《The Alpha鈥檚 Dynasty》


 Darkness

    Had we known what lurked behind the darkness, we wouldn¡¯t have enjoyed the party as much as we did. The party was held in an abandoned mill in the forest outside Misenium city. It was amazing, the best party I had ever been to. The two storied structure stood proudly in between tall trees, its walls hidden by the green leaves of creeping nts. Blue lights lit up the inside while the white bulbs were hung over the trees. Loud music sted from the speakers and over a hundred young men and women danced and drank.


    Aaron grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the dancing crowd. Iughed out loud as I allowed him to lead me away. Sober me wouldn¡¯t have gone anywhere with Aaron Smith but I was too drunk to care.


    ¡°Where are we going, Aaron?¡± I yelled over the music.


    ¡°What did you say?¡± he asked, stopping. He pulled me to himself and nted a short kiss on my lips. I giggled and pulled his head back.


    ¡°Kiss me properly, Aaron.¡±


    Aaron didn¡¯t waste any time, he had been trying to ask me out for over a year but I always turned him down because he was not my type. Kissing Aaron was alright, nothing special. I pulled away after realising it was not what I wanted. I just wanted to have fun.


    ¡°Aaron, let¡¯s go back and dance.¡±


    ¡°No, let¡¯s just take a walk in the woods.¡±


    Any sensible girl would say no to an invite like that, especially if it wasing from her workmate, who she wasn¡¯t allowed to date. The fact that that Misenium forest was said to be very dangerous meant there was only one good choice I could have made. I used to be sensible, but on that day, the drinks had taken away all the sense I had.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s check this so called dangerous forest,¡± I said,ughing. ¡°If it¡¯s so dangerous, howe we¡¯ve partied it for two hours and nothing has happened?¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    ¡°Right,¡± Aaron agreed.


    We walked under the moonlight while talking about the party. Suddenly, I heard howlinging from a distance. I froze and grabbed Aaron¡¯s wrist. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    Aaron chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re such a scared-y cat. It¡¯s just a wolf.¡±


    ¡°Wolves kill people, don¡¯t they?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure but either way it sounds like its far.¡±


    The howling increased, and it seemed to being from more than one wolf. My hearts started pounding against my chest. The howling was nowing from different directions, as if we were surrounded. My whole body started shaking. I nced at Aaron¡¯s handsome face. He did not seem so confident anymore.


    ¡°Aaron, we need to go back.¡±


    Aaron nodded, and we started walking back where we hade from, following the wide path. The howling seemed to be getting closer. Pulling my hand out of Aaron¡¯s tight grasp, I started running. We had walked so far that we couldn¡¯t see the party venue, but we could hear the music.


    Suddenly, leaves moved from behind us. I didn¡¯t dare look back until I heard a growl. I looked back and saw a big ck wolf following us at walking speed. I started to run faster. My chest was aching, and it felt like my lungs were on fire.


    ¡°Run faster,¡± I told Aaron who was behind me.


    ¡°MAYA!¡± He cried out and I turned just to see the big ck wolf lunging on him. Screaming, I turned on my hell and ran out of there as fast as my legs could carry me. I did not stop until I reached the mill. My screaming made some people turn heads. Before I could get to the main crowd, a man grabbed me aside and held me tight.


    ¡°Let me go,¡± I screamed out but he sped his hand over my mouth. Four other men came surrounded me. Since I couldn¡¯t scream or say anything, I couldn¡¯t cry. No one else seemed to be paying attention as they were lost in the music, alcohol, and drugs.


    ¡°Promise not to scream,¡± the man said.


    I thought of all the things those five burly men could do to me. The only chance of survival had would disappear if didn¡¯t obey them.


    I nodded. He withdrew his hand. ¡°Okay, we won¡¯t do anything to you. We want you to tell us everything. What happened in there?¡±


    ¡°My friend Aaron, I think a wolf ate him.¡±


    The men did not seem surprised by what I said.


    ¡°There are wolves in the woods, but they don¡¯t eat people. Maybe you saw another animal. A bear, perhaps.¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°No, it was a wolf.¡±


    ¡°Listen here girl, it was dark, and you were confused. You probably confused a bear for a wolf. Your friend may be dead, and if he is, it wasn¡¯t because of a wolf.¡±


    ¡°Why are you not going to check on him? He could be alive.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a good reason why we said that anyoneing for the party should not go beyond this designated area. Which group did youe with?¡±


    ¡°Ahhhh,¡± I screamed out loud. This time people heard me because the music volume had reduced. People turned and just like that, the five men disappeared into the woods.


    ¡°They¡¯re going to kill him,¡± I yelled. ¡°Please help.¡±


    I saw Aria Mann and Jace Killman walking towards me.


    ¡°Aria, Jace. We have to check on Aaron. An animal attacked him.¡±


    ¡°Where did you go?¡± Jace asked.


    ¡°In the woods.¡±


    Aria Mann stepped forward and pped me. I gasped as the pain coursed through my cheek, my hand flying over to it.


    ¡°What the hell?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Aria said. ¡°Lead the way.¡±


    Still shocked at the p, I started walking, leading them to where Aaron and I had met the wolf. When we got there, there was nothing. Not even a single drop of blood or a sign that someone had been attacked there. It was so strange.


    ¡°What? This is where it happened.¡±


    ¡°We have to go back,¡± aria said.


    ¡°But what about Aaron?¡±


    ¡°The police will handle the rest.¡±


    We were about to start walking away when we heard a deep animalistic grown. Aria and I nced at each other, fear written in our eyes.

 The new CEO

    ¡°Here¡¯s here,¡± Sherry whispered. I stood up straight and pretended to be writing something on the book at her table. It was a big risk, but I was willing to take it in order to catch a glimpse at our new CEO. He had started walking on the previous day, but try as I had, I had failed to see him. I just wanted to know if the pictures did justice to him or not.Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    ¡°He¡¯s entering,¡± Sherry said.


    I tried to see him using my side eye but couldn¡¯t get a good look. Sherry gasped. I turned to her and saw her looking horrified. She pulled the visitors book from me and I tried to pull it back.


    ¡°He¡¯s looking at us, you idiot.¡± She said, and I instinctively turned.


    Our eyes met and I immediately turned back to face Sherry who was trying hard to look busy. I started to sweat. Don¡¯t run, I told myself.


    After a few seconds, Sherry took a deep breath. ¡°He¡¯s gone.¡±


    I realised a breath I had not realised I was holding. I turned just in time to see the executive elevator closing.


    ¡°Did you see that?¡± Sherry said. I turned back to her. ¡°Isn¡¯t he the sexiest man you¡¯ve ever seen? For me, he is.¡±


    ¡°I have to get to office,¡± I said and hurried past the security guard who gave me a weird look. He probably knew I had stayed just to catch a glimpse of the new CEO which made me seem shallow and pathetic.


    I didn¡¯t understand myself since that man had set foot on our premises. Why had I wanted to see the man so desperately? Since he came to thepany, I had felt a deep desire to see him. I had never behaved like that, and it was not normal. Although I was looking for love, I was not boy-crazy, or man-crazy in that case.


    There was nothing boyish about Zane Carrington. He was a very tall muscr man with a handsome stern face lined with a strong jawline. He had a straight nose, dark thick eyebrows and perfectly kissable lips.


    It seemed like I was in some kind of haze. Now that I had seen the man, I wanted more of him.


    ¡°This is not me,¡± I told myself as I reached out and grabbed the door handle. Opening the door, I walked into my assistant¡¯s office before proceeding to mine. Kim, my annoying assistant stared at me with narrowed eyes. I found her very disrespectful but I ignored it since she was new and I had way too many issues to deal with.


    It had been two weeks and Aaron had not yet been found. Just like that, he had disappeared. The authorities of Misenium city had said they were doing everything possible to find him but I knew they were not doing anything.


    Unfortunately, external officers could not do anything in that city.


    Misenium city was a city on its own. In fact the whole of Misenium county was secluded. Its inhabitants lived like they were not part of the rest of the world. For some reason, authorities seemed not to mind. It was weird, how that ce was not investigated as much as much as it should.


    The party had been my first time there although it was two hours away from Sunham city where I lived and worked. Misenium County was shrouded in mystery. It was said to be a dangerous ce with very dangerous people and wildlife. Most of what we heard about it was from rumours spread by others and warnings from the older generations. As expected, young people rarely took the warnings seriously.


    When in Misenium, you could feel something was different, even from the vibe given by the people there. One fact that stood out was that people from Misenium were very good looking, in an otherworldly way.


    It was one of the reasons I wanted to see Zane Carrington, the new CEO. He was from Misenium. Now I had confirmed that the part about good looks was actually true.


    One of the human resource officers had quit after hearing that our new CEO was from Misenium. Neah Braman had imed she was just tired of her job, but most people suspected it was the CEO.


    In fact, we were all bit scared. After everything we had heard about people from Misennium, we couldn¡¯t help but worry. Everyone had braced themselves for terror. After seeing the intimidating man, I was sure things were about to change at Milner Insurancepany.


    Another weird thing was the fact that our old CEO Mr. Milner had sold thepany. Thepany was Mr. Milner¡¯s only family business and he had loved it like it was his own child. His son had been about to rece him. The man had been an insurance sales agent as a young man and he developed passion for it. Heter started his own whole business from scratch. Using savings from his job. It grew steadily and it was now the biggest insurancepany in the state. It was worth a lot. How did he end up selling it to someone who was not known in the insurance world?


    A notification popped up on both my monitor and phone at the same time.


    ¡°Please report to the conference room for a meeting.¡±


    An impromptu meeting? We had not had any of those in a very long time. Standing up, I ran a hand through my hair, picked up my phone and notebook before stepping out of the office.


    ¡°I¡¯m going for a meeting in the conference room,¡± I told Kim who was writing something in a notebook.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know about that,¡± she said.


    I breathed in and walked out of the office without another word. One day I was going to deal with her but not that day. If the old CEO had been around, I¡¯d have already fired Kim but I didn¡¯t know how the new CEO would operate. Didn¡¯t want to get on his bad side when he had juste.


    I entered the conference room. All the senior and junior executives were inside. I sat next to Harry Smith and was about to ask him what was going on when the room descended into total silence. I turned to the door and saw him walking in with another man who was equally good looking and built like a Greek god.


    I almost gasped when I saw the man who walking in. He was the most handsome creature I have had the honor of seeing. His neatlybed ck hair was short. His lips looked so beautiful I feel like grabbing him so he could kiss me. He was very tall with legs that seem to go on forever, the perfect man to star in a billionaire romance movie. He was the full package and I wanted to have him even more than anything else. He was wearing a suit that looked like it was made for him, and only him.


    My heart was pounding fast as I watched every move he made. The man was literal perfection. He took a seat at the head of the table and scanned the small gathering. Maybe I imagined I, but I thought his eyes rested on more longer than everyone else.


    ¡°Good morning,dies and gentlemen.¡±


    That deep, raspy voice sent me to another world. By the time I wanted to reply to the greeting, the chorus response had reached its end.


    ¡°You there,¡± he said, looking directly at me. ¡°Are you too good for my greeting?¡±


    ¡°No, no, no, I¡¯m so sorr¡­¡±


    ¡°Stop babbling, now let¡¯s get to the serious stuff.¡±


    Harry touched my hand under the table. I nced at him and saw that he was hidingughter.


    I was mortified.

 First impression

    Making a terrible first impression had never been part of the n. After graduating from college, Milner¡¯s was my first work ce. For over two years, I had worked there and made the best impressions on my seniors. It was how I had managed to rise to the position of Junior Actuarial Manager and made it as a junior executive.


    Now, a new era was about to start at Milner insurance and it seemed like I was destroying everything I had built? There was a possibility that Mr. Carrington would want to change some of the staff.


    After pretending to be at the reception for a work issue and this, I was sure I was close to number 1 in Mr. Carrington¡¯s staff-to-fire list. That was if I wasn¡¯t number 1.


    Mr. Carrington was a very eloquent man and everyone listened to his words attentively. I looked around and saw that everyone was looking at the man and no one was murmuring. Harry who was fond of making jokes with the former CEO¡¯s son during staff meetings was now silent as a grave.


    The meeting was so tense that by the time it ended, everyone felt relived. Mr. Carrington seemed to be a very serious man. He had not smiled throughout the meeting. I wondered if he knew how tough. If I hadn¡¯t gone to that party in the woods, I would have thought everyone from Misenium was grumpy.


    Harry and I were close friends. We had started working at the same time and so bonded easily due to facing simr struggles.


    ¡°Things are about to get tough around here,¡± Harry said as we entered my office.


    ¡°Good morning, Harry.¡± Kim said.


    Harry frowned. ¡°That¡¯s Mr. Smith to you.¡±


    He followed me to my office and sat on the chair opposite mine.


    My office was extremely neat and everything was in order. There was a table with two chairs, one in front and the other behind it. On the tabletop was aputer. There were folders, papers, pens and other office stationary on the other side of the table. There was also a framed photograph of me at her graduation with my parents. Next to it was another photo of me in a red jersey and shorts of the same color, carrying a football. Behind me was my best friend who had a very wide smile and was wearing the same kind of clothes.


    Harry ced a bundle of papers on the table. ¡°Could you please sign these for me? You don¡¯t have to read through them.¡±


    ¡°What, you want to steal from me now?¡± I joked.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    ¡°Like you have any money in your tiny bank ount?¡± he scoffs. ¡°Are you done paying off student loans?¡±


    ¡°Haha,¡± I said. ¡°I should be asking you.¡±


    I stared at Harry longer than I should. I¡¯d always wondered why I never fell in love with him. Harry was great and could be the perfect guy for me. He was also my best friend at work. Maybe that was it. I valued our friendship a lot and thought it would be ruined if we started dating.


    I lowered my head and started signing.


    ¡°By the way, have you finished your presentation for Friday?¡± Harry asked.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t started yet,¡± I told him. ¡°I had a lot of work to do. Now, that Kim is here, I¡¯ll be able to finish everything in time.¡±


    I had been swamped with a lot of work after Aaron went missing. They had not yet found a suitable recement. It was why I had ended up requesting for an assistant to help me with the smaller matters while I dealt with the big issues.


    ¡°Youin about work a lot,¡± he said, collecting the signed documents. ¡°I wonder why they haven¡¯t fired you yet.¡±


    ¡°Because I¡¯m the mostpetent employee in thispany,¡± I grinned. ¡°Trust me, when I manage to convince the CEO that we need to have the employee of the month award, I¡¯ll be the first to win. Shit, I forgot that Milner is now gone.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re going to have to be more careful with this one. Forget Milner who used to love you like a daughter, or was there more to that? Sometimes I wonder if there was something going on behind the scenes. I mean he was always too nice to you.¡±


    I chuckled. ¡°Jealousy doesn¡¯t suit you, Harry.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll pretend that I believe you. See youter.¡±


    Heughed and stood up before striding out of the room. When he was gone, I went to ask Kim to set up a meeting with one of our clients. There was something wrong with his bank ount.


    ¡°He¡¯s really handsome,¡± Kim said, probably just to see how she I would react.


    ¡°Yeah, I guess.¡± I smiled. I was hoping she was not about to set her eyes on my friend. Although, Harry really needed a woman, Kim was not the type I felt he should settle for. He needed someone less evil.


    After giving her instructions, I went back to my office and opened my email. My eyes narrowed when I saw the name Zane Carrington.


    ¡°Oh my goodness!¡± I said as I opened the email, eager to see what Zane wanted to say to me.


    ¡°Come to my office tomorrow. 10 am. Keep time and doesn¡¯t tell anyone about this.¡±


    I leaned back against my chair, shocked to the core. When the shock wore off, fear set in as I wondered what Zane Carrington could possibly want from me. I grabbed my phone and dialed Anna¡¯s number before remembering that he had said I shouldn¡¯t tell anyone.


    Well, that was going to be hard. Anna was my best friend and we shared everything about our lives. It was like this man had arrived to cause chaos in my life.


    I remembered how good he had looked and found myself smiling. The fear of getting fired reduced as I considered other possibilities. After minutes of allowing myself to enjoy beautiful fantasies, I knocked myself back to the real world.


    There was no way on earth that meeting could be about something good. After my terrible first impression, I had to prepare for the worst.

 Fresh air

    ¡°Why did I have to get the worst assistant in the world?¡± I took a sip of my coffee and installed the mug back on the table. ¡°It hasn¡¯t even been a full week but I¡¯m already thinking I should¡¯ve never hired her.¡±


    From the start, Kim had given off a bad vibe and I knew I should be wary of her. At first, she was too nice to me in a way that came of as fake. If she thought her acting was good, she was terribly wrong.


    ¡°You¡¯re the one who wanted an assistant,¡± Anna, my best friend shrugged and drunk her tea. ¡°So stopining.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t want an assistant who¡¯d ruin my life,¡± I continued, shaking my head. I stared at people moving in different directions in the busy street below, noting how they looked like safari ants whose lines has been tampered with. ¡°Almost everyone at work acts like I¡¯m invisible now. They¡¯re all over Kim and it¡¯s annoying. What annoys me most is the fact that she pretends to like me. I¡¯m sure she doesn¡¯t, for some twisted reason but is faking it. I feel like she¡¯s up to something and now I don¡¯t feel very safe in own my office.¡±


    I have always preferred the truth, even when it hurts. In this case, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to find out that Kim didn¡¯t like me as the feeling would be mutual. I preferred a person who insulted me to my face to one who ttered and stabbed me in the back.


    ¡°Well, you can¡¯t me the men drooling over her. She¡¯s really hot.¡±


    ¡°Anna!¡± I smacked my friend on the arm. It may have been true but she was my best friend. She should have been on my side, even when I was wrong or being unreasonable. ¡°They don¡¯t have to make it so obvious, though. She walked in today while I was giving my presentation and everyone turned to look at her. I had to keep quiet for a few seconds. Those stupid men couldn¡¯t make it less obvious. She¡¯s attractive, I know but so what? They don¡¯t have to stare at her all day like she¡¯s the most beautiful girl in the world. Even if she-¡±


    ¡°Hey, hey,¡± Anna raised her hand to my face. She ced a finger on my lips. ¡°Slow down, my friend. I love you and all but I think you¡¯re fretting over nothing. The girl is young and new, a breath of fresh air to the office. How do you expect the men to react?¡±


    I rolled my eyes when she removed her finger. ¡°I expect them to act like she¡¯s another human, just like everyone else.¡±


    Anna shrugged, not saying anything and that instantly made me feel bad.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± I continued. ¡°I¡¯m bothering you with my silly problems. You know I talk too much when I¡¯m angry.¡±


    Angry? More like scared. I was scared of what Zane Carrington had nned for me. Since I couldn¡¯t talk about that, I had to talk about my third biggest cause of stress at work. Kim Dalton.


    ¡°Can we not talk about her for a while?¡± Anna said, cing her phone on the table.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you see? I need to do something about her before she gets me into trouble. I don¡¯t trust that woman.¡±


    ¡°What do you want to do?¡± My friend raised her brows, looking at me expectantly.


    ¡°Get her fired,¡± I said. ¡°I was the one who requested for an assistant so I¡¯ll just say I don¡¯t need one anymore.¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure your bosses wouldn¡¯t want to get rid of her. She¡¯s so-¡±


    ¡°Hot. Yeah, I know. Stop talking about it. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m not hot.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t seem as confident as you sound,¡± Anna chuckled, throwing her head back.


    ¡°What?¡± I punched her arm,ughing. ¡°You¡¯re so annoying, Anna. I hate you.¡±


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be worried about her if you were confident,¡± she said. ¡°The thing is that those old men are probably suffering from mid-life crisis and they¡¯re probably all interested in taking an advantage of that young girl. They¡¯ll not give you attention because you¡¯re.¡± Anna pauses as if looking for the right word.


    ¡°Old?¡±


    She holds in a smile, the corners of her eyes crinkling. ¡°No, more experienced.¡±


    ¡°Same thing, Anna.¡±


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re older than Kim. You¡¯re twenty-four, she¡¯s twenty-two. You have an established career, and she¡¯s a fresh graduate, looking for all possible ways to be employed. It¡¯s easier for them to take advantage of her by making all sorts of promises.¡±


    ¡°Anyway, I don¡¯t care much about looks. I have a position in thatpany and I deserve some respect, you know. That¡¯s all I needed. I¡¯m not interested in them drooling over me because that¡¯s disgusting.¡±


    Anna rolled her eyes and gulped the remaining tea in her cup. ¡°You don¡¯t understand anything. The fact that they don¡¯t drool over you means they respect you.


    ¡°So you think not paying any attention to the presentation I spent sleepless nights working on is a sign of respect?¡±


    ¡°Just ignore that tiny issue. Why am I still friends with you?¡±


    ¡°You love me,¡± I smiled knowingly. Anna and I had been best friends for two years. I knew she loves me as much I loved her. We couldn¡¯t live without each other.


    ¡°Hey girls,¡± Harry appeared and pulled out a chair next to me.  ¡°You look like you want to kill someone, Maya. What¡¯s up with you?¡±


    ¡°Uh, nothing much.¡± I said, shaking my head. I did not want Harry to know about my sickening hatred for Kim.


    ¡°Right,¡± Anna piped in, smirking at me. ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±


    ¡°Anna.¡± My eyes bore into hers and she understood that if she made one more sarcasticment, I was ripping her into shreds.


    She shrugged and picked up her phone from the tabletop, silently removing herself from the conversation. Now, that was my friend who I love so much. She respected my privacy when other people were around.


    ¡°Have I ever told you that you look cute when you¡¯re angry?¡± Harry asked, grinning at me. His dark eyes were twinkling with amusement.


    ¡°What kind of stupid movies do you watch, Harry?¡± I asked, cringing at his use of that stupid line. I had heard it in a thousand romanticedies and teen movies. ¡°That¡¯s such a clich¨¦ line. You should be ashamed of yourself for using it. You¡¯re too old not toe up with something original.¡±


    ¡°But it works,¡± He winked at me then signaled to a waitress.


    ¡°Maybe, but in my case it doesn¡¯t.¡± I said, as if I believed it. Hispliments, however ridiculous always made me feel something.


    He chuckled. ¡°I don¡¯t believe that. Leaving that aside, how do you like working with Kim? Isn¡¯t she the most wonderful assistant?¡±


    I knew exactly what he was trying to do. There was no way on earth I¡¯m revealing my true feelings to Harry so he could make fun of me.


    ¡°Kim is awesome,¡± I looked straight into his eyes with a smile, daring him to challenge me. ¡°I love working with her.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s great. I¡¯ve had noints about her so far. Besides, she¡¯s hot. Who wouldn¡¯t want to work with her?¡±


    The female popce at thepany headquarters?


    ¡°No one,¡± I lied with a straight face.


    Harry smirks, still looking at me.


    ¡°What? Stop looking at me like that.¡± I feltfortable that he might be able to tell my true feelings about Kim. Like how I wanted to break every bone in her perfectly skinny body.


