by Sylvia Frost
Hikari, the CFO, and Emma, the designer, assembled around the table slowly, as if they wouldn’t have to hear the bad news until their butts were in their chairs. Marian, in contrast, plopped down unceremoniously before unfolding her laptop and beginning to type percussively away at some code or another. She either didn’t know how bad things were or didn’t care. As the tech side of their operation, Marian was the one who’d have the least trouble finding a job if it all went south.
But we’re not quite there yet. I won’t give up. I can’t, Cynthia thought, remembering Eliza’s gentle face.
Cynthia crossed her legs, tapping the button on the side of the plastic table that sent a screen lowering down behind her. “Alright, let’s get started. Hikari, did you send me the latest numbers?”
Hikari tucked a strand of her long, dyed red hair behind her ear and nodded.
“Good. Okay.” Cynthia refreshed her email client still open on her decade-old laptop. The email popped up. She opened the spreadsheet attached and with another click, flung it to the screen behind her. The numbers looked so innocent in their boxes. So simple. But the reality they represented was anything but.
“So I called you in today because we need to have a serious discussion about the direction of this company.” Cynthia took in a deep breath, trying to ignore the pulsing of the mark on her ankle. “Because we’re in trouble. We need…”
The mark throbbed in time with her headache. She pushed her palm back down on the table, trying to grab her train of thought back from the fog of an impending migraine. “We need…”
The phone rang from the center of the table. Everyone looked at it at once.
“Ignore it,” Cynthia said.
But Marian, rising from her chair, leaned over and yanked it off the receiver. “Boxes & Broom, this is Marian, tech wizard, how may I help you?”
Cynthia narrowed her eyes. She needed to have a talk with Marian about the chain of command. Or maybe she should just secretly set her up with Loxely. The two deserved each other.
“Yes, that’s right. She’s here.” Marian shot a sly glance over to Cynthia.
Cynthia froze. It couldn’t be.
Marian nodded one final time before she hung up the phone. “Well, I just may have the answer to our prayers. Or rather Cynthia does. What did you do at that party last night?”
No. No. No. “Nothing. Let’s focus back on the meeting. I’ll tell the receptionist to call him back later.”
“Don’t you even want to know what’s she’s talking about?” Emma asked.
“I want to solve our problem,” Cynthia said.
“One of the investors you met last night would solve our problems, I think,” Marian said.
“An investor… did he say who?” Cynthia asked.
“Sorry, he just said the name of his company. Something investing. But aren’t they all that? See, this is why I’m not a secretary. But he said he was interested in talking to you.” Marian shrugged.
“Whoever it is, I’ll meet with them tomorrow,” Cynthia said, waving Marian away before standing up from the chair and ducking under the table. “Before we can ask for anyone else’s money, we have to start properly managing our own.”
“Cynthia.” Hikari gasped and covered her mouth. “What are you doing?”
“We’re not leaving here until we fix this company, and I don’t want any more distractions.” With a yank, she unplugged the phone from the socket.
“I don’t think you can ignore this one,” Marian said, something like fear filtering through her monotone sarcasm.
“Watch me,” Cynthia hissed. She didn’t care if Marian thought she was crazy. She didn’t care if she actually was at this point.
“Uh, Cynthia?” Emma asked
“What?” Cynthia started upward and hit her head on the underside of the table. She winced with pain. But bumping her head was nothing compared to the agony that had taken residence in her leg lately. Although for the moment, it had quieted at least.
“I think you might want to see this,” Emma said.
Grumbling, Cynthia crawled out on her hands and knees from under the desk and stood up.
Oh, damn it all to hell.
Standing on the other side of the glass was Rex West.
His brown hair had gone from barely contained to completely wild, and the rest of him had followed. Where he normally wore clearly custom-made clothing, now he donned a suit jacket more than a couple sizes too small. His muscles bulged threateningly underneath the fabric. The chaos should’ve made him less attractive, but instead, it sent a warm wave washing over her chest.
He had had a rough night too.
But while Rex may have had the aesthetic of a suddenly homeless stockbroker, the way he was looking at her was anything but disheveled. Not angry. Not horny. Just intent. As if he finally understood the rules of the game.
He held her gaze calmly for another beat before stepping back from the window and opening the door to the conference room with such force Cynthia revised her earlier statement.
No, he didn’t just understand the rules of the game.
He was convinced he knew how to win.
Chapter 21
Humans had been staring at Rex since he was eighteen and took over his father’s investment firm, but they rarely met his eyes. It didn’t matter if there were a hundred of them in a crowd, twenty at an investor’s meeting, or his girlfriend alone in his bed.
Cynthia’s employees were no exception. As he opened the door, two of the women acknowledged his presence with bowed heads, and the third didn’t acknowledge him at all, but continued typing at her computer with virtuosic speed.
It was all business as usual.
Except for her.
Cynthia stood at the head of the table, slightly bent over, palms face down on the white-painted wood surface as she met his gaze head-on. That alone was startling enough, but she had traded in her evening gown for slacks and a blouse that only hugged her curves tighter. While her blue eyes were wide with surprise, her red lips were tightly pursed. She didn’t just meet his gaze—she magnified it, reflecting back his intensity and force of will.
