My Grumpy Alpha

Rachel Van Dyken

She's in the air all around me. She's not afraid of me, although she should. I am half-werewolf and a billionaire, what more deadly combination could you get? As if on cue, she walks into the office, in a gorgeous black pantsuit.

Oh man ... I'm so screwed.

Chapter 1

Eli

She won't stop talking. I know it's her job as my court appointed therapist, but if I have to stare at her red lips move one more time I might get in even more trouble.

"So, Eli. Can you explain to me exactly what happened that day?" she says in a breathy whisper that she probably thinks is seductive. "I'm having trouble picturing..." she runs her eyes up and down my body. ...the incident."

I try not to roll my eyes. Yet another therapist that wants to sleep with me. Why are women so predictable?

"I got angry. My marketing department was incompetent, so I fired them all. Simple enough for you?"

"Is that all?" she asks.

"I may have also...pushed some furniture around."

"You threw a desk out of the window, Eli."

I shrug. "I may have gotten a little angry."

"The desk weighed over three hundred pounds."

"I like to keep in shape."

"I can see that." She leans in, biting on her bottom lip. "And when would you say the anger originally started for you? The fighting, the overactive aggressiveness in the workplace?" Her short dark hair's pulled back against her skull so tight you'd think she'd have a migraine. She's smiling at me like she wants to eat me alive.

I can feel the anger pulsing through me again, and I clench my teeth to try to reign in it.

Therapy.

Brings out the best in people.

I keep quiet. If I open my mouth to speak I might just end up biting her head off.

Literally.

"Silence isn't good, Eli," she says. "You have to work with me here. We have thirty days to get you better." She sighs when I don't reply. She leans forward, giving me a clear view of her cleavage. "If you don't like talking, maybe we can find other ways to bring you some..relief."

Alright. That's enough.

"Well, doctor... where to begin?" I lean closer, locking gazes with her. "Maybe my anger and aggression comes from the fact that I was abandoned as a child. Left for dead. Despite my fame, fortune, and all around unimaginable success, I've had quite the traumatic past. Despite my loving adoptive family, one doesn't really get over such intense feelings of betrayal."

She opens her mouth to speak, but I cut her off.

"No doubt you're about to spew some freudian nonsense from one of the textbooks you've memorised. Or maybe you'd like to suggest that there may be a chemical imbalance in my amygdala. But I can assure you, doctor, that my brain works perfectly fine, and that none of the drugs you prescribe me will work. Not that I'm implying that the degree you have displayed so proudly on your wall and have spent years of your life trying to attain that tiny piece of paper is useless, but you'll quickly find that none of the things you've learned in a classroom will apply to me." I glance at the clock. "It looks like we've got about a minute left in this session. Will you be able to actually say something intelligent for once, or are you going to keep gaping at me like a dead fish?"

She just stares at me, eyes wide, mouth hanging open. I sigh and stand up, placing my finger underneath her chin. I close it for her before something can fly in and choke her to death.

"It was a pleasure seeing you," I lie. I glare down at her. "Same time tomorrow?" I don't wait for a reply. I'm out the door and down the hallway before her brain catches up to her mouth. I won't be surprised if I get another resignation letter from her.

That would be number three.

You can hear a pin drop as I walk towards the elevator. I can feel the envious gazes of the other men, the subtle, lusty looks that the women give me when they think I'm not looking. I can even hear the nasty things they whisper to each other from down the hall. I've got better hearing than most.

Everyone wants a piece of Eli.

One person even takes a damn photo of me with their cellphone as the elevator doors close.

I can't blame them. People are attracted to power. They're attracted to authority.

They're attracted to wealth. And god knows I've got all three dripping off of me in spades.

I adjust the cufflinks on my suit as the elevator doors open, the lobby quieting down to a hush as I step out. I ignore them, striding purposefully towards the exit. The sooner I get out of this damn building the better. I nod to the doorman as he opens the door for me, and I sigh as the fresh air hits me. Well, as fresh as downtown Seattle air can be.

My phone starts to ring. I sigh and grab it.

"Gabe, I swear—"

"—She quit."

I pause and wipe my free hand down my face. "Start over."

"Your new secretary quit, and we need to hire a new one and while I know you like to have full control over this, I may have already found someone and given her the training manual."

"We don't have a training manual."

"I know that, but I was trying to buy time!"

"Buy time for what? I was in my stupid therapy session for an hour. You're telling me that in that hour Kris quit and you already found and hired a random girl off the street?"

"Yup." He popped the p in yup. He does that on purpose when he wants to piss me off.

"Aren't I great?"

"If you weren't my brother I'd fucking kill you."

"Your brother and your Vice President. I'm irreplaceable baby!"

"Don't tempt me."

He laughs, but I can hear something change in his tone. "I think you're gonna like this one, Eli."

I'm immediately suspicious. "Gabe..."

"She's gorgeous. And smart. And she's willing to work incredibly hard if we give her a chance."

"I don't like where this is going..." I can feel a pit open in my stomach. All the anger I'd managed to suppress in my horrible therapy session comes rushing back to the surface.

"Get here quick, Eli." Gabe sounds excited.

It's never good when he's excited.

"Just fire her already," I say. "Save me the trouble."

He ignores me, and he says the last thing I wanna hear. The worst case scenario. My nightmare made reality.

"I think she's the one you're looking for."

Chapter 2

Ava

I can't believe my luck.

A job that pays real money. A weekly stipend for food. They'll even give me a place to live at the company apartment. I'm going to have my own bed. Maybe even my own pillow and some sheets.

I've got to be the luckiest girl in the world.

I straighten my spine, sitting up completely straight in my chair. Even though I'm running on two hours of sleep, half a donut and a can of Red Bull, I've never been more awake.

I need this job.

And hopefully this one won't have a horrible, abusive boss that expects me to sleep with them. It's insane how often I run into those types of men. The amount of times I had to quit because even reporting harassment to HR would get me nowhere is harassment to HR would get me nowhere is honestly heartbreaking. I think my mind has become numb to the horror of it all...

"He'll be here any minute." Gabe, the VP smiles at me as he gets up and walks out of the room. The way he looks at me makes me nervous. Not in a creepy way, just...it's like he expects something to happen. Like I'm some sort of amazing person and he can't wait to see what happens next.

What exactly he's waiting for... I have no idea.

I fidget in my seat, unsure of what to do when I hear footsteps echoing in the hallway behind me.

Damn, those steps are heavy and purposeful.

The door swings wide open, I turn around, and that's when I nearly die.

He's beautiful.

Just, absolutely, stunning.

It should be illegal for a man to have caramel-colored hair that thick and a sharp jawline. I almost feel like I need to look away.

And then, of course, all of my fantasies are shattered within an instant.

"No," he barks and slams the door, walks over to his massive mahogany desk and what I'm sure is a very expensive chair, and folds his arms. "Out."

"W-what?" Is this part of the interview? A test? Is he sane?

His smile is lethal as he leans forward like his massive six-foot four frame isn't already dominating the room along with that bulked up body. "I know Gabe hired you without my consent, and I know you have a great background, checked out your resume, but no. You can let yourself out."

I'm crushed. My dreams of having a roof over my head and a bed to call my own disappears in a puff of smoke.

I keep all the tears in and thankfully I keep all the tears in and thankfully recompose myself as he stares down at his phone. "Can I ask you why you're already saying no? Especially if my credentials check out?"

He snorts down at his phone, then weirdly sets it calmly on his desk and inhales like he's ready to orgasm on the spot. His blue-eyed gaze suddenly locks on me, and I can't even blink. "Because you're too pretty and you smell good."

I nearly tumble out of my chair. "I'm sorry, what?"

"You should be." He glares. "Sorry, that is."

"For existing?"

"Yes, in my office, at this moment, breathing, you should be sorry, and the answer is no. I don't care how many times you can prove you're the best secretary on this planet, you're too gorgeous for your own good. So, no."

My brain stops working.

I'm not getting the job because I'm too pretty? That's... new. Not that I think that I'm super pretty anyway, but I'm usually forced to quit because my bosses have been major creeps toward me.

What can I do?

I'm officially panicking.

I need a place to stay.

I need food.

I need a job.

And this was my last and only hope for interviews today.

"T'll cut my hair!" I yell, even though it would kill me since it's really the only thing I have going for me, my long black hair and my green eyes. I've been told by a lot of guys that the only reason they even dated me was because they were curious what my hair felt like.

Creepy.

Weird

Gross.

"And!" I just have to keep talking. "I'll put on cheap perfume, and dress down. I'll do whatever it takes and, while this is the weirdest interview or conversation ever, I'll do anything, seriously anything." A tear runs down my cheek before I can swipe it away. "I really need a job."

"Why?" He yawns like he's bored.

I swallow my pride. "I have no parents. I'm in a homeless shelter, my last boss tried to take advantage of me in a very inappropriate way, then I was fired because his sister was head of HR and I just need—" God I would die for a French fry right now. "I just need..." I can't stop the tears now. I'm so unprofessional I should just walk away.

So I nod my head again and hold out my hand. "Nevermind, thank you for your time, sir."

He pauses. Hesitates just briefly, then starts to move.

I immediately think he's going to try something, instead he stands and pulls a few bills from his pocket and instead of shaking my hand, puts them in my palm. "Eat."

"What?"

"Eat." His nostrils flair. "Where do you sleep?"

"What?"

"Sleeping. Humans do it to relax and not die. Where. Do. You. Sleep?"

My lower lip trembles because I'm embarrassed to tell him. I'm embarrassed that I'm standing in a multi-million dollar office getting money from the CEO and basically ready to fall to my knees for a job.

He sighs and comes around the desk, then grabs me by the face. "Breathe."

It's strange. When someone gives you permission to do something that your body should naturally already be doing but suddenly you feel like you can.

You can breathe.

I take a deep breath in as more tears fall and open my eyes.

"Better?" He asks, he's touching me but I'm not afraid. It's not aggressive, it's caring in nature and it makes me want to lean in a little bit more, to a complete stranger, because he gave me permission to be human.

I nod my head and whisper, "Yes."

"Good girl." He gently pulls his hands back.

"Take the money, grab some food." He leans over and presses a button on his phone.

"Gabe, can you please grab the fob key for the apartment on six?"

"Right away," he answers back.

Within seconds, Gabe, with his short black hair and black-rimmed glasses, walks in.

He's beautiful too, but they don't look related even though they're brothers. Gabe looks like he's from Asian descent and Eli, the CEO, looks more mixed with his strong features, but I can't quite pinpoint what his background even is.

"Thank you." Eli grabs the key and presses it into the same palm that has the money.

"Gabe's going to show you where to bring your things. The apartment building is across the street, all employees get free housing, you start at six."

"At night?"

He smirks. "In the morning."

Gabe cracks a smile. "Sorry, he just has weird hours."

"Okay."

I follow Gabe out of the office, the door closing with a heavy thud behind me.

Gabe's heavy sigh follows. "Trust me, it gets weirder during full moons."

"His attitude?"

"Oh no, that's always terrible... I meant the

"Why?"

He says nothing. "You should get some food in you, get a good rest. It's going to be a long week of training."

I nod and walk out the door, my thoughts a mess. Did I really just spill my life story to some strangers, embarrass myself crying, and somehow end up with the job? I'm almost to the front door when I realise that I didn't even thank them for hiring me.

I walk back, wanting to let them know how grateful 1 am, when I hear voices on the other side of the door.

"What did I tell you?" I hear Gabe say.

"She's the one, isn't she?"

"It's not her." Eli sounds furious. "It can't be."

"You can't deny it. Even I could tell there was something different about her." "I don't want to hear it, Gabe. I can't risk it."

Risk it? What were they talking about? My heart starts racing as I press my ear to the door, desperate to hear more.

"You can't keep running from this, Eli.

She's clearly your m—"

"ENOUGH!" Eli's voice booms so clearly through the door that it makes me jump.

"Drop it. Not another word. It's bad enough that I agreed to let her be my secretary."

I step away, even more confused than before.

Did they want to hire me or not? I shake my head, the exhaustion catching up to me. I got the job. I have a place to live, and some food to eat. For now, that's all that matters.

Chapter 3

Eli

I stare at the door like a man possessed.

I finally exhale and can't even sit.

I should sit.

I should probably run.

Every instinct in me is telling me to go after her, pin her against the wall, take a nice little bite out of that pretty little neck and see what happens.

I've never found my mate.

Ever.

I've been alive longer than I'd care to ever admit out loud and in all those years all I've ever managed to accomplish is making money and knowing that at the end of the day, I'm going to die a virgin because, spoiler alert, I'm not totally human, I'm half.

I'm the weird one people abandoned because I didn't have true werewolf blood flowing through my veins. Oh God, I'm like the half-blood prince.

I slam my hands against the top of my desk, papers go flying, a pencil nearly wedges itself in my thigh and I feel nothing, because damn, that woman's smell was something.

But I know it's going to pass, it always does.

They smell good, all humans smell fucking good, but the point is, acting on it is only going to lead to disappointment and more betrayal and abandonment, so I'll dig my giant hands into this desk, I'll sit and have a sandwich.

That sounds tame, right?

And then I'll drink some water, cool off...