    Anna looked up from her phone and raised eyebrows at me. I looked away.


    ¡°I know you too well, Leanne.¡± Harry said. ¡°I know you¡¯re not happy working with a girl with so much ambition.¡±


    ¡°You know nothing about me then, Harry. I always aim to uplift other women.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true¡± Anna said, putting her hand around my shoulder. ¡°She¡¯s great like that.¡±


    ¡°See?¡± I challenged Harry. ¡°Anna knows me very well.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Harry said, gently rubbing my back. He wasughing. ¡°Everything will be okay.¡±


    It felt good, being with great friends like them. If I had known what life was about to send our way, I would have hugged them tight.

 The next morning

    When I woke up the next morning, fear was the first thing I felt. As soon as I was conscious, I remembered that I had to meet the CEO at 10 am. I quickly jumped out of bed and made my way to the shower. I needed to be extra early so that I could mentally prepare myself for what was toe.


    I retouched my lipstick, took a deep breath and walked through thepany entrance. A few heads turned my way with admiration but I look straight ahead, ignoring some of them. All they wanted was a feast for their eyes, not caring how it affected others.


    I opened the door to my office. Kim was putting some books in order. She looked amazing in a blue blouse and a ck pencil skirt hugging her slight curves. Her ck heels were amazing but were no match for mine, or so I thought.


    ¡°Good morning, Leanne.¡± She said, smiling. I knew she was faking it but I had no option but to y along. For now.


    I forced a smile. ¡°Morning Kim. How are you today?¡±


    ¡°Better than ever,¡± Kim said. ¡°Thispany is perfect. I¡¯m so happy I work here and want my stay tost forever.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s nice,¡± I said, going inside my office. I sat down and fished my personal drawer keys out of my ck purse.


    ¡°I¡¯ve done everything you wanted me to do before you arrived,¡± Kim popped her head in and said excitedly. ¡°Do you have anything for me to do right now?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I looked around the office. Everything was neatly arranged and I had already had my morning coffee. ¡°I¡¯ll call you when I need you. Go to your desk, please.¡±


    I was thankful we didnt have to share the office. It¡¯d have been hard to be around Kim for hours without killing her.


    ¡°Thanks, Leanne. ¡± Kim said.  ¡°By the way, you¡¯re a very beautifuldy.¡±


    Yeah, I was not falling for that kind of ttery. ttery gets people to many ces but I was sure it would not get Kim to my good side.


    ¡°Thanks Kim,¡± I said, faking a small smile. If I kept it up, my face would soon start aching. ¡°You¡¯re very beautiful too.¡±


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think I¡¯m as beautiful as you are.¡±


    It seemed Kim was a real attention seeker. I didn¡¯t have time to waste telling her how beautiful she was and how she should never think otherwise. Kim was trying my patience and it was tearing me apart. I was pretty sure she knew it. What game was this little girl ying?


    I smiled, opening my drawer. I pretended to search for something until I heard the door open and close. She was gone. I heaved a sigh of relief and shook my head. One day, Kim and I were going to have a big fight. That was inevitable.


    For the next one hour, I tried hard to focus on the paperwork I was supposed to work on. I spent the whole time worrying about what Zane Carrington could possibly want with me. I had no idea if the meeting was only between the two of us or more people would be involved.


    But something happened. Thirty minutes to ten, the meeting was postponed. I received a call from the CEO¡¯s office telling me that I would be required to go there at 2, not ten as earliermunicated. I was annoyed because the only thing that did was to prolong my anxiety. The day had just started but I began to feel it was going to be a terrible one.


    I thought I had seen thest of Kim for the day but Kim appeared at lunch time, looking more beautiful than she did in the morning. I figured she retouched her make up every thirty minutes because her tanned skin was constantly glowing.


    ¡°Good afternoon, Maya.¡± she said, that annoying smile shing on her face. ¡°I called New Hill restaurant and made a reservation for both of us. Can we go out for lunch?¡±


    ¡°But you didn¡¯t ask me about it,¡± I said. ¡°What if I had other ns?¡±


    ¡°Do you?¡± She raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Alright. What difference does it make, anyway?¡± Kim said. ¡°Or do you not want to go out with me? Oh my goodness, I¡¯m sorry for troubling you. Please forgive me, Maya.¡±


    So much drama for nothing. It was giving me headache. I regretted asking her to use my first name.


    ¡°Oh no, it¡¯s perfectly fine¡± I said, standing up. I was quite hungry, anyway. ¡°I¡¯ll go with you, Kim.¡±


    ¡°That makes me so happy,¡± she chirped.


    ¡°My pleasure,¡± I said as we walked out of the office. This girl was everything I didn¡¯t want for an assistant. She was so devious and calcting but I was not going to let her bring me down. I was going to take her down instead. And if I had to fall, I¡¯d fall with her.


    We passed the cubicle area where the junior employees work at in silence. I said ¡®hello¡¯ to some of the people I had not seen since morning. They didn¡¯t care about my greeting as much as usual since they were too busy trying to have words with my beautiful assistant.


    We met Harry in the parking yard. ¡°Hey,dies. How¡¯s it going?¡±


    ¡°All¡¯s fine,¡± Kim said. ¡°We¡¯re heading out for lunch.¡±


    ¡°Wow,¡± Harry smiled, focusing on me. I noticed the amused gleam in his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m d you finally got apanion, Maya.¡±


    ¡°Same,¡± I lied. ¡°I was so lonely before she came.¡±


    ¡°Enjoy your lunch,dies.¡± Marcus said resuming his walk, then stops. ¡°Maya?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°You look lovely, today.¡± He winked and strode on. I thought I heard a tiny gasp from Kim. I glimpsed at her as the surprise vanished from her face, reced by a smile I knew was forced. I knew it was killing her and for the first time I was d that Harry was a big jerk who liked messing with people.


    ¡°See, I told you.¡± My assistant said as we neared New Hill. ¡°You¡¯re more beautiful-¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± I said and she didn¡¯t say a word till we were in the restaurant. I was not in the mood to deal with that teenage kind of stupidity. I was a twenty four year old sessful executive not a thirteen year old teenager. We didn¡¯t talk much as we ate and soon we were out of the restaurant. I could finally breathe.


    ¡°We still have twenty minutes of lunch break,¡± I checked my phone as we exited. ¡°Go ahead, I¡¯m going to a pharmacy.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to go alone,¡± Kim said with that sickening smile of hers. I had had just about enough of her. ¡°I can escort you.¡±


    ¡°The pharmacist is my friend,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m going to spend the time talking to her about some stuff. It¡¯ll be awkward for you.¡±


    I could tell by her expression that she knew that was an excuse but she left anyway. ¡°Okay, have a good time, Maya.¡±


    I walked away, trying to calm myself. There was no way I can continue acting like we were getting along. All I wanted was to get rid of her.


    But how could I do it when I spent the previous week begging HR for an assistant? As far as I could see, Kim was not about to let herself make a mistake. She loved the job and I had a feeling that she loved mine even more.Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    I went to the nearest pharmacy and bought some pain relievers before returning to the office. Kim didn¡¯t say anything as I went to my inner office.  After sitting down, I pulled out my phone to check how long I had left.


    02:05 pm.


    My heart nearly stopped. I jumped out of the chair and stormed out. I hurried to the elevator. Thankfully, it was not in use. I got in and it took me to the top management floor.


    I murmured a prayer as I walked towards the CEO¡¯s office. The name on the door had changed.


    Zane Carrington.


    I took a very deep breath before knocking. Zane Carrington was definitely going to kill me.

 Trance

    ¡°Come in.¡±


    That voice sent chills down my spine. I reached out for the door handle and twisted it. The outer office where the CEO¡¯s assistant sat was empty so I proceeded to the main which was on the other side of the white screen. I stood at the transparent ss door and waited for more instructions. Zane could see me.


    ¡°What are you waiting for?¡± He asked.


    I pushed the door and stepped inside. My body was shaking and I could feel sweat pooling all over my body.


    Zane looked up and observed me with his sharp green eyes. I looked down because I couldn¡¯t maintain the stare.


    ¡°I¡¯m very sorry for what I did yesterday,¡± I said.


    ¡°What did you do?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I did not respond to your greeting,¡± I said. ¡°My mind was elsewhere.¡±


    ¡°How nice of your mind, to turn off when you¡¯re meeting the new CEO of thepany,¡± his tone was cold, like ice.


    ¡°I¡¯m truly sorry.¡±


    ¡°You do not look like an insolent person, but then again people are not always as they seem. You¡¯re teaching me that. Is that all your sorry about?¡±


    I looked up. ¡°Isn¡¯t that why you called me here.¡±


    ¡°Since you seem to know more about why I called you here than I do, then tell us. Why did I call you here?¡±


    It seemed Zane Carrington had taken an instant dislike to me and there was not much I could do to change his mind. I wanted to give a curt reply, but I managed to restrain myself. It took a lot but at the end of the day, I needed the job. Besides, that was the only job I had had since graduating from college. If I failed to get a good rmendation from thepany, it would be hard for me to be epted by anotherpany.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for making assumptions.¡±


    ¡°Is that all your sorry about?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for every bad thing I¡¯ve done since you arrived at thispany.¡±


    Zane Carrington frowned before standing up. ¡°Does that include your tardiness today?¡±


    Sh! t. I had forgotten about that part. ¡°I¡¯m sorry foringte to this meeting.¡±


    Zane stood up and came to where I was standing. My heart was pounding so hard and fast I was afraid it would soon pop out of my chest. He continued until his tall and hard muscled body was only inches away from mine. I could almost feel his body and the scent of his manly perfume filed the air. It was so nice that I wanted to breathe it in forever.


    I looked up in shock when I felt Zane¡¯s hand touching my left jawline. My eyes met his. His gaze was intense, so intense that his eyes seemed maic. He looked more handsome and sexy up close. His lips looked like they were begging to kiss, and if he wasn¡¯t my boss, I¡¯d have been tempted to do it. My mind was screaming for me to look elsewhere but I failed to tear my eyes away from his. His hand on my chin was sending shockwaves throughout my body. I could feel a certain part of my body heating up and emitting sweet sensations.


    ¡°Maya Bet,¡± he said, finally knocking me out of my trance. He removed his hand from my jawline. A part of me felt disappointed. It had felt so good. ¡°I don¡¯t like disrespectful and irresponsible employees. I don¡¯t know how Mr. Milner treated his employees, but I don¡¯t care because I¡¯m not him. I heard that he treated like his own daughter. Maybe that¡¯s why you¡¯re not very careful with your behaviour. You think you¡¯ll always be favoured. I have bad news for you. Things around here are about to change. You better change before you are changed.¡±


    I nodded, although I was not in the right frame of mind. Being around the man was making me feel so many things at once. I had never fallen in love at first sight and did not believe in. but, they say, there¡¯s a first time for everything. Is this it, I asked myself. No, no, Zane was beyond my league. As if he could even think of me that way. To him, I was just another irresponsible employee who was used to being spoon fed by the former CEO.


    ¡°All those things will never happen again, Mr. Carrington.¡±


    ¡°What if they do?¡±


    ¡°Appropriate punishment should be given.¡±


    Zane nodded. ¡°Good. Now that you know how things work, you can go.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for understanding, Mr. Carrington.¡±


    ¡°Look at me when you¡¯re speaking to me.¡±


    I looked up into his beautiful eyes. ¡°Thank you, Mr. Carrington.¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    When I was finally out of that office, i took a deep breath and released all the tension that had built up while I was inside my boss¡¯ office. The man was definitely a strange one and knew very little about work ethics.


    He had touched me yet he was not supposed to. But, damn, it had felt good. I could not deny that I had enjoyed it and wanted more.


    The new CEO and COO were a breath of fresh air in thepany. Ever since I started working at Milner¡¯s insurance, the two top positions had been upied by old men. Now there was a hot young man. I had a feeling that we would soon start seeing more drama in thepany. I was pretty sure every single woman in the building felt some sort of attraction. Not only was he handsome and masculine. He was so damn rich.


    Getting into the elevator, I leaned on the side and closed my eyes, then smiled. I had gone to Zane¡¯s office, thinking I would get fired or something but things had gone better than I expected.


    There was only one thing that was scaring me. Being near that man had made me feel horny as hell, and there was no one to scratch the itch. I hurried to my office, grabbed a cold bottle of water from the fridge and closed the door.


    After drinking it all, I felt better.


    Something was wrong. I had the lowest sex drive and had never felt that strongly for someone I¡¯d just met.


    No, no, I couldn¡¯t be falling for the one man I was sure I couldn¡¯t have.

 The plan

    Kim


    ¡°His name is Johnny,¡± I said, using my free hand to get my favorite ck heels off the rack on to the floor. ¡°Make sure you don¡¯t kill him. Just rough him up a little so he won¡¯t be able to work for about two weeks. That¡¯s all the time I need to turn my life around.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Mane said and I hang up. I ced my phone inside my hand bag, picked up the bag from the bed then stepped out. Before closing the door, I took one look at my tiny single roomed apartment. Soon, I wouldn¡¯t be living in these horrible conditions anymore. When I finally had Maya¡¯s job, things would change.


    I¡¯d finally be able to afford a decent apartment. I was tired of living like a peasant. Although the sry I started getting from Milner Insurance was making my life easier than it had been before, it was nowhere near enough to give me the life I wanted. On the other hand, Maya¡¯s sry was huge and I needed that. If I started earning that much, my life would be super amazing and I would be able to get all the things I wanted.


    Maya was already in her office when I arrived. She was wearing a ck dress and red shoes. It was like she had nothing to do other than work. I remembered that she didn¡¯t have a life, neither did she have a man. At her age, you either had love or career. I almost felt bad that I was nning to ruin the one things she had. Imagine a jobless and man-less Maya Bet.


    She was talking on the phone so I raised my palm in greeting, putting on my sweetest smile. She smiled back while talking. There was a to-do list written on a sticky note on the table. I picked up the note, read the instructions and headed to my workstation, a tiny room outside Maya¡¯s inner office. They were so few and I thought she was giving me less work deliberately. I knew she didn¡¯t trust me yet but that was okay. I didn¡¯t care if she trusted me or not. I wanted the CEO to trust me. I hope they hadn¡¯t called a temp because then step one of my n would¡¯ve failed.


    I was still checking and replying to some emails when the office messenger barged in. That job was so horrible no one respected you. I was pretty sure he¡¯d have knocked if I was with Maya.


    ¡°Good morning, Miss Dalton.¡± He said. ¡°Will you pleasee with me?¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± I frowned, looking up at the short man. I had not been very sure that my n would work but it appeared that things had gone pretty well. That was if I wasn¡¯t mistaken about what he was there for.


    ¡°Mr. Carrington¡¯s assistant was in an ident and couldn¡¯t make it to work today. We need you to fill in for him until hees back. Don¡¯t worry, I have permission from Miss Bet to go with you.¡±


    ¡°What happened to the assistant?¡± I asked, acting concerned.


    ¡°Someone tried to run him over but he survived with minor injuries,¡± he said. ¡°He went to get checked out at the hospital but he¡¯ll be back tomorrow. Or the next day. It all depends on the medical diagnosis. You can never know with these things.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t believe Mane wasn¡¯t able to get him hospitalized. He had never disappointed me before but I had to ept it. I have one day to make the CEO like me, or at least get interested. I had so much to offer him, and there was so much I needed from him. If I got him whipped, he would give me a promotion, which was I desperately needed.


    ¡°That¡¯s really sad,¡± I said, putting my phone back in the bag. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go. We wouldn¡¯t want to keep Mr. Carrington waiting.¡±


    I didn¡¯t bother to inform Maya that I had gone. To be honest, I didn¡¯t care what she thought about me anymore. I couldn¡¯t wait to turn her world upside down. She was going to regret asking for an assistant, if she hadn¡¯t already.


    The new Chief Executive Officer was the sexiest man I had ever seen. He was so handsome and radiated power. Power was the most attractive thing a man could have. Just looking at him made me want to beg him to bend me over and take me right there and then. He was nothing like my former boss, who was an old man of sixty years. Working under him had been really frustrating. Getting this job seemed to be the best thing I had ever done.


    ¡°Good morning, miss¡­¡± He said.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    ¡°Dalton,¡± I said, with the sweetest smile I could muster. Unlike with Maya, this smile was genuine. ¡°I¡¯ve heard about your assistant. I¡¯m so sorry. I hope I¡¯ll be able to fit in his shoes.¡±


    He looked into my eyes and smiled. ¡°I¡¯m sure you will fit in them better than he does. It¡¯s nice to have someone different around.¡±


    Maybe I was too quick to judge but he seemed like the kind of man who thought they could have anything because of their money. I could tell he¡¯d be willing to give me a lot of things if I slept with him. I knew my capabilities and was sure that one night with that man would be enough to get him running after me.


    ¡°Thank you for trusting me,¡± I said, not smiling this time. I didn¡¯t want him to think I was one of those girls who¡¯d go to bed with him because he was rich. I wanted him to think I was a good girl but I realized it was toote.


    The lipstick I was wearing was too strong and my clothes were too tight. I realized how stupid I could be. I should¡¯ve given more thought to the n. I should have dressed inly like Maya. Now, it was toote. I could only hope that he was not judgmental.

 The story

    Zane.


    Kim Dalton a pain in the a** but she was necessary in the grand scheme of things. She was what I would call a necessary evil. Using Kim, I would get what I wanted. And to think I had not thought about it before my assistant got involved in an ident. She presented herself like the whore she was. I could see it in her eyes, and overall look. I had seen a lot of them, they type of women who were willing to do anything to get to the top including selling themselves to the highest bidder. I had been runningpanies for my pack for a very long time and could spot those from a mile away.


    I was not a fan of those kinds of women but I indulged with them when it could benefit me. Kim looked like someone who¡¯d scratch my back even if I didn¡¯t scratch hers. I just had to pretend that I was going to. She was vain, and therefore full of herself. Of course she could doubt that I would fall for her. She would therefore believe me if I lied that I liked her.


    Before Johnny returned, Kim worked her butt off.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do whatever you want me to do,¡± she had told me on her first day at my office, before flipping her sandy blonde hair. I couldn¡¯t deny that she was beautiful, but she was nothingpared to the woman that took me to Sunham.


    Maya Bet. The first time I saw her was in the woods. After a rough day, I had been taking a walk in the woods. There was a party nearby, and it involved humans. I hated when humans came to our city because they were so weak and yet stupidly ventured into a territory full of beings that could finish all of them in seconds.


    I was walking closer to the party venue when the scent came to me. It was so good I had to stand and inhale it. Within seconds, I saw the direction it was from and started moving towards it. From the way I was drawn to it, I knew it was my mate. I had stopped caring about finding a mate two years because it seemed pointless. I was now 30and was beginning to think the moon goddess had something against me.


    But when I drew closer, I heard the sound in my voice, from my wolf. Mate! I felt relived, as if a burden I had been holding for years had suddenly been lifted off me. It was the full moon and other wolves were wailing in the darkness.


    I could have stared at her in the darkness but when I saw a vampire with her, I lost it. What business did a vampire have with my mate, and why was he taking her to the darkness. Knowing what kind of evil creatures vampires can be, I went after it to save my mate before she became someone¡¯s blood bank.


    She ran off when she saw me lunging on the vampire. As soon as she was out of sight, I dragged the skinny vampire into the woods and changed back to human form.


    ¡°What were you going to do to her?¡±


    ¡°I was thirsty,¡± he said. ¡°Why do you care?¡±


    I raised my hand and punched the fool in the face. ¡°What the- Shit, you¡¯re Zane Carrington, the alpha of the Bloodmoon pack.¡± He said, finally recognizing me. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry.¡±


    ¡°You were not supposed to attack a single human at that party,¡± I said. ¡°But as usual, you bloodsuckers never listen.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, okay. I wouldn¡¯t have killed her. I know her. We work together.¡±


    Now, I was more than interested. I had found someone who could give me the information I needed on my mate.


    ¡°Really, where do you work?¡±


    ¡°At Milner Insurance Company. I¡¯m the senior actuarial manager and she is my junior. We work in the same department.¡±


    Oh really? So my mate wasn¡¯t a waste of space. Back when I was obsessed with finding my mate, I use to worry that she would end up being azy person who didn¡¯t want to do any work. Those were not my kind of people.


    ¡°Milner is in Sunham city, right?¡±


    He nodded. ¡°Can I go now?¡±


    I smiled before snapping his neck. I whistled and my men came rushing to me. ¡°Take him away, and cage him up.¡±


    When he had been taken away, I decided to go and spy on my mate to know more about her. But as I was about toe out of the woods, I saw her and two friends walking to where she hadst seen the vampire. I was almost sure she did not know that her friend was a bloodsucking vampire. She seemed so worried about him. I just observed her beautiful face as she looked around. Although the light from the moon was dim, I could see her pretty features because of my strong vision.


    The forest was not safe for them so I shifted into my wolf and growled so loud that it sent them running. Humans really needed to stay away from these woods.


    After that, I went and grilled Aaron the vampire until he gave me all the information I needed. I decided to keep him for a while because I knew he might put a damper on my ns. You couldn¡¯t trust those creatures.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    I did further research and within two days, I had purchased Milner insurancepany. The owner, an old man and his son loved thepany so much they weren¡¯t willing to sell at first. But when I gave them offers they couldn¡¯t resist, they were goners.


    Now I had a newpany, which was registered under Bloodmoon group ofpanies. All thesepanies belonged to my pack.


    I didn¡¯t care so much about thepany and I agreed to sell it back to the owners if they wanted it back after a year. They were willing to take it back and we signed a special agreement with all these uses.


    I didn¡¯t wantpanies in Sunham. I just wanted to take my mate home, and I was going to use thepany to get to her.


    Yes, I could have done it in so many different ways, but I figured being her boss would be more fun. Besides, I needed time away from my pack. The responsibilities were wearing me out.


    So, there I was, thinking of a way to get her attention.

 Look elsewhere

    Maya


    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I be arrogant?¡± Harry asked. He and I were in his office. I was standing in front of his desk, looking at the document I brought to him five minutes back. ¡°I¡¯m the most handsome and intelligent man in thispany. Let¡¯s see, Maya. If you were asked to date any man here, who would it be?¡±


    ¡°Anyone but you, Harry Smith. Being arrogant isn¡¯t attractive, you know. Try that on Kim.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? Would you be okay with me being with someone you hate?¡±


    ¡°You can be with whoever you want,¡± I stated. ¡°I don¡¯t care. Just sign the document because I have quite a lot to do now that Kim¡¯s working with you-know-who. I wonder why he needs two assistants anyway. His old one returned but he won¡¯t let go of mine. Clearly, this man is here to ruin my life.¡±


    ¡°Why are you in such a hurry?¡± He asked.