The smallness of the conference room meant that the entire space was drenched in her scent. His already wild inner wolf basked in her flavors, and Rex was too off-balance to push it down. He knew he couldn’t give in to the wolf entirely, but the way she was looking at him confirmed his earlier suspicion.
It wasn’t his wolf she was afraid of.
His pupils dilated as his hard-won control evaporated at that thought.
No, remember why you’re here. Find out why she ran.
She straightened from the desk, smoothing out non-existent wrinkles on her blouse. “Mr. West. Can I help you?”
Rex’s hackles rose. Was his mate really treating him like a stranger?
“Yes,” Rex growled, surprised by how low his own voice sounded. He usually had perfect control of his pitch, especially in meetings like this. It was her presence. She was doing this to him. She set his wolf free, and it couldn’t be put back in the gilded cage again.
Parting the gaggle of Cynthia’s employees, Rex strode over to her. He didn’t bother to conceal his speed or strength, so he was there in seconds.
Her breath hitched, but he didn’t care. She was his. Let them see.
He slammed her against the wall and kissed her so hard neither of them would be able to feel their lips when it was done. She melted into him like ice cream on a summer sidewalk, her tongue dancing out to meet his stroke for stroke.
When his hands squeezed her ass, she moaned. Loudly.
Behind them, someone, one of the other human girls, coughed.
Rex knew he had to let her go. So he did.
He watched as a thousand regrets danced through her blue eyes. Now that he was looking for them, he could almost name them. She was probably thinking she looked like a fool, letting some asshole come into her meeting and almost take her against the wall.
B
ut Rex was the fool. He drew back, clenching his fists. Control was so much harder now that he knew the taste of freedom. The taste of her. But it was for her that he had to keep his wolf in check.
Rex ran a hand through his hair, the too-small suit of Bane’s straining at his armpits. After he had shifted back into his human form, Bane had lent him one of his suits and a burner phone. From Central Park Rex had dashed directly to the office affiliated with Cynthia Cinder’s cleaning company. Boxes & Broom. Thoughts of doing anything other than finding his mate hadn’t even occurred to him, but now the stares of the small crowd assembled felt almost… embarrassing. So this was what shame felt like. He hated it.
“It’s o-okay, guys,” Cynthia stammered. “I can handle this.” There was real pain in her voice, and it made Rex turn back to face her.
Close up, and not as clouded by his need for her, Rex saw that their separation had affected her just as strongly as it had affected him. Her skin was oily and unwashed, eyes bloodshot from crying. Yet already, her frown lines were lifting, smoothing. They were each other’s poison and anti-venom all in one.
He felt a wave of guilt, but he pushed it down. She was the one who had run.
“I’m fine,” Cynthia said shakily, motioning to the people behind him, even as her eyes never left his. They sparked. “Mr. West and I just need to have a quick conversation about appropriate workplace behavior.”
Oh, do we now, Princess?
They needed to have many conversations, but that wasn’t one of them. Still, Rex waited until the sounds of shuffling feet stopped and the door clicked closed behind them.
“Running away again?” he asked, but it came out darker and more bitter than he meant it.
“Just closing the blinds so my whole company doesn’t see me murder you,” she said lightly as she pulled on the string to bring the blinds down over the windows.
With her back turned, she didn’t notice as he padded to her side. It was pathetic, but he needed to be near her. “Here I thought I was the one who was supposed to be mad.”
She put her hands on her hips. “You’re supposed to—” She stopped when she realized that he was once again right behind her. “Holy shit, you have got to stop sneaking up on me.”
“Tell me why you ran away, Princess.”
“Oh my God. You do not get to ask me that question.” She poked him in the chest so hard that he worried for her finger. “You are completely unprofessional, and I knew that if you ever found out who I was, you’d find some way to mess with my company. Which you proved today.”
“That was not my intention,” he said, proud that he sounded slightly less growly. “I told you when I want something, I pursue it, and I think I made it clear that the only interest I have in your company is in getting to know its CEO.”
“You can’t do this.” Her hand fell to her side. Her chin quivered, her eyes sparkling with something a less observant human might have thought was anger.
“You have to tell me why,” he whispered. “If you give me an honest reason why you want me to leave, I’ll go. Truly.” Then, because his hammering heart was worried she would do exactly that, he cupped her face with his hand and stole a kiss.
Chapter 22
Ways You Know You’re in Love
✓You’re thinking about him so much you actually fall into a puddle.
✓You doodle his name on your post-it note wall instead of working.
✓You feel sad sometimes and you’re not sure why.
✓You put his face on your vision board, but hide it under your photoshopped photo of your company logo on a skyscraper. Because while you really want him, you will not let him be the only thing you want.
✓Every time he enters a room, you have to force yourself not to stare.
✓When you meet his eyes, you see more than your own reflection in them.
✓You don’t want to hurt him.
✓You know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that he will hurt you.