I will absolutely not chase after her like a monster and bite.

Don't bite.

Do. Not. Bite.

Bite.

Bite.

Bite hard.

Bite deep.

Tear into flesh and claim.

"Son of a bitch." I will not throw another desk through the window! I take a few calming breaths and inhale through my mouth, which just makes it worse because I didn't think ahead and now I can taste her.

Chocolate?

Cinnamon?

And something else. I keep sniffing.

"Should I just..." Gabe interrupts. "Leave you to your sniffing the air or do you need water or something? I have liquid IV, don't worry."

"T'll kill you," I whisper.

"Please don't; I'm very pretty. I don't like death and blood just sets me off the way her scent sends you into a series of panic attacks, and how is therapy? Just curious."

I punch my hand through the desk splintering the wood on both sides.

"That was literally a ten-thousand-dollar desk." He shakes his head. "And you've gone through two in the last year. I truly worry for your therapists sometimes."

"They" —I feel my fangs growing in my mouth —"should worry about me!"

I'm ready to go full roar when he walks over, hands me a bottle of water, Advil, and pats me on the back. "You're just dealing with a lot of emotion, anyone would feel that way if they were horny."

"I'm not horny!" I yell.

"You are. You definitely are. It's a full moon soon so you're just... not doing as well as normal, which is totally fine, things are good... great even! The company's great.

Your new secretary is across the street grabbing Subway. What more could you want?"

Her.

I inhale again.

Exhale.

This is not the life I thought I would lead, not even close. When Gabe's family took me in, I thought, oh great, a roof over my head, shelter.

And then they dropped the bomb.

You aren't normal.

Literally what my adoptive mom said.

My dad showed me claws.

I'm not gonna lie, it was a true Twilight moment.

And I still haven't learned to control myself in a human way that makes sense. I feel the rage; I feel the anger. I just want to run my company and yeah, have a sandwich at Subway and not worry about killing a person because I'm too out of control.

It's gotten worse now that I'm in my late twenties and it keeps getting progressively worse as time goes on.

My dad says it's because I haven't found my mate.

Gabe says I'm just an angry person with too much money and not enough ass.

But me?

I think.

I think the problem is me.

Fuck me, did I just quote Taylor Swift?

"Hey." Gabe snaps his fingers in front of my face. "Go get some more food, chill out for a minute, we have a marketing meeting in an hour. Your new secretary, I swear, is going to do a great job"

"On your life?"

"—Sure yeah, but I also have superpowers, so I think I could fight you head-to-head."

"You're a shifter."

"True, but I think if I shifted into a whale, for example, while you were in full wolf mode, I might be able to just suffocate you through my weight alone."

I smirk.

"Awww, did I make you laugh?"

"I hate you all the time."

"We're brothers, you love me." He slaps a hand on my back so hard I grunt. "Just go with it, okay? You needed a secretary, she was desperate and what do we always say?"

I hang my head.

He cups his ear. "Come on, what do we always say?"

"Help those who can't help themselves and always give food to hungry people."

"Exactly," he whispers. "You started your nonprofits for a reason and you started this marketing firm for a reason too, to help start-ups—which that's a lot of starts in one sentence, but you get it. You're a good guy..."

"I know."

"You're just horny."

"Oh God, just leave already. I'm not horny!" I yell when the door opens and one of my board members walks in. "Sorry Jim."

"This not a good time?" His face is so red I want to crawl under the table for him. His hands shake as he holds out a folder to me.

"No, it's great, perfect," I say quickly.

"Sorry, just family drama."

Gabe snorts out a laugh and says under his breath. "And you made it worse."

"Come right in." I hold out my hand. "My brother was just leaving."

"Yes." Gabe nods and holds up a sticky note. "I'll just be back with the numbers on that project you asked about. Good day Jim."

"Gabe."

His sticky note was blank.

Chapter 4

Ava

I would marry this sandwich.

If there was a priest, a minister, a rabbi, I would stop them on their way to order their food and beg for it.

Beg.

I know it's ridiculous to have tears continuously run down your face in a Subway restaurant while you're holding a turkey sandwich, but I don't think I'm at the point where I have any pride anymore. I just want food, and I've been without it for so long that I want to cry.

A tear runs down my cheek when I take my next bite. Before I know it, the entire sandwich is nearly gone and I'm finally able to breathe, or at least take a deep breath and think about my future.

I have a place to sleep that isn't a homeless shelter.

I have a job that's going to pay me real money.

And I also have a super grumpy boss who I don't understand at all but, at the end of the day, if he just sticks to himself, then we'll be fine.

I shiver.

I'm not attracted to him. That would be wrong and weird. Instead, I'm just... agitated, he throws me off in a way I wasn't expecting; it didn't help that he is so beautiful that I nearly choked on my tongue.

Had he asked me to do some fast math, I would have just stared at him and probably drooled.

So very professional of me.

I take one last bite and wrap everything together with the napkins, then get up and toss everything in the trash.

I don't realize I'm being watched until I see him.

My boss.

The grumpy alpha dude with a clear personality disorder.

He stares at me for a few seconds, then just leaves.

"Okay," I whisper under my breath. "Not weird at all."

I leave Subway and start walking toward the building, fully aware that since we're both probably going to the same place that it looks like I'm following him

He walks into the giant glass building.

I follow.

Both of us scan our cards through security and stare at the same elevator even though they literally have eight.

"You ate then?" he finally asks.

"Yeah, I ate an entire sandwich and almost ate the entire store. I think I'm good."

"Hmmm." He reaches for my face with his massive hand, then pulls back. "You probably still need more food. Go sleep. T'l see you in the morning."

We get into the elevator and all 1 can think about is the way he smells. Like the woods, but also like burning incense full of cinnamon.

I want to jump him for no reason other than I'm suddenly so hot I don't know what else to do with my life. Why does he feel like the cure for everything?

I move closer to him.

He moves away from me.

I take another step.

He looks down and I swear the guy's so horrified you'd think he just saw a werewolf or something. "Is that a hair?"

"What?"

"Hair." He points at his black jacket; his pointer finger is literally shaking. "I don't do hair, it freaks me out, hate hair, doesn't belong on other people unless it's attached." He starts to gag and then he points at it. "I need it gone."

"Okay?"

"Is that a question?".

"Um, sure?" Seriously, what's with this guy? I mean, thanks for the food, but I didn't have a CEO losing his mind over a strand of hair in an elevator on my bingo card for this year. "Do you want me to just..." I move toward him, my fingers graze the hair as I bat it away from his suit. "There, no more hair."

He rewards me with food and I reward him with the ability to flick a piece of hair that doesn't even belong to me, off his body..

Does that mean we're even?

I open my mouth to ask when he shudders, his broad shoulders shaking like he still has shivers down his spine.

"Trichophobia?" I call out just as he steps outside the elevator and looks over his shoulder at me.

He adjusts the collar of his shirt. "Yeah, something like that... it triggers me."

Does everything trigger him? "Oh. I'm sorry. I'll be careful when I wear black."

He opens his mouth, then snaps it shut-the clean lines of his sculpted face were nearly impossible to stare at, even when he looked angry like he did in that moment.

Was it what I said?

"Good." He clips out. "Have a nice evening."

"You too!" I call after him, but he doesn't turn around again. He heads to the corner apartment that takes up around half the floor, scans a keycard over it, walks in, allowing it to slam behind him.

I jump a foot and press a hand to my chest, then slowly walk in the same direction. I quickly realize the company apartment I was given... means I'm his new neighbor.

I don't think he would accept me baking cookies for him or hosting a welcoming party.

But at least I have a place to sleep.

I face the stark white door and run my shiny silver card over it.

It flashes green and allows me in instantly.

My jaw drops when I walk into the fully open floor plan with twelve-foot ceilings, floor to ceiling windows overlook the city all around me.

All I can think is, who cleans these windows? Who's brave enough to be on the tenth floor even?

It's sparsely furnished.

There's one nice plush looking blue couch facing a flatscreen TV with two other bare brown leather chairs opposite and a bare brown leather chairs opposite and a freaking ginormous kitchen that's painted all white with small brown accents above the cupboards. The breakfast bar alone could seat at least six people. Matching brown barstools sit in front of the white granite, but I notice too late there's really nothing but dishes.

I can use the money they gave me to go out and find something to cook later or for breakfast.

I wonder if I even have a pillow or sheets?

Not that I'm greedy.

I walk into the primary bedroom, it's really big and faces the park.

There's a large bed with a purple cloth headboard and plastic still on the mattress. I check the large walk in close and while I'm impressed by the sheer massiveness of it, I don't find pillows or blankets anywhere.

I still need to eat breakfast tomorrow, so 1 decide to sleep on the couch in the clothes I have on. I'm thankful I still have a bag of stuff I can grab from the shelter.

Speaking of, I need to go back and grab the one bag of things I have left there.

A knock suddenly sounds at my door.

Who even knows I'm here other than Gabe and Eli? I've covered my tracks well, but 1 still semi-panic when I walk to the door and look through the peephole. I see a person holding bags, tons and tons of bags, but I see no face.

"Get a grip, it's fine," I mutter to myself and take a deep breath, cracking the door open.

"Yes?"

"Let me in. I have your things." The man sounds just like Eli but he's wearing a black tight t-shirt, tight ripped jeans, a far stretch from the controlling billionaire I just saved from a hair. How did he even have time to find things?

Is he wearing sneakers?

I open the door wider. "You must be the delivery guy?"

"Delivery." He grunts and walks into my apartment like he's been there a million times. "But I'm not just some guy. Some might call me your boss, but you can address me by my first name. Get the stuff from the hall?"

"More things?" I asked.

"I'm very talented at ordering." He drops tons of bags from various stores onto my couch and puts his hands on his hips. "Or I guess you could say me and Gabe ordered you everything you might need and had it delivered."

I can't help it. I can't breathe just staring at him. Muscles flex beneath his t-shirt and without the suit to make him look like every other guy in business—now he just looks like he needs to brawl with Jon Cena and get it over with.

A tribal tattoo is drawn down his left arm all the way to his wrist and stops. It's simple and black, but it looks so intricate that I wonder what it could be?

His other arm is bare.

I stare harder. It's a picture of the moon and water reflecting off of it, with trees surrounding it all the way down. Lettering I don't recognize, maybe Latin? Etches itself down his forearm.

"What's all this for?" I ask, shaking my head away from his body and reminding myself that he hired me to do a job, and I'd be a horrible person to do to him, what several bosses had already done to me.

I put my professional face back on and wait.

"Well..." He frowns. "You didn't get the rest of the bags from the hall?"

"How did you even carry that much?" I point at the stack of bags, there has to be at least twenty and they aren't small. I quickly rush to the front door and look down the hall. "Did you rob someone?"

He snorts. "Like I'd need to. No, this is all provided by the company until the first paycheck. Food, cell phone coverage, clothing which I didn't pick out because I didn't have time but..." He hands me over a black titanium card. " ...you'll go shopping

during your two-hour lunch break tomorrow or if you give Gabe your measurements, we'll make sure to have things delivered to the office for you to try on. We have a certain expectation of our employees, so don't think of this as charity. It's merely how we run things."

I don't take the card. I shake my head and stutter. "I-I think I'll just tell Gabe my measurements so we can get right to work."

He frowns, cocking his head to the side before putting his card back in his wallet.

"Gotta say, I've never had anyone turn down an unlimited shopping excursion."

"I'm not everyone, and I want to prove myself."

His face goes still as he grips the granite countertop, his fingers dig in. "What did you do when you got in here?"

"Took a self tour, why?"

He sniffs the air again. "You didn't put on perfume or anything?"

I frown. "I don't exactly carry that sort of thing in my purse for times like this."

His eyes roll back and then he squeezes them shut. "The bags, you should get the bags."

"Oh, right!" I grab another twenty bags from the hallway and set them on the counter. I have basically everything I need, not just for a starter apartment, but to cook basically anything I could imagine.

I even have paper towels! I almost dance when I see all of the cans of food and fresh vegetables. Not only that, but I have a pillow, my very first real pillow in two years, along with sheets, a down comforter, towels.

They went all out, and I love it.

Meat!

"Thank you!" I nearly collide into his chest, then stumble forward and do exactly that.

He catches me by the arms.

I grip his biceps back.

I'm so close I can smell him, really smell him... he's like the outdoors, but warm. His grip intensifies on my body until it's nearly painful.

Slowly, I look up into his eyes and gulp.

They're flashing so blue that it looks unworldly, his lips part but nothing comes out. Is he sniffing the air again?

He looks like he's losing a battle I'm not aware of when he releases me and steps back, hands slightly shaking. "Sorry, I don't like being touched. It's not your fault." He sidesteps me and bolts toward the door. "See you at six am!"

What the hell was that?

Chapter 5

Eli

They messed it up again.

My coffee order.

How fucking hard was it to make a three cinnamon, coconut milk heated to exactly a hundred and twenty-five degrees, no foam, shaken not stirred, with a quarter of vanilla equalized to a quarter of caramel latte?!

Do they not understand that the pressure in the atmosphere can unheat by a single degree, ruining my LATTE!

My. Latte.