    I closed my eyes and inhaled. ¡°Why do you always make an effort to dy me whenever Ie here?¡±


    ¡°Because I¡¯m falling for you,¡± his eyes bore into mine. ¡°What do you have to say to that?¡±


    I shook my head, knowing he was messing with me as always. I didn¡¯t know if I could say we were actually friends but sometimes we hang out after work. Sometimes, we got into such arguments that made me think we¡¯d never talk again. ¡°Shut up, Harry. You¡¯ve been talking nonsense for so long and I don¡¯t have time for this.¡±


    He stood up and walked around his desk to where I was standing. He held my hand and looked directly into my eyes. I shook my hand free before he could notice how that slight contact made me feel. I looked into his intense dark eyes and swallowed then avert my gaze to the document on the table.


    ¡°Please sign,¡± I looked at him again and he went back to sit. He quickly signed and I grabbed the document. ¡°Thanks, Smith.¡±


    ¡°No problem,¡± he said with his beautiful smile. I could watch smile all day because his smile was good. Harry was actually very good looking, and I thought if he asked me out, I would actually say yes. ¡°Come back soon.¡±


    I rolled my eyes and open the door. I was startled to see Kim¡¯s outstretched hand. She was about to knock. ¡°Morning.¡±


    ¡°Morning Maya,¡± Kim smiled. ¡°I¡¯ve been looking for you.¡± She turned to Harry who was watching us. ¡°Can I pleasee in, Mr. Smith? I have news for the two of you.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said. What kind of news could Kim be having for us?


    I stood aside and let Kim enter, closing the door behind her.


    ¡°Two weeks ago when I first started working here, I heard you two talking about the need for the Employee of the month award.¡± She said, sitting on the chair across from Harry. ¡°I¡¯d like to tell you that I¡¯ve managed to make Mr. Miller see its usefulness. The announcement will be out today and from next month, thepetition will be on.¡± She paused, probably for dramatic effect. She was enjoying it. ¡°I¡¯m going to work so hard.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I say, opening the door. I was annoyed that Kim has achieved that in only two weeks. I have been trying to convince Mr. Miller, our human resources manager for so many months. Knowing Mr. Miller, I could tell something was up. I also knew that Kim only pushed for the award to make me feel bad and to let me know that there were things she could do better than me. ¡°Thanks for the good news. I have to go now.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t we need to celebrate?¡± Harry asked me. ¡°You¡¯ve wanted this for such a long time.¡±


    His insensitivity didn¡¯t surprise me. I walked out of the room, not stopping until I was in my office. I sat on the table and wondered what I had done wrong to deserve that. Kim went to Harry¡¯s office just to mock me. I could not stand the fact that she now thought she was better than me. She was so disrespectful I almost felt bad for her. She was wrong if she thought her actions would help her build a solid career. She probably thought she was on top of the world but one day I knew that everything will crumble upon her.


    I heard the sound of a knock on the door. ¡°Come in.¡±


    Harry entered and I gave him a death re. ¡°Harry, please go away if you¡¯vee here to mock me. I¡¯ve had just about enough of all that.¡±N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    He shook his head and sat down. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Lee. I truly regret making thatment, especially in front of Kim. I was wrong.¡±


    ¡°Whatever,¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°Just go away. The employee of the month award will be a good thing for thepany anyway. I may not have been able to get it put in ce but someone else has done it. That¡¯s a good thing.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t leave unless you forgive me,¡± he told me, cing his palm on my hand. A jolt of electricity coursed all over my body. What the hell was wrong with me? A few days ago I had been crushing heavily on the new CEO and now I was feeling things for Harry? Strange.


    ¡°Why does it matter to you, anyway?¡± I pulled my hand from under his. Several emotions were swirling all over me and I couldn¡¯t let him see how much his touch affected me.


    ¡°You¡¯re my friend and I don¡¯t want to fight with you because of some little misguided girl.¡±


    I studied him and he seemed so sincere. Besides, it had always been very hard for me to stay mad at him for long. ¡°Okay, I forgive you.¡± There was no way some sillyment was going to separate me from my favorite person at work.


    ¡°Thanks, Maya.¡± He said, smiling. ¡°Aren¡¯t you just the most beautiful human in the world?¡±


    I was unable to stop myself from smiling. ¡°Stop it.¡±


    We were not dating but I loved having his support. Zane Carrington was never going to be mine anyway. Maybe it was time for me to set my eyes elsewhere.

 In shock

    Kim


    I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d ever forget the look on Maya¡¯s face when I broke the news to her. Harry¡¯s mockingment was the icing on the cake. She looked so furious when she left I wouldn¡¯t have been surprised if I found her crying. The worst was yet toe for her. I had got Zane under my control and soon, I thought I¡¯d be an executive in thepany.


    After Maya left, Harry red at me.


    ¡°Get out of my office,¡± he said.


    My lips parted at his rudeness. Just a minute ago, he had been smiling. I had been here for two weeks but I hadn¡¯t been able to figure out if he was in love with her or not. Sometimes they didn¡¯t even greet each other but other times they conversed like they were the best of friends. Until that time, I thought he had nothing against me but I couldn¡¯t be sure about that anymore.


    ¡°You may be a senior executive but you can¡¯t treat me like this,¡± I said, assertively. ¡°I¡¯m an employee of thispany just like you are. Just because you earn more doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re better than me, Mr. Smith.¡±


    He stared at me for a while and then shook his head. ¡°You¡¯re still very young and I¡¯m afraid that you¡¯re making so many mistakes. Think about what you¡¯re doing before you end up in a position where no one wants to employ you. I can tell you want to reach for the stars like almost everybody else but this is not the way to do it.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know anything about me.¡±


    Heughed. ¡°I do. You probably think that sleeping with the right people is a good way to get what you want. You may be in the CEO¡¯s office but you were hired as Maya¡¯s office assistant so she¡¯s your direct supervisor. If any otherpany wants to employ you, they¡¯ll first ask her about you. If you think she¡¯s useless to you now, please think again. You can either take my advice or not but you have to get out of my office.¡±


    All his words made sense but what he didn¡¯t know was that I had a solid n to make sure Maya got fired. No one would want to hire her thereafter. Harry could think whatever he wanted but most times I didn¡¯t even have to sleep with people to get what I wanted. Sometimes, I just had to smile.


    ¡°You can think whatever you want, Smith. Are you saying all these because of Maya? Are you in love with her?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re so immature. It seems you know nothing about true friendship. Get out now.¡±


    He was right. I don¡¯t know anything about true friendship. It¡¯s probably why I lost friends almost as soon as I made them. Friends expected a lot of things that I couldn¡¯t offer. I didn¡¯t like listening to anyone¡¯s problems as I had thousands of mine. I also hated making sacrifices for people. I preferred to have no friends than have to do all that.


    ¡°What are you waiting for?¡± He raised his brows.


    I nced at him and walked out, my red heels clicking against the floor. One day, I was going to make him regret treating me like that.


    ***


    Zane Carrington was a hot, young, handsome and rich man. Because of that, he had a lot of options. He could date whoever he wanted. It was why I had feared that it wouldn¡¯t be very easy to get his attention. Sure, I may be drop dead gorgeous but that¡¯s not all a woman needs to be attractive to some men. Some men like powerful women, women with sound careers and all that.


    Thankfully, Zane did not seem to mind that I was lowly assistant. I didn¡¯t care if all he wanted was sex because I had ways of making sure he would never leave my side. My friends didn¡¯t call me the queen of ckmail for nothing. Hahaha, who am I kidding? I didn¡¯t have any real friends, and I didn¡¯t care.


    At first, my flirting was subtle but when Zane didn¡¯t seem to mind, I dived deep.  We wereing to the end of the day. There were only five minutes remaining to five, so I decided to go and inform Zane that I was leaving.


    I stood at his door. ¡°Mr. Carrington, I have finished all my work for the day and I wanted to inform you that I¡¯m about to leave now.¡± I put on a sweet smile. ¡°But, if you need anything, I can stay and do it for you.¡±


    He stood up. ¡°Actually, I need something, Kim. But, we can¡¯t do it here.¡±


    ¡°Ahhh,¡± my smile widened. ¡°That¡¯s nice to hear. I can¡¯t wait to serve you.¡±


    He smiled and came towards me. ¡°That¡¯s why I like you, Kim.¡±


    My body was running wild, and I thought he was going to kiss me but he turned back and went to pick up his phone and wallet. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    I waited for him to pass and locked the office. When I saw him leading us to the elevator, my heart jumped for the life. This was the life I was supposed to live, being spoiled by a rich man. At that time, I didn¡¯t care about anything else. I couldn¡¯t wait to see the reaction of other women when I came out of the executive elevator with the CEO. They were going to be so filled with jealousy.


    The best thing happened. As Zane and I exited the executive elevator, Maya was stepping out of the ordinary one. I noted the shock on her face but she hid it so fast. I smiled and continued waltzing out of the building. I was sure Maya was green with jealousy.


    When we walked towards the best car in parking lot, I looked around and saw many people giving us looks. I was on cloud nine.


    ncing back, I saw Maya getting into her tiny car. Smiling widely, I waved at her. She didn¡¯t wave back.


    Mission aplished.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    I felt like a bride as we drove out of thepany. The car smelled great and looked amazing. I had never been in such a nice car before so I was busy looking around it when the car suddenly stopped. I looked out and saw that we had stopped in front of a mall.


    ¡°There¡¯s a taxi over there,¡± Zane said. ¡°You can use it to get home.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    He pulled up a hundred dor bill and ced it on myp. ¡°That should be enough.¡±


    ¡°What is going, Zane?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s Mr. Carrington to you, and why are you asking. You requested for a lift to town and here we are. Now get out.¡±


    I grabbed the note and tossed it to the floor to save thest remaining shreds of my dignity before opening the car and getting out.


    I stared in shock as the car cruised away. What the hell.

 Eleven

    Maya


    ¡°Pass the ball!¡± I yelled. We were in a small ser pitch in one of the city suburbs where our ser club members practiced every Saturday. The club was not a professional one but a group of ser enthusiasts. None of the members except the two of us had arrived yet even though it was time. Even the coach who was always here first had not yete.


    ¡°Not until you promise to tell me why you¡¯re so angry,¡± Anna said, hitting the ground with the ball and grabbing it when it bounced. ¡°I hope it¡¯s not about Kim. I don¡¯t want her to turn you into a hateful person because you¡¯re not like that.¡±N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    ¡°That¡¯s it,¡± I said, running towards her while she broke into a run with the ball. I sprinted after her for a minute before giving up. She had always been faster than me though I was a few inches taller. I guess height didn¡¯t matter when it came to speed.


    ying ser was my passion and a lot of people said it was weird because I was a girl. Some didn¡¯t believe that I actually liked it and thought I was faking it just to appear cool. I loathed the fact that a lot of people believed ser was a man¡¯s game. Why is it so hard for some people to believe that a woman can love ser as much as a man can? Also, I found it really annoying when other people acted like they had a right to decide what another should like.


    It was our mutual love for ser that brought Anna and I together when we were in the University. I remember it clearly. We were seated side by side on the bleachers, attending a match between my university and another. Our university had scored and we stood up to cheer simultaneously. Then we nced at each other and for some reason hugged. That was the birth of a lifelong friendship.


    ¡°Seriously, what¡¯s going on with you?¡± She asked, sitting next to me. ¡°Is it Kim again?¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s Harry.¡± I told her.


    She ced her hand around my shoulder. ¡°What¡¯s going on between the two of you? You¡¯re always arguing.¡±


    ¡°I think I¡¯m falling for him,¡± I said. There was no point in hiding anything from Anna because she¡¯d find out anyway. Besides, she was the most understanding person I knew. ¡°He can be really annoying at times but sometimes he¡¯s the sweetest person. I like being around him and I think I¡¯m getting too attached.¡±


    ¡°I think Harry feels something for you. I¡¯ve been watching himtely and he always seems so happy when he¡¯s with you. I think he cares about you.¡±


    ¡°I know he cares but that¡¯s because we¡¯re friends. Although I love being his friend, I want to be more than that. But I don¡¯t think that¡¯s what is really bothering me.¡±


    The image of Kim and Zaneing out of the elevator and walking to his car together shed in my mind. The way she had looked so smug and happy, while he looked content was not siting well with me. I didn¡¯t understand why I was feeling jealous when he was single and could be with whoever he wanted. Maybe it was the fact that it was Kim. Anna was right. My hatred for that girl was turning me into a horrible person. I was sure I wouldn¡¯t minded if it was someone else.


    ¡°Anna! Maya!¡± Tina¡¯s voice made us turn. She was the only other girl in our ser club of eighteen members. She was a very tall girl with dreadlocks and yed better than Anna and Ibined. She jogged over and knelt behind us, putting her hands around us. ¡°Hey darlings.¡±


    ¡°Hey,¡± we said in unison and looked at her.


    ¡°Someone¡¯s wearing too much make up,¡± Anna said as we inhaled Tina¡¯s strong perfume. Anna and I barely wore any make up whening for practice but Tina always had full make up on which was also okay. To each his own.


    ¡°You don¡¯t see meining about you guys not wearing any,¡± Tina said. She held my head and Anna¡¯s then gently knocked them together before quickly standing up.


    ¡°What was that for?¡± I asked,ughing.


    ¡°Talking about my looks. Hey, what are we waiting for? Let¡¯s kick some ball. I¡¯ve had a stressful week and I need to let all the stress out.¡±


    ¡°Same,¡± Anna said, rising. When she was on her feet, she offered her hand. I took it and she helped me up though I could¡¯ve done it by myself. Sometimes true friendship is about helping a friend even though she may not need it.


    I looked around and saw that most of the members had arrived. It seemed that the coach was sessful in getting more members, judging by the new faces. I was disappointed to see that all the new members were male. It¡¯d be fun to have more girls around. We were a small club that had never yed a professional game before. We were always ying friendly matches with other teams because we formed the club mainly for fun. A few people in the club wanted to y professionally in future but some of us already had careers in other fields.


    After mutual introductions with the new members, I sauntered towards my bag to get some water and found my phone ringing. It was Harry.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I said, smiling involuntarily.


    ¡°Hi! What are you doing right now?¡±


    ¡°Why do you ask?¡± I inquired.


    ¡°I was wondering if we could catch a movie.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not doing anything,¡± I lied because I really need some time with him. Lately, I had been enjoying his presence more than usual and I really needed someone to distract me from the thoughts of Zane and Kim. Those two were driving me crazy. ¡°I¡¯m free.¡±


    He chuckled. ¡°Why are you lying to me, Maya Bet?¡±


    I looked around and spotted him on the bleachers. Cringing, I closed my eyes. The ground should swallow me up already. I didn¡¯t think I had ever felt that embarrassed since I became an adult.

 Nervous wreck

    Maya


    ¡°Kim!¡± I called out from my office. Within seconds, she opened the door and peered into my office. Her workstation was just outside my office. ¡°Could you please give me today¡¯s schedule?¡±


    She smiled. It was a fake smile that didn¡¯t reach her eyes but I was now used to that. ¡°Of course.¡± Closing the door, she disappeared and came back two minutester with a printed A4 paper which she ced on my table. ¡°Here¡¯s your schedule, Maya.¡±


    She had returned to work for me at the beginning of that week and I was almost d she was back when I saw her. I had umted a tonne of unfinished work and had no choice but to start giving her tasks. She is usually very efficient and that worked in my favor.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± I lifted the paper and looked through it. Everything was as should be. Eleven to twelve o¡¯clock was not included as I instructed because I had some personal business to take care of. Instead of leaving immediately, she studied me.


    ¡°You can go now.¡± I told her, wondering what she could be up to. I didn¡¯t trust her yet so I knew I¡¯d have to check with Harry to find out the correct time of the board meeting. Kim was someone who capable of giving you a wrong schedule just to get you fired. I was not nning on taking any risks.


    ¡°Last week, I noticed that you left at the same time on the same day,¡± she began. ¡°Would it be too much to ask if I requested to know where you¡¯re going? I¡¯m your assistant, after all. I believe I have a right to know what my boss is up to.¡±


    Since she returned from working for Carrington, her attitude was different. She no longer pretended to like me as she used to. Now, she just seemed to talk to me however way she wants. She didn¡¯t care whether I liked it or not. Something had changed and I knew that that calcting girl was up to something.


    ¡°No,¡± I shook my head. ¡°You do not have that right, Kim. On the other hand, I have a right to my privacy. Would it be too much to ask if I told you to stop asking questions about things that don¡¯t concern you?¡±


    I hated to be rude to anyone but she made it so hard for me to be polite. Sometimes, I thought she was trying to rile me up. If I was a bad person, I¡¯d have fired her by now. But she I knew she was a recent graduate and I wanted to give her a chance to start a life for herself and build a career. It was very important to empower young girls so they could have more choices in life.


    With the high unemployment rates in the country, a lot of girls get married early just because they couldn¡¯t support themselves after school. Some started selling themselves or went abroad looking for jobs and end up being trafficked, then forced to work under terrible conditions or became influencers that could barely make enough to sustain themselves. I didn¡¯t wish that even for my worst enemy. I hoped Kim¡¯s attitude was going to change soon because she would end up in a terrible situation because of it.


    ¡°Last Wednesday,¡± she continued. ¡°Harry went out a few minutes after you left. Are you in a secret rtionship with him?¡±


    I chuckled, shaking my head. ¡°That¡¯s none of your business, my dear assistant. Could you please leave because we both have a lot of work to do? You could be of more use helping me finish the presentation I¡¯ve mailed to you.¡±


    ¡°I want him,¡± she said.


    ¡°Who?¡± I asked, raising a brow.


    ¡°Harry,¡± she said.


    ¡°Oh, you mean things are already over with Mr. Carrington? What happened?¡±


    ¡°Oh, are we getting involved in each other¡¯s private business now?¡±


    ¡°Okay, now go work so you can have a chance to win this month¡¯s Employee of the Month Award.¡±


    She smirked and walked out, thinking I still cared about the award. Honestly, I used to want that award just for prestige. But, I knew there are people in thepany that needed that extra money more than I did. All I needed was to do my work properly and be a senior executive someday. I had always wanted to be a CEO and I hoped that the dream woulde true. My ultimate goal was to manage a bigpany with a person like Harry by my side.


    At 10:30, I left the building and drove to my apartment. I had nothing to do there but I had to make sure no one followed me to my final destination. I was quite sure no one at the office had any interest in following me but I had always been a tad bit paranoid, a trait I got from my mother. I was even more anxious that day because I actually had a feeling that someone was following me. After walking back and forth in my living room, I opened the door and took a look around before closing it. As I descended the stairs, I felt more alert than ever. When I made it to my car without seeing any suspicious person in the vicinity, I took a deep breath and started the car.


    Having another job of any kind, especially when you¡¯re an executive was not allowed at the Insurance Company but this other job was extremely important to me. I had to do it or I wouldn¡¯t be happy. My job at Milner Insurance was what I did for a living but I volunteered as a teacher at this center for humanitarian reasons.Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    The gate to St. Felicity¡¯s Center for Visually Impaired Children came into view. As I waited for the gate to open, I looked through the side mirror and saw a ck saloon car a few meters behind me. I ignored it and drove through. If only I could stop being such a nervous wreck.

 Shocked

    Maya


    St. Felicity¡¯s Center for Visually Impaired Children was a very small establishment that survived on donations from a few people like myself. There were two buildings facing each other. One of them had three ssrooms and a small dining room. The other had toilets, amon room and the offices. Behind the ssroom building was a yground with several games and there was a wall fence made of red bricks and sand. The school enrolled mostly preschool children and helped them learn enough to start school.


    Most people never realized it but a lot of children with disabilities were abandoned in the streets almost every day. Some were left at the doors of shelters and orphaned children¡¯s home because their parents were afraid of the costs of taking care of them. Others could not ess education because a lot of people were ignorant of schools with special needs education which were very few and couldn¡¯t cater for all those who got enrolled there. They did not realize that these were just like other children and deserved as much love, even more. You¡¯d be surprised that even in this century, there were people who made fun of these children.


    St. Felicity¡¯s was basically a day care study center. Parents brought their children in the morning and picked them up in the evening. It was for low ss parents who couldn¡¯t afford special needs education. There was a shortage of teachers and for that reason, I volunteered to teach writing so that the children could tell their stories to the world. Teachers were always quitting because they didn¡¯t have the patience required to teach visually impaired children. I took a short Braille course after finishing high school, a few months before joining college.


    ¡°Good morning, children.¡± I said as one of the male teachers went to sit at the back of the ss. It was hard to teach alone especially when you were not a professional teacher and your pupils had sight problems. The youngest ss,prised of four to eight year olds. A lot of visually impaired children of lower ss families in the city either received no education or startedter than their peers.


    ¡°Can you tell who¡¯s speaking?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yes,¡± the children shouted in unison.


    ¡°Who is it?¡±


    ¡°It is Miss Bet,¡± they said and I started to feel goose bumps. Tears welled up in my eyes and my smile widened. I was so happy that all of them remembered my voice. My little precious darlings now knew me and that filled me with tion.


    Ten minutes into the lesson, I noticed a camera kind of sh and rushed to the window to see who it was that just took a picture of me. By the time I reached, the person was gone. I saw a medium height boy jumping over the fence.


    For the rest of my lesson, I could not stop worrying. I wanted to rush to thepany so that Mr. Carrington never saw that picture but I couldn¡¯t leave these children. If we were going to lobby for more funds, getting the children to properly share their own stories would really help.


    When I got back to my office, it was ten minutes to the meeting with thepany partners. I had to stop by the pharmacy where Anne worked for pills to reduce anxiety. I had swallowed the pills but my nervous system was still a wreck when I got back to work. I felt uneasy. I picked up the sh disk with the data and statistics I had been analyzing. With the senior actuarial manager, I needed to to present the actuarial figures to the partners of thepany.


    Five of the ten chairs in the boardroom were upied by the time I got in. My eyes met Harry¡¯s and I gave a meek smile before taking the seat next to my new superior, Mr. Kinney who had reced Aaron.


    When my turn to give a presentation came, I took a deep breath and walked to the front. I had not felt that nervous to present since I left college. I couldn¡¯t stop worrying that Zane Carrington was just waiting for me to finish before firing me. For a few minutes as I talked about statistics and numbers, I was free from worry.


    Zane Carrington was watching me intensely, a little bit too intensely, might I add. That added to my anxiety. The man was like a hawk, with sharp eyes that made you feel like he was looking directly into your soul. I wondered if he had been told that I had broken the rules and was just waiting for the right time to fire me.


    Later, Harry walked in to my office. ¡°I can tell that something is wrong with you. What¡¯s it, Lee?¡±


    My elbows were resting on the table while I held my phone in my hands.


    ¡°Nothing you should worry about. I¡¯ll be okay.¡±


    I looked up at him. Pressing the unlock button on my phone, I looked at the time. It was already five. Time to leave. I lifted my hand bag from the floor to the table top. ¡°If I haven¡¯t told you what¡¯s going on, it¡¯s because I know there¡¯s nothing you can do to make the situation better. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s not that bad.¡±


    Standing up, I threw my phone into the bag and carried it. ¡°I have to go.¡±


    Harry walked towards the door and stopped two steps away from it. He turned and stared at me. Raising my eyebrows, I spoke. ¡°What now.¡±


    When his didn¡¯t say anything, I attempted to pass by him but he took a step forward and snaked his left arm around my stomach. My breath hitched and I looked at his face. He gazed into my eyes and I did the same to his before turning my eyes to the door. He had no idea what his hand was doing to my insides.