I am coming apart, Cynthia thought as she let herself be swallowed by the powerful force of nature that was Rex West. He was so close to her, his hands on her cheeks, his heat transferring to her skin.
But that wasn’t what broke her heart.
What made her shatter was the honesty in his wide, earnest blue eyes. This was a man who strode across the business world like a god and struck down anyone who stood in his way. Now all he wanted was to know her. To have her. Not just for part of her company, or for sex—although she knew he wanted that part too — or for any of the usual things men wanted, but for her. Her secrets and intimacies. Daniel Hawthorne had never looked at her like that. He thought he already knew her, and he was disappointed when his expectations didn’t align with reality.
Not to mention that almost every other word out of his mouth had been a lie.
Rex was so much truth it hurt.
Cynthia sagged into his body, letting his hands come to encircle her waist. She needed to feel him, even as she knew her next words would let him go. “I ran from you because I know how this ends.”
He stroked her head, smoothing out the slight frizz of her hair. “How does this end?”
Cynthia tried to laugh, but it sounded more like a ragged sob. “With one of us fucking the other over.” She expected his grip to close on her and claim he’d never do any such thing, but he just kept petting her hair in rhythmic motions.
“You’re a billionaire who always gets what you want, and you want me right now, but you’re also a man. I know men. Men have a hard time wanting the same thing for more than thirty seconds.”
He whispered a kiss to her forehead. “You don’t know me, Princess. You have no idea.”
Cynthia closed her eyes, but that didn’t keep a tear from streaking all the way down to her jaw. It stung. “Fine. But I know myself. Every time I’ve ever tried to be with someone, it’s turned into a catastrophe. I can’t have that again. My life’s enough of a mess already.”
“Not for us,” he said, his voice just as rough as hers. “I’ll make sure of it.”
“And what if you can’t? What if this all goes south despite our best efforts? Would you go after my company? Ambush me with kisses until I cave and become whoever it is you think you want?”
A strange sound came from his throat at that. It could only be called a whimper. Like a dog in pain. It was… odd. “I’ve already told you the kissing was unplanned.”
Cynthia started back again, but he didn’t let her go.
“And as for your company, I promised I would never hurt you. I meant it. That includes your career. But you ran away without even a goodbye. I was worried.”
“Worried for me?” Cynthia began to laugh, small hiccups getting caught in her throat like bubbles.
He had been worried about her.
Maybe he should’ve been. There was certainly plenty going wrong in her life. Her company was going down the toilet, she was homeless, and now she had an asshole billionaire infatuated with her. Again.
God, if Dad could only see me now.
If Dad could see you now, he’d still give less than two shits about you.
Her laughter evolved into heaving sobs. The blinds crinkled again as she leaned away from them and into Rex. He didn’t even flinch as her full weight rested against him, but just wrapped his arms around her more tightly.
Only after she stopped shaking did he relax his grip, wipe her tears away, and brush them off on the fabric of his suit. “What’s wrong, Princess?”
So many people had asked her that question in the past twenty-four hours. Hell, in the past ten years. Even more people, like her stepmother, thought they knew the answer.
“Everything,” Cynthia said in a small voice. “Everything’s wrong.”
“Start small,” he coaxed.
“Well, I met this guy last night,” Cynthia said. Again, her laughter mingled with her tears.
“Did you now?” He gave a watery chuckle as well. Although she felt it more than heard it, res
ting against his chest as she was.
“He’s kind of a possessive asshole, and he tracked me down after I escaped his beautiful apartment. He then proceeded to make out with me, while everyone watched.” As she talked about her problems aloud, her limbs stopped trembling. She used that strength to tenderly pry herself from his embrace and stumble into one of the chairs.
He followed not soon after. “Maybe if you stayed in his bedroom like he asked, you could’ve made out there instead.”
Once again, Cynthia wished she knew how to raise an eyebrow. As it was, her body’s only reply was a grumble of her stomach.
“And breakfast as well,” Rex said smoothly before gliding down into the chair adjacent to her.
“I would’ve had breakfast at my house.” Cynthia kicked in the air, rocking her chair. She didn’t meet his eyes. “But I got kicked out.”
“You what?”
Growly McGrowlerston was back. Much like his rumpled appearance, his gruff side was less unnerving than she thought. If anything, it grounded her, reminding her that he wasn’t perfect. That he was real. That maybe they could be real.
Cynthia’s shoe touched the ground, and she stopped her rocking. Her hand clenched into a fist on the cold surface of the table. “It’s nothing.”
His warm hand slipped over hers. She sighed, but she didn’t move away. He felt good. So what if the whole reason she had walked away from Rex was to get space? He was as much a comfort as he was a pain in the ass.
She unclenched her hand, unfolding it into a flat palm.
He turned it over so it faced up. “Tell me about how you got kicked out.”
“My stepmother. After my father died, she got everything in the will, so I live with her rent free while I’m getting Boxes & Broom up and running again.” Cynthia stopped, remembering her stepmother’s words and realizing that the line she had repeated again and again wasn’t the whole truth. “Not that there was much in his will after all, as it turns out.”