Really, these things are the only bonuses you have in life after going to another anger management course at ten am only to be told you're "Impossible."

Only to be followed by being hit on by a sixty-year-old woman who said she identified as YOUNG!

"You know," Gabe starts using his inside voice, he even has his hands out in front of himself like he's ready to fight me because clearly, he knows I'm pissed. I stare at my already splintered desk and I know he can see me ready to throw this one too, and that's the last thing we need. What the hell is wrong with me? "It could be that um... it could be, okay sorry I need to pause here, the look you're giving me makes me feel like you aren't wanting me to speak but if I don't, then you're just going to get in your own head and throw something through a window again which is exactly what we're trying to avoid so if you could just use your words that would be extremely helpful to all humanity not just me and-"

"—Here." Ava waltzes in my office without even knocking wearing the sexiest black pantsuit I've ever seen and smelling like heaven. "I picked up your coffee order on my way here, so dumb... they laughed at me when I told them the exact temperature.

It's like they don't even realize how pressure from the weather can alter the taste and heat!"

I am no longer my own.

1 am hers.

Forever hers.

I stand up.

I grip the table to keep myself from launching over said table and demolishing both coffee, her mouth, and other things I should not mention.

"Thank you." I say it like it's a blessing.

Like I'm blessing her. I say it like I'm a priest when every single thought in my head is the complete opposite. I want to reward her with sex. I want to drive into her so hard she see's stars and screams my name.

I have no control.

Nothing is left.

I look toward Gabe.

His eyebrows shoot up. "Yes, yes, quite lovely of you to get him his perfect coffee order; should we go learn how the copier works?"

"What?" She leans forward, her breasts press against her suit jacket, giving some amazing cleavage I want to lick through for the entire year and maybe more. "Is everything okay? I hope I didn't overstep?"

Fuck me. Please step on me.

"No." I get out. "It's just been a busy morning and I've been dying for caffeine." I grab the cup and lift it. "Thank you for this."

She winks. "All part of the job, boss."

Swear if she ever said that naked, I would be on my knees in a heartbeat.

"Great," I rasp, barely getting the word out.

Gabe snorts under his breath. "So about that copier."

"Oh yeah." She grins. "Let's go check it out. Bye boss, thank you for the job. Again, I hope to really give you exactly what you need."

I swear I can hear Gabe's internal laughter as they leave the office. The door closes with a silent click and I'm ready to explode.

Don't think about her.

It.

Any of it.

I stare at the perfect coffee and take a sip.

It truly is my perfect drink order.

And she's perfect.

Not that she's mine.

Employee, employee, employee.

If I say it enough, I'll believe it and I won't maul her like the animal 1 am.

I don't know how long I sit at my desk and watch the door like she's going to come back in, like I can't smell her. Like I can't feel my own need.

I need. I want.

I dig my hands into my desk and finally sit, knowing full well that my entire body is on fire for the one person it should be ignoring.

I take a deep breath. The door cracks open and she pokes her head in, immediately I smell her.

I want her.

She smiles and I want to both fuck her and kill her.

"Yes?" I barely get out.

Her smile gets wider. "What did you want me to order you for lunch? And also, I have the documents you need to sign from the overseas contracts in Germany. I'll email you a DocuSign in a minute. Let me know if you want more coffee or anything else.

I'm here at your disposal. I'm here." I stop breathing. "To serve you."

Shit. I clench my teeth.

I stare her down.

I try not to break.

But know, one day.

One. Day.

I will.

Chapter 6

Ava

He seems tense and super focused. I know that's kind of how he is, at least a little bit, but he's been off today, it seems.

1 grab him lunch.

He eats it, but doesn't look at me for the next few hours. I bring in his paperwork;

I ask if he needs water. I try to be the best assistant ever, and he's still staring at his computer and grunting at me like I'm annoying him more than helping.

Frowning, I go back to my desk outside his office and sit.

It's nice here.

I truly like it.

I have enough food to not starve and the rest of the employees seem to love the place and are all extremely happy and positive. Gabe checks in on me at least twice every hour to make sure that I'm okay, which I find kind of weird, but I think it's because he's the right-hand guy under Eli.

"Hey." Speak of the devil. Gabe walks up in his navy suit and perfect white smile. "You ate right?"

I grin back. "I had food, yes, and I'm good.

Did you eat?"

He licks his bottom lip then tugs it, why are both men so attractive? It's not fair. "Yeah, I ate something."

"What did you have?"

He looks away, then down at his feet.

"Meat."

"Good meat?" I ask.

His eyes lock on mine. "It was great, so do you have any questions? Do you need anything?"

I open my mouth to answer when the door to Eli's office is thrown open. I've never seen a man power walk in slow motion before, but that is literall what he's doing. Mv brain accepts that he's purposeful in his steps, but my stupid heart keeps going, damn.

Just. Damn.

He stops in front of my desk. "Close your mouth?"

It was open?

I close it and stand. "Do you need something?"

"Yes." He squeezes his eyes shut, then opens them in a flash. "I need a date."

"Ummm." Not what I expected. "Okay, I can probably find someone to help you out with that on some dating website or maybe hire someone and—"

"No." He clips out. "You're coming. Wear something nice." He turns to Gabe. "I trust you'll help her out?"

"Absolutely." Gabe grins. "That's clearly my new job title, helper outer."

"Don't be cute. It's exhausting." Eli walks off.

And I'm left with Gabe staring at me, me staring at him.

"So..." Gabe nods slowly. "He's annoyed and slightly pissed, did not have that planned so early in the day. Let's go grab a dress. I have no clue what he needs, but I'll look at his calendar, probably a dinner he has to go to or an event, though I didn't see anything on his schedule. We'll figure it out. It's best to just ask for forgiveness than permission with him."

I shake my head. "He just keeps getting better and better, he's like a wolf."

Gabe bursts out laughing. "Yeah, exactly like that. Good eye."

An hour later and I'm ready to punch Gabe, track down Eli, and then quit my job. I've never in my life tried on so many dresses.

Ever.

And you'd think that I'd be so thankful, but I'm tired, I'm hungry, and no dress seems to pass what Gabe says is the mark.

What the hell is a mark?

I've been up since five, we're closing in on dinnertime and I'm still putting on tight dresses that look like crap on my body.

I grab the last one.

It's red, blood red. I don't imagine it's going to look good. It's strapless and also just plunges way too deep down my boobs, and magically it's able to stay put while the back plunges to my ass.

It's beautiful, but it's daring and definitely not me or my style, but I put it on anyway.

Miraculously, it fits and looks good.

I prepare for another head shake from Gabe.

But when I walk out, he drops the coffee he's drinking onto the small table and falls onto the couch. "This."

"This?" I point at myself.

"That." He points back at me. "Is your dress.

Damn, wish I liked—" He shakes his head.

"Never mind. This is the dress. Your dress.

His dress. Fuck, he's going to kill me. Okay, time to check out since you only have two hours to get ready and I booked you some makeup and hair. Hope you don't mind."

"What?"

"Hmmm?" He's looking down at his phone.

"Just kidding, we only have ninety minutes, all right, go change."

"Um."

"Try not to do the ums or likes. Think for three seconds, then speak, otherwise you sound like an idiot." He grins. "Go, go, go.

We don't have a lot of time."

I turn on my heel and go back into the changing room.

What just happened?

I'm not exactly panicking, but this wasn't what I thought my first day would be like. I quickly put my old clothes back on and walk out with the dress. Gabe buys everything, including the shoes, and then walks me toward the opposite side of the street to a hotel.

"Hair and makeup are inside," he whispers and hands me the dress. "Room 221, here's the card, go up and get everything done, it's already been taken care of and be down here at eight. Got it?"

I grab the card. "Yes." No, I don't got it. "Absolutely." I need this job. "T'll be down right after they're done and I'll look hopefully extremely glamorous for whatever event this is."

"The Hi Gala." He grins. "Eli is an idiot and forgot. So you're right on theme, and you're his date. Have fun!"

I nearly pass out on the spot. "I'm sorry, did you say the Hi Gala?"

"Yeah, it's every year."

"I know it's every year!"

"Why are you yelling?"

"Because!" I almost stomp my foot. "That's one of the biggest galas ever, celebrities go, influencers, and I'm just now hearing about this? How did he forget?"

Gabe shrugs. "He's busy, I'm busy. Things like this are trivial. You'll be fine, just smile, wave, shake hands, you'll be good and don't forget the champagne, they always have the best champagne."

He waves and suddenly he just walks off and gets into a black car.

And I'm left with oh don't forget the champagne, here's your key card to your hotel room with a glam squad.

And Eli.

Chapter 7

Eli

I tap my black Pradas against the ground and take in a deep soothing breath, isn't that what my therapist always encourages? Five seconds in, five seconds out.

Why is not helping?

I check my Rolex. There are only two of its kind with gold and silver plus a blue face and tiny encrusted crystals. The only people who own one are me and my brother.

It always reminds me of sad memories and I only ever wear it during special events because I know how intimidating it can be to shake someone's hand, look down and know they're wearing a half a million dollar watch right next to their fingers.

Two minutes late now.

Three.

Should I start counting sheep at this point?

One day on the job and while she did bring an impeccable latte for my consumption, making my day less shitty, I hate it when people aren't punctual. It's a pet peeve.

Like stray hairs.

Fur.

There's a reason naked cats exist, in my opinion. I shudder and turn around just as a panicked looking Ava power walks toward me in nude Louboutin heels, a beautiful red dress that leaves nothing to the imagination in the front and makes my mouth water so hard.

Wait? Is that fang?

I rub my teeth across my incisors and groan, even touching them with my own tongue feels nice. I have never in my life fanged out in front of a woman before.

Oh shit.

She's coming closer.

She smells so good.

She does a quick turn to show me her back and I'm lost again. I clench my fists at my sides and all I get out is, "You'll do."

Her eyes fall, they're so pretty I want to get lost in them, she nods and shoots me a forced smile, her lips are such a pretty pink, not too glossy, just perfect. "Well, that's what I'm here for, to serve you."

She really needs to stop saying things like that if she doesn't want me to have visions of her on her knees in front of me doing exactly that.

"Yes," I say gruffly and offer my arm. "The car's waiting, apparently we're going to make an entrance at the Gala a few blocks down."

She flinches and takes my arm after a few seconds, she's wearing a diamond bracelet and her nails are painted a pretty nude to match her shoes. Rather than a normal necklace encased in diamonds, she has a large intricately woven black lace choker that dips strategically down her cleavage, almost like a collar.

My fangs refuse to retract, and the more I talk, the more she'll have the chance of seeing I'm not entirely normal or human.

Marvin, my driver, opens the door to the black Lamborghini SUV and does a double take of Ava.

I have to clear my throat twice before he looks away and nods in my direction. I shut the door without entering and cross my arms. "Don't look at her."

Marvin's brown eyes widen. "I'm sorry, I was just surprised, I won't stare ever again, please don't fire me!"

"Well, if you weren't so good at your job and training me for a marathon, I kind of feel like I probably would." I curse and look away.

"Sir, your fangs are showing—" He points.

I bat his hand away. "Why do you think I'm taking a minute to calm down?"

I'm about to be stuck in a small space next to her for the next five minutes before making an appearance at the biggest gala of the year, I cannot werewolf out in front of the press.

"Hold your breath?" Marvin offers. "It's a nice night, why don't I roll down the windows?"

I stare down at my shoes and the cement. "It would ruin her hair."

"You hate hair."

"Hair that's not attached to the body,"

Though briefly I imagine one of her hairs just dangling in the wind and I don't immediately want to puke. In fact, my mouth salivates more.

No!

Just no.

"Drive," I bark. "And make sure to keep the windows cracked."

He smirks. "Yes, sir."

"Stop being amused." I call after him.

"Yup." His shoulders move like he's laughing as he gets in, leaving me to open my own door because he knows I don't give a shit.

Once I'm in the car, the smell of her hits me like a wall.

"Everything okay?" She smiles over at me.

My lips part. I know I need words to respond to her but all I have are angry ones from my own projection, my own rage, and need to stay far away when every instinct in me tells me to lean in close.

The vein on her neck pulses.

Mating bites only take place there, it's truly the only thing we have related in our rituals to vampires.

The pulse, the vein, closest to the heart while you claim their blood and soul.

"Stellar." I finally announce in a voice that sounds angrier than it should, causing her to jump next to me and scoot a few inches away. Great, now I'm scaring her on top of treating her like shit.

But damn that outfit, what the hell was I thinking?

Clearly, I wasn't.

I clear my throat and stare straight ahead while I sit in actual torture. She drums her fingertips against her thigh. "Oh." She jerks toward me, it's my turn to jump a foot. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you." Her smile's small, tentative, like I'm about to yell at her any minute. She bites down on her lower lip. "I was just going to ask if there were any important people that I need to know before we're there, I mean, I'm sure I'll recognize some people, but important ones to you or any charities you run? The company?

She knows I run charities.

She knows what to ask.

Magnificently off-limits woman.

I reach for my tie to adjust it and realize that nothing's there, that I'm wearing nothing but a black suit with a black shirt that's open down the collar.

I said no to the sunglasses. It's already dark and it just feels stupid.

