my spine, contradicting the heat flooding through me.