    ¡°Harry?¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    Slowly, he withdrew his hand and with onest nce at him, I left the room.


    What just happened?

 Ill mannered

    Maya


    ¡°Ahhh!¡± I screamed when I found Zane Carrington outside my door. He was leaning on the opposite wall just staring at the door. Quicklyposing myself, I faced the CEO while Harry opened the door.


    ¡°Good evening, sir.¡± I said.


    Saying he did not look pleased is an understatement. The man looked like he wanted to whip us both. I hoped he would not think we had been doing something other than work back in there.


    ¡°Mr. Smith,¡± he addressed Harry, I ignoring me like I was not even there. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    Fxck respect. If this man wasn¡¯t going to show me simple respect by acknowledging my greeting, I was not going to respect him. I knew his type, jerks who think they¡¯re God¡¯s gift to women. Just because I greeted didn¡¯t mean I was interested in him.


    I nced at Harry and felt like kissing him in front of that jerk just to prove a point but I remembered that I needed a job so just decided to walk away. He didn¡¯t say anything, and I didn¡¯t know why that annoyed me. Why did I want that jerk¡¯s attention?


    In the evening as I prepared my supper, I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about all the weird events of that day. From that boy who had taken a photo with me, the moment I shared with Harry and then the worst part of my day, getting snubbed by the CEO. Sh! t. Did he know that I had a secret job? Was that why he was there and acted like that?


    I ced the knife on the table and poured the chopped eggnts off the chopping board into a stic dish. Next were tomatoes which weren¡¯t ripe enough. I liked them that way. I was about to chop one into two when I heard the sound of my ringtone. Singing along to it, I headed to the living area.


    ¡°Hello,¡± I said after swiping the relevant icon. Grabbing the remote, I muted the television. The volume was low but this could be important. The line was quiet for a few seconds before I heard a deep voice speak. It sounded like it was normally not deep but the owner was making it seem so. ¡°Check your messages.¡±


    ¡°Wha-¡± I stopped because of the beep that signaled an ended call. I opened the messages app and saw a multimedia message. There was a photo of me standing in front of the ss at St. Felicity¡¯s. The shock made me feel like all the energy I possessed has been sucked out of me. The phone slipped through my fingers and I slumped onto the couch. No. I couldn¡¯t lose my job when my career was just kicking off. If I got fired, I¡¯d not be able to get a good letter of rmendation so it¡¯d be very hard to find another job.


    I dialed the number that just called but it had been switched off. I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d be able to cook anymore so I stood up weakly and walked, almost lifelessly into the kitchen and turned off the gas stove. Rummaging in my snacks cab, I removed two bags of potato chips and took them with me to the couch. My dder wasining but I could not be bothered to do anything about it. I decided to lie down facing the ceiling then bended my knees. That way I wouldn¡¯t feel the fullness of my dder. It always works.


    Who could¡¯ve done this to me? First suspect was Kim. I didn¡¯t understand why she hated me from the day we met when I had not done anything to her. Was that she was jealous of my position? Now she probably thought I got paid even at St. Felicity¡¯s. That was if she was the one who took that photo.


    Maybe Sara? Sara was the Financial Manager and she had hated me since I identally spilled hot coffee on her. Although she and I did not get along, I did not think she would go as far as having me followed. She didn¡¯t usually mind other people¡¯s businesses as long as they stayed out of her way.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    What about Harry? He had been curious about my movementstely and Kim said he disappeared on the previous Wednesday when I left. Though he didn¡¯t leave that time, I wondered whether he hired someone to follow me. My rtionship with him was quite bumpy at the start and with time we started being nice to each other. Now that I thought about it, he was the one that reached out to me. What if it was a n to get to know my weaknesses?


    I barely got any sleep that night as I kept thinking, tossing and turning. I had to rub my eyes for them to work in the morning. It felt like someone put sand in them.


    Kim was at her work desk when I got to the office. For the first time, she had arrived before me.


    ¡°Morning,¡± she said with a smile too wide it was suspicious.


    ¡°Follow me,¡± I said, feeling certain that she was behind everything.


    ¡°What¡¯s it, boss?¡± She said, crossing her arms in my office. I hated being called boss because it sounded like I was a head of a drug cartel or something. I ignored it because there are more important things to talk about.


    ¡°What are you up to?¡±


    ¡°I came to work just like you,¡±


    ¡°Listen here, you ill-mannered thing, I don¡¯t want to y games with you.¡± cing my bag on the table, I sat on the chair.


    ¡°Same. Can I get back to work now?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I waited for her to close my door before breaking down into tears. If it was her, I had a feeling she would seed. It seemed like she was the kind of person who would not give up until she was sessful in getting what she wanted. I hated feeling out of control. I needed to fire that woman before things got out of hand.

 Without fail

    Zane¡¯s POV


    As soon as Harry started walking away, I growled. He turned back, confusion written all over his face, like someone who thinks he has heard something but is not sure. One re towards him and he was hurrying away from me. I threw the door to Maya¡¯s office and walked inside, passing by Kim¡¯s desk. I opened Maya¡¯s door and a sweet scent made its way to my nose. The blood in my body immediately warmed up and I felt a certain part of me hardening and starting to strain my pants.


    Her scent was enough to give me an orgasm. I spotted a white handkerchief on the table and picked it up, then pressed it against my nose. It smelled so good I started sniffing more. I stuffed the handkerchief into my pocket and walked out there before I did something crazy. I could not take it anymore. I needed that woman. Ignoring her the way I had done may not have been the best approach. When I was in my office, I thought it would make her think about me more, but now I realised it was stupid.


    Finding her with Harry had made me really furious but thankfully, I had managed to control myself. Anger was one of the things that could easily make me turn against my will. Controlling it was the only way I could survive in a city of humans. Had I been at Misenium, that wouldn¡¯t have been problem?


    The worst thing about having a human mate was that she did not feel the bond as strongly as I did, until we mated and I marked her. I was pretty sure, Maya thought whatever she felt for me was a strong crush/infatuation that would soon pass. She seemed intent on pursuing things with that Harry character, but I was not going to let that happen.


    After getting out of Maya¡¯s office, I went to my car and had the driver take me home. Entering Misenium always made me good. It was where I could be true myself and no one would judge me for it. Now, I loved being my true self but I was tired of being like that without my mate. Suddenly, I did not want other woman anymore. Ever since I met my mate, something had changed in me and I all I wanted was her. I was not sure whether that was a good or bad thing.


    Normally, the gate of my private house would open even before the car got to it. This time, it remained close.


    ¡°What is going?¡± I asked the driver.


    ¡°No idea.¡±


    I could tell that something was not right. I sniffed the air and got it. Vamps. Pushing my door open, I stepped out.


    ¡°Come out,¡± I said.


    I rolled my eyes when I saw Javon Reddinging out of the security house, his fangs looking bloodied.


    I growled when I saw him.


    ¡°Sorry, dog.¡± He said. ¡°Your men wouldn¡¯t let me in.¡±


    Javon Redding was my nemesis. He was the leader of the vampires in Misenium. Like any typical vampire, he was irresponsible and had impulse control issues.


    ¡°What are you doing at my house?¡±N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    ¡°I wanted to go to the pack mansion but I knew the security there would be tight,¡± he said. ¡°Besides, I¡¯ve been hearing that you have been spending too much time over here. I wonder what that¡¯s all about but I think that it might have to do with a certain girl who was with one of us when he went missing.¡±


    I bared my teeth and felt my fangs protruding. If he knew that I had a human mate, her life would be in danger. Nothing was supposed to happen to her.


    ¡°Calm down. I don¡¯t care about your issues but I care about that boy. He¡¯s my niece. I can only hope that you¡¯ve not killed him because if you did, the peace you want so much in this city would vanish and we would all go back to being our true selves, killing whoever got in our way.¡±


    ¡°Why would you think I had anything to do with that boy?¡±


    Javon started chuckling. ¡°Oh man, you really need to have better control of the women you trust. The little witch you used to around with agreed to do a locator spell. Apparently, you forgot that she is the one who did the protection spell on your house and can therefore get through the boundary. A jilted woman can be very dangerous. You shouldn¡¯t have ghosted her.¡±


    Oh hell. Lainey and I used to be in a casual rtionship but ever since I found my mate, I had lost interest in her.


    ¡°Oh well,e and take your boy,¡± I said. ¡°I no longer need him anyway.¡±


    I had been nning to release him that day because I knew everything I needed.


    ¡°This seems so easy. What are you up to?¡±


    ¡°Nothing,¡± I said. ¡°I don¡¯t need him anymore.¡±


    I was not surprised to see that the two guards I left were dead.  I left the driver to deal with the mess and went into the house.


    ¡°Why won¡¯t you invite me in?¡± Javon asked.


    I didn¡¯t dignify that with a response. I proceeded to the basement and opened the cage letting the vampire out. He was weak, because I had been feeding him with a few cups of animal blood which was not enough to keep him strong.


    ¡°You finally got back to your senses, huh?¡± he said.


    ¡°Your uncle is here,¡± I told him.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to tell him everything. You were asking a lot about thepany I work for. I think there¡¯s something you want from there and I¡¯m going to make sure you don¡¯t get it.¡±


    I chuckled. ¡°Foolish boy. Tell him whatever you want. I already bought thepany, and you are officially fired.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Get out.¡±


    He thought he could have thestugh, but things did not turn out the way he wanted. He walked away and I followed him to make sure he left my house without causing any trouble.


    Now I had to ensure that he stayed away from my woman, and the best way to do that was to get before anyone else.


    I intended to make my move the next day without fail. My pack needed their queen home where she would be safe.

 The conference

    Maya


    ¡°I¡¯m here for the Future of Insurance Conference,¡± I told the receptionist at Blue Landmark Hotel.


    ¡°From whichpany?¡± One of them asked, scanning a paper with names.


    ¡°Milner,¡± I reply, ncing around the lobby.


    ¡°Sign here,¡± she instructed, handing me a blue pen and pushing the paper towards me. ¡°Aren¡¯t you a little bitte?¡±


    I nced at my watch. ¡°No, it¡¯s ten minutes to eleven. I should¡¯vee earlier but I had some things to take care of.¡±


    One of my students had to go for a writingpetition so I had to give her somest minute tutoring.


    ¡°The conference started at ten-thirty.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Yourpany¡¯s representatives came here at exactly ten.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been so busy but my assistant told me it was starting at 11,¡± I said, running towards the lower conference room. Thank God it was on the ground floor.


    As ill luck would have it, Zane Carrington, our CEO was giving his speech when I got to the room. I scanned the room for an empty seat and noticed one next to Edward, the Financial Manager of our biggest rival, Landmark Insurance whose owner owned the hotel as well. I tried to ignore the sound of my heels clicking loudly against the floor as I walked in, disrupting everyone. The CEOs seated at the front where there is a tform were watching me and I was sure Mr. Carrington was seething with rage.


    Edward did not acknowledge my presence when I sat on the chair next to his. Not that I cared. When Mr. Carrington finished his speech, Harry turned and we made eye contact. He held a nk expression. He turned away immediately and I knew I was in hot soup. The CEO and everyone else was angry at me. I didn¡¯t even want to imagine what they¡¯d do when they found out I had another job.


    At lunch time, Edward finally spoke to me. He asked me to sit with him and I agreed which ended up in me getting asional weird nces from Harry and my Milner colleagues. I regretted agreeing because that was like betraying thepany although it was not illegal. Like I imagined, Edward turned out to be quite an interesting character.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t think there was anything good at Milner but I¡¯m now convinced I was wrong,¡± his smile was perfect, teeth aligned perfectly. He was a suitable distraction and maybe if I flirted with him more, I¡¯d be able to forget Harry and Zane.¡±


    Iughed. ¡°Now that you¡¯ve realized, what are you going to do about it?¡±


    He bit his bottom lip, a smile ying on his handsome face. He looked so good and his skin was so smooth. ¡°What would you suggest?¡±


    I chuckled, shaking my head. ¡°Let¡¯s eat.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m serious,¡± he said.


    I opened my purse and scanned the surroundings to make sure none of Milner¡¯s staff was watching. Removing my business card, I pushed it across the table. He held my gaze while picking it up and inserting it into his shirt¡¯s pocket. It was time for a new beginning.


    At the end of the conference, I had to face everyone when Sara asked us to converge to sign for our allowances. I was thest to sign and she informed me that Mr. Carrington wanted to have a word with me. My heart was racing as I walked towards the CEO who was about to enter his car.Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    ¡°Get to my office first thing tomorrow morning,¡± he said and got in.


    As the car drove away, I looked around. Harry had already left. Kim went too far this time and she was going to hear it from me. I felt so much anger and was d she was not in the vicinity because I would have ended up in jail. She was not yet ready for what I was going to do to her.


    I withdrew my hand again, instead of opening the door. I was pretty sure that my time at Milner insurancepany was over. The fact that I had been summoned directly to the CEO¡¯s office and not the disciplinarymittee or human resources was a very bad sign. I was anxious and could feel my body getting sweaty.


    ¡°Get in here.¡±


    I face palmed, remembering that there was a CCTV camera above the CEO¡¯s door. I reached out and opened the door before gently closing it. His assistant was away again. I stepped forward and opened the screen door then stepped in.


    ¡°Good morning, sir. I know this is about what happened yesterday but I¡¯m really sorry. My assistant gave me the wrong schedule. I have never beente for an important meeting.¡±


    ¡°Thest time you were here, you werete. Tell me, miss Bet, was that not important?¡±


    ¡°It was, and I¡¯m deeply sorry.¡±


    ¡°It seems to be a habit of yours, going everywhere at your own timing. Do you know what that makes thispany look like?¡±


    I nodded. The man looked angry, and rightly so. If I were in his position, I would think the same about me. I had not made the best impression.


    ¡°You said you would never bete again,¡± he said ¡°but it happened.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± was all I could say. Anything else came out as an excuse for my behaviour.


    ¡°I wanted to suspend you, but I won¡¯t. You will be my assistant for seven working days, doing all the work he has been doing. The man deserves a leave.¡±


    ¡°An assistant?¡± I said in shock. Being suspended was better than that. How did he think this was better than suspension? Being an administrative assistant was almost like being someone¡¯s servant. Don¡¯t quote me wrong. There is nothing wrong with that job, but I had worked so hard to climb the ranks and have a better position. That was like being demoted. ¡°I¡¯d rather get that suspension, Mr. Carrington. You can even refuse to pay me for a month.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m the one who makes the decisions here. So, it¡¯s either that or you leave thepany.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± this man was not serious. I wanted to give him a piece of my mind but I breathed in and calmed myself down.


    I did not have a family, neither did I have a man. All I had was my career, and if I lost it, life would have no meaning.


    Reluctantly, I epted.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± I said.


    He nodded, with a smile. ¡°Good, I¡¯ll have your senior handle your roles for now.¡±


    ¡°Did you know that you¡¯re such a big bastard, Mr. Carrington?¡± I wanted to say, but instead forced a smile.

 COO

    Zane¡¯s POV


    I didn¡¯t n it, in fact I had no idea how I was going to get closer to Maya, but things just fell into ce. It seemed my very human mate had a terrible w ofteing, which worked in my favor that day. It was so perfect, that she wouldn¡¯t suspect of having ulterior motives. She probably thought I was just another evil CEO punishing an errant employee.


    I could see her on the other side, working at her desk. She was typing so fast I was surprised they buttons on the keyboard had not fallen off. I could tell she was boiling with anger, but what could I do? Now that I finally had her near, I wasn¡¯t about to let her go.


    Having her as my assistant was great because now I could stare at her as much as I wanted. I took time to observe her extremely beautiful features. Her brown hair was wavy and long. I liked the way it cascaded on the sides of her pretty face. Those lips! They looked so hot, so full and kissable.


    She was wearing a very conservative blouse and skirt that I wished I could rip off and devour her right there. I had been sporting an erection since she entered my office and it was getting ufortable. I wanted her so much that it hurt. The fact that she was so near and yet so far made things unbearable. Maybe it was better when she was far away. All I wanted was to pull her into my arms, kiss her senseless and give her the best sex of her life.


    Unable to take it anymore, I stood up and went to her desk. She did not look up when I sat on the chair near her desk. She continued to type but the speed slowed down.


    ¡°What do you think about Kim Dalton?¡± I asked. It was the only topic I could think of on such short notice.


    ¡°On another day, I would have lied and said she¡¯s a nice girl and whatnot but not today. Kim Dalton is a scheming little b! tch. I know she wants my job, and possibly to ruin my life. What I don¡¯t know is why because I have never done anything bad to her. That¡¯s all I can say.¡±


    I believed her, but I didn¡¯t want to show it. I knew how to deal with women like Kim and soon she was going to get what she deserved.


    ¡°What about Harry smith?¡± I asked.


    Maya nced at me. ¡°Mr. Carrington, if you¡¯re looking for office gossip, you might have to look elsewhere. I do not partake in it.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m asking as your boss.¡±


    Maya stood up. ¡°You want to fire me? Do it, Mr. Carrington. I loved working in thispany but I¡¯m willing to leave if I¡¯m not treated with respect. Yes, I know I did wrong but I¡¯m serving my punishment already. If you want me to continue respecting you, you will have to respect my boundaries. We both have to respect each other or this won¡¯t work. I can¡¯t deal with this.¡±


    I was shocked. She had seemed so meek before, but I could see that she had another side. Maya Bet was a fiery little creature. There was a fire that burned bright inside her.


    She could stand up for herself, and I liked that. She was strong, and knew when to bring out just like a good luna should. I had not yet thought much about her future with me. I wanted to study her first before deciding whether to ept her as a mate or not.


    The chances of me epting her had just increased. My little kitty had balls.


    ¡°It¡¯s my turn to say sorry,¡± I said and she sat back down. She looked so stressed I felt like pulling her close to me. The more I looked at her beautiful, wless face, the more I wanted to kiss her so hard. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for not respecting your boundaries and the decision not to talk about Harry Smith.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± she said.N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    I stood up. ¡°I¡¯ll step out for a bit.¡±


    I felt relieved when I went out. The sexual tension in there had grown. Without her sweet intoxicating scent, it was easier to rx from outside. I walked along the hallway and went to the floor below to supervise the employees in the cubicle area. I figured it would help me take my mind off things.


    In all honesty, I did not know much about insurance but ever since I took over thepany, I had been reading a lot of books on it so that I wouldn¡¯t sound like a total idiot among the partners. Thanks to my werewolf nature, I could read and understand things faster than humans. My memory was also sharper.


    After making sure that all was going well, I decided to check on my COO (Chief Operating Officer) to make sure everything was going well. I had maintained the old COO although I was not very sure it was a good decision since he was close to the former owner. He could easily betray me but I could only hope it wouldn¡¯te to that because the consequences would not be good. My COO was very much older than me. He was 46 years old and had a lot of experience in insurance, just like Mr. Milner.


    I reached the office and knocked. I heard a scuffle inside, chairs being pushed and fast movement. The smelling from inside was enough to tell me what was going on. But, I didn¡¯t leave. I needed to know who the man was screwing.


    ¡°It¡¯s me,¡± I said.


    The door was opened almost immediately. Mr. Harlow looked conflicted, as if he wanted to invite me inside and knew it was not a good thing.


    ¡°It seems you¡¯re busy,¡± I said. ¡°Pleasee to my officeter.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir.¡± He said, looking relieved.


    I turned away and when I heard the door close behind me, I got my phone and dialed a number.


    ¡°Who was thest person to enter Harlow¡¯s office?¡± I asked one of my men whom I had out in charge of the security room.


    ¡°Let me check,¡± he said.


    I took the stairs as I waited.


    ¡°It¡¯s that girl who was working as your assistant when Johnny had ident.¡±


    ¡°Kim Dalton?¡±


    ¡°I think so.¡±


    That did not surprise me at all, but it helped know who I wasn¡¯t going to keep as COO.

 Harlow

    Kim


    Grimacing, I pushed Harlow¡¯s disgusting body off me and jumped out of the bed. I wished I didn¡¯t have to do what I was doing. It was good that he didn¡¯t like kissing. Ew! Imagine if I had to do that with a man like him but you know what they say. You have to kiss many frogs to find your prince. That¡¯s what I was trying to do and the prince was Zane Carrington. He was perfect, even his surname said so. I wondered if his mother knew he¡¯d turn out to be so hot when she named him.


    Zane Carrington had dropped me on the way after promising more but I did not hold that against him. He had looked fairly disturbed. Maybe he was not good at handling stress. There are people whosh out at others when they¡¯re stressed. When I first joined thepany, I wanted Harry Smith, but after meeting Zane and working in his office, Harry Smith was no longer interesting to me.


    I hurried to the bathroom and scrubbed myself so hard as if I¡¯d just been rolling in animal waste. I didn¡¯t even want to think of what had just happened. I decided to focus on the main goal. Getting Maya out of my way. Sometimes, you have to make great sacrifices in order to get what you want.


    When I got back to the room, Harlow was seated on the edge of the bed. I groaned before picking my clothes and putting them on while he typed something in his phone.


    ¡°So, when are you firing her?¡± I asked, putting on my ck tight sweater. ¡°I don¡¯t want to be anywhere close to you again, dirty old man.¡±


    He stood up and moved towards me. ¡°Don¡¯t pressure me. Maya is the junior actuarial officer and if you don¡¯t know that¡¯s a very important position in thepany. It¡¯s hard to find good recements especially if the one leaving is as excellent as Maya.¡±


    ¡°You know I want that position so you better get to it,¡± I told him. Everyone acted like Maya was some kind of perfect person and it made me so angry. I didn¡¯t think there was anything she could do that I couldn¡¯t, except ying ser which I was not interested in.


    ¡°There are so many things you don¡¯t know, young girl.¡± He said, sitting on the bed. I wished I didn¡¯t have to see his hairy body. ¡°One is that rich people have all the power in this country. You can act like you¡¯re all that but I could make you disappear and no one will ever find your body. You might have a stupid video but I¡¯m not sure you¡¯ll still be having it by the end of the day. Stop acting like those horrible actresses on TV.¡±


    ¡°Say what you want but you should know that I may be poor but I¡¯m definitely not stupid,¡± I turned my phone and showed it to him. I had dialed Mane¡¯s number and he recorded the whole call. Harlow snatched my phone and stared at it before throwing it against the wall. I gasped and ran to pick up the important pieces like the battery which I could sell. Harlow knew how poor and desperate i was so I was not ashamed of gathering thest remains of my phone.


    ¡°You little-¡± he stood up, heading towards me.


    ¡°Kill me now if you want,¡± I was so angry I didn¡¯t feel intimidated by his death re. How dare he destroy the one thing I treasured most? My breathing had quickened and I just wanted to get out of the stupid hotel room.