"No." I take a deep breath. "But I appreciate your dedication."

Her pretty eyes lock on mine, the car jolts to a stop, nearly sending her into my lap, as it is her hands move to my chest, I allow myself one more inhale and pray that she can't see my fangs.

I start to pant while she stares at my mouth like she's never seen lips before. I do it out of pure reaction and instinct, I lick my lips and taste the air between us.

I should have never.

I grip her by the shoulders, mouth aching.

My reaction is probably lack of sleep, right?

And all I had was my coffee today.

Yes, it's a nutritional imbalance with exhaustion tapped in.

She snakes a hand up my neck. "You smell good."

I'm ready to respond when Marvin clears his throat. "We've arrived sir, they're waiting."

Forget firing him. I'm going to kill him and feed him to a hairless cat when I get home.

"Right." I pull away from her. "Thank you for your impeccable timing, as always, Marvin."

He knows I want to strangle him as he smiles through the rearview mirror and gives me a little salute.

Mine wouldn't have been as kind as a few fingers.

Just one.

I nod and hold out my hand to Ava.

"Ready?"

"Sure, I'll just throw up in the bathroom later." She jokes and grabs my hand. "So much for being low key, it looks like we are at the end of the arrival."

I don't tell her I think she would make an entrance, even if she was early enough to help the janitor clean the floors.

I keep my mouth shut as my fangs fever for her.

Pictures go off in front of us and I hold her close.

Her poses are perfect. She's perfect.

I made the right choice in bringing her, now I just need to survive it.

Chapter 8

Ava

I'm so nervous I could die.

He's holding onto me like I'm his.

I'm holding him back like it's true.

I've always wanted to live a fairy tale life since all I've been doing since my accident has been living in a homeless shelter and trying to remember my life, but my injury doesn't really allow it.

Gabe said it wasn't a big deal that I have long-term memory loss, as long as I can do my job well and 1 can, I know I can, and I am.

It just sucks to be in your late twenties and not know where you were born, what city, what your parents look like...

It's like watching the end of a movie without having the beginning or middle.

All you have is what you have.

I want to go to the part where the happy ending happens. Maybe this is it, maybe this is all I'll have, is it horrible that I cling to him harder? I grip the back of his jacket with my fingers. I actually dig in, I cling to his warmth; I rest my head on his shoulder like I'm allowed to, and as we walk across the red carpet, I see my end.

Because I see the end of the carpet and I know it's time to go up the stairs, take more pictures, and go into the gala. He'll be talking to people, networking, and I'll be sipping champagne.

And then I'll go back to my lonely apartment.

What a waste of my own brain.

I hate myself sometimes.

But people need to live and eat and survive and that's all I'm doing at this point. Even doctors had no clue what happened to me or why I lost so many years and the even crazier part, I had to get brand new ID, social security, everything because when I woke up from my coma all I knew was my name but no family was present.

How freakishly depressing.

Maybe I'm one of those people, one that nobody really cares about. Or maybe I've always been an orphan.

At this point, I need to just focus on the fact that I'm at one of the biggest galas of the year and I'm working. I'm here to support him, gather my paycheck, and attempt to look like his date without actually hitting on him.

My boss.

After just starting work.

Usually, I'm the one getting hit on, instead tonight, I'm the one with the dangerous thoughts, just shooting them in his direction like daggers.

Cameras are flashing everywhere, he grips my arm like he's nervous about it so I hold still while what feels like claws dig into my skin, but that would be insanity, I'm just nervous.

He isn't smiling.

He looks pissed.

I elbow him and smile through my teeth, whispering, "Smile."

He looks down at me. "I thought I was?"

"Your lips are barely moving, even when you're talking to me." I keep smiling and holding onto him as we walk down the red carpet, he waves, but his smile isn't real it looks so fake that even not knowing him, I know it.

Not good for business.

Not good for networking.

Not good for any of it and the entire world is gonna see pictures of him, not to mention news channels, entertainment.

"What..." I keep smiling and lean up to whisper in his ear so it looks seductive when really I'm just petrified he's going to be on the news in the morning for looking like a giant asshole. "Will make you smile?"

He doesn't smile for the cameras, but the minute 1 ask that, he looks down at me with a crooked, nearly delirious grin. "I don't think you want to know what just ran through my head."

"Try me."

"Sample, more like it," he whispers and forces a half-assed smile. "Better?"

"You're like a marble statue." Please don't fire me. "Just, can you, try?"

"If I smile, I'll scare them," he says under his breath.

"Your smile can't be that creepy." We both pause and stand in front of the paparazzi, he rests his hand on my hip pulling me against his side. His smile still looks forced, covered up actually.

I grip his hand rather than his elbow and hold it tight, then pull away from him and do a little twirl like we're dancing our way down to the end.

It's all I have.

He looks completely away from the paparazzi and follows me.

And then he smiles. "What was that?"

"Dancing." I wink. "Twirling."

His smile is adorable, I never thought I'd see the day and I've been with him for mere 2 days.

He pulls me back against him, then twirls me again. The press goes wild, cameras are flashing everywhere as we near the end of the carpet.

It was a good run.

Despite him not smiling until the end, I got my job done, so why am I sad?

I'm not paying attention and suddenly trip over my dress and go flying forward, but the minute I think I'm about to hit the final stair, his hand grabs me and pulls me back into him, then dips me low. He doesn't kiss me, but slowly leans forward and whispers with those amazing full lips and a low growl,

"You should really watch where you're going."

I gulp. "N-noted."

His eyes are full of anger at first, or maybe fear? And then he abruptly pulls me to my feet and grabs my hand as we walk into the venue.

I can barely keep up with him in my heels.

Once we stop at the front door, he reaches for a glass of champagne, hands it to me, and grabs two more. "Don't make enemies."

I'm pretty sure that's the last time I'll see him tonight before I hang my head and make the decision to drink a glass of champagne and then make the trek home. I don't belong in this world, and hey at least I have a home, and the champagne tastes incredible.

The way he marches off, you'd think I had the plague or something.

I finish my champagne in no time and reach for another feeling extremely awkward, just standing there like an idiot.

Positives? I have an apartment now.

A beautiful dress.

A grumpy boss? Yes, but he takes care of me well.

I mean, I'm only two days in and he hasn't thrown a pen at me—yet. I'm just about to finally go when a tall, gorgeous man starts weaving his way through the crowds.

Damn.

He turns to me, dimples on full display, and flashes me a smile.

Chapter 9

Eli

I can't be next to her. Literally cannot without wanting to bite the fuck out of her skin and then use the same word fuck in another way.

Sweaty bodies.

Skin pressed against skin.

Hydration.

Only to do it again.

I'm smiling, but at least when she's not next to me, when I can't smell her, my fangs retract enough for me to actually do my job.

I didn't predict this and now I'm trying like

Hell to keep it together.

Did I abandon her? Absolutely.

Was it necessary? One hundred percent.

She'Il either go to the corner and sulk or she'll leave and now that her job is done— selling us in front of the press—I can at least have a slight reprieve and try to calm down the damn pulsing in my system.

I swear it feels like I have a heartbeat in my teeth right now, just pulsing, begging, needing.

It's beyond want at this point, and I know she thinks I'm being a giant ass, I can practically feel her shooting laser beams in my direction. I glance over while grabbing a glass of champagne and watch her hang her head like she's totally out of place and has no clue where to go, when Xavier Nickel from Orange Tech approaches her.

He's worth billions, good looking, was featured in Forbes and owns a fortune five hundred company— publicly traded just like mine.

He's a sort of nemesis, whatever I do, he does, except I just do it better.

He runs a hand through his unnecessarily thick blond hair and smiles down at her, ah he busted out the dimples.

She looks up at him with stars in her eyes.

I toss back all the champagne in my glass, exchange it for another and aggressively walk in their direction just as she loops her arm through his and they go to a table.

I follow them like I'm hunting.

She's throwing her head back and laughing

—a real laugh, and if he leans in one more time and caresses her neck like he has a right to, I'm going to bite his head off.

Quite literally.

Bet his blood even tastes good-damn it!

What the hell is wrong with me?

He pulls out a chair for her, then pulls one for himself. I smoothly beat him into it, nearly knocking him on his ass as I shoot him an innocent look. "Thank you, apparently the rampant rumors aren't true

—you are a gentleman." Not a complete womanizer I want to end.

He clenches his teeth and forces a smile in my direction while simultaneously flipping me off with his right hand, right where Ava can't see him.

Amused, I tilt my head and smile, my fangs no longer an issue since he's not temptation, he's my enemy.

I would never be friends with someone like him.

He adjusts his tie and sits down on the other side of Ava and leans in. "I was just telling your new assistant that I thought she was one of the celebrities."

I clench my teeth. "Expensive dresses and makeup can make anyone look glorious, take a look at yourself, for example. You actually showered." I lean forward. "Washed your hair, oh got a manicure, good for you!"

Ava's head lowers, she clutches her hands in her lap.

"And you aren't stealing my assistant, she's new and still in training and we can't have you hiring her just because you want to see her naked." That's my right.

No wait, it's not.

I clench my fists again, my claws dig into my palms.

"Wow." He shakes his head, his smile gone. "I guess the rumors about you are the opposite— they're actually true, a grumpy, rich, bored CEO with anger issues who doesn't even take into account a woman's feelings. No wonder you've never dated."

Low blow.

How does he know?

How does anyone know?

"T' m busy." I snap.

"Too busy to tell a woman she looks beautiful." He smirks and turns to Ava. Does she have tears in her eyes? "And you do, look absolutely stunning, don't listen to him, he's always got a stick up his ass." He stands and holds out his hand. "Should we dance?"

Ava swallows and looks at his hand, then back at me. "I was actually just going to walk back to my apartment. I should go." She stands abruptly.

"Nonsense." Xavier shrugs. "T'll drive you."

My mouth drops open. He's going to leave just to take her home or just to piss me off?

Ava puts her hands in front of her. "Oh no, I don't want to put you out."

He grabs one of her hands and kisses the back of it. "It would be an honor." He places her fingers on his elbow. "Just give me your address and let this one over here wallow at his empty table with no friends, champagne for miles, and billions of dollars. He's used to it, after all."

I jerk like I've been punched-he's not wrong.

All I have is Gabe.

All I have is money.

Loneliness

An empty table because I'm too intimidating to approach.

A part werewolf side, ready to rage.

And the knowledge that I'll probably die a virgin.

They walk off hand in hand.

She looks back at me once, hurt etched all over her face. I lift up my empty champagne glass, my smile confident, when my heart is beating so fast I swear the entire room can hear it.

Cheers.

Chapter 10

Ava

The ride home had been uneventful.

I wasn't sure if Xavier would try something with me or was just truly being nice. But we made small talk the entire way, he answered a few calls that seemed mundane, his driver was quiet and I just watched the city go by before we stopped in front of the corporate apartments.

He kissed my hand again, waited for me to get in safe, and I slept like crap.

Now, I'm almost late for work.

I grab Eli's latte and quickly shuffle into the office. Gabe is nowhere to be seen until I knock softly on Eli's door and hear a gruff get in.

I'm wearing a simple black pair of trousers with purple heels and a loose white shirt tucked into them. I kept my hair away from my neck at first, then decided to let it down.

"Good morning!" I force as cheerfully and painfully awkward as I can and quickly go over to Eli's desk and set down the latte, he's on the phone but immediately gets off of it the minute he sees me.

Gabe gives his head a small shake in my direction as if to say, not the time to say good morning, as if it's the worst sort of morning.

Eli points a pen at the latte. "What's this?"

I frown. "You're morning latte."

"You keep it," he grumbles. "Apparently, anger is fueled by caffeine, so my therapist cut me off."

My eyes widen, I internally panic. "Do you think that's a good idea?"

His nostrils flare.

"Yup, okay." I quickly grab the latte. "T'1l take this far, far away."

"Take it into your stomach and get me my schedule for the day, it's a full moon over the next few days."

Is this some sort of weird astrology thing?

"Um, okay, is there a reason we avoid full moons?"

"The transformation." Gabe winks. "Totally

Kidding, he's just suspicious, and he's been working like a dog for the last few weeks before his assistant quit, so I told him it would be wise to take some time for himself."

"I don't need time for myself." Eli chucks a pen toward Gabe, but Gabe catches it midair and calmly sets it on the table.

Gabe smiles down at the pen. "Could have been worse, that stapler hurt like shit last week."

I start to slowly back away. "I don't have that good of an aim or catch, so maybe I'll just approach if asked, and I'll email the schedule to you—"

"—Do you or do you not assist me?" Eli jumps to his feet and slams his hands onto his desk.

Gabe looks unfazed.

"Yes." I nod slowly. "I do."

"Great, then print it off like an assistant would and come in here and read it to me, send a copy to Gabe, copy me and yourself in, do you think you can manage to do that?"

"Yes sir, yes, right away." I scramble out of the room and chug half the latte before I set it on my desk.

He's terrifying.

Menacing.

Rude!

The door shuts behind me a minute later.

Gabe walks up to me, his sigh palpable.

"He really is a great boss he just... needs a break, he has a lot of stress."

