Chapter 1 - Prologue
Alexander
“It’s just a signature and we’ll be back on the plane tonight,” mumbles Benjamin and I can see that he’s annoyed.
“You could have done that on your own, my mates will soon give birth to our puppy,” growls Christian, impatience resonating in his voice.
“There are still two months to go,” I reply, my face darkening.
I can’t and won’t deal with his chatter. My wolf has been restless ever since we entered this damn building.
Because this smell is so present and literally eats into me.
But my Beta Christian continues to whine like a damn puppy all the time. I can understand why he didn’t want to leave the pack. Even if it’s only for a day. The urge to protect his mate is pretty damn strong, especially now that she’s pregnant.
But he has to be there. He’s not just my beta, but also my right-hand man when it comes to business.
Benjamin, my business partner and alpha of our neighboring pack, whispers something to his beta Jonas and they grin like they used to when they thought up some prank.
I would love to tell them to behave like adults, and if I wasn’t so distracted, I probably would. But that smell, it’s so present and captivates me.
“Let’s just get it over with, then we can go back home,” I urge, even though I already know I can’t leave until I find out where that smell is coming from.
When the elevator door opens, we are greeted by Steve, the chief accountant at InnovaraTech Solutions. He actually walked up the stairs instead of getting in the elevator with us. That’s quite sporting, especially when you consider that he’s standing up here in front of us and is only a man and not a wolf like us.
“Come in,” he says in an overly friendly manner and opens the door to the conference room. He is the perfect example of friendliness. He even insists that we call him by his first name, making it immediately clear that he doesn’t have much to contribute to the negotiations apart from numbers.
“Five minutes early and no one’s here but you, Steve?” asks Benjamin. He looks embarrassed and ashamed as he offers us our seats and pours us some water.
“I think Christian could do with a Scotch,” says Jonas and everyone, including Steve, has to laugh.
That scent hits my nose again, so lovely, so sweet, and it feels like a lightning bolt is traveling down my spine. Ever since we entered the office building, my wolf has been close to the surface and I’m finding it harder to keep it under control every second.
He is restless and wants me to follow his trail. It is the scent, the one sent by the goddess. My mates.
My vision sharpens as shadows of nervous feet pass through the bottom crack of the door. The smell grows stronger and I concentrate on the person’s breathing outside the door. Annoyed and tense, my pulse rises.
I’d like to throw the whole negotiation over the table, we’ve sorted everything out with Mr. McMackenzie anyway. The only thing missing is that damn signature.
And right in front of this door is her, my mates. I had already given up on ever finding her, but now she’s just there. All I have to do is get up, open the door and she’s mine.
The goddess must be laughing at me right now, because she’s playing a nasty game with me.
Control.
A growl escapes me and Benjamin nudges me from the side so that I don’t lose control completely.
The door opens, I see it and my whole body tenses up. “Concentrate,” Benjamin admonishes me and Christian and Jonas give me a brief look of irritation.
I’m the alpha dog, I have to concentrate. I have to pull it off without pouncing on them like a wild animal.
But she doesn’t make it easy for me, I don’t even know her name, but her whole look, with her orange curls and the tight skirt that emphasizes her curves, makes me hard like a pubescent teenager.
With the high heels, her legs seem even longer than they already are.
She walks behind the two men like a tough businesswoman, her gaze sweeps over me, but her expression is cool.
“Nice to finally meet you in person.”
