CALLUM
Trillionaire Shifter Club: Book Four
Rosette Bolter
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CHAPTER ONE
He had promised her the world. Yet, she’d been left with nothing…
Less than nothing.
Weeks ago it happened. She’d stopped counting the days by now. Stopped checking her phone for messages. Stopped whispering his name under her breath. She couldn’t bear it now. It had been so long she wasn’t even sure it happened.
“It probably didn’t,” Ava said sullenly, pushing the trolley of boxes. “I probably made it all up. In my stupid little head.”
This wasn’t exactly turning out to be a good day for Ava.
She currently worked as a floor supervisor inside a dress factory, a job that seemed less distinguished every year that went by. She and four of the other supervisors took orders from the factory manager, who in turn reported to the company director, who then – well, it just kept going on and on. Everyone was stressed out. Especially at this time of year.
Tonight Ava was working by herself, cleaning up after the day’s crew who had all been let out at five pm. It was now six thirty and Ava could see that there was at least another three hours worth of work for her to get through, unless she wanted to come back here and finish it on the weekend, which she definitely didn’t want to do.
Outside, as the sun fell behind the clouds and a dense winter’s chill gripped the city, Ava envisaged the crowds of people swarming the streets. Everyone was dressed up, out and about. With their friends and families. A couple of Ava’s friends had wanted her to join in for the new year’s celebration, but Ava somewhat selfishly declined. She’d thought that by being out there with everyone and seeing how happy they were, that it would remind her of how she’d felt when she met him. And how it was over so quickly.
No.
No, being here in this maze of tables and piles upon piles of clothes, this was where she belonged tonight. She didn’t deserve happiness. She didn’t even deserve the memory of it. Perhaps when it passed, so would her pain. And that name would never leave her lips again.
There was one thing, however.
One thing that could pull Ava out of the sandpit she’d created for herself.
And that very thing, just so happened to be…
Right around the corner…
CHAPTER TWO
“I found him.”
Ava’s whole body stiffened and she stopped wheeling the trolley. She didn’t turn at first, unsure if the voice had come from her own mind.
“I found your boy, Callum. I know where he is.”
Now she turned.
Standing twenty feet away, dressed up to perfection, was her best friend Ruby Wittrock. Grinning cheekily.
“What are you doing here?” Ava asked, ignoring Ruby’s statement. “How did you get in?”
“The front’s still open,” Ruby replied. “You must have forgotten to lock up.”
“Someone forgot,” Ava muttered. She left her trolley and walked over. “So you’re here to break me out then?”
“That’s what I do,” Ruby beamed. “That’s what friends are for.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.”
Ava felt her eyes twitch. She wondered if Ruby was going to say his name again.
Or if Ava would have to mention it first.
“So?”
“So, I found him,” Ruby repeated. “I found Callum.”
“How? Where?”
“It’s a long story,” Ruby said. “But we sort of have to get going now. If you want to see him tonight that is.”
Ava shook her head.
“What are you thinking?” Ruby asked.
“I’m thinking, ‘Would you lie to me about this?’”
“And what did you come up with?”
“I don’t know. Probably.”
“I’m not lying,” Ruby insisted. “Why would I lie? You know I’ve been saying you just have to get over him and find someone else. Why would I try and … bring him up again?”
“Well, you’re not really painting a clear picture for me,” Ava said. “You should expand a little I think if you want me to go anywhere.”
“Okay,” Ruby sighed. “Well, let’s just say Kirsten and I got the three of us passes to one of the elitist parties in town tonight. And Callum’s apparently going to be there.”
“Is it … at the –”
“No,” Ruby said firmly. “Somewhere else this time.”
Ava hesitated. She could see the excitement in her friend’s eyes, and she appreciated that it was New Year’s Eve and there was a crazy and wild Ava inside who wanted to be let out…
But still…
No.
“What’s that look for?” Ruby asked. “I thought you’d be super pumped for this.”
“What’s going to happen?” Ava muttered. “So what if he is there? Am I just going to … let him do his thing for me again? And then what? Spend another seven weeks wondering if I’m ever going to hear from him again.”
Ruby frowned.
“That’s not to mention, he’ll probably have a date with him there. How am I supposed to feel then? Am I just … going to have to stand there through it all … and watch them together?”
“Shit,” Ruby muttered. “Jesus. Shit…”
“Yeah.”
“I just – you’ve never been that way about a guy before. I thought maybe there was more to it with him not calling you or whatever. I thought you guys could work it out.”
“I was a fucking one night stand and that’s all.”
Ava could feel the tears coming. Hot and bubbling and bursting out and around everywhere –
She turned and went back to her trolley.
“Ava,” Ruby called after her. “I feel terrible now. I’m so sorry.”
“It’s alright. Go and have a good time. I have a lot of work to keep me company anyway.”