"So he chooses to stress everyone else out and project all his grumpiness on his employees?" What a great human being!

Gabe makes a face and crosses his arms over his black shirt. Just where did this guy come from? He's tall like Eli, looks like he lives to run and go to the gym and has a kind smile.

He pushes away from the table and puts a hand on my shoulder. "It gets easier to deal with, send his schedule over when you can and let me know what you want to order for lunch." He walks off like his partner's behavior isn't a problem.

By the time I'm done emailing everyone and printing things off, my stomach hurts from being so hungry, I quickly message Gabe and tell him that anything would do at this point, then knock on Eli's door.

"Come in," he says gruffly.

Here we go. I open the door and walk toward his desk and sit in a nearby chair, crossing my legs.

When I don't say anything, he frowns at me.

"You're not camping out, you can stand if you want, you look uncomfortable, besides I can feel your hunger from my desk."

I exhale, get to my feet and walk to the middle of the office. He gets up abruptly and walks around the desk with his tree trunk thighs and menacing height. I start to back away and put some distance between us when my heel gets caught on the rug; I start flailing backward until strong, warm arms suddenly catch me before I crack my head against the marble flooring.

It's Eli.

But he was in front of me, how'd he catch me from behind?

His eyes are so blue and hypnotic. His hands warm, they almost take up my entire upper back. "Are you okay?"

My eyebrows shoot up. "I think the fall was less surprising than you asking that question."

His firm mouth draws into a small, barely there smile. "Guess I deserved that, it's just hard to control sometimes."

"Your rudeness?"

Suddenly I'm back on my wobbly feet.

"So..." He coughs into his hand. "My schedule?"

I take a deep breath. "You meet with angel investors at noon for the new children's program, the marketing team for the Y right after that and"

He holds up his hand. "Not trying to be an ass, Ava, but you can't just tell me what time and who they are. I need details along with the schedule. Am I driving? What's the weather like? Do I have any downtime in between the meetings, or will the car meet me at the restaurant? What are the biographies of each individual? How much money for the marketing budget? And how much are the investors willing to give? You aren't in trouble, I just need every minute detail."

Tears well in my eyes. I hate being corrected, especially when I know the person is right and I look like I've been lazy.

"Sorry, it won't happen again, let me go find all the answers and I'll come back in."

"Go." It's not a bark, it's more gentle in nature, but he doesn't even make eye contact, so I disappear out of his office and tell myself.

Round 2.

It takes me three hours to find all the information he needed, and I end up eating soup and bread at my desk-I'm not complaining, though it was amazing.

I want to take my heels off so badly, instead I make a second journey to his door, knock, wait for him to tell me to come in.

I expect him to be behind his desk, instead his white sleeves are rolled up to his elbows.

I see the tribal tattoo again and quickly look away. His caramel brown hair is mussed like he's been stressed.

He turns to me, he's so close I can smell him again. "Back already?"

I keen mv mouth shut but want to fight.

Does he not realize I've been working on this since this afternoon?

I nod my head and suddenly feel the ponytail holder slip from my hair. I want to moan; it happens all the time, my hair just having a mind of its own and breaking free from the elastic band and thrusting itself at people.

I swear if I have one more guy try to seduce me by pulling my hair... He notices immediately, his nostrils flare and it's like he's frozen in place before he marches over to his desk.

Great, I'm going to get yelled at again.

He grabs something from inside his desk and picks the ponytail holder off the ground.

"Turn."

"Pardon?"

It's like he's trying to hold his breath.

"Please turn around."

Slowly, I turn around, then look over my shoulder. What the heck is he going to do with two paper clips and a broken elastic band?

I'm starting to wonder if he's just going to pull them apart and stab me on either side of the neck he's taking so long, then suddenly massive hands wrap around my hair, grazing my shoulders in the process, he gently pulls my hair back into a low ponytail and wraps the hair perfectly inside it, nice and tug.

"All done. You can turn around now."

I touch the back of my hair. "Did you just MacGyver a broken elastic band with paperclips?"

He doesn't smile, no, he just frowns. "Who can't?"

"Normal people?" I offer.

He shrugs his massive shoulders. "I'm not normal."

I can't stop staring at his full mouth and the way his tongue licks out on his full bottom lip. In moments like this, when he isn't frowning or speaking, I see all of the appeal.

If he doesn't date, has done other things?

I'm suddenly very curious.

He cocks his head to the side and holds out his hand, embarrassment washes over when I give him my hand only to have him reach for the black leather portfolio in the other.

I quickly jerk away, mouth dry. "Everything should be in there, I can read it out loud to you if you want?"

He holds up a finger like he's trying to concentrate, great now I'm getting silenced.

Well, we had one small moment, I guess.

I wait for his eyes to roam over the schedule and turn to look out his windows. The moon isn't full, but it has an orangish hue, it's really pretty as the sun starts to set. He's clearly taking his time in reading, at least he's not yelling and at least I have a full stomach, and a pretty view.

"This part." He's suddenly behind me, making me jump a foot and stumble back against him. The portfolio falls to the ground, papers go flying around our feet and I'm once again leaning back against him, with his hands on my shoulders. I look up to my right and try to get away.

"Don't. Move," he rasps, his eyes seem to glow a bright blue, but it's probably a trick of the light. Except I can feel his arousal against my body. He's hard as steal. I try moving again. "I said..." His voice deepens.

"Don't move."

A plethora of emotions cross his face from lust to despair, back to anger and irritation that he's touching me.

His words from the gala come back to haunt me.

Basically calling me ugly without makeup, ugly without his money. Suddenly hurt all over again, I jerk away as hard as I can and stumble forward toward the door.

A hand grips my wrist and flips me around, whipping my hair around my face.

His eyes are blazing blue. "I told you not to move!"

"You scared me!" I yell back.

"Oh, is that fear I smell?" He inhales deeply and tilts my chin toward his. "They're all the same. Every last one. Who sent you? Why are you really here?"

"What?" I search his eyes in confusion. "To get a job, you paranoid psychopath!"

"You should run." He chuckles. "And see what happens to this paranoid psychopath. I won't ask again, who sent you?"

"The agency!" I yell. "And you can't control my movements, and this is a workplace.

HR!"

His laugh is dark, I feel it down my body as chills erupt—not of fear but excitement.

"Report all you want, but I know your thoughts. I know you really don't want to report me, or leave this job, or your apartment, I know that you already feel me between your thighs, people like you..." He glares. " ..want one thing."

I gulp. "What's that?

"To be hunted."

Chapter 11

Eli

The words coming out of my own mouth actually make me want her more, like this primal need I know I shouldn't have. It's an out-of-body experience. I don't even recognize my own voice.

Her hair alone would be a siren's call.

I want to tug it, pull her back to me, and then I want to keep her safe from the world while still making sure I'm the only Alpha in it.

Blood courses through my veins as she stares up at me, eyes locked on.

Shit, she's going to quit on me, isn't she?

I need to calm down. I need to run, but if I run, I know it will only be to chase her.

I try to get my breathing under control, but the world around me, my office, the large window-even the moon, it fades into tunnel vision.

I know it's wrong.

But my soul screams her, right. Just do it.

I no longer want to resist and it's been mere days.

I crash my mouth against hers, my hand holding her neck, her hair tangled between my fingers as I slam her against the wall.

Books fall next to her and crash onto the ground.

She moans into my mouth, clawing at my chest, tearing open my shirt. Buttons hit the ground as my free hand finds her ass, franticly digging in. My incisors drip with need.

Her tongue comes into contact with one, scraping against it with her tongue. Our kiss deepens and then stops when I jerk away and taste blood.

Hers.

Control is a thing of the past. I have to run.

I have to go. If I stay, if I stay I don't know what I'll do but her taste is like nothing I've ever experienced, it coats my tongue, brings me life.

Maybe it's life itself.

I can feel myself changing.

All it took was her blood.

Not even a bite, but the craving I have to take her is more intense than at the gala, there's something special about her.

How cliché.

How ironic.

Did someone send her to end me?

Does someone else know what I am?

She moves toward me in a near drugged state, and that's when I see the reflection of my eyes in hers.

A bright blue.

All because I tasted her, and she touched a fang. "What, what was that?" Her voice is low, seductive, like a song.

Her head lolls forward.

Great. I made her pass out.

I catch her and lay her gently on the ground, then grab my cell and bolt from the office, passing Gabe on the way. "Take care of it."

"Be more specific with the it you're talking about." He pauses at the open door to my office.

"Her," I rasp. "Take care of her. Fire her. I don't care. I need to get away, I can't breathe when she's around. I'm not sane. Just take care of it."

"What did you do?" he asks calmly, but 1 see his eyes start to swirl dark.

I look away. "Just fix it."

I walk away and I don't look back.

I don't even remember taking my car to my apartment; I don't think I can actually make it to my huge house, so the penthouse it is.

I walk in and walk over to the window. I stare at the moon and how it looks bloodier and bloodier, and how I have one more day before immense pain strikes again.

Physical pain.

Mental.

The full moon tries to wreck every cell in my body every time. I need an anchor, I always have.

But I've never found her, never even hinted at finding her until now. How ironic, it's someone who doesn't even know who she is, what she is.

Ad agency my ass.

Someone's out to bring me down and I have no clue who it could possibly be, I stay in my lane, I'm no threat.

And yet, out of all the people they could have sent, they sent her. To me. Knowing my control would be weak.

Fuck, what's it going to be like when the full moon strikes?

I'll be screaming in my own home, bones breaking over and over again, like a thousand hits of lightning infused daggers getting shoved into every single bone, only for it to keep happening until the full moon ends.

The only answer?

Finding my mate.

Impossible.

I thought.

But hope has been lost on me so long, what good is it to try to find her, when I know in the end, I'll just be disappointed.

And lonely.

In the end, isn't that what my future is without my actual pack? A half-alpha trapped in a half- human body.

Whoever cursed me must be laughing.

Whoever cursed me to watch the moon and scream—must have been fucking threatened.

Chapter 12

Ava

I wake up in a car, a nice car. Gabe's driving. I see a Maserati symbol on the steering wheel, the Trident plain as day, but all I remember is basically getting the crap Kissed out of me by my new boss, seeing visions of blood, tasting something so good, was it his kiss? A dream? Did I pass out?

"Sorry about that fall." Gabe apologizes and reaches over to pat me on the thigh before that same hand goes back to the steering wheel. "You had us both super worried. Eli came running for me, yelling in a panic. You really need to get more comfortable heels."

My eyes are blurry. "I feel drunk."

"Ah yeah, that happens after you get a concussion."

"I have a concussion?" I wail, touching my head. There's a bandage there and, in my other hand, an ice pack. "I don't even remember falling!"

"Oh?" He frowns ahead at the road. "That's so weird, you were going over his final schedule for tomorrow, he was reading it, he said you were staring out the window and your hair tie fell out, he helped you, do you remember that much?"

The memories are like shadows. I remember the paper clips, handing him the portfolio, the pretty moon, tripping into his arms and wanting him to kiss me, but everything after that is fuzzy.

I rub my temples and look down. My shirt's tucked in, my hair's back in the same ponytail. I have a weird vision of Eli's eyes flaming blue, of being kissed senseless, of being threatened, of being so turned on that I almost panted after him.

"Hey, you good? A lot of people have weird shadows and dreams when they have concussions, hope now that you're okay, yours was a trip. I left the portfolio in your bag in case you wanted to drop it off at his apartment. The doorman can let you in, just let him know Gabe sent you. He'll be at his other home anyway."

I nod slowly, still trying to process. "Do I need someone to constantly wake me up in case I fall asleep?"

He smiles to himself, his grin adorable. "We have constant wake-up calls for you every few hours and if you don't answer, one of my assistants has the key to the door to wake you up and has been told to stay with you if need be. She'll be in the room next door, so you don't have to worry about anything."

"Wow." I squeeze my eyes shut. "It's like you've covered everything."

"We always do." He clears his throat, his tone serious as his hands flex and unflex against the leather of the wheel.

"Anyway..." He pulls the car to the curb of the large skyscraper. "Take the day off, rest, make sure you eat, and don't forget to drop off the portfolio, it's important he has information. He has to stop by in the morning anyway to grab his car since he most likely had his driver take him home, he was pretty shaken up."

"The driver?" I guess.

Gabe laughs. "Wow, that's adorable. No, about you."

My heart warms in my chest. "But he's grumpy all the time, he hates me."

"He technically just hates everyone that isn't as fast as he is, but he's a good person.

Believe me. I know." He unlocks the doors.

"Stay safe and don't forget your purse."

I nod. "Okay portfolio, right, tell the doorman to let me in.

"Actually..." Gabe searches his jacket, then grabs his phone. "...I may still have his entry for his apartment on my phone." He frowns, scrolls for a solid minute. "Agh, got it from the Christmas party. He was so pissed I made him dress as Santa."

I laugh. I can't help it. "Did he actually do it?"

"Hell ya he did. I spiked his eggnog."

I laugh harder. "I can't imagine an out of control Eli."

Gabe smirks down at his phone. "Well, I'm sure you'll see it soon, it's quite... invigorating."

Okay, strange word, but I smile anyway.

"Thanks for the save and I'll be sure to stop tripping on the stupid area rug in his office."