    ¡°Who was listening?¡±


    ¡°He wasn¡¯t just listening, he recorded it. You rich people like to think you¡¯re everything. Now let¡¯s see what your power will do for you.¡± I almost knocked him over when I passed by his side. ¡°You better think of firing Maya if you know what¡¯s good for you.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t do anything right now. She¡¯s serving her punishment at CEO¡¯s office and you know he¡¯s more superior. I would need her to make another mistake.¡±


    ¡°You will have to figure out something.¡±Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    I had arranged to meet up with my friend J at a bar but I was forced to cancel on her. I was too stressed. I knew I might end up drinking too much then I would be the one that got fired. I was still angry that Maya Bet had not got a heavier punishment. Being the CEO¡¯s assistant for a week did not seem like such a bad idea, especially when he was that hot. The only constion I got was that Maya probably hated being a lowly assistant. It was time for her to get a taste of her own medicine. She liked bossing me around but it was now happening to her.


    My street was fairly quiet that day, which was a good thing. I was able to think without being interrupted by a bunch of rowdy kids. I didn¡¯t like my neighborhood because there were a lot of people, which made it really irritating. Luckily, I made it to my block without meeting anyone I knew.


    My lips parted when I found my door open. I was very sure I had closed it before leaving. Inside was a mess. Clothes, papers, shoes were strewn all over the ce. I searched for my original academic documents which I always kept under my mattress and they were gone.


    ¡°No no no!¡± I yelled, hands on both sides of my head. ¡°This can¡¯t be happening.¡±


    Now who could have done this? Did Harlow send someone? Was Maya getting back at me for giving her the wrong time and therefore getting her into trouble? I copsed onto the ground as tears rolled down my face. It was clear I had gotten myself into one big mess.


    I remembered Harlow¡¯s words. He had said he could make me disappear if he wanted. Was he the one who had taken the most important things I owned?

 Monday morning

    It was a typical Monday morning at the office, and I was already feeling overwhelmed. Zane was making me work like a horse and it was wearing me out. It reminded me of my internship when I used to do nearly all the work for my boss. I had a stack of paperwork on my desk and was busy scheduling meetings and conference calls for Zane. As I was sifting through some client documents, I was summoned to his office.


    ¡°Good morning, Mr. Carrington,¡± I said with a fake cheerful smile. ¡°I hope you had a good weekend.¡±


    ¡°It was okay,¡± Zane replied distractedly. ¡°I spent most of it preparing for this week. I¡¯ve got a lot on my te, as you can see.¡±


    I nodded, failing to feel any sympathy for him. After demoting me like he had, I hated him more than anyone else. I couldn¡¯t wait for the remaining three days to end so I could go back to my work. I had started applying for work in otherpanies as well. ¡°I can imagine. Is there anything specific you need me to take care of for you today?¡±


    He seemed to think for a moment, before handing me a stack of papers. ¡°I want you to review these financial reports and send them to the ounting department. And can you also schedule a meeting with the marketing team to discuss the possibility of a new ad campaign? I want to make sure we¡¯ll be able tounch one next month. Viewers must be tired of the old ones.¡±


    I nodded and took the papers from him. ¡°Of course, Mr. Carrington. Is there anything else you want me to do?¡±


    ¡°You should ensure that the invitations for thepany holiday party have been sent. And ask Zora to order some new office supplies. We¡¯re running low on pens and paper.¡±


    My smile faltered slightly, but I nodded. ¡°Yes, Mr. Carrington. I¡¯ll take care of everything. Is there anything else?¡± At that point, I was ready to bolt. I had not been ordered around for quite a while. Aaron who had been my senior treated me like an equal.


    He shook his head. ¡°No, I think that¡¯s it for now.¡±


    ¡°No problem, Mr. Carrington,¡± I said with a forced smile. ¡°I¡¯m always happy to help out.¡±


    As I left the room, I couldn¡¯t help feeling a little overwhelmed. I had a lot of work to do, and it seemed like Zane was giving me more and more tasks every day. I knew it was part of my job, but sometimes I couldn¡¯t help feeling like he was intentionally trying to wear me out. Still, I was determined to do my best and make sure everything got done on time. Getting fired would be worse than ving under him. Until I got a good job offer, I had to continue biting my tongue.


    Just when I thought it couldn¡¯t get worse, it did. Zane started making me workte with him. It seemed he was a workaholic with no life. I was convinced that he was making me stay longer so that my life could be as miserable as his.N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    One evening, he made me stay and review the ad campaign with him. That was the first time I enjoyed working with Zane. He didn¡¯t act all bossy, and we went through everything like colleagues. We even found ourselves talking about our lives outside thepany. It was weird but it made me feel morefortable around him, a lot tofortable I might add. I evenughed at something he said.


    ¡°Augh? This is the first time I¡¯ve heard youughing.¡±


    ¡°Well, you won¡¯t be hearing much of it when you go back to boss mode,¡± I said, watching his face. He was really handsome, even more so when he was smiling and rxed. He looked hot and sexy when he yelled and acted bossy, but he looked nice and sweet when he was calm. If a phone call had not made him return to his office, I didn¡¯t know what I would have done in that moment.


    When he went to his office, I drafted an email he had asked me to send to one of the partners. The office was quiet, with only the sound of typing and the hum of the fluorescent lights filling the air.


    Suddenly, the door to the office flew open and Zane stormed out. He was visibly upset and I could tell that he had been pacing back and forth in the office because of the movement I¡¯d been hearing.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe this!¡± Zane said, running his hand through his hair. ¡°I just got off the phone with the client and they¡¯re demanding for a redo the entire project. What kind of ipetent staff work in thispany?¡±


    I stood up and tried to calm him down. I was not only worried for me but also the other employees. I had noticed that Zane had some anger issues and who knew what would happen if he lost control. He could fire all of us. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. We can figure this out. We¡¯ll work on it again and make sure it¡¯s done right.¡±


    Zane shook his head. ¡°If this isn¡¯t fixed within a few hours, we might lose the partnership. I don¡¯t know anything about insurance. I should have never bought thispany¡± He looked genuinely sad.


    ¡°I know almost everything about insurance and I have the numbers of everyone who worked on the project. We can fix this.¡±


    While speaking, I found myself reaching out to touch his arm in aforting gesture. But in the heat of the moment, I leaned in too close and our lips identally met in a brief, unexpected kiss.


    We both froze, my eyes wide with shock. I quickly pulled back, my face flushing red with embarrassment.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, Mr. Carrington. I didn¡¯t mean to-¡±


    But Zane surprised me by chuckling and waving his hand dismissively. ¡°It¡¯s okay. It was just an ident. Let¡¯s just focus on fixing this project and forget about it.¡±


    I nodded, still feeling mortified. What the hell had I done? Most importantly, where did I get the courage to do that? We spent the next two hours working on the project together, trying to put the awkward moment behind us.


    That night, I couldn¡¯t stop thinking of the brief kiss and how it had made me feel. In a few seconds, my entire body had lit up. Although I told myself that it would never happen again, I wished to feel that again. The more I thought about, the more I became convinced that I was infatuated with Jake. I had been crushing on him since the day I saw him. The work he had been giving me had only distracted me from what I felt. Last night¡¯s kiss had brought everything back and I was starting to get worried. This could never end well.


    As Zane walked into the room the next morning, my heart skipped a beat. I couldn¡¯t believe the feelings that were coursing through my body. I had always prided myself on being professional and maintaining boundaries in the workce, but I couldn¡¯t deny the attraction I felt towards my boss. And, it was all because of that damn kiss.


    I tried to push the thoughts to the back of my mind as I put more focus on my work, but they kept creeping back up. I couldn¡¯t help but sneak nces at his outline as he moved about his office, and I found myself daydreaming about what it would be like to be in hisrge arms.


    As the day went on, my worry grew. I knew that falling in love with the new CEO would be a huge mistake. He was my boss, and it would be inappropriate for us to pursue a rtionship. But as much as I tried, I couldn¡¯t shake the feelings that were growing inside of me.


    I knew that I needed to do something about my feelings before they got out of hand. I decided to take some time to focus on work and try to put the attraction out of my mind. It wouldn¡¯t be easy, but I was determined to keep my job and not mess it up because of mere feelings.

 Twenty

    Kim


    At first, I was happy that Maya was demoted for a week. I thought it would be the beginning of the end for her. But, when the night guard told me he had seen them kissing, I lost it. I had failed to even get a hug from Zane but Maya already got a kiss. Although the man told me it was brief, my anger did not reduce. Zane was supposed to be mine, I did whatever he wanted me to do and worked on my appearance.


    After Harlow¡¯s destruction of my house, I needed someone higher than him and Zane was the only one. If I was on Zane¡¯s good side, Harlow wouldn¡¯t be able to get to me. Besides, I could get him fired. The good thing I had proof that we had slept together. I could allege sexual harassment and he would be toast. I had to create distance between Zane and Maya but I couldn¡¯t do it alone. There was only one person who could help, a person I knew was interested in Maya.


    ¡°I still can¡¯t believe they¡¯ve kissed already,¡± I sighed as I leaned back in my chair. ¡°Soon Zane might start dating that woman.¡±


    Harry¡¯s bedroom was dimly lit, the only lighting from a smallmp on the nightstand. The curtains were drawn, blocking out the outside world. Our bodies were tangled up in the sheets, our breathing slow and steady as we spooned. His rock-hard muscr body felt good, so much better than that stupid old Harlow.


    Harry¡¯s long arms were wrapped around my petite body and it felt good. Convincing him to work with me had been hard but my efforts had paid off in the end. Very few men could resist my hot body when offered to them on a silver tter. One look at my naked body and Harry¡¯s mind had stopped working, turned into mush within seconds. It annoyed me than Zane acted as if he didn¡¯t want him, but that was going to change soon.


    ¡°I know, right?¡± Harry nodded in agreement. ¡°I have known Maya for a while and she has never been this impulsive. She¡¯s always very careful and now this man is changing her. We need to do something about it. I love her and I can¡¯t bear to see her get taken away from me by some stranger.¡±


    I turned to face him, filled with excitement. ¡°You know what we should do? We should break them up. If we can get rid of him, maybe Maya will start focusing on you again.¡±


    Harry raised an eyebrow before stealing a quick kiss. ¡°How do you propose we do that?¡±Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    I grinned wickedly. ¡°We could start by finding some dirt on him. Maybe dig up some old skeletons in his closet. Or we could try to seduce one of them. Either way, we just need to create some tension and chaos between them. It¡¯ll be easy.¡±


    Harry hesitated, his conscience warring with his ambition. ¡°I don¡¯t know, Kim. That seems pretty hical.¡±


    I rolled my eyes. ¡°Ethics are for idiots. We need to do whatever it takes to get the people we love back. And if breaking up the CEO and Maya is what it takes, then that¡¯s what we¡¯ll do.¡±


    Harry sighed. ¡°Fine. But we have to be careful. If we get caught, we¡¯ll be finished.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, harry. We¡¯ll be careful. And with a little bit of luck and some clever nning, we¡¯ll have them broken up in no time. You¡¯re the man here. I should be the one who is scared not you. No wonder Maya prefers him. You¡¯re too chicken.¡±


    ¡°Hey, you don¡¯t need to insult me, okay. I¡¯m helping you not the other way round. I can get Maya without your help.¡±


    ¡°So, why are you here?¡± I asked him. Without me, he was going to lose.


    ¡°I¡¯m lonely, and I¡¯ll take what I can get since Maya won¡¯t give me any.¡±


    ¡°Okay, get out. I can do this by myself anyway. I nearly got Maya fired without your help. I know things that can actually get rid of her.¡±


    ¡°So, why haven¡¯t you got rid of her?¡±


    ¡°Because Zane feels something for her or he would have fired her already. I don¡¯t trust that man. He has hate her before he can fire her. I know you don¡¯t want her to be fired.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why I epted too be part of this. To keep you in check so you don¡¯t do something to harm the woman I love. Maya has to keep her job so whatever dirt you have on her, keep it buried. I¡¯m curious, though. Maya is a straight person, not a crook like you. What could she possibly do that could get her fired.¡±


    I smiled. ¡°I won¡¯t tell you now. It¡¯s too risky. You might ruin my ns for her if you do.¡±


    ¡°But why do you hate Maya so much yet she has never done anything to you.¡±


    ¡°Some bad things happened to me because of her. This is my chance to get my revenge.¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°None of your business.¡± In reality, nothing had happened. Maya was just in the way of me getting what I wanted, a good job like hers and a rich young man. I was also jealous that Maya¡¯s life was too easy while mine was a mess.


    ¡°Whatever,¡± Harry said before pulling me closer and kissing me roughly.


    As I slept, my dreams were filled with schemes and plots, of taking over the world and ruling it with an iron fist. I dreamed of power and sess, of being feared and respected by all.


    But for now, I was content to rest in a man¡¯s arms, lost in our own private world of dangerous darkness. I knew that when I woke up, I would have to face the challenges of the day and make more ns, but for now, I just needed to rx and have a good time.


    Sooner orter, Maya was going to go down and I was going to be happy. I wanted to take everything she had and more. She was going to end up alone and bitter as I had been for most of my life. The tables were about to turn, and I couldn¡¯t wait for that day to reach.

 High

    Maya


    When I returned to my office, I noticed that Kim was acting different. She was quite civil and refrained from making impertinentments that used to annoy me. She even apologized to me for what she did. I didn¡¯t know what was going on with her but I hoped it would continue. She was much more bearable with her mouth closed. I found it odd that she worked really hard during those days and was willing to help out.


    Zane and I had barely talked since the time we identally kissed which was a relief for me because I couldn¡¯t tell how the conversation would go. The staff at thepany got busier towards the end of the month so there was that too. There were reports to write, projects to evaluate, meetings and so much data to analyze leaving very little time for chitchat among us all. Somehow we all survived and thest week rolled by.


    Something took me to the main notice board on thest Friday of the month. I was shocked to see that Kim had won the Employee of the Month award. It was not that I was jealous but there were employees who deserved the award more than Kim and I. I didn¡¯t think it was fair for a newbie assistant to win because some people had been working diligently for thepany for so many years. Disappointed, I walked away.


    ¡°Disappointing, right?¡± Sara, a workmate said when she met meing from the direction of the noticeboard.


    I nodded, agreeing with her. I was not a fan of her opinions but I thought she was right that time.


    ¡°Congrattions,¡± I told Kim as I opened my office door, making sure not to make eye contact with her. I was angry at Kyle Miller, the HR who was is in charge of the award. Why was I, Kim¡¯s direct supervisor not contacted regarding the matter? I had a feeling there was more to it than met the eye but I had too much work to get involved.


    Ten minutes to lunch break, the door opened and Harry walked in. He had a habit of never knocking when he knew I was alone in the office. Had we not been friends, I¡¯d have thought it was disrespectful. But then again, he was my superior so it was okay.


    ¡°Afternoon, Maya.¡± He smiled. He was a wearing a blue suit and it was slightly bigger than his usual size but looked good. His ck shoes were shiny as always. ¡°I found this new restaurant in town that I¡¯d like us to try.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry but I have ns,¡± I lied. I was not in the mood forpany. Lately, Harry had be flirtier than usual and it made me ufortable around him. Now, before Zane, I would have been the happiest if Harry had asked me out, but now things were different. My mind was a mess and I needed to kick the CEO out of it before entertaining other men.


    ¡°With Anna?¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°Edward.¡±


    ¡°Edward from Landmark Insurance?¡± He asked, his eyes lingering on my face. I was not sure whether his expression was one of sadness or disappointment. Regardless of what it was, I don¡¯t like seeing him that way but it had to be done.


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± he said and walked out before I could say another word. I pulled out my phone and started dialing Edward¡¯s number. When Edward didn¡¯t pick, I called another friend of mine and left the office.


    When I returned, Kim was not yet back. A few minutester, there was a knock on the door.


    ¡°Come in,¡± I said.


    My heart almost stopped when I saw Zane Carrington walking in. He was looking very handsome in a dark blue suit.


    As he strode in, I stood up, my heart pounding loud against my chest


    ¡°Good afternoon, Mr. Carrington.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s been a while,¡± he said. ¡°I have not forgotten that kiss.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, it was idental. I didn¡¯t mean to¡­¡±


    ¡°Do you regret that it happened?¡± he asked, his green eyes boring into mine.


    I shook my head and he stepped closer. He looked in my eyes. For a moment I wondered what he was up to but that was soon forgotten because he kissed me. His lips are were as soft as I¡¯d imagined many times. I had not got enough time to feel them the other day. My body melted into his when he ced his hands around my waist, pulling me closer. With our bodies pressed together and lips locked, everything was perfect. The world and its problems were soon forgotten. All that mattered was him.


    When one of his hands found its way under my top, I pulled away remembering that we were in the office.


    ¡°We can¡¯t,¡± I said.


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°Not here,¡± I said, surprising myself. At any other time, I may have yed hard to get and acted like this was not what I wanted. But, on that day, I couldn¡¯t. I said the truth because there was a possibility that would be my only chance to experience the wonders of Zane Carrington.


    Zane gave me a lingering peck on the lips. ¡°I¡¯ll take you home.¡±


    He waited for me finish packing my essentials and we walked together into the elevator. When we got out, people in the ground floor stared at us. Sherry couldn¡¯t even hide the shock on her face. I felt great, like the most beautiful woman in the world. In that moment, I was on top of the world.


    Zane drove me to an apartment in an upscale neighborhood. We didn¡¯t talk much during the ride as we were both engrossed in our thoughts. The apartment was ssy, cool and luxurious as I¡¯d expected. It had a great view of the city. Nearly everything in it was white which made me feel veryfortable. The top notch cleanliness and neatness made me feel dirty and a bit out of ce.


    ¡°Would you like a drink?¡± Zane asked. My stomach did a backflip when I nced at his handsome face. I didn¡¯t care for a drink, but also I was not sure I was ready for an important man like him to see the whole of me.


    ¡°Water, please.¡±


    Zane walked towards the kitchen and brought cold bottled water and a ss. After that, he returned to the kitchen. As I poured water into a ss, I heard him walking in. He ced a bottle of wine and two sses on the table before standing up.


    My body stiffened when he touched my shoulders with his smooth hands, making my skin warm up. I felt him lean closer and a breath of warm air fanned my skin. This sent a charge through my body, making ite alive instantly.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± I inquired, making no attempt to stop him. I felt a shiver travel down my spine and leaned to the left side so he could have more ess. My lips parted when I felt his on the base of my neck. I wanted him to take me right there and I knew in my heart that I was desperate for it.


    His right hand travelled to my waist, exploring it slowly and I turned around to face the beautiful man I wanted so much. His eyes burned into mine with intensity.


    He nted an electrifying kiss on my mouth and I gave in to my needs, kissing him back. I moved closer until our bodies were pressed against each other and I could feel the heat on his.


    When we pulled away, we stare at each other in silence not knowing what to say. Suddenly, Harry lifted me up and carried me past the living towards the bedroom. At that point, I didn¡¯t care about anything else except being with him. It didn¡¯t matter that he was my superior and we were probably making a big mistake. What mattered was the way he was looking at me as if I was the most beautiful thing he¡¯d ever seen. I was begging myself not have second thoughts because I needed this more than I had ever needed anything before.


    Within a few minutes, we had discarded all our clothes and Zane had positioned me on top of him while hey on his back. I lowered myself down to his rock hard cock. It was bigger that any I had tried before so it took a while to have the whole length inside me. My insides were going wild as if filled me up.


    I sighed. As I rode him, I felt the sweetest sensations and moaned helplessly because it felt so damn good. Zane¡¯s hands were on my waist, helping me get maximum pleasure as I pleased him as well. I could hear soft groans from him as I rod faster to my climax.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    When I reached that sweet high, I copsed on top of him before continuing for his sake. I watched his face as he came. Seeing that expression made me smile as I pulled myself off him.

 Two people

    Maya


    It was weird how situations could change in such a short time. Two hours back, I would never have imagined that I¡¯d be lying naked next to mypany¡¯s new CEO with my arm on his stomach. My head was near his chest and I could feel the rhythm of his breathing. He was staring at the ceiling, his mind lost in thought. Maybe this was a terrible mistake, or maybe not. But, I knew it changed everything between us.


    I was not sure about my thoughts on the situation. I couldn¡¯t stop worrying about what would happen to us. Did he want a rtionship or nothing to do with me? I was worried he was going to toss me out like some useless garbage. It was only after sex that I got back to my senses and remembered that he had once walked out of the building with Kim and they had never been seen together again. Was that going to happen to me as well?


    It hurt to think that the beautiful moments we had shared had to be put in the past when we both went back to our lives. He drove me to heights I¡¯ve never reached before, making me feel I was out of this Earth. How could anyone want to forget that?


    After some time, I stepped out of bed and went to the bathroom to clean up. When I returned, Zane was still lying on the bed. I started picking up my clothes


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± he asked, using his elbow to keep his upper body propped up.


    ¡°I need to leave,¡± I said while putting on my underwear. I avoided eye contact because I was not ready to face what we have done at that moment. I didn¡¯t want to hear him say it, that it was just a one-time thing.


    ¡°Okay,¡± he said. The fact that he did not insist made me even sadder. He just watched me in silence as I dressed up.


    ¡°Goodbye,¡± I said when I was done.


    ¡°George will take you home,¡± he said.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright, I¡¯ll get a taxi.¡±


    ¡°Not happening. You left your car at the office because of me. I¡¯ll ensure that you get home safely.¡±


    As I walked towards the door. It felt like I was walking out of his life forever which broke my heart. When I nced back, he gave me a weak smile.


    What had I done to myself? He was probably thinking he just made the worst mistake of his life. They say bad luck strikes inrge doses and now I was starting to believe there was truth to that. I wondered what else the universe is sending my way. I had been stupid to think that I could just have sex with a man like Zane and forget it. He was not a random man from the bar, but someone I actually had strong feelings for.


    When I reached home, I showered and waited for Anna. We had nned to watch a world cup match together on TV.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe Zane kissed you,¡± she said five minutes to the start of the match. She was seated on the carpeted floor while I was lying on the couch. Next to her was a half-full ss of cold soda. I had not told her everything I did with Zane.  I lied to her that we went to his house to finish some work and he kissed me then I left. ¡°You¡¯re so lucky. I¡¯ve seen that man and he is the hottest thing that ever walked this city.¡±


    I forced a smile.


    ¡°You¡¯re so lucky,¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s a pity he hasn¡¯t called yet.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, he¡¯ll probably never call but that¡¯s okay. I don¡¯t care about that man.¡±N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    ¡°Because you have Harry,¡± she pressed the unlock button on her phone and stared at the screen as if she was expecting a message.


    ¡°Shut up,¡± Iughed, hitting the top of her head lightly. ¡°Let¡¯s watch the game. I don¡¯t want to miss even one single moment.¡±


    We watched the yers get into their positions. Ten minutes into the match, there was a knock on the door. Anna and I nced at each other. She smiled.