“Just you wait. Just you wait right here. I’m coming back for you.”
And by the time Ava turned around again, her friend was gone.
Without a trace.
“Callum…” she whispered to herself, and wiped her cheek.
CHAPTER THREE
“Ava,” Callum whispered under his breath. “Ava, my darling, my precious…”
And it was as if they were there again. Together, as they once met.
Him at one side of the table. Her at the other.
The glasses between them. The reflecting lights changing colors.
From blue to purple.
Purple to pink.
Pink to blue.
The noise in the background remained just that. He held her gaze and she did not look away.
“Please don’t do that,” she said.
“Do what?”
“Make fun of my name.”
“I wasn’t making fun of it,” Callum said. “I was just seeing how it sounded.”
“Well, now you know.”
Callum smiled. “I’m sorry. Your defenses are up. They needn’t be. I have no intention of creating any awkwardness between us. You have no obligation to show interest in me either.”
“Well that’s a relief,” Ava replied sarcastically.
“I don’t think it’s a huge deal for either of us really,” Callum said. “You’ve been paired up with strangers before, I’m sure. Some you liked, some you didn’t. All that really matters though is that you have a lovely evening. I won’t get in the way of that.”
Ava sw
allowed. Her newfound companion was proving to have a rather peculiar way of speaking. If he wasn’t so damn good looking, her defenses would be disarmed.
At present, they remained.
“Do you come here often? To meet new people?” she asked.
“No,” Callum replied. “This is my first time here.”
“But … you’re one of them, right?”
“One of who?”
She hesitated. “The shifters.”
“Oh yes,” Callum said. “I’m a wolf actually. Which mightn’t have the best reputation in certain areas –”
“Are you a trillionaire as well then?”
“On that note, I will disappoint you. Yes. In truth, I think there are only a handful of those ‘trillionaire’ shifters. Naming the club as they have unfairly raises the bar for the rest of us.” He paused. “On the other hand, to a woman who delegates her in interest by the virtue of a person’s networth, I am hardly put out by the notion of disappointing her.”
He leaned forward. “You’re not one of those, are you, Ava?”
“No,” she said.
“And what brings you here tonight, then?”
“My friend Ruby. She’s going through a shifter phase. I personally don’t see what the big deal is though. I’m sure shifters can be just as big of assholes as regular men.”
“I won’t deny that,” Callum grinned.
“So why now then?” Ava pressed. “If you haven’t been here before, why are you here now?”
“Why is anyone?” he replied. “Recent breakup. Thought she was the one and all that.”
“How recent?”
“Three days.”
“Well, don’t you think you should take some space? Instead of using someone here as a rebound?”
“I’m not using anyone,” Callum stated. “I have no interest in flings or casual sex. I believe only in the finest, purest of loves, and I believe no one is complete until they find it.”
“But what about –?”
“She’s already wasted enough of my life,” Callum interrupted. “I won’t have her waste anymore.”
His eyes moved past Ava as two figures approached from behind.
She glanced over her shoulder.
“Good evening Ms. Armadale, Mr. Ren,” a young man greeted them. “My name’s Declan, and I’m overseeing things here tonight. Sorry we weren’t able to speak sooner, there’s just so many people.”
“I was told Bane was in charge of things here these days,” Callum replied.
“Oh, I’m sorry, forgive me,” Declan gushed. “Of course, Bane is in charge of things. He’s upstairs if you need to speak with him. I’m just overseeing couples in this area, which is strictly a dating zone. So … can our waiter offer you more champagne?”
“Yes please,” Callum said.
The waiter refilled their glasses.
“How is my friend getting on?” Ava asked Declan. “Do you know?”
“That’s … Ms. Wittrock? Yes, she’s … oh yes, she’s mingling with a few of our guests over there.”
Ava stood up to check.
Ruby was surrounded by an array of suitors.
“If anything happens to her, you report to me at once,” Ava said. “And… Don’t let her go home with any of them.”
“I’ll do my best to keep you up to speed,” Declan said. “Now would you like anything else?”
“Yes,” Callum replied. “Some privacy.”
“Well, we have many varieties of suites and bedrooms, if that is –”
“I just meant from you,” Callum said.
“Oh,” Declan exclaimed. “Of course, of course. Back to it then.”
He bowed his head and moved away.
Ava took another look at Ruby. She seemed fine for now.
“How is this going then?” Callum asked.
She turned back to him. “Excuse me?”
“How are we doing?”
“Fine,” she said picking up her glass. She sipped it.
“So are you enjoying my company so far? Or are you just pretending to because you don’t want to hurt my feelings?”
Ava put down the glass slowly.
As he said these words to her, she felt something move in the air. A pathway opened. A door was unlocked. She was looking at him now, not as just another stranger in the room, but as the true man he had revealed to her. An honest, caring, and kind individual.