"Maybe flats next time, some assistants even buy tennis shoes." His smile is adorable.

"No judgement, it makes it easier to run."

I touch my head as a pulsing sensation begins at the base of my neck and snakes around my face.

I'm hot. I'm cold.

And then I see the blue of Eli's eyes. Run?

Did he say Run? Hunt?

"Everything okay?" Gabe asks. "I can take you back to the hospital if you aren't feeling well. You didn't throw up, so that's a good sign and your pupils are normal."

"Yeah," I say after a few seconds. "I think I'm fine, I think? I'm just thinking about one of the dreams I had."

"I used to have dreams about chickens."

Gabe nods slowly. "And now when I see them-the live ones— literally want to power walk in the other direction. It's just weird that you can cut their heads off and they still run around, it's not natural."

"I'm sure there are a lot of things in this world that aren't natural, just my opinion." I joke.

Maybe it falls flat, because he suddenly looks so serious and tense I want to jump out of the car, kind of out of character from what I've seen so far. "Yeah, well... life is full of the misunderstood, you know?"

"Including chickens?"

"Always and I do mean always including chickens." He nods up to the apartment.

"Get some sleep, oh and I'll text you the code, okay?"

I nod. "Thanks again."

"Don't mention it." He flashes a smile as I get out of the car and walk into the building, the doorman in his black and white uniform with his red tie opens the door and lets me through the marble-floored lobby to the elevator.

He's elderly, maybe in his seventies, his eyes are very blue, and his hair very white.

"Heard you had a fall Miss Ava, how are you faring?"

I smile and look down at the elevator floor as he presses the button. "I'm feeling much better thanks to Gabe and Eli."

"Heroes those boys." His chuckle is full of happiness and trust, I can taste it in the air.

"Hired me after I already retired to help take care of my family, best job I ever had. Good people. Really good people."

I wasn't so sure about Eli yet, but I agreed with his assumption of Gabe. "Yes. Yes, they are."

The elevator dings, he holds out his hand.

"Oh, did you need the code to Mr. Eli's apartment?" He starts digging around in his jacket.

"No need." I grab my phone and hold it up as a text from Gabe comes through. "I have it right here."

He nods. "We have alarms set up for you just in case and the assistant next door was a nurse in another life, no need to be concerned, you'll have a restful sleep."

What if I want a fitful one where I get my hair pulled though?

I shake the weird random thought away and touch the paperclip elastic band in my hair.

"Right. Thank you."

I take a deep breath and choose to walk to my apartment first. I type in the code, change out of my clothes and, since I know I'm not seeing him at all, take off my bra and throw on a white shirt and black sleep shorts. I keep the paperclip elastic in and put on the Birkenstocks I'd bought the other day, then grab the portfolio and check my phone again, bringing it with me.

I laugh. His code is 6666.

Ah, just take one away and we have grumpy alpha, I'm still laughing when I get to the penthouse with the schedule. I type it in really quick. The beeping sound hits and it turns green.

It's massive. I didn't exactly expect the penthouse to have two floors or for it to have a panoramic view of the city.

A full, tempting glass of red wine rests on the counter. How wasteful! I look around and I know I shouldn't, but I lift it to my nose and smell. It's clearly expensive. I take a quick sip, then another, before setting it back down and arranging the portfolio on the pristine white counter.

I take one last look around, tempted to jump onto his fluffy white blanket covering his jet-black sectional, but think better of it.

Frowning, I notice the fireplace is going and the sliding glass doors that open to the balcony on both sides are slightly open.

Seriously, this guy. Does he have any responsibility toward electric bills, air, wasted wine, people, at all?

I close the sliding glass pocket doors and make sure to lock them, then ten minutes later locate the controller for the blue rectangular fireplace set in the middle of the room.

"Off." I click it and end up turning down the lights, well I guess that's not the worst idea, I leave as is. The only light filtering into the apartment is from one of the rooms off to the right and the outdoor lights, making it still possible to see but making it more intimate. "Never dates, my ass."

I set the remote down and notice another light on in the hall. Should I turn that off too? If he knows later that I was here he's going to probably blame me for whatever reason.

Begrudgingly, I walk toward the light and stop at the primary bedroom.

So wasteful!

"Damn rich people." I reach to turn off the light on the side of the room when I hear a noise. Frowning, I follow it into the master bathroom, a candle's lit.

Is there no end to his immaturity?

I blow it out, it's darker but still, I can see.

I turn around to leave when a dark figure appears between the bathroom and bedroom.

He turns around quickly, his eyes electric blue, his hair wet.

And completely naked.

I. Am. So. Totally. Fired.

I weakly say. "I was dropping off the portfolio and saw lights and didn't want to waste electricity."

His chest heaves, his mouth parts as he braces himself against the wall and screams.

"LEAVE!"

Chapter 13

Eli

I need her to run.

I need her to leave.

I thought I smelled something but thought I was imagining things, fucking Gabe! He did this on purpose, that asshole's going to get the shit beat out of him if I ever make it out of this bathroom naked and alive.

Right now I don't know what to do, mentally I'm convincing myself to just yell, physically I have so many other ideas that sound better, sound way better. My incisors start to extract when her eyes roam my body.

When her breaths come out in tiny pants, when her nipples harden.

I'm gone.

I'm so gone my right hand grips the side of the wall harder, it crumbles beneath my fingertips into dust, but she doesn't leave, maybe she's paralyzed in fear.

Her breathing is increasing though, and she is recovering from my blood, from passing out in my arms, from seeing what she should never see.

I've never had this happen.

I don't know what move to make and I have no magic to make it happen; I have nothing I can wave in front of her face to make her forget.

That's all Gabe, or at least if he feeds.

Poor Jenny, but honesty she was already getting fired, so I'm sure she'll be happy as a clam when she wakes up in the hospital with her severance pay and wonderful Starbucks lunch including a sandwich and coffee, plus she always hated it here.

Shifters are so weird.

"You're not moving," I say, as calm as my body will allow me, despite the fact that my voice is shaking just like the rest of my body.

She tilts her head to the side. "You're scared of me."

"The fuck!" I yell. "Why the hell would I be scared of you?"

"You're shaking, but it's not with rage.

You're trembling because you don't know what to do. I've always been more insightful than others, it's why I didn't quit on the first day, because I know that you're loyal, and good to your word, I know you're a good boss and despite your all-around crankiness, laziness, rudeness—"

I hold up my free hand, the one not tearing apart my own bathroom wall. "I get the point, okay?"

She smiles and gives me this awkward salute. "Well, I guess I'll just take all this into consideration when I see you, no..."

She holds out both hands. " ...not like all of

you, but like in normal clothes, and things, tomorrow, at um, work, because I think I should be at those meetings with you, just in case and, um... maybe clothes next time?

Wait, did I say clothes twice?"

"You did." God, I want her so badly.

"Yup, well." She looks down and then to the exit. "Um, good for you!"

"For?" I almost laugh, who is this tiny person? And why does she keep looking at my dick like it's a lollipop?

"Hmm? Oh..." She snaps her fingers."... sorry was just... I'm glad you're not wasting electricity, the environment is important and, I just, you know, good that you are... strong." She nods weirdly again, then shouts in my face, "Like a golden ox!"

"I think..." I start laughing. "You need to stop talking right now."

When was the last time I laughed?

Unless with Gabe? It's always fake.

Always.

"You know the ox is..." She pinches the bridge of her nose, then realizes she's not covering her nipples with her arms and crosses them again. "Never mind, I'll see you at work tomorrow, sir, um, Mr. Eli.

Person. Glad I could help out." I start following her out, grabbing a towel from the bed on my way and pulling it across my hips. "Oh!" She turns abruptly and runs into my wet body. Her chest presses against my wet one. "I um..." Stop licking your damn lips, woman! "Left the documents on the table." She turns away from me again, then stops and turns, smacking her head against mine while I tried to grab my fallen towel.

"Shit, sorry, concussion. And I did, take two sips of your wine, I thought you were being wasteful and that's a giant no in my book."

Why does she have to be so adorable?

Why do I want to both fuck her and hold her?

I want to wrap my body around her, then please her.

Multiple positions. Multiple moments.

See, math really is valuable in school.

We make it as far as the door when she reaches for it.

It's the hesitation for me.

"Or," I whisper, "you did just have a concussion... maybe you should stay. I can wake you up every two hours."

Her moan fills the room.

My growl fills my soul.

And the moon chooses that exact time to shine behind me through the windows. I swallow against the fangs begging to make her ours, against a tongue that wants to taste her again.

She takes a step backward, then another.

"Maybe, that's good, it scared me, I can take the couch."

She turns like she's in a trance and stumbles toward the couch while my heart whispers.

"Or maybe I'll just take you."

No, not take.

Кеер.

Chapter 14

Ava

What the ever-loving hell am I doing?

I don't even know as I stumble exhausted toward his couch, it's so fluffy, like a dog but fluffier. The fur. It beckons me. I don't even remember closing my eyes until I smell coffee in the morning.

I jolt awake. "I'm alive!"

I don't mean to announce it like that, but I don't even remember getting woken up in the middle of the night.

"Did you know," Eli says from the kitchen wearing nothing but low-slung silk black pajama pants, "I nearly had a heart attack trying to wake you up the first time last night?"

Suddenly embarrassed, I sit up with the blanket. I probably look like a train wreck.

"I'm so sorry! What time is it?"

He checks the watch he already has on. "We have two hours before my first meeting, and twelve until the full moon, so we have time to drink coffee decaf for me, normal for you, we can have some breakfast, and have time for you to tell me—"

His phone rings, he holds up a finger and answers it.

I lay back down, enjoying the blissful smell of coffee, until his panicked voice hits. I jolt back up as if to ask what it is.

He gives me an annoyed look and hangs up.

"Think you can get ready in thirty minutes?"

NO! "Yes, of course, yes." I totally lie, then grab my shoes and purse and bolt for the door, then jump back and point at his coffee mug. He rolls his eyes and hands it over.

"You're a saint."

"Never been called that before."

"Thank you." I genuinely mean it.

He just nods. "Try not to stop by when I'm naked again without at least announcing yourself, oh and I had the doorman deliver the wine you stole to your apartment, since you couldn't help yourself, but honestly, he leans in so close that it feels like he's going to kiss me," Instead he unlocks the door.

"Trust me when I say I know the feeling."

My heart cannot handle the up and downs.

I start to leave when he yells, "Nine am downstairs, my car."

I wave him off and attempt to power walk and drink his incredible espresso and get to my apartment. I have no clue what to wear, but I do know that I need to look professional and be ready to do my job so I chug the rest of the coffee add a light touch of makeup and throw on a navy dress with a white coat and tan boots.

And this time.

To avoid a repeat.

I keep my hair down.

I make it downstairs in record time to see him waiting by the car, no not waiting, literally leaning against it with aviators on, a grey suit and red shirt open at the chest, his hair styled messy, and a smile on his face as he stares at his phone.

Why does the universe do this to people?

It's so unfair.

I almost stomp my foot before getting outside. "Get in." That's all he says.

I roll my eyes internally and get in the back with him. "I wasn't even late.

"Thirty seconds." He still hasn't looked up from his phone, so I do, in fact, roll my eyes.

"Saw that."

"How?"

"More like..." He looks up. "Felt it."

We're in one of his SUVs headed to the first meeting with the Angel Investors. "What are you doing?"

"Mmm, studying the portfolios." He taps the driver's seat with his fingers. "We're going to be late. Can you go a bit faster?"

Marvin nods his head, all business.

"Absolutely."

He hits the gas so hard I collapse like a bad romance novel against Eli's chest, but this time he grips my hand.

And despite his grumpiness, he very gently puts it back into my lap.

I feel the heat of his skin the rest of the day.

I fly through the meetings, and when I'm done and kick off my heels at the apartment, I see the wine.

It would be nice to share it with him. Every deal was incredible, and I was genuinely excited about the changes he was making not only in the world but in the local community, mainly with the children.

I don't even bother to change. I know it was a late night, so he was going to stay at the apartment. Wine in hand, I start to knock when I hear a deep moan, then screaming.

I knock.

And then I knock again. "Eli?"

More screaming, cursing. "Fuck it hurts!"

"Shit!" I scramble for my phone and call Gabe. He answers on the first ring, I hear club music. "Yeah?"

"Gabe! I'm at Eli's apartment and I hear yelling and moaning!"

He laughs. "Maybe he finally got laid?"

"Gabe! Seriously, that's unprofessional and he could be hurt!"

I can actually hear him yawn. "Okay... so you have the code, just go in, I mean, if you're brave enough." He laughs. "Oh, his bite is way worse than his bark. Bye!"

I turn to leave, then come back, then think about calling the police and realize that for the security he has, it would be nearly impossible for someone to be in there.

Decision made, I type in his code and yell, "I'm coming in!"

I set my purse and the wine on the counter, my heels click against the marble as I walk through the house and finally find him out on the balcony on his hands and knees, right under the full moon.

The doors are open, wine is spilled, and he's panting.