    ¡°Expecting someone?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Two people,¡± she told me, getting up.


    ¡°Why did you have to ruin the game by inviting more people?¡± I wanted to watch the game with her and not a crowd of people. ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me about this.¡±


    She shrugged and went to open the door while I waited to find out who dared to intrude on our best friend time.


    ¡°Oh no,¡± I said on seeing the intruders. Harry hugged Anna and walked in, leaving his cousin Nicky with her.  The two of them had a friends with benefits arrangement because they liked each other but didn¡¯t want to be in rtionships.


    ¡°How¡¯s my favorite actuarial officer doing?¡±


    A smile crept up my face. ¡°Why are you here?¡±


    ¡°To watch the game with you?¡± He said, kneeling in front of the couch. His face was now very close to mine.


    ¡°Can you please sit like a normal person?¡± I asked, sitting up and putting my legs on the floor.


    I looked towards the door and saw that Anna had disappeared with Nicky. So, this was her n to get away from me. Thanks to my horrible best friend, I was stuck with Harry, the one person I didn¡¯t want to be with after what I had done. To make things worse, he chose to sit right next to me. I felt his warm thigh against mine and inhaled.


    I had a feeling that evening was going to be a long one. I was pretty sure Harry was going to say things that I didn¡¯t want to hear and I was going to have to turn him down, something I was not looking forward to. Whatever was about to happen would decide the fate of our friendship. I liked Harry, and I didn¡¯t want to lose him.

 Ecstatic

    Kim


    The cheque was cashed, the money was in my hand bag and I felt ecstatic. Aside from the asional allowances, this was my first real pay from Milner Insurance. If I felt this happy now, how would it be when I got my sry? Being an adult wasn¡¯t so hard after all. Took me only about ten minutes to get this precious award and the money that came with it. It was so easy to win and I didn¡¯t have to work as hard as everyone might think. I mean everyone except Maya and Harry.  You couldn¡¯t fool those two and it was like their minds worked in the same way. If they got married they¡¯d probably have equally perfect kids.N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    It was unfortunate that she had rejected Harry, but we were not yet about to give up. Zane had left office with her just like he had done with me. She probably thought there was a chance. He had started avoiding me, and I knew that she was going to experience that soon. Zane was a jerk, and I loved jerks. Chasing them was exhrating and fun. I hated being with men who were all over me because I loved challenges. Getting Zane and Maya¡¯s job were the two things I wanted most and I knew it was going to be fun taking them away from her.


    Entering a mall, I tried on some nice clothes and shoes. For the first time in my life, I didn¡¯t care how much I spent, didn¡¯t have to worry about the price of every item. After all, I would be getting my sry soon. My dreams of livingrge were close.


    The HR manager, Kyle Miller and Harlow had refused to fire Maya unless I presented a valid reason to them. It was so hard to find something bad against Maya. The woman was like a saint, she never seemed to do anything wrong. I had tried to eavesdrop but never heard her say anything against thepany or its employees. Now I understood why everyone seemed to think she was perfect. But I didn¡¯t believe that. No one was perfect. There had to be something I could use against her.


    When I got to the dpidated building I lived in, Mane was waiting. He was leaning against the wall while scrolling through his phone. He was wearing that stupid pair of jeans he liked so much.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I said, putting my shopping bags on the ground to open the door. Mane was a big time crook but I loved having him on my side.


    ¡°Got paid?¡± he nced at the bags. I could see the greediness in his eyes. The man loved money, even more than I did, and that was saying something.


    ¡°I don¡¯t owe you anything,¡± I made it clear to him. If he thought that by working at a bigpany I¡¯d be like rich people and let myself be exploited, he was on the wrong side of the coffin.


    ¡°You will after you see what I¡¯m about to show you,¡± he said as we entered my tiny room.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure about that,¡± I rolled my eyes. ¡°What do you have?¡±


    ¡°Something that will interest you.¡±


    ¡°How much will it cost me?¡± I asked and he gave me an amount.


    ¡°That¡¯s too much. Besides, I haven¡¯t got my sry but I have some I got with my award. Show me what you have and we¡¯ll see about the moneyter.¡±


    He pulled out a cellphone from his pocket. ¡°Remember when you told me Maya and Harry were seeing each other on Wednesdays?¡±


    ¡°Yeah but Harry didn¡¯t leave on the next Wednesday so they were probably not going to the same ce.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±


    ¡°So what? Even if they were, it¡¯s not something illegal. Get to the point.¡±


    ¡°I followed her on the next Wednesday and found out what she was up to.¡± He showed me an image on his phone. It was one of Maya standing in front of a ck board. There were children in the room, some looking at her and others focusing on some equipment on their desks.


    ¡°Maya is a teacher?¡± I asked, narrowing my eyes.


    ¡°She is,¡± he gave a satisfied nod.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°She has another job as a teacher at Saint Felicity¡¯s center for blind children.¡±


    I remembered a use in my contract saying I couldn¡¯t hold another job of any kind. I believed the same applied to other employees as well.


    ¡°Oh Mane. I knew you weren¡¯t aplete idiot. Send me the photo now.¡±


    ¡°Wait, calm down. Money first.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll get paid on Friday,¡± I told him. ¡°I barely have any money left. Besides, that photo won¡¯t help you if I don¡¯t take it.¡±


    ¡°Not if I sell it to Maya.¡± He smirked, or at least tried to. I hope he never did it again because smirking wasn¡¯t for people like him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t dare mention her name here again,¡± I yelled at him. ¡°I¡¯ll work on it. I¡¯ll even give you extra. If I be a junior actuarial officer, I¡¯ll be supporting you. Don¡¯t ever forget that friendship is more important than all the money in the world.¡±


    ¡°Whatever,¡± he said, turning the television on.


    ¡°I wish I knew I was going to receive such great news,¡± I told my friend Mane. ¡°I¡¯d have bought some wine.¡±


    My day just turned out better than I could ever have imagined even in my wildest dreams. Now I had a solution to all my problems. Maya was getting out of Milner¡¯s and maybe I¡¯d be considered for her position since we studied the same course. The problem was that I didn¡¯t have nearly as much work experience as she did. I didn¡¯t need to worry about anything because Kyle would have to make sure no one else got hired for a job I could do.


    My life was about to change and I couldn¡¯t wait for the next day toe. I didn¡¯t care if Harry was going to be mad. If I got what I wanted, he could go to hell. He had nothing on me anyway.

 Inclined

    Maya


    As soon as I hanged up after speaking to a client on phone, I heard a soft knock on the door.


    ¡°Come in,¡± I said. I knew it was Kim because I had heard her footsteps a while ago. She thought I had not noticed that she was always eavesdropping. I wondered what incriminating things she hoped to hear from my mouth. I had decided to pretend not to notice it until she got fed up.


    She opened the door and entered my office. She was wearing a red blouse tucked into a ck pencil skirt. Her ponytail was a little bit too tight but it didn¡¯t seem to be causing any strain on her face.


    ¡°Miller¡¯s assistant says you¡¯re needed in the HR office,¡± her sharp eyes studied my face.


    My heart saw this as an opportunity to increase its beat. I pressed my fingers together and took a deep breath. I hope he hadn¡¯t found out that I worked at St. Felicity¡¯s during office days. I hadn¡¯t been at the center since the day I had to tutor a child before she went for apetition. The person with the photograph had not threatened me or asked for money so there was a possibility that I was safe.


    ¡°Is something wrong?¡± Kim asked. Sometimes I wished there were no consequences of pping people like her.


    ¡°Please leave me alone,¡± I told her. ¡°And make sure to tell the assistant that I¡¯ll be there soon.¡±


    I took a deep breath and wrung my hands before knocking on Mr. Miller¡¯s door. I¡¯d never been so nervous to enter a superior¡¯s office before.


    ¡°Good morning, Miss Bet.¡± He said and continued talking before I could say anything. ¡°I¡¯m so disappointed with you.¡±


    I didn¡¯t know what to say to that because I was not sure whether he knew about St. Felicity¡¯s or not. What did I do to disappoint a man who had always had a lot of praise for me?


    ¡°Good morning, Mr-¡±


    He shook his head, cutting me off. ¡°I know that you work at a center for blind children during office hours. You¡¯re a volunteer but that¡¯s still against thepany¡¯s code of conduct. Thispany needs your full concentration. If you choose to volunteer on Weekends, it¡¯s okay as long as it¡¯s not official or permanent. It¡¯s a shame that you chose to waste office hours with your private business.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, sir. The center is closed on weekends so that the children can spend time with their families. It¡¯s important for their development. The reason why I need to be there is because they don¡¯t have anyone to teach Mathematics. The teachers are always leaving and that affects the children¡¯s performance so-¡±


    ¡°Stop there,¡± he interrupted. ¡°Your reasons don¡¯t matter. You¡¯re employed by Milner insurance and it should be your first priority so I¡¯m not going to listen to your excuses. I don¡¯t care if you¡¯re the most kind-hearted person on Earth. Why didn¡¯t you talk to us about it? We could¡¯ve worked out a solution. I¡¯m sure Smith knows nothing about this, or does he?¡±


    I shook my head.


    ¡°You may be one of the best employees thispany has but it doesn¡¯t mean you can do whatever you want,¡± he stated. Didn¡¯t I already know that?


    Judging by his tone of voice, he was really disappointed in me. This time I knew he was going to do something drastic to me.


    ¡°And you¡¯ve beenmitting so many offencestely. First you werete for the Future of Insurance conference and med it on your assistant. That was shameful.¡±


    ¡°But-¡± I tried to defend myself but he raised his hand, a sign that I should keep quiet. He red at me.


    ¡°Do not speak until I have finished talking.¡±


    I had never felt any kind of resentment towards him but I was starting to. How dare he treat me like this? I had been loyal to thepany for so long and I deserved some respect. The least he could do was hear me out so we could find a way out of the situation.


    ¡°I¡¯ve received reports that you¡¯re mistreating your assistant,¡± he continued, ring at me. ¡°That is something I never expected from you of all the employees in thispany.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not true at all, Mr. Miller.¡± I said, shaking my head. I could swear my heart was bursting due to how angry I felt because of Kim. So all this time, she was bad mouthing me to the HR. I wish I hadid her off when I had the chance. I wouldn¡¯t be in this condition. ¡°You can¡¯t believe everything Kim says.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t test my patience,¡± he warned, double tapping the screen of a cheap smartphone on the table to unlock it. I knew that phone. It belonged to Kim. He tapped something and an audio started ying.


    It was a recording of me telling Kim that she was just an assistant. In this recording, it sounded almost like an insult. I remembered she made me so angry that day and I wanted her to mind her business. Now I understood that she drove me up the wall so I could say something bad to her. I felt disappointed in myself. I had always known how devious she was but I didn¡¯t get more careful.


    ¡°She provoked me and she edited that. Ask her to provide the full version and you¡¯ll know that she started everything.¡±


    ¡°Stop your excuses, Maya Bet. You have to grow up. There¡¯s no good reason for anyone to say such mean things to other people. Words can kill people so you should learn to use them carefully.¡±


    ¡°Please hear me out.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard all I needed to hear. You¡¯re going to get punished for your wrongdoing so it serves as an example to the rest.¡±


    At this point, I felt like getting up and pushing him off his chair.


    ¡°Are you firing me?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± he shook his head and I felt like a heavy burden just got lifted off my shoulder. ¡°You¡¯re suspended for a two weeks. No work. No pay.¡±N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    I felt that two weeks was too long but I didn¡¯t say anything fearing he¡¯d actually fire me. I didn¡¯t care about money but not being able to work for all that time scared me because I knew I¡¯d get tired of doing nothing in the first week. The other thing was that my job might get taken permanently so I¡¯d be living in fear. Anything was better than being fired, though. The only constion was that I¡¯d be spending more time with the children at St. Felicity¡¯s.


    ¡°Kim will fill in for you until you get back.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Now, that was even worse. He was going to put an inexperienced person in my position. ¡°She¡¯s neither qualified enough nor capable.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m the head of human resources here so I know what¡¯s best for every position,¡± he said. ¡°Have a good day, Miss Bet.¡±


    Now, I was almost inclined to believe Kim had something to do with this. I didn¡¯t n on letting her get away with it. She just won a battle I wasn¡¯t fighting in but I¡¯d make sure to win the war. She just made me an enemy. That was a very bad decision because I could crush her without any fear.

 Roses

    Zane¡¯s POV


    Another body. For the past week, I had been getting reports of bodies of members of my pack. I had no choice but to leave thepany, return to Misenium and take charge of my duties as an alpha. I had been there for two days and hadn¡¯t yet figured out the perpetrator but I knew it wouldn¡¯t take long before I found out and made them pay for the terrible things they¡¯d done.


    This one was of a young woman. Shey on the grass, her hair matted on the dry blood covering the grass. Her head seemed to have been hit by a blunt object as the back of it was a mess. It was a pitiful sight, seeing a young soul gone, leaving behind all the dreams and possibilities they had.


    ¡°I don¡¯t get it,¡± I said. ¡°I don¡¯t smell vampire around any of the crime scenes. Whoever is killing this people is a wolf.¡±


    At first, I had thought it was Aaron, the vampire trying to get revenge on me for locking him up but the second body I had seen made it clear that it was a wolf. The scent seemed masked by vampire blood which had confused us at first. Now, the person had stopped putting vampire blood near the bodies. Apparently, they didn¡¯t care if they got discovered anymore, or they wanted to be.


    I walked around the scene, which was close to the pack boundary.


    ¡°Joe, pleasee here.¡± I said to my second inmand, a beta wolf called Joe Hadden. ¡°Do you feel it?¡±


    He shook his head. Usually, we could feel the magical boundary Lainey had ced at that side of the territory. However this time, there was nothing.


    ¡°This doesn¡¯t look good,¡± Joe said. ¡°I think something happened to Lainey.¡±Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    I nodded. ¡°That¡¯s for sure. We should go and check on her.¡±


    A few minutester, we arrived at the small cottage that belonged to Lainey, I stood at the door with Joe and Mark. I could feel that something was wrong. There was a strong sense of dark magic in the air and Lainey¡¯s pure signature scent could barely be felt.


    ¡°I think she¡¯s dead,¡± Mark said. He had gone straight to the window and looked in.


    The revtion was not shocking, considering everything we had noticed so far. Despite that, it still hit me.


    ¡°We have to be very careful,¡± Joe said. ¡°Lainey had a lot of power, and whoever killed her is most likely more powerful. They might still be around.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°Mark, you¡¯ll stay outside while we go inside and check this out. Joe,e with me.¡±


    Joe and I entered the cottage cautiously. Inside the living room, we found Lainey¡¯s body lying on the floor. It was surrounded by overturned furniture and shreds of ss that had once constituted her centre table. Lainey¡¯s eyes were wide open in shock and there was a dark mark on her chest.


    ¡°What the hell happened here?¡± Joe asked, his voice barely a whisper.


    I sniffed the air. ¡°I can smell traces of dark magic, and something else that I can¡¯t put my finger on. It¡¯s a bit familiar, though.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Joe said. ¡°We need to find out who did this and stop them before it gets any worse. Now that Lainey is dead, our defences arepromised and it¡¯ll be easier for whoever is killing wolves to do it. Lainey was a great person and witch. Justice needs to be serve.¡±


    He was very right. Now more than ever, I needed to snuff out this person and stop them. ¡°Call, the police and have them take the body away. They¡¯ll probably not find anything we can¡¯t find but the body needs to be with them so they can inform her family. We are going to hunt down whoever is responsible for this.¡±


    After looking around for a while, I decided to go. We were almost at the door when Joe eximed.


    ¡°What?¡± I nced at him, annoyance etched on my face.


    ¡°Look up.¡±


    I turned back and stared at the ceiling. There were five roses wrapped around the light bulb. It was vaguely familiar but I couldn¡¯t remember anything about five roses.


    ¡°Five roses. What could they mean?¡± I asked Joe.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Do you think we should go with them?¡±


    I nodded. Joe found a chair and stood on it. He reached up and untied the roses from the insted wire connected to the bulb holder. He ced the roses in his backpack and we left the house. Outside, we called the police and informed them about everything. We went to the pack house. I went to my unit while Joe and Mark joined the apprehensive group at the yard.


    I went and sat in my office, pulling out a file and cing it on the table in front of me. I went through the images of the four people who had been murdered before Lainey. Was that why there were five roses? Because five people had been killed? The events were starting to make me feel overwhelmed. I had always taken pride in being able to keep my entire pack safe but I was now failing.


    I leaned back in my chair, rubbing my temple, trying to think of who could be behind the murders. I knew it was not vampires, but werewolves. Was it Lightwood pack? I had never got along with their alpha, but our issues had quietened downtely. I was finding it hard to pin it on them since they could have killed more if they wanted. This seemed to be the work of one person, who was getting bolder as time went on.


    Standing up, I walked to the window and looked out at the yard where more people had assembled. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I could sense the anxiety and fear within the pack. That was a sign that I needed to act fast.


    Suddenly, there was a knock on the door and Joe walked in. ¡°Alpha, I¡¯ve brought the roses. Jolene says you should touch them. There might be a connection to whoever killed Lainey.¡±


    Joe set his backpack on the table and removed the roses. They were still a bit fresh. He ced the roses on the table. I went and ced my hand on top of them.


    Immediately, I saw a face in my mind, a very familiar face. I withdrew my hand immediately, as if I had just touched fire.


    ¡°What¡¯s it, alpha?¡± Joe asked.


    ¡°He¡¯s back.¡± I said. ¡°I can¡¯t believe this! How dare he return to this pack?¡±

 The return

    Zane¡¯s POV


    Five years back, my father mysteriously left the pack and has never been seen since. No one knew why he left, or where he was. For thest two years of his rule, my father had be increasingly horrible. He drunk a lot, spent pack funds extravagantly on meaningless things, and refused to be ountable for anything. He stopped caring about his children and nearly drove our mother crazy. It was when he started hitting her that I cut off ties with him.


    The pack was going down really fast and people were bing fed up of him. Because of that, there were several attempts at ending his life. Everyone close to him tried to convince him to mend his ways for everybody¡¯s sake. One day, his bodyguard was found dead in the alpha¡¯s residence and my father was gone.


    The vision I had seen of him when I touched the roses showed he was in a cave I knew very well. I had spent a big part of my childhood ying in it with my friends. I felt angry that he had chosen to hide there when he knew how much it meant to me. What he could possibly want, I wondered as I made my way through the thick, tall and leafy trees of Misenium forest.


    When I entered the cave, Joseph Carrington¡¯s scent became stronger. I stood at the entrance. The cave was a veryrge one with some holes in between the rocks that looked like rooms. You could go inside some of thepartments, which were roomy enough. The main part of the cave was lighter than the inner parts which were quite dark.


    ¡°Joseph Carrington,¡± I said in a loud,manding voice. ¡°Come out, you coward.¡±


    I waited.


    A minuteter, a figure in dark clothing emerged out of one of the inner rooms of the cave.  My father¡¯s body had remained the same, big and muscr but he looked older and more rugged than before he left. The hairs of his beard had turned grey.


    ¡°Son,¡± he said.


    ¡°Why are you here?¡± I asked, my voice steady and unwavering.


    ¡°I¡¯ve returned to reim my ce as park leader,¡± he replied, a hint of arrogance in his voice.


    ¡°You gave up your ce when you left without letting anyone know what was going on,¡± I said, my voice growing stronger and firmer. ¡°The pack has moved on, and we don¡¯t need you anymore. I¡¯m the leader of the pack now.¡±


    ¡°I regret my actions,¡± he said. ¡°I want to make it right and steer this pack to the glory it¡¯s meant for.¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°You can¡¯t juste back and expect everything to be the same. You ruined the pack and I have rebuilt it to what it is now. I will not let you take everything we have worked for.¡±


    My father chuckled. ¡°I learnt a lot from my time away. I can help the pack be better than what it is now. You may be the alpha now but you¡¯re still my son. Everything you know, you have learnt from me.¡±


    ¡°I do not need your help,¡± I told him. ¡°If you want to return to the pack, you will have to use the proper channels which will ensure that you are tried for the misdeeds you did before leaving including killing your bodyguard.¡±


    Suddenly, my father produced a rusty knife from the pocket of his jacket and held it up. The man smiled evilly. ¡°You, son, are weak just like your mother. I will not let you continue to run this pack while I¡¯m here. This issue of considering everyone¡¯s feelings, trying to achieve some kind of equality is not going to work around here. Not everyone matters. I always kept tabs on you and was hoping you could do better than me but when you spearheaded the abolishment of very by werewolves and vampires, I knew I had to return before you turned everyone into weaklings.¡±


    ¡°Enving other wolves has never been fair. Everyone deserves their freedom to choose how they want their lives to be. That¡¯s one thing I hope never happens again.¡±


    Father growled and stepped closer, his fingers tightening against the knife handle. ¡°You¡¯re a disappointment, just like your mother.¡±


    ¡°Joseph, I will not let you hurt anyone. I¡¯m not afraid of you. If you weren¡¯t a coward, you would¡¯vee straight to the pack house but not killed innocent people just to draw me to you. You know that you have no power around here.¡±


    Joseph lunged forward, his knife glinting in the dim light. Just as the de was about to make contact with my body, my powers kicked in sending a powerful wave of energy that knocked my father to the ground. I rarely used the powers thate from my mother¡¯s side but I was not in the mood for a long, drawn out fight with my annoying father.


    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for those powers, you¡¯d be nothing.¡± He said, trying to stand up. I charged against him and sent him flying to the wall. He knocked his head and fell back down, unconscious. Feeling triumphant, I walked out of the cave, leaving him there. If he thought it was going to be easy to take everything I had built from me, he was wrong.


    I went back to the pack and had a short meeting with my beta and gamma to see what to do with my father. In the evening as I was doing paperwork at my house, one of my men informed me that my father had gone to the pack house and gathered the elders. Without wasting time, I went there and found them in of the cottages in the woods.


    They were outside enjoying barbecue in the dimly lit yard. I stood in the shadows and watched him speak with the elders. The sight of him was enough to make my blood boil. I noticed that the elders were nodding in agreement as my father spoke and I felt anger growing inside me. I knew that that power-hungry man would stop at nothing to take back the throne he had abandoned. I stepped out of the shadows and made my way into the yard. My father did not look surprised upon seeing me. The man was arrogant and he probably believed I was no match for him.


    ¡°Joseph, what are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°I was discussing some matters with the elders.¡±N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    ¡°Are you trying to gain their support so you can overthrow me?¡±


    The elders looked at each other in rm but no one said a word. My father stood up and faced me. ¡°I¡¯m the former alpha, and I have a right to be here.¡±


    ¡°You betrayed the pack and I will not stand by and watch you try to destroy it again.¡±


    With that, I turned and stormed away from there. I was seething with anger, especially at the elders who were entertaining him. I was determined to protect the pack from Joseph Carrington¡¯s poison, and if that meant removing powers from the elder¡¯s council, I would. I wasn¡¯t about to let him return without paying for the things he had down when he left and returned.