It was the first time all night she’d been truly afraid.
Of losing the moment.
“I’m not pretending,” Ava said. “Are you?”
CHAPTER FOUR
Eight pm. Ruby had not returned.
Ava stepped out into the cold, eerie night, locking the factory’s entrance behind her. Surveying the car park, the only vehicle still standing was her own. No sign of Ruby or Kirsten. No sign of…
Ava shook her head. It was just stupid to think about him now.
And, as horrible as it seemed going out with her friends tonight on a desperate mission to find the man who had left her stranded, now she was looking at a New Years spent in her lonesome apartment, eating non-fat ice cream in the glare of her computer screen.
She’d said she’d be back. She’d said to wait.
But Ruby hadn’t even texted her. Ava was annoyed.
She opened the car door and stepped into the driver’s seat putting the keys in the ignition but failing to turn it. She leaned over the chair and looked back through the window to the rest of the car park.
Still empty. Still no sign.
Ava reluctantly turned back to the steering wheel and closed the door beside her. She rested her phone on the center console and then stared straight ahead. Into the blank fence wall.
She wanted to know.
She wanted to know what had happened to him.
Ava reluctantly picked up the phone and touched Ruby’s number. She listened to the dial tone in her ear.
“Hello?” Ruby answered.
“It’s Ava,” she said softly. “You said you’d be back.”
“Sorry. Things got a bit out of hand.” She added, “I couldn’t get a hold of Callum if that’s why you’re calling.”
“Where are you?”
“Donna and Evan’s. We decided not to go to the VIP party thing. It’s a bit of a drive and, well, we were only really going to do it for you anyway.”
“How are things at Donna’s?”
“Pretty boring. Just a bunch of dickheads getting pissed as usual.”
“I might … drop in.”
Ruby paused a moment. “Yeah, you should. I mean, you don’t want to be alone on new-years, do you?”
“I think … I think I want to go to the other party.”
“The one … the one with Callum?”
“Even if no one wants to come with me. You … were right. I need to know what happened to him.”
“Okay. Come down here and we’ll talk about it.”
“Right. I should be there in fifteen minutes.”
“I’ll make sure the front is open for you.”
“Thanks, Ruby.”
Ava put down the phone, aware her breathing was now rapid.
This was actually happening. She was actually pushing herself.
She was going to find out what happened to Callum.
Before the new year was upon them.
CHAPTER FIVE
There were so many cars parked outside and around Donna’s house, Ava had to park at the other end of the street. After a short walk up the footpath towards the residence, she passed by several of Donna’s friends and associates, some of which Ava vaguely knew. She smiled where appropriate and allowed them to continue their conversations and cigarettes, moving further up the driveway. The door to the house was open as Ruby had said it would be, loud music booming from within. Ruby herself was standing a few feet on the other side of it, chatting to a couple of guys at the base of the stairs. Ava squeezed her way into to their little group, and faced Ruby so she could se
e her.
“Oh hey,” Ruby beamed quickly grabbing her wrist. “My friend is here now, so –”
“Just say the word,” one of the guys hollered after them. “You know that’s all I need.”
“Who were they?” Ava asked once they were alone.
“Friends of Evan’s,” Ruby replied. “Are you ready to go?”
“So we are going?”
“Yeah, I’ll just go grab the passes from Kirsten. I think she wants to stay here, but we should be able to get in without her.”
“Okay,” Ava said. “But … there’s no hurry.”
She followed Ruby around the house, through the living room and kitchen, until they were at the backdoor and walking outside.
Kirsten was lying on her back in the middle of the lawn with a bunch of other people, most scrolling through their phones, a drink or smoke in the other hand. They approached.
“Kirsten,” Ruby began.
“What?” Kirsten replied without looking up.
“Ava’s here,” Ruby continued. “She wants to go find Callum.”
“We said we weren’t going to go.”
“Kirsten,” Ava said crouching forward.
Kirsten peered up from the phone. “How’s it going?”
“Do you not want to go? Do you just want to stay here?”
“Well we’re here now, aren’t we? It’s a bit rude to leave after we’ve just shown up.”
“Where do they want to go?” a familiar voice asked behind them.
Ava turned as Donna moved round to sit beside Kirsten on the grass.
“Hi Donna,” she said.
“Ava,” Donna smiled. “Come on, where are you guys off to?”
“Well it was Kirsten’s idea in the first place,” Ruby said. “She has passes to a VIP party going down in Shifter World tonight.”
“You mean that creepy theme park?” Donna replied. “Eww.”
“Um, not eww,” Kirsten snapped. “Shifters are fucking hot.”
“Hot? Don’t they keep them in cages there? On display? Like a zoo?”
“Wait, what are you saying?” Ava demanded. “Did Callum get captured by them?”
Callum: Trillionaire Shifter Club Book Four Page 1