He falls back and grips his sides and starts a muffled scream against his arm. He quickly dives into the pool and I can still hear his screams from inside the water. I don't even think; I strip down to my bra and panties after kicking my shoes off and jump right in, swimming toward him as he floats to the bottom of the pool and sits there.

The minute 1 touch him, his eyes jolt open, so blue it's like a light shining around us, he shakes his head and soars to the top. He's completely naked and wet. "Ava, you need to go."

"Are you hurt?" I ignore him.

Another shudder hits his body as he slams back against the tile. It surprisingly doesn't break. "It always hurts." He finally pants out.

"What does?" I get closer.

"Ava." He holds out a hand. "I'm telling you, do not do what you are about to do, do not touch me, do not—" He screams again in agony.

I can't help it. I touch him.

He calms immediately. "You. Have. No.

Idea. What. You've. Just. Done."

I try to pull my hand away but can't. He flips my body around slamming me back against the tile, his mouth latches onto mine and holds on, he grips the tile on either side of me, and I feel the agony he faces, I taste the horror, but the more I kiss him, the more I taste him, it goes away. I wrap my legs around him, his cock is hard between my thighs.

I have no idea what I'm doing, but he doesn't stop. He finally pushes us down into the water, but I've always been good at holding my breath, at being a good swimmer, I have no idea why. I cling to him still as we come up to the other side of the pool.

The moon shines.

And he can't let go.

And neither can I.

Our mouths briefly break apart. "What's happening?"

He shakes his head. "I'm so fucking sorry."

He has tears in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I tried."

The last words he says to me before flipping me onto my stomach and fucking me.

Chapter 15

Eli

I'm inside her.

No longer a virgin, no longer isolated and alone. I can't help the movement as my hips pump against her ass. She's warm, feels so good, so good, so tight. I keep trying to hold myself back from hurting her, but it's so damn good.

So good. My brain instantly comes up with all the adjectives to describe what heaven would be like and I think I just found a plethora of them, and yet good is all that keeps repeating in my head like I'm on default and have no actual thoughts in my brain other than I never want this to end.

Ava's palms are flat against the tile, but her fingers are nearly white as they dig in with every thrust. Nothing fills that darkness around me, it's like I'm in a dream. The sound of her moans, and the sound of our bodies together. They give me life.

"I'm sorry," I growl. "I'm sorry. I can't stop.

I'm—" My jaw flexes as I clamp my teeth down so I don't part my lips and do what I want to do.

What I'm born to do.

Find my mate.

Her body responds so beautifully, clutching around me until I'm literally stuck inside her just moving, pinning her to the tile, my fangs descend, I know if I latch on, we're both screwed, figuratively, literally.

It can't be undone.

And while I don't know how it works with half-werewolves, I know that purebreds mate for life.

She barely knows me.

I flip her against the tile then think twice about it, pull out of her and within minutes we are back inside and I'm tossing her onto the breakfast bar, careful to cradle her head before I cover her body with mine. She's half naked, but I need to see her.

I know I look like a maniac, but she has no fear in her eyes, she just grips me by the biceps, then meets my mouth as my head descends. Her lips are soft, her taste my Eden. Our tongues meet thrust for thrust, and as the kiss deepens, so does my resolve not to make this choice for her, without knowing what I am, what could happen. I'm ready to threaten her when she grabs my length and I'm suddenly gone all over again, with every pulse I inch inside her, slowly this time, until I'm completely lost, sunk all over again, in the only place I want to be.

She grips me by the hair and for the first time, I'm not worried about hair, I'm not worried about anything, only her desire.

We break apart panting, her lips are wet from mine. Her eyes searching as our bodies move in sync as if we've been doing this together forever, as if having sex on is just another Monday.

The moment feels fleeting, like sweet blissful torture I know I can never repeat.

Let me just have this moment.

A few more seconds and I'll stop.

She pulls my head back down and kisses the corner of my mouth and then down my jaw. Fuck, I grip her by the shoulders as I lose complete control. My yell shakes the apartment.

I nuzzle her neck then hold her in place, her back arches, her head lolls to the side just begging me to kiss that exact spot she's giving me access to.

I grip her neck, my fingers digging into her skin. "I need you to run." I barely get out the sentence. "Run the hell out of here and never come back."

My body strains to finish with her, then start over, again and again.

Her own body goes rigid against me, finding release— however primal it was between us, however short because of me.

Good, at least one of us finishes without regret—but I need to get away before I'm tempted to take the pulse and join her blood with mine, before I'm tempted to never let her go, before I trap her in my house for the next two evenings over the next two full moons.

The pain will be excruciating now-after having her, after losing my virginity, the moon will remind me every time of the pain of not having her by my side until it will be unbearable.

I try to pull away from her, but my brain and body can't physically connect on that level of insanity.

It's all up to her.

Or maybe it's up to me. So I do the shittiest thing I've ever done in my entire life. To protect her. To keep her safe.

"It was just fucking," I grate out. "And it wasn't even that great... but I appreciate the effort, now leave!"

I yell the last part.

She stumbles out of her stupor and looks around the room in a daze, tears in her eyes, they finally land on mine. They're shining a weird purple and blue. Something I've never seen before.

God, they shimmer, and as soon as I see it.

The shimmer leaves nothing but darkness and pain, embarrassment I put there because I had no self-control.

I open my mouth to say something, but what can I actually say? You're lucky this werewolf bastard didn't bite you? You're lucky that you won't be tied to me forever when I know I'll look back on this moment and regret everything, selfishly, I'll regret it all.

I've been tempted my whole life to want more.

I've never been tempted, however, to want more for another person other than Gabe, but I want that for Ava.

I don't deserve whatever kindness she has in her soul, and I sure as hell don't deserve to claim her as mine when I know how badly that can end for people who aren't willing.

I lift my chin. "Get dressed. Leave."

I'm still hopelessly naked.

She takes one look at me. "Am I fired?"

"No." I snap. "I just didn't realize your duties would take you this far."

Tears stream down her cheeks. "I didn't mean..." She squeezes her eyes shut. "I swear, I didn't know. I didn't mean for any of this to happen, I've never had this happen with a boss before. I wasn't trying to seduce you."

"You can't help it," I whisper. "Even if you wanted to. It's in your blood."

And it truly feels like it is.

She swallows and awkwardly grabs her clothing, pulling them on, her shirt backward, her shorts barely covering her ass before she points to the bar top. "Left the portfolio. I'll just be getting back."

The door slams hard behind her.

And the first of the pain, within minutes, as if breaking my bones, crunching my body, begging my soul to live it— appears.

All because I kissed her and couldn't stop.

Chapter 16

Ava

I slam the door to my apartment and stumble to the bathroom and turn on the shower. What the hell just happened? One minute he was normal, the next minute I was tasting him again.

And I swear I felt fangs.

Which means I've officially lost my mind because that roar that came out of him was so loud I still have ringing in my ears. I cover my mouth with my hands. What the hell am I thinking?

For a minute there, I didn't think I'd snap out of it. But it felt so good. I try to put it out of my mind as I strip and step into the shower, but it's impossible not to relive those moments.

Some fierce, some tender, all irresponsible... all horrible choices.

He's my boss. And again, what was 1 thinking?

It was like a fever dream took over. Not just temptation, but obsession with a man who clearly hates me.

Who shamed me to my face seconds after sex.

I hang my head in my hands and slide to the floor, but not before hearing a wolf howling at the moon.

***

When I get to work, everything seems normal. My desk isn't hanging out the window, Eli isn't growling at me from it, and I have a few sticky notes with tasks stuck to my laptop.

Frowning, I grab them, all from Gabe, and lucky me, the first one is to bring in a proposal for Eli's meetings today.

It's a small black portfolio with the company logo and all I have to do is hand it over and make sure he doesn't need water, plus he's going to be at meetings all day, I won't even see him.

I take a deep breath and knock on Eli's office door, then let myself in when he says come in.

The room has a different smell, almost like it rained in the woods and his office is the aftermath. Did he get taller? Is that humanely possible? His hair is laying across his forehead and he's frowning down at something, his dark blue shirtsleeves are already rolled up to his elbows and is it my imagination or are his black pants extremely tight on him?

Muscles flex in his arms as he leans over and signs something.

"Um, hi I have the project proposal for-"

He holds out his hand.

I shove the proposal into it.

He plops down in his chair and opens it up, reading the first few lines. "Can you do me a favor and proof this again? There are a few typos and I want it to go smoothly, as I'll be handing out the original proposal to the board next week."

"Yeah, of course, I'll get right on that."

"Nope." He grabs his jacket from the office chair. "You'll have to do it when you get back late tonight. Gabe's out sick, something about mercury and retrograde, whatever the hell that is, and I need an assistant with me."

Shit!

"Um, yup, let me just grab my phone." I dash out like he just set me on fire and grab my phone, only to turn and nearly run into his huge chest. I quickly jump back, hands at my sides. "Sorry, didn't see you."

"And here I get told I'm impossible to miss." He teases, or I think he is, though he's not smiling, he leans down until we're face to face. "Do you have everything you need? It's going to be a busy day."

"Yup." I'm surprised the word actually left my lips-nay the lie—1 follow him down the hallway in a daze, and into the waiting SUV with more dazing. I'm surprised I'm not shaking or leaning into whatever that smell is radiating off of him.

Oh shit, I'm staring at his face.

He catches my stare. "Did you need something?"

"No," I yell, inches from his face. "Nope.

Just...thinking."

I drum my fingertips across the several portfolios and clear my throat about a dozen times.

"Cough syrup? Lozenge? Knife so I can slit my own through if you nervously clear yours one more time."

The need to clear it is so palpable, I swear my throat immediately goes dry.

"Also..." He holds up a finger. "Gabe said to give you this." He thrusts a paper in my face. "I'm assuming it's the CEO personal

NDA something similar to what you signed when we hired you but this is of more personal details...basically things like if the boss reveals he's a vampire you can't say shit, or if he accidentally fucks you against a wall, that sort of thing."

Accident?

I snort under my breath and snatch the paperwork from his hand. "Funny, didn't feel like an accident, slipped and fell inside you is a bit of a stretch even for someone like you."

"Someone?" He repeats, and turns to fully face me. "What the hell does that mean, someone like me?"

"A guy with no moral compass, you're lucky I actually—" I need to really stop talking.

"You're lucky it's been a while and I want to keep my job."

He scowls and jerks away. "Trust me, I don't do this to my normal assistants."

"So now, I'm not normal?"

The SUV pulls to the curb, Marvin hops out and opens the door. He gives me a quick wink of what I hope is reassurance.

I grab his hand, then the rest of the portfolios, and stare at the stupid NDA I left on the seat. Begrudgingly, I grab it and follow Eli into the building.

Men in suits greet us and guide us to a private section of elevators.

Once we're in one alone, I'm ready to hit the stop button, instead, I just stand there tensely holding business in one hand and personal in the other.

When I took this job, I had no idea that mere days in I'd already be in trouble, that I'd already do something unthinkable.

1 avoided my bosses at all costs for this reason, so why does this feel different?

"I'll sign it," I manage to say in a weak voice.

He smoothly puts his phone back in his suit pocket. "I figured you would. Now, if you could just do a good job during these meetings, we'll be good to go."

"Are we going to talk about—"

"—Absolutely not." He cuts me off and stares me down with his crystal blue eyes.

"We'll forget it ever happened."

I want to say but it did.

I want to say it did for me, in ways I can't explain. That it should. Instead, he walks out ahead of me and I swear it's like the entire floor bows to him as he walks. He doesn't own the universe, but in this moment I realize I slept with the guy who controls this world, one I will never be a part of. So I try my hardest to answer questions, to give him his notes, to take notes, and by lunch I'm ready to start gnawing my own arm off, I stare at one of the office mints and actually think about grabbing a handful and just going for it plastic and all.

It's nearing dinnertime and all I've had is a suspicious-looking tortilla with meat on it and water. Poor Eli-loathe as I am to say it—hasn't eaten at all, in fact, he's getting more pale by the minute.

Our final meeting wraps up and I can finally see the end of the tunnel.

"That was a lot of meetings," I say to him once we're in the elevator. "Yeah, I think Gabe overbooked, but it's good we got them all done today since I'm off tomorrow."

"And where exactly is that?"

"To work remotely." He shrugs. "Of course."

"Right. Of course." I look straight ahead again when the elevator suddenly stops so hard I collapse against Eli.

He goes into action right away, putting me back on my feet and going to the phone to call emergency services.

I gulp when I notice we're still ten floors up.

"We could die," I say, more to myself than him.

Eli looks over his shoulder. "You aren't dying. We aren't dying." The elevator gives another jolt.

"You know how you hate hair and have a weird fear of it, despite having a lot of it on your head?" I start talking when I'm nervous. I can't help it. "Well, my fear is heights and dogs."

He shakes his head. "There are scarier things out there."

"Have you seen Cujo?" I nearly yell in his face. "Most terrifying movie ever created, and I used to have nightmares from Jurassic Park well into my middle school years."

He frowns down at me. "It's actually scarier to me that you were scared of dinosaurs, they don't even exist."

"Just like vampires, werewolves." I laugh.

"Helpful pep talk, thank you."

His eyes widen a bit. "What time is it?"

I check my watch. "Late and getting later by the second."