    Lainey and the others deserved justice and they were going to get it. First, I needed toe up with a n.

 The suspension

    Kim


    Miller¡¯s office was very spacious and contained plush seats. It was hard to imagine that it was scorching hot outside with the advanced air conditioning in there. You¡¯re probably thinking I wanted that office too but unfortunately or fortunately for you, I was not that greedy, yet. Having Maya Bet out of thepany was so satisfying it felt like I would never need anything else in order to be happy.


    ¡°I¡¯m so d you finally did it,¡± I told Miller who was ring at me like I had just killed someone he loved. The look on his face told me he was one step away from hitting me to death. We both knew I can never be aspetent as Maya Bet and while I didn¡¯t care, I was sure he did. This was going to affect thepany and not in a very positive way. Maya had been moremitted to her job than I would ever be.


    ¡°You know I didn¡¯t want to fire her,¡± he said, opening a ck file which was on top of the table. ¡°And I may not have been able to even suspend her if you hadn¡¯t managed to convince the COO that it was a good idea. I wonder how you managed to convince him.¡±


    ¡°I have my ways,¡± I told him.


    He narrowed his eyes in confusion. I watched as realization hit him. ¡°Get out of my office right now.¡±


    Iughed, rising and walking to stand behind him. I massaged his shoulders and bent down until my head was on his shoulder. I didn¡¯t care that his well-groomed beard would probably ruin my makeup. I could always retouch it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t talk to me like that, darling. You don¡¯t know how happy you¡¯ve made me today. You wouldn¡¯t want to ruin that because you know how far I¡¯m willing to go if you annoy me. I can scream right now and use you of attempting to rape me. I have pictures to prove you¡¯ve had sexual rtions with me. What will happen to thepany you love so much? It¡¯ll be in ruins and your family will desert you.¡±


    I loved making people suffer, especially when they were rich and thought money could save them from everything. It was nice to see them helpless and unhappy. That ought to teach them not to act like they¡¯re better than everyone because they make a lot of money. If this man was capable of sleeping with his employee, I wondered how many women he¡¯d taken advantage of.


    ¡°Someone once told me that rich people run this country,¡± I loved taunting him and it made me feel so powerful. I guess this is how dominants feel in BDSM rtionships. ¡°What will you do now with all your money, Miller?¡±


    Eventually, I get bored of teasing him so I went back to my office. My office. I liked the sound of that. I finally had an office I was proud of.


    The smile on my face vanished when I found Harry seated on my chair. I rolled my eyes. It was like I couldn¡¯t enjoy my life without him or Maya ruining everything. Instead ofshing out at him, I adopted a softer approach. I wanted him to be on my side so being rude wasn¡¯t going to help further my cause. I had to act as if I had nothing to do with Maya¡¯s suspension.


    ¡°Good afternoon, Mr. Smith.¡±


    ¡°Why did you falsely use Maya of mistreating you?¡± He asked. Oh hell. ¡°Maya has tried her best to get along with you since you got here but you¡¯ve always made it so hard for her. Was your only aim to rece her? I thought we talked about this. All we needed to do is break the two up not ruin her life.¡±


    Harry wasn¡¯t stupid. It seems he¡¯d thought about everything and was convinced that I was guilty. If there was one thing that can even a heart of stone, it was emotional ckmail so I resorted to it. It was quite sad that I could never fake tears. Sometimes I couldn¡¯t even cry in genuinely sad situations.


    ¡°I grew up in a very poor family,¡± I began. ¡°Sometimes we barely had anything to eat and rich people treated us like trash. Growing up, I always dreamed of being rich and great so that people could respect me and my family.¡± I paused for effect. I knew that being from a poor background didn¡¯t mean you should be a b?tch but I wanted him to understand why I was like that. ¡°When I got epted here, I thought it was a great opportunity to have an important position like Maya¡¯s. Since she and her family are already rich, she doesn¡¯t need this job as much as I do. I¡¯m sorry and I swear I regret it. I wish I could turn back time.¡±


    ¡°If you truly regret it, you can go and withdraw you ims. Tell the COO and Miller that you lied.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t. Her suspension is only for two weeks. If I go and say I lied, I¡¯ll get fired.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Don¡¯t do this to me, Harry. I can¡¯t survive without this job.¡±


    ¡°That means you¡¯re not sorry about what you did,¡± he stood up and walked to the door. After opening, he raised his phone and showed the screen to me. The recording app was on.


    My heart skips beat and I gasped. I hadnded myself into so much trouble I was not sure I¡¯d ever be able to get out of it. But I had to try.


    ¡°Stop there, Harry. I have evidence against you too. I recorded you when we slept together when you said you wanted to tear Zane and Maya apart. I¡¯ll just say that was part of the n. If I go down, you go down too.¡±


    Harry red at me.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    ¡°Don¡¯t you see it? This suspension is good for both of us. It¡¯ll put a distance between Zane and Maya. He¡¯ll probably turn his focus to another hot woman in thepany and Maya will all be yours. What you need to do now is go and get close to her. Comfort her and be there for here. Women never forget such things. I don¡¯t think Zane can do all the nice things you can do for someone who has been your friend for such a long time. Instead of admonishing me, you should be thanking me. I¡¯ve practically thrown Maya into yourp.¡±


    Without saying anything, Harry stormed out. I smiled. Mission aplished.

 Sister sister

    Maya


    It had been four days since I got suspended from Milner Inc. Five days since I saw the man of my dreams. I can¡¯t say it was easy because that would be one huge fat lie. Ever since the day we made love, Zane and I hadn¡¯t talked, neither physically nor via phone.


    Sometimes, he would send a text message asking if I was okay and I would reply on the affirmative even though that was far from the truth. He would go ahead to say he was d I was okay and didn¡¯t send another message for days. He probably didn¡¯t want the conversation to get far enough that we had to talk about what we did on that day.


    I had gotten used to hearing his beautiful voice and I missed it so much. I missed how he made meugh. Being around him had turned into one of the highlights of my days, especially after I had got over him turning me into his assistant.


    Harry had tried to be there for me as much as he could and I was really thankful. I wondered if he would still be that helpful if I told him that I had slept with Zane. He had even confessed his feelings for me and it had been so hard to turn him down. He was too nice for me to use as a rebound. Besides, I didn¡¯t want to mess up our amazing friendship.


    I had been spending a lot of time at St. Felicity¡¯s and ying ser but that was not enough distraction. Zane was the first person I thought of in the morning and thest before I went to bed. Try as much I did, I couldn¡¯t stop thinking of the handsome man with the most charming smile in the whole world. Sometimes I thought of calling him so we could talk about everything but I didn¡¯t want to seem desperate because it¡¯d push him further away. I was desperate but he didn¡¯t have to know.


    I had hidden my feelings for him for so long that it was now extremely hard to ignore them. But, I knew that if he cleared up things, I¡¯d be able to move on. All I wanted is for him to say something and not ignore the issue at hand. It was tearing me apart. I couldn¡¯t understand how I had fallen in love so fast, with a man I barely knew.


    Falling in love at first sight had never been my thing. Hell, I had never believed it was actually possible. However, my strong feelings for Zane Carrington were telling me otherwise. The fact that he had gone silent after us having sex made me feel hurt and reduced my self-esteem to zero. I tried to convince myself that he was a jerk who didn¡¯t deserve my love but that was all in vain. It couldn¡¯t stop me from thinking about him and wanting him all day. Since I was idle with no work, I found myself feeling hornier than usual.


    Seeing the children y with a ball under the sun made me forget my problems for the time being. I stood up and headed to the other side of the resort with swings overlooking the river. I didn¡¯t feelpletely safe because I was aware that if that thick rope broke for some reason, I¡¯d fall down the small cliff and roll into the river. There were no crocodiles around there but it looked very deep. But what was life without a few risks?


    It was a beautiful sunny day and the flowers were looking exceptionally good. I had sponsored an outing for the visually impaired children from St. Felicity¡¯s. Although some of them were partially blind, they all needed special care. All of them including the totally blind were very happy and brimming with excitement. I was sure they could feel the beauty of the ce without the noise of the city. I was d that I did it because it gave me a sense of fulfillment.Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    In the darkest days of life, doing something good for others can make you feel better. Also you stand a chance of receiving blessings from God. In today¡¯s world, helping others is so underrated.


    Looking at the children made me hate myself for being selfish. How could I think that I had problems? Mine were nothingpared to those they faced. The children came from homes that barely had anything and the worst was that they had sight problems. Imagine what it feels like not to be able to see the face of the people you love, the beauty of nature and so many things.


    I wished they could see how beautiful the rain was as it fell from the sky and how glorious the stars looked at night. I wished they could see the sun¡¯s glow and the rays that filled our skins with warmth. It was so sad. None of my problems couldpare to those. I should learn to count my blessings instead of feeling depressed about one small thing that isn¡¯t going right for me.


    I closed my eyes and smiled, d that I was able to bring a smile to their faces. For now, it didn¡¯t matter how heartbroken I felt. The most important thing was that those children were having the time of their life. Children deserved to have all the happiness in the world, regardless of the circumstances they were born to.


    My phone rang and my sister¡¯s name appeared on the screen. She was probably calling because some man broke up with her. She was always falling in love too soon and ended up getting her heart broken. Ignoring the phone, I continued to think of my life. I didn¡¯t know how I was going to survive life without work for the remaining days. I had been working every week day from nine to five since I finished college so I knew that it was going to be increasingly hard for me to adjust to a jobless life style. I couldn¡¯t go on outings every day.

 Melancholy

    Zane¡¯s POV


    Standing on top of the cliff, I gazed out at the vast forest below. I sighed, feeling the ache in my heart that I could never seem to get rid of. It was always there, reminding me of the missing piece in my life. I thought of Maya, my mate. I missed her more than anything in the world but I knew I couldn¡¯t go to her until I had finished sorting out the issues with my father. I couldn¡¯t underestimate the man because he was capable of destroying me. One wrong move, and I would be done for.


    Closing my eyes, I let my mind wander. It drifted back to the night I met her. I remembered how captivated I was by the beautiful young woman. I had been so angry to see her with that bloodsucking vampire and she had been so scared when I attacked him. I had not been happy with how everything had gone.


    I remembered seeing her again when she was talking to the receptionist about me while trying to take sneaky nces at me. I chuckled. If she knew that I heard everything she was saying that day, she¡¯d be mortified. The next time I saw her, I was going to tell her about it, just to see the reaction on her lovely face.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    The best memory was of us making love. We had bonded so well and had developed an inexplicable connection. I had been tempted to mark her, but that I realized that would not be good. I didn¡¯t want to do something like that before informing her of what I was, and what being mated to me forever meant. I didn¡¯t want to force her to ept a life she was not prepared for.


    After meeting my mate, things had changed for me. I had never felt a deep connection like the one I felt with her. The moon goddess had done well in finding me the most suitable mate. Some people got mates that were terrible but luckily that had not happened to me. The only problem for me was that she was human who knew nothing about werewolf nature. It made things moreplicated.


    I felt the weight of my loneliness as I stood there. I longed for her, to feel her soft skin against mine, and smell her sweet scent. It was irritating that I couldn¡¯t go to her. My father was still a very big threat and it seemed more than half the elders were with him. I was trying to get him incarcerated but it was proving to be a bit tough.


    I missed Maya but if she was going to be part of my pack at some point, I needed to make it secure and peaceful. I couldn¡¯t tell her about it while there was a lot of uncertainty looming over it. I wondered how she was doing and if she thought of me as much as I thought of her.


    Two hourster, I was seated in a dimly lit seedy bar in the suburbs of the city. I was drinking my fourth ss of whisky, hoping it would take away the ache in my chest. I missed Maya so much even though I had only mate her a few weeks back. She was the woman meant to be with me forever and it sucked that she was not with me.


    Because of all the problems I was facing, I was filled with anger and frustration that never seemed to go away. I was stuck in Misenium trying to get rid of my traitor of a father. I needed some kind of relief from all the negative feelings in my body.


    A woman approached me. She was very beautiful and looked to be in her mid-thirties, older than me. Her low cut dress exposed her big melons. She offered to buy me a drink, and although I could afford a drink of my own, I epted. She seemed to be new to the city, and very daring. If she knew who I was, high chances are she wouldn¡¯t have been so brave. I had quite the reputation, especially among the supernaturals. I could tell she was a wolf.


    After I epted, she slid into the booth next to me. We talked and I was d to have someone to talk to. I told her about the woman I loved and how far she was, making sure not to reveal the sensitive details. We talked andughed for over two hours. She made me feel desired and needed which weakened my resolve. I found myself kissing her and growing hard while her hands caressed my body. In that moment, my alcohol-clouded mind forgot about Maya.


    We stumbled out of the bar and she took me to her hotel. By the time we got to the door, we were tearing each other¡¯s clothes off and kissing like our lives depended on it. I took her hard and fast, needing the release as fast as possible. She seemed to enjoy it and encouraged me to go on. When we were done, Iy on my back and stared at the ceiling. I felt a wave of guild but it was reced by the thought that I needed the release Maya couldn¡¯t provide. I needed to escape from the pain that gued me night and day and was willing to do whatever it took to forget it.


    At that moment I refused to think it was cheating because Maya and I were not in a rtionship. We had only slept together once and she had left almost immediately. We had not talked about dating. If we were officially together, I would never think of getting in bed with another woman.


    When she started touching me again, I sat up and got off the bed. No, I couldn¡¯t continue doing this. Now that I was fully sober, the gravity of what I had done be clearer and I felt disgusted by myself.


    As I walked away from the hotel, I realized I needed to see Maya. If I continued like this, who knew what I¡¯d do. I went to my house and took a quick shower before getting to bed. Come what may, I nned to go to Sunham the next day and take a glimpse of her. Maybe that would get rid of the ache in my heart.

 Attraction

    Maya


    When I told Harry about my outing at the resort and how much I enjoyed it, he insisted that I go with him. Going with the kids was great, going with an adult was even better. I refused to think that it would¡¯ve been better if I was with Zane. Though to be honest, that was a hundred percent true. Since Harry had refused to back off after I turned him away, I decided to let him distract me. Besides, he was being so nice to me that I was beginning to think I would be better off dating him instead of pining for a man who had disappeared and seemed to have forgotten me.


    We were lying on hammocks under the shade of beautiful trees overlooking the river. The river was quite muddy that day. I thought it was because of the fishing going on at the upper side of the river. I had seen some fishermen withs when we were entering the resort. Harry and I were talking about objectification and women empowerment. We rarely talked about such things but there was a trending case about the issue which had prompted the conversation.


    ¡°Women themselves make it hard for objectification to stop,¡± he said. ¡°The truth is that many men don¡¯t want to treat women like objects. Women throwing themselves at men are one of the reasons they end up getting objectified. Do you know that there are women who beg men to sleep with them so that the men can give them money?¡±


    ¡°Yeah but those are mostly prostitutes. Besides, they don¡¯t force you to sleep with them.¡±


    ¡°Not every man exercises self-control,¡± he told me. ¡°Some of us do. Those who don¡¯t find it hard to respect women who continually throw themselves at them. If a woman has no respect for herself, how can anyone respect her?¡±


    ¡°Well, not all women are the same. Men should understand that just because some women will let themselves be treated like objects doesn¡¯t mean all women should be treated like that.¡±


    ¡°Agreed, Miss B.¡± He smiled, making his face look so beautiful. I wished I could hold it close to mine. Shaking my head, I got rid of those thoughts. He was just a friend and I didn¡¯t want to fall for him and end up heartbroken. That was my sister¡¯s job. Kelli was an expert in getting her heart broken. I couldn¡¯t even count the number of men she¡¯s fallen in love with.


    ¡°Let¡¯s talk about something else,¡± Harry suggested. I hoped he was not about to bring up the dreaded topic i. e. his feelings about me. I med myself for bringing a man who was into me to a romantic location.


    ¡°Like what?¡± I raised my eyebrows, shifting in my hammock.


    ¡°Like the amazing things you do for those children,¡± he sat up straight, watching me. ¡°I admire you so much and think you¡¯re a great person. People who help others without expecting anything in return are the best in the world. We need more people like you, Maya.¡±


    ¡°Stop it,¡± I told him. No one had ever said so many good things about me before. Harry was a great guy and in some aspects better than Zane.


    ¡°Miller and Carrington have to be the most heartless people I¡¯ve ever seen. How could they suspend you for volunteering with a charity organization? It would be understandable if-¡±N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    ¡°This is depressing,¡± I cut him off and rolled myself off the hammock. I was there mostly because I wanted to stop thinking about every bad thing that had happened. Every time I stayed home, the thoughts threatened to drive me crazy.  ¡°Let¡¯s take a walk or something.¡±


    Harry got out of his and came towards me. He linked his left hand with my right one, leading me closer to the river. It was beautiful. Far away from the bank was a very tiny ind with only trees and no building. I thought it would be nice to go and live there for a month, far away from backstabbing humans.


    ¡°Beautiful, right?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I agreed, not taking my eyes off the tiny ind.


    ¡°Just like you.¡±


    I nced at him and his gaze was fixed on the ind. I could tell he knew I was looking at him but he didn¡¯t shift his gaze. I smiled. ¡°Thank you.¡±


    ¡°I like you,¡± he said and that was when I noticed the change in mood. For some reason, his body suddenly felt warmer. I unlinked my arm from his, feeling like he ruined the moment. Our friendship was growing so well and even though I had been hoping for it to grow into something else for some months, I didn¡¯t feel thrilled like I expected to. Something was wrong and I knew it has everything to do with Zane. I had been foolish to think I could get over him so easily, that I could use Harry to make that happen. Now I realized that for me to love another person, I have to first get over Zane. How the hell am I supposed to do that?


    ¡°I like Zane,¡± I confessed.


    ¡°I know,¡± he says, holding my arm. ¡°But he¡¯s not with you. I can help you get him out of your head. If he cared about you, he wouldn¡¯t have let you get suspended and done nothing about it. He owns thepany and he was okay letting you go. He doesn¡¯t deserve you, Maya.¡±


    He looked in my eyes and I saw attraction in his.


    Suddenly, he kissed me but it didn¡¯t feel right. I ced my hand on his chest and gently pushed him away. He pulled away and without a word hugged me. I could feel his heart beat against my chest.


    At some point, his body stiffened and he let go of me. I heard footsteps and turned to look at the person behind me.


    ¡°Hi Maya,¡± he said quietly.


    First of all, how did he know I was there? Secondly, I was screwed.

 Run

    Zane.


    Somehow, I found the strength to turn away from the heart wrenching scene before me. I knew that my reaction seemed immature but I couldn¡¯t think of anything better to do. I couldn¡¯t even decide how to react. In my current condition, I could neither face Maya nor have a fruitful conversation with her. My jealousy would probably turn into anger and make me say things I¡¯d regret. There was already a strain between us because of what we did and I didn¡¯t want to make it worse. I wished to make things right but didn¡¯t know how to. Was there a point to that anymore, after everything I had seen?


    I heard hurried footsteps and my name being called by Maya. She was about to catch up with me but I couldn¡¯t run. Sure I may have been in love but I was still the CEO of several bigpanies and the alpha of Blood Moon pack. I was not about to let myself get caught on camera running away from the woman I loved. The tabloids would love that and never let it go. I didn¡¯t want to be the focus of trashy news outlets.


    The inevitable happened and I stopped to face her. Her beautiful eyes were getting teary. I removed a handkerchief from my pocket before handing it to her. She took it in her hand and wiped her face. I wondered why she was crying right now. Harry reached and stood behind her. Thankfully, it was a week day so there were very few people in the resort at the moment. There was no one around us.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for interrupting your private moment,¡± I said, ncing first at Harry then Maya. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t tell you I wasing. I¡¯ve not been in the city.¡±N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    ¡°It¡¯s not what you think,¡± she exined. I hated that phrase.


    ¡°So what¡¯s it Maya? Are you going to tell me that you two didn¡¯t kiss? You don¡¯t have to offer any exnations. You¡¯re both adults and have rights to do as you please. I don¡¯t have time for this.¡±


    I stormed away before she could say one more annoying word. I didn¡¯t know what was going on between them but I couldn¡¯t deal with it at that moment. Every minute spent without her gave me pain and now that I knew she may never be mine, it was worse. I was not ready to talk especially when that sneaky opportunist Harry was here. I was pretty sure I¡¯d spotted a smirk on his face when I saw them together.


    I was angrier with Milner and Harlow who had suspended her without letting me know. The only reason I didn¡¯t fire them was because they didn¡¯t know the connection between me and her. They saw her like any other employee. Unless the issue was really important, it was notpulsory for them to inform me about it. Besides, if I made a fuss about it, it would raise eyebrows and there was too much at stake.


    Back in the city, I went to the office so that I could fix my mind on work and not destructive thoughts about Harry and Maya. Just when I thought things couldn¡¯t get any worse, I was informed about a visitor. My assistant had set up the appointment after a quick call to me. I didn¡¯t feel like seeing anyone but since I had already made themitment to meet this person I decided it was alright.


    I was busy focusing on a document on the table when the person came in. the perfume was strong and floral, very feminine.


    ¡°Darling,¡± said a soft voice.


    I knew the voice. I looked up at the speed of lighting. How did she find me?


    ¡°Uhhhm,¡± I said, realizing that I had never got her name.


    She smiled. ¡°Chelsea Hamilton. You seem surprised to see me.¡±


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± I asked her. I thought my abrupt departure from her hotel room had been a clear message.


    ¡°I wanted to see you again,¡± she said, taking a seat without being requested. ¡°You left abruptlyst night and I thought it was because you were not feeling well. Are you feeling better now? I couldn¡¯t forgive myself if something happened to you.¡±


    ¡°I may be younger than you but I¡¯m a grown man. I can take care of myself. How did you find me?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m actually surprised that I didn¡¯t find out about you before we talked,¡± she said, smiling. ¡°You are the Zane Carrington. You¡¯re a legend in And where Ie from. Your father abandoned you and the pack but you rebuilt everything from scratch and now Bloodmoon pack is one of the biggest in Misenium all thanks to you. I love powerful men.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said, feeling a bit ufortable. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Chelsea but I love someone. The woman I was telling you about yesterday is¡­¡± I stopped realising that I would be putting Maya in danger if the world found out she was my mate when she was not yet ready for my protection. ¡°She¡¯s very beautiful and I want to be with her so bad.¡±


    Chelsea chuckled. ¡°Wow. Where was all that when your c0ck was buried deep inside me? Maybe you think you love this woman, but that¡¯s just it. A feeling, a thought. Besides, the fact that you chose to sleep with me instead of her says a lot. I¡¯ll make you realise that you¡¯re too good to be pining for some woman who doesn¡¯t love you. If she loved you, she¡¯d be with you.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know the whole story.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true,¡± she nodded. ¡°But I know that you and I have great chemistry. We can build on that. Besides, I¡¯m older and experienced. I can help you make your pack greater within a very short time.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, but I don¡¯t need any help with that. Neither do I need you. After we had sex, I realised that my woman is so much better and I¡¯d rather wait for her. Please leave me alone.¡±


    She startedughing maniacally.