He turns and starts pounding on the elevator doors. "Let us out!"

"Wow," I say under my breath. "Glad all that terror is coming from being trapped with me."

He fumbles with his phone and stares in disbelief at the screen. "That little shit for brains!"

"Who?"

"Who else? Gabe!" He pounds the elevator doors more. "Help! Help!"

It's laughable. "You're like nearly seven feet tall and you're acting more scared than I am and there isn't even a hair in sight!"

Of course, naturally I glance at the corner and see one dangling by a cobweb. I quickly kick it with my feet and face him again.

"What was that?"

"Reflex of being terrified of heights, why?"

He frowns at me, then back at the elevator doors. "It seems we're stuck for a while, just do me a favor and stay on that side." He points to where I'm standing.

I drop the stuff I'm carrying and put it in the corner. "How very kind of you. Because imaginary lines always make things better."

He looks away from me and braces his hands against the wall, pressing his palms in. "Let me try to call Gabe real quick."

"With your mind?" I guess. "Sounds like a solid plan."

Even if we did have a full battery, I have no service.

Eli lets out a curse when I open my mouth to point this out, he falls, his knees his expression goes from frustration to pure agony.

"Whoa, whoa." I face him and get down to his level. "What's going on? What do you need?

He lets out a rough exhale, his eyes flashing blue so bright that it's almost like I'm staring at a flame. "You."

Chapter 17

Eli

It's getting late. The moon is most likely out since I can feel every single goosebump on my skin and I'm trapped in an elevator with the one girl I see as my mate and have zero self-control over.

I walk over to the corner after saying that damning word and look at my phone. Thank God I see a cell bar.

I quickly call Gabe. "What?" He sounds exhausted.

"Sorry to bother you, but I'm currently stuck in an elevator with Ava and we're

He bursts out laughing immediately. "Oh, this might be the best day of my life, you're stuck? In a small space? With the one woman you can't control yourself around?" He laughs even harder. "Wow, how's the horniness now? Should I call Jim so we can revisit that moment in the office? Oh shit, does that mean your erection is gone, I know Jim doesn't exactly rub you the right way, get it, rub?"

I have no clue how I don't crush the phone in my hand and punch it through a wall. My blood is boiling, I can't even find the humor in the moment because I feel it in the air buzzing around me, in the way my ears are alert to every sound outside the building. "Gabe." I can barely get his name out. "Gabe, how high is the moon?"

He's very quiet. "It's not looking exactly great, okay hear me out... why don't you just bite her and get it over with?"

I look over my shoulder. Ava's watching me with rapt interest, and then she crosses her arms and scowls, looking away. "Yeah, safe to say I made that ship sail."

"What the hell did you do?"

"All the wrong things, why?"

"I was the perfect wingman!"

I scowl. "By killing her?"

Ava stumbles back against the wall.

"No, no, no, no." I try to look less fierce. "We aren't talking about you-it's Gabe, he's a lover, not a-son of a bitch, Gabe! This is all your fault!"

He chuckles. "Have fun, I'm sure they'll save you soon, it's not every day the CEO is trapped in the elevator and if it helps, think things like old werewolf grandma's, that one girl I dated in college who used to have a fetish for sucking big toes, or even like when you watch sad little puppies at the pound and they get fed and you know it's their last meal." I sigh and bang my head against the side of the elevator. "I don't think I've ever been so horrified and offended in my life, puppy killer."

Ava gasps.

"No!" I yell. "No, no, Gabe doesn't kill puppies, or women, or like...people... this went downhill so fast I don't even remember falling." I grumble into the phone. "Just get more people on it before it's too late."

And shit.

Ava starts to cry.

"Um, too late as in too late at night." I explain. "We aren't dying!"

She starts to shake. "O-okay."

"Gabe, damn it!" I yell. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Whoa, you were the one who said it out loud, not me. Have fun fanging, I mean banging, I mean, what? Hmmm, sorry losing reception, crackle, crackle, crackle, beeeeeeep."

I shove my phone back into my suit coat and stare across at a terrified Ava. If she only knew what she'd overheard was the least of her worries, but at this point I don't think the whole, I'm rich but also half werewolf thing is gonna slide, in fact it terrifies me more than I probably would terrify her.

I can imagine her face.

Her cries.

So much screaming.

Yeah, not fun.

"So..." I rub my hands together. "That was Gabe."

"Caught that." Her lips tremble. "Is he some sort of sociopath?"

"Oh." I nod very seriously. "He looks so nice on the outside, but you have no idea the things he's done."

She gasps. "Has he seen help?"

This is actually making the pain of the full moon lessen, it's making me smile because teasing her shouldn't be something I do, but I also really want to throw Gabe under the bus.

My nod is solemn, remorseful. "Some things just can't be helped."

Well, that shifts my gears again.

Some things can't be.

Shouldn't be.

I walk toward her, then pin her with my body against the wall.

Her eyes flicker toward my mouth.

I lean in and lights turn on; the elevator gives a jolt and we separate as fast as possible.

When we both get off the elevator, we walk in near awkward silence past the firefighters, to the doors, and outside.

But I don't realize how late it is, or how much the proximity of having her near me after already having her, and the moon hanging high in the sky, will affect me.

I start to sweat right away as we walk down the cement stairs of the building down onto the sidewalk.

My vision's blurry, I don't know whether to go left or right. "Sorry," I mutter. "I just have a migraine."

"I'll help," she says without hesitation. "You are my boss after all."|

I wish that weren't the case.

I cling to her, accidentally grazing her boob. "Sorry. I didn't mean to—*

"—I felt nothing," she says through clenched teeth. "Let's just get you inside the apartment, all right? It's only one block away, can you do one block?"

I have no choice but to nod because if I spoke she'd see my fangs, I have no choice but to keep my eyes deliriously closed because if she looked into them, she'd run away screaming.

Maybe that's the best option. Just going full wolf in front of a human and giving them a heart attack, perfect. I had a pet gecko once, picked it up and apparently scared it, it had a freaking heart attack right in my palm and just turned to his side and died.

I imagine telling a human that you're half-werewolf and half-human will have the same result.

I walk slowly with her to the building, or at least I think it's the right building. I remember the elevator going up, I remember her typing in my key code, then nothing but collapsing to the ground the minute we enter.

"Eli!" She starts to shake me while I moan and hold my head. "Eli! I'm calling Gabe!"

"He won't, he won't, come, it's...a full moon." I almost laugh, so many half lies or is it half truths? Either way, does it really matter anymore?

"Hospital!" She grabs her phone again, I have just enough strength to slap it out of her hands before she reaches for mine in my suit pocket.

Before I make my first of many mistakes.

Brace my body over hers, and show her my fangs again. Can I trust her? Is it already too late? I have no clue, but it goes dark.

Chapter 18

Ava

He has fangs.

He. Has. Fangs.

I don't scream because my body can't seem to register that we are both attracted to weird-fang-man and also terrified.

My brain says to run, but my body? It says to strip.

Immediately.

I reach for my suit jacket.

His eyes go a brighter blue. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Where?"

"What?"

"Where does it hurt?"

"You aren't going to tranq me?" he screams in pain again, this time the muscles in his neck flex as his eyes roll to the back of his head for a few seconds before he returns to normal, he's sweating like crazy, it drips down his face.

I peel my shirt over my head and toss it with my coat. "No, I'm going to do whatever it takes to either distract you or make you feel better."

"I'm not human."

"It could be a prank. I don't really accept this, actually part of me thinks we died on the way here and this is the last thing I see before I burn, but..." I rake my fingernails down his chest. I frown. "It's like I physically can't leave. Even shaking with both fear, anticipation, disbelief. I can't move. Oh God, I can't move."

He leans in further. "Then don't, maybe this time you don't run, maybe this time you sit still and let me taste you again."

"You're insane."

"I'm aware."

"This is not normal behavior."

"Also fully aware of that statement, but thanks for the reminder." He squeezes his eyes shut like he's in pain, then collapses to the ground before slowly using the wall to stand up as if he's never been more weak in his life. I don't understand it, maybe I shouldn't ask questions. I just need a way out of here and a way out of this feverish nightmare or dream, if you will.

"Look." I hold out my hands, but instantly I'm grabbing him again and pulling him against me. What the hell is wrong with me? Now I'm shaking. Now I want a piece.

I want him.

My lips part, but no words of warning escape.

His forehead touches mine, then he's leaning all his weight on me as he whispers, "Please...can I bite?"

Eli

I wasn't keeping her there, it was her own body acting like a magnetic force. I lean in, wondering why she isn't scared, why she isn't pushing me away, maybe she really is delirious and maybe she won't remember this in the morning.

Maybe that's part of it?

Too many maybes. All I know is I have need and my fangs are dripping with it. My mouth burns like it's on fire. I lean in.

The elevator moves, bumping me against her neck, my teeth graze her soft skin, and suddenly the doors open.

"Need any help in here?" Is that Xavier's voice?

Slowly, I turn to my left and want to commit more crimes than a person should think of in under three seconds.

He's wearing a white suit of all things, has way too much skin showing in his black shirt beneath it and has aviators on as if the sun comes out during a full moon, he's also with a crew of firefighters.

"You." It's all I can get out.

He checks his watch. "Yeah, had a meeting, heard one of my favorite people was stuck in here with..." He eyes me up and down. "This."

I'm apparently this.

"And..." He grins. "…I figured I'd help the rescue along and make sure to save the fair damsel by offering her dinner."

"Thought you had a meeting." I snap.

"Oh I did, I canceled it when I found out our lady friend was in trouble."

"She doesn't need saving." I will rip his head from his body and watch it roll down the street.

He tilts his head. "I didn't mean from the elevator."

Suddenly, out of her stupor, Ava shoves me away, her chest heaving, and bolts from the elevator right into his waiting

arms.

Chapter 19

Eli

"Can I bite?" Was that seriously all I had asked previously? Like who says that?"

I Jump up.

Had I even asked that or was it a dream?

Asking permission to penetrate her skin after scaring the shit out of her? I'm pissed, I'm annoyed at her, myself, the damn elevator. Why is it always the stupid elevator where things take place?

Probably killing Gabe later.

But she still holds onto me. Right? Or again, was that my imagination, my built up lies of us being together? My hope?

I wasn't keeping her there; it was her own body acting like a magnetic force. I lean in, wondering why she isn't scared, why she isn't pushing me away, maybe she really is delirious and maybe she won't remember this in the morning.

Maybe that's part of it?

Too many maybes. All I know is I have need and my fangs are dripping with it. My mouth burns like it's on fire. I lean in. She's present despite me not knowing, that's all that matters. Even if I am going crazy.

The elevator moves, bumping me against her neck, my teeth graze her soft skin, and suddenly the doors open.

"Need any help in here?" Is that Xavier's voice?

Slowly, I turn to my left and want to commit more crimes than a person should think of in under three seconds.

He's wearing a white suit of all things, has way too much skin showing in his black shirt beneath it and has aviators on as if the sun comes out during a full moon, he's also with a crew of firefighters.

"You." It's all I can get out.

He checks his watch. "Yeah, had a meeting, heard one of my favorite people was stuck in here with..." He eyes me up and down. "This."

I'm apparently this.

"And..." He grins. "…I figured I'd help the rescue along and make sure to save the fair damsel by offering her dinner."

"Thought you had a meeting." I snap.

"Oh I did, I canceled it when I found out our lady friend was in trouble."

"She doesn't need saving." I will rip his head from his body and watch it roll down the street.

He tilts his head. "I didn't mean from the elevator."

Suddenly, out of her stupor, Ava shoves me away, her chest heaving, and bolts from the elevator right into his waiting arms. I'm clueless about how to proceed. All I know is they walk off hand in hand.

She looks back at me once, twice, as if confused, then down the hall. I stay in the elevator.

And then I take the stairs.

All I can think is, I'm going down.

Going down and I have no idea how to go back up. I want her. I can't have her. She hates me, but she's drawn to me, and now the person I hate most in the world is touching her.

Touching mine.

When I get outside, it's pitch black except for the moon.

The full moon looms high in the night sky, casting an eerie glow over the city, maybe Fate has a cruel twist in store for me, for her, for Xavier. I stare up at the moon, the stars, and wonder what my fate would have been had I stayed with the pack, had I known my actual origin, had I known the answers to all the questions even my adoptive parents can't answer.

As I walk down the street toward the apartments, I sense it. I glance over at the local pizza place I like to frequent, Guidos, and I see them, sitting outside, laughing.

But that's not all I see.

I see, no, I feel-challenge. A different kind.

Not one with business, with trying to be the best or the richest, the most talked about-no, I feel a challenge over her.

I sniff the air.

It smells like her, but it smells like something else too.

My sense to get more acute as I spend tome with her. A growl rumbles deep in my throat as my hackles rise. Her laughter making it even worse. He's challenging me, and I won't have it.

I won't.

My heart slams against my chest as my nose fills with their scent. He wants her too.

Oh God. Xavier wants to claim her.

Xavier's...not human.

As if reading my thoughts, he looks over and flips me off.

And all I can think is-it's on.

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Due to the size the book will continue on another page:

My Grumpy Alpha - part 2