    ¡°Get out,¡± I said.


    ¡°You look so cute when angry.¡±


    I rose up and wrapped my hand around her neck. Her eyes changed from brown to green and she grabbed my hand and effortlessly removed it from her neck. My lips parted in shock as she did so. When she let it go, I was utterly frozen.


    I had never met a woman physically stronger than me. What was this woman?


    ¡°Darling, I¡¯m not one to be trifled with. When I want something, I get it. I¡¯m going to leave you now. I¡¯ll give you some time. By the time I return, you better be done with that woman or it won¡¯t end well for her. Good day, my darling.¡±


    I watched in shock as she waltzed out of the room, swaying her wide hips. What the hell had I got myself into?

 Guest

    Harry.


    ¡°Supper is ready,¡± Kim said, cing steaming dishes on the table in the dining room. That¡¯s right Kim, Maya¡¯s worst nightmare was in my house. And no, I didn¡¯t like it.


    On the previous Friday as I descended the stairs at thepany, I skipped a step because I was in a hurry and sprained my ankle. Since Maya and Micheal, my closest friends at work weren¡¯t around, I couldn¡¯t call anyone else for help. Not that I disliked everyone else but I didn¡¯t want to be a bother. Damn that stupid elevator for malfunctioning on the day I had the highest amount of work to do. I met Kim on my way to the office and she helped me out, and gave me first aid when we got to the office. She even offered to help me at home and she had been preparing my meals in the evening every day since that time.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    I had tried to call Maya but ever since Zane found us together at the resort, she had been avoiding me like the gue. It made me so angry that I had devoted my time to make her happy but she never cared about me.


    I had been doing everything for myself for so long and it felt good that someone was doing everything for me. I was finding it hard to adjust but even when I told Kim to leave out some tasks, she insisted on doing them. I was beginning to see a side of her I had never seen before. Maybe she wasn¡¯t as bad as I initially thought.


    I lived in my parent¡¯s house with myzy aunt who only cared about boys and make-up. She was in college and even if though I was excellent in mathematics, I couldn¡¯t count the retakes she had. I was pretty sure she was going to spend at least six years in the University instead of the three she needed to get her Journalism degree.


    Two years back, my parents had decided to move to Europe. They were tired of having lived in the same ce all their lives and extended family drama thates with living in the same city with rtives. My younger brothers who were twins decided to join universities in the UK leaving me alone to take care of the family house. My parents set up a chain of pharmacies in Ennd which were keeping them financially stable along with their retirement packages.


    Kim went back to bring some other things from the kitchen and the delicious aroma drove me to the dining room.


    ¡°Smells good,¡± I said, taking a seat. She finished setting up everything and sat down to eat. As we ate, all that could be heard was the sound of cutlery and tes with the distant sounding from the television. Kim and I didn¡¯t have a lot inmon so conversation between us is still quite low. Besides, my mind was full of thoughts about Maya.


    Later as we watched a movie together, Kim started acting weird. She kept ncing at me when she thought I was paying full attention to the movie and couldn¡¯t notice. But I had noticed. Just as I had noticed that she¡¯d gotten closer. Ever since we hatched our ns to destroy Zane and Maya¡¯s budding rtionship, we had not slept together.


    For some reason, I didn¡¯t feel like sleeping with her but it was getting really hard not to look at her. She was really beautiful and I could feel her warm thigh against mine. I shouldn¡¯t have worn shorts with such a thing material when I knew she¡¯de. I swallowed and focused on the television.


    ¡°Harry,¡± she said.


    I turned and our eyes met. I couldn¡¯t seem to tear my eyes off hers. Usually they looked ordinary but up close, they look really lovely and intense. Despite that, my mind kept bringing up images of Maya. No part of me was in the mood to kiss Kim. She may have been beautiful but I couldn¡¯t seem to forget what kind of person she was. She had told me how she slept with Miller and Harlow just to get what she wanted. I didn¡¯t want a woman who belonged to the streets. As I was turning my head away from her, she threw her hands around my neck and kissed me, her lips moving slowly. Somehow I lost myself in the kiss but suddenly pulled back a few secondster.


    ¡°No,¡± I stood up, getting away from her. ¡°Maya isn¡¯t treating me so well but I still want her. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s wrong with me. I was close to getting her but that idiot interrupted us. Despite that, I still have some hope. Let¡¯s not make this moreplicated than it is. You want Zane, I want Maya. There¡¯s no need for us to sleep together.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re an idiot,¡± she said, looking up at me. ¡°Maya may never love you. Besides, you¡¯re horny, I¡¯m horny. Let¡¯s just do it.¡±


    ¡°No, you do it with everyone,¡± I wanted to say but I knew she would be furious which might make her take an impulsive decision.


    She grabbed her things and left. I hoped she would not say anything to the woman I loved.


    I sat down and ced my head in my hands. How could I have been so stupid as to let Kim into my house? Into my life? I could have prepared my own food like my mother taught me but I had to go ahead and ept her offer to help. Maya would never want me if she ever found out that I had been sleeping and working with her enemy.


    I realized that what I needed to do was stay away from Kim and confess everything to Maya before Kim put her spin to it and made me look like the evil one. I knew that it would probably make Maya really angry but keeping up with the lie until she found out from someone else would be worse.


    If there was one thing I knew, it was that this was going toe out at one point or another.

 Back

    Maya.


    Two weeks had passed and it was finally time for me to return to thepany. The next day was the D-day. Much as I was excited, I was very nervous about the prospect of seeing Zane Carrington and Harry. With everything that had happened, I was pretty sure it was going to be an awkward reunion.


    I craved to be useful, experience headache and mental strain at the end of the day. To have something to look forward to each passing day and to feel important once again. These two weeks had made me realize that I couldn¡¯t live without my career. I had nearly gone mad counting days as they passed by.


    ¡°Ew! Get your dirty socks off my table,¡± I told my sister Kelli. How can a sane person think it¡¯s okay to put socks from her feet on the table? ¡°This isn¡¯t your house where you can throw stuff everywhere.¡±


    Kelli¡¯s whole apartment was one big, disgusting mess. All the rooms always had stuff everywhere and one can barely see the floor. asionally, she would get someone to clean up but after a few hours, the apartment would go back to its default state and look like a garbage dumping site.


    ¡°Are you kicking me out now?¡±  She asked, faking hurt.


    Rolling my eyes, I picked up the remote and changed from the Mexican telenov channel to a local one as a program I wanted was about to start. ¡°I¡¯m not kicking you out. I think you should grow up and stop doing things that disgust others.¡±


    ¡°Why do you always think you¡¯re perfect?¡± She queried and I took a deep breath before answering.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think-¡±


    ¡°Save it,¡± she yelled, in a growling sort of way. She stuffed the socks in her small backpack and stood up. ¡°I¡¯m leaving anyway. A sister is supposed to providefort to another but it seems you know nothing about being a sister.¡±


    She mmed the door so hard I thought it would fall off.


    ¡°I have my own problems too, you know.¡± I yelled, not sure if she¡¯d hear me. That¡¯s the problem with being the elder sister. Your younger sisters think you have to be everything for them, and always be at their beck and call. Some don¡¯t understand that sometimes life bes so hard for you and you may not have time to sort out their problems.


    The program on TV was called Salon Times. A bunch of people having their hair done were having a televised discussion on whether one should remain friends with their exes or not. Thirty minutes into the show, I gave up due to my limited concentration. I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about Zane and Harry. What the hell was I going to do with them? Turning off the television and then lights, I headed to my bedroom to get ready for the next day.


    The next morning, I was summoned to the COO¡¯s office. Leaving my things in the office which Kim had already vacated, I went to Harlow¡¯s office. I froze when I saw Zane. I didn¡¯t expect to see him there.


    ¡°Good morning,¡± I nced at both executives alternatively.


    ¡°Good morning, Miss Bet.¡± Harlow said.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    ¡°Wee back,¡± Zane said, staring a little bit too intensely at me. What was going on in his mind?


    ¡°Thank you,¡± I smiled at him, almost genuinely. ¡°I¡¯m d to be back again.¡±


    ¡°Today, I give my final warning to you,¡± Mr. Harlow said with a strict expression. ¡°I don¡¯t expect that kind of behavior again. There is no room for disrespect in thispany.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Miss Bet, when you started working here everyone treated you well. I want you to treat Miss Dalton with the same respect. Be nice to her as she¡¯s had a rough life.¡±


    ¡°Mr. Harlow. I try to do that but you don¡¯t know what kind of person Miss Dalton is,¡± I insisted. I was not going down like a defeated puppy. ¡°I don¡¯t trust her and I suggest you shouldn¡¯t either.¡±


    ¡°See? This is exactly the kind of behavior I don¡¯t want. Pointing fingers at others. We can¡¯t start disliking her just because you do.¡±


    Why wasn¡¯t Zane defending me? Did he like Kim? Or was he really going against me because he saw Harry and I kissing? He was too intelligent to have missed the fact that Kim was unbearable.


    ¡°That¡¯s not what I¡¯m saying.¡±


    ¡°Then what are you saying? Mr. Smith, a friend of yours and Miss Dalton started getting along quite well when you left. I wonder if you had been poisoning his mind against her.¡±


    My heart was pounding fast with anger because that was so shocking. I didn¡¯t understand how Harry and Kim started getting along. He used to despise her. I knew Harlow would not make up something like that.


    ¡°I swear I did no such thing but I understand where you¡¯reing from,¡± I told the COO. ¡°I¡¯ll try to work well with her.¡±


    ¡°You can both get back to work.¡±


    Zane didn¡¯t say anything, he just watched as I walked out. It was very unnerving.


    When I reached my office, I found Harry at the door.


    ¡°I need to tell you something,¡± he said.


    I stared at him for a few seconds, wondering who the person before me was. I didn¡¯t know he¡¯d befriend Kim just because I refused to pick his calls.


    ¡°I heard that you¡¯re friends with Kim now. You must be so close considering the fact that even Mr. Harlow knows. Why would you think you have to exin anything to me? You¡¯re an adult free to do whatever you wish. Now if you¡¯ll excuse me, I have a lot of work to do in my office. I¡¯m pretty sure your darling Kim has messed everything up just to annoy me.¡±


    I walked in and locked the door before he could say another word. I was back and this time, I didn¡¯t want to get involved in any drama.

 Butterflies

    Maya.


    One of my resolutions upon returning to work was to stay as far away from Kim as possible. She tried to be nice to me but I was having none of it. I refused to talk to her about what she had done and anything outside work.


    I even stopped giving many tasks to her, especially important ones because my distrust had increased. Now I had good reasons not to trust her. I changed all the E-mail passwords so that she couldn¡¯t do anything on my behalf. I didn¡¯t care how big my current workload was because I didn¡¯t want to get into trouble again. Thankfully I found a part time teacher who was helping out at St. Felicity¡¯s.


    Jana was a college graduate who was still looking for employment and loved children. She was volunteering but I gave her a monthly allowance from my personal funds. This was to cater for her transport, food and other personal effects. I hoped that one day the center would have enough funds to grant her permanent employment.


    I was so tired but I still had five pages of data to finish analyzing. The light from the screen was making me feel dizzy and my eyes became teary every time I yawned, an action which had been a little too frequent in thest thirty minutes. There was a dull ache in my head as I had been using theputer for six hours nonstop.


    I stood up and ambled to the window where I looked outside. The sky was shining with beautiful stars and the city below was illuminated by different kinds of lights. The roads were jam packed with traffic and I had to wait until ten pm so I could drive home easily. But, in my condition I was not sure I want to wait one more hour. Besides, I wasn¡¯t sure I could drive safely. In situations like that, I used to check if Harry was also workingte so he could drive me home. If he wasn¡¯t there, I¡¯d call Anna.


    I went back to my chair and got my phone then dial Anna¡¯s number. I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d be finishing this work anytime soon. The phone rang but she didn¡¯t pick up. On my favorite contacts list, I spotted Kelli¡¯s name and rolled my eyes, wondering how it got there. My sister was not the type of person you called during emergency situations because high chances were she¡¯d not do anything to help.


    I remembered one time I cut my finger and she asked me to go to the hospital yet she was with me at my parents¡¯ house. There was a first aid kit in the house. I had to bandage my own wound while she watched a Venezun telenov.


    The only person who could save me was Harry but I yelled at and med him for causing the rift between Zane and I. Maybe it was time to get over that. Harry had been so nice to me and we had always had such great times together to let our friendship end just like that. I took a deep breath before calling him.


    ¡°Hi Harry,¡± I started. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for what I said thest time we met.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you should be. But I understand that you were hurt and in a lot of pain at that time so it¡¯s okay.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m d to hear that,¡± I said and hesitated.


    ¡°Is there something you need, Maya?¡±


    ¡°What, no. Why would you think-?¡±N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    ¡°Just say it,¡± he cut me off.


    I told him my problem. He told me that he¡¯d be here as soon as possible. Twenty minutester, he sent me a message that he was already in the parking yard. I logged out of myputer and turned it off. Grabbing my bag, I headed out. I stepped into the elevator and when I reached the ground floor, I found Zane talking to one of the guards. He was wearing a ck suit and looking as gorgeous as ever.


    ¡°Good evening, Mr. Carrington,¡± I said to him. I had wanted to slink away without being noticed but it was too risky. Considering that my job was on the line, I had to be as polite and respectful as ever.


    ¡°Good evening,¡± he barely nced at me while replying so I quickly opened the door and walked out. At the parking yard, I scanned the area and spotted Harry¡¯s car. Feeling relieved, I headed towards it and when I reached out to open the door, I heard Zane¡¯s voice. My body stiffened.


    ¡°Miss Bet.¡±


    I turned and realized that he had stepped outside as well and was not looking at me but at Harry who could be seen clearly in the well-lit parking yard. He was standing by the side of his car waiting for me.


    ¡°Yes, Mr. Carrington?¡± I said, looking at him.


    ¡°Come with me to my office,¡± he said quite loudly. The security guard looked shocked and even from a distance, I could tell that Harry¡¯s fingers were balling into fists. He was far from happy after hearing Zane¡¯s words. I stood there, not knowing what to do. In the end, I decided to listen to my boss. I had already been given a warning and couldn¡¯t risk losing my job. Zane started going back into the building.


    ¡°Alright, Mr. Carrington,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ll be there in a minute.¡±


    ¡°Right now,¡± He said. Stopping, he turned to Harry. ¡°Mr. Smith, you can leave. I¡¯ll make sure Miss Bet gets back home safely. Have a good night.¡±


    I gave Harry an apologetic look before going back into the building. My heart was beating faster than usual as I entered the elevator with Zane. I stood as far as possible from him, feeling the awkwardness and hoping that the elevator would get to its destination as soon as possible.


    Finally, we reached his floor and he stepped out fast. Taking a deep breath, I followed him, the butterflies in my heart running amok.

 Untitled

    Zane.


    My heart raced as I walked into my office, followed by Maya. I had not seen her since that time with Harry. Asking her toe to my office had been a spur of the moment decision I had taken because I couldn¡¯t bear to see her with that guy. Maya closed the door behind her and turned to me and our eyes met. Her gaze was cold.


    ¡°Hello, Maya.¡± I said, smiling a little, hoping that would put her at ease.


    ¡°Good evening, Mr. Carrington.¡± She said, coolly. The message behind that was clear. She wanted to keep things professional. But, it was toote and she was my destined mate. I had a few minutes to change that.


    ¡°Please have a seat,¡± I told her. She sat and I walked around the table to my seat.


    ¡°I just wanted to apologize for what happened,¡± I said, looking down at her hands. ¡°I couldn¡¯t be with you after what happened. There were somethings I needed to take care of back at home. I think I handled everything wrong and I¡¯m sorry for hurting you.¡±


    She looked at me for some seconds, as if weighing the words in her mind. ¡°There¡¯s nothing to be sorry about. We are adults. We had a good time together and when it was over, we went our own ways. There¡¯s nothing wrong with that.¡±Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    ¡°There is something I need to tell you,¡± I said. It was now or ever. i had toy the cards in front of her so she could make a decision. I knew it was a bold move to confess my feelings but I couldn¡¯t help myself anymore. Just having her near me was driving my wolf crazy and it was threatening to show itself.  ¡°The truth is, Maya, I love you. I have loved you for a while now and I can¡¯t keep it inside any longer. It¡¯s driving me crazy. I know this may sound surprising to you but I just had to tell you how I feel.¡±


    Her lips parted in shock, but she quicklyposed herself. The coldness in her eyes seemed to be vanishing.


    ¡°I find this hard to believe,¡± she said. ¡°Are you saying this just to y with my mind?¡±


    I had expected she would say that.


    ¡°I had feelings for you even before we slept together. Unfortunately, I had to return and carry out some important duties with my otherpanies. When I returned and found out you were suspended, I was so concerned. I went to your residence and when I didn¡¯t find you, I returned to the office and asked for your whereabouts. It was why I followed you to that resort. I needed to confess my feelings but unfortunately, I found you with Smith. When I saw you going to him today, I couldn¡¯t bear it.¡±


    She was quiet for a while.


    ¡°So, if this is true, you made mee here because you were jealous?¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s despicable. I used my power to separate you two. I just needed to let you know what¡¯s going on in my heart.¡±


    Maya sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know what to say after hearing this.¡±


    ¡°I know that this is very sudden and you will need time to think about it. I will not push you to anything you¡¯re notfortable with. I¡¯ll be here whenever you¡¯re ready. You are excused.¡±


    Maya nodded before standing up. She left the room, leaving me feeling a bit disappointed. I was a mess of emotions and it was annoying me. Before the mate bond, I had never felt that strongly about any woman. I was not liking it.


    Sighing, I rose from the chair, picked up my phone and headed to the door. Just as I was reaching out for it, it opened on its own and Maya entered.


    ¡°Maya.¡±


    ¡°I have feelings for you too,¡± she blurted out. ¡°I just don¡¯t think it¡¯s appropriate since you¡¯re my boss. It could create a conflict of interest and mess things up. That suspension taught me that my career is the only good thing I have in my life and I can¡¯t afford to lose it.¡±


    ¡°Maya, let me the other good thing in your life,¡± I told her.


    ¡°Feelings can change any time,¡± she said. ¡°What will happen when you stop loving me? We can¡¯t do this.¡±


    I steeped closer to her. Drawn to her, I leaned in. I brushed my lips against hers, and she responded despite herself. It felt better than the first time we had kissed. Now that I knew she had feelings for me, I was feeling more secure therefore able to lose myself in the kiss. Our lips moved in sync as her soft, dainty hands caressed the back of my head. My wolf was excited and I could feel the heat in my body rising, making me feel all kinds of sweet sensations.


    We were both breathless by the time we pulled apart.


    ¡°I missed you,¡± I said, holding her close.


    ¡°I missed you too,¡± she said, smiling at me with her beautiful sweet face. I nced at those lips and realised I needed more taste. It was tempting but I realised I needed to do things right. She may have been my mate but she needed to be treated like the amazingdy she was.


    ¡°I¡¯d like to take you for dinner tomorrow,¡± I said, staring at the spectacr woman before me. ¡°Would that work for you, miss Bet.¡±


    Maya smiled. ¡°I¡¯ll have to clear out my schedule.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said.


    ¡°Kidding,¡± she said. ¡°I had nothing nned for tomorrow. So, is this the end of the night? You make me all hot and bothered then let me go?¡±


    I raised a brow, liking where the conversation was going. ¡°You¡¯re ady, Miss Bet. You deserve to be treated like one. Maybe tomorrow¡¯s dinner will have a happy ending.¡±


    Maya chuckled and stepped back. ¡°There¡¯s no use pretending. You¡¯ve sampled the goods already.¡± She ripped open the front zip of her dress. ¡°Do you want this or not?¡±


    One nce at those boobs and my self-control was out of the window.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to ask me twice.¡±

 Questions

    Kim.


    ¡°Why are you here?¡± Harlow asked me. We were in his office and I was seated across from him.


    ¡°You¡¯re the COO,¡± I stated, studying his face. I had to choose my words wisely to achieve the effect I want. ¡°You have a lot of power, right?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± He said with a hint of pride in his voice. That was okay because in my opinion, he deserved to be the CEO. He was quite smart when he wasn¡¯t horny.


    ¡°We can bringints to you if the CEO is not around, right?¡± My eyebrows rose.


    ¡°Yes but it depends on what it is,¡± he pressed a key on the keyboard attached to his desktopputer. He talked while looking at something on the screen. ¡°Some issues should be solved by the department managers.¡±


    ¡°What if myint is about a department manager?¡±Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    ¡°Are you talking about Maya?¡± He looked up, now seeming interested in what I had to say. I smiled inwardly. I knew that Harlow was a fan of Maya and I knew from experience that if she threw herself at him, he¡¯d take the offer in a heartbeat. I couldn¡¯t me him. Maya was beautiful, but not more than me obviously.


    ¡°I¡¯m just asking.¡± I hated that the conversation was not going the way I expected. It should¡¯ve been easier.


    ¡°Listen, Kim. Please take theint to the senior manager or Human Resources. There¡¯s a hierarchy that needs to be followed. Even Maya follows it.¡± It was clear that he admired her a lot. He was bing rude because I¡¯d hinted that she was on the wrong. It seemed he¡¯d always had a soft spot for her like most men at thepany. I couldn¡¯t wait for the day I got rid of her forever because it was seeming harder each passing day.


    Harry had told me Zane had asked Maya to go to his office the previous night which meant they were getting closer. If it was what we were thinking, the two would be a couple soon and I nned on making sure that did not happen.


    ¡°I know but I feel morefortable around you so I thought I could report to you first.¡±


    One of my actress friends had given me a pill that messes with emotions. It was hard but thanks to it, I was able to manufacture some tears that made my fake sadness look real. I was d I didn¡¯t put any make up on. ¡°Things have been so hard ever since Miss Bet returned.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you this sad before,¡± he observed. ¡°Did you and Maya have another fight?¡±


    Note to self; Always save your tears for the right moment. If I¡¯d ever cried about a small issue in his presence, Harlow would realize I was faking it. It looked like my n was going to work, after all. It seemed he believed me, a little.  I knew it was going to be very hard but I had to turn him against Maya.


    ¡°Enough, Kim. I know Maya and I¡¯m sure she hasn¡¯t done anything that could make a person like you cry. What are you up to now?¡±


    ¡°A person like me?¡± I asked, aware that he was talking about my strong personality. ¡°What do you mean by that, Mr. Harlow?¡±


    ¡°Stop the drama. Mr. Carrington will be here at three o¡¯clock. You¡¯ll go and talk to him when he¡¯s back. Besides, our personnel psychologist will be here next week. Your problems with Maya will be sorted out then. If you can¡¯t wait, talk to the Human Resource Manager because I can¡¯t deal with petty drama unless the people below me have failed to solve it.¡±


    No. I didn¡¯t expect it to be so hard. How the hell was I going to turn him against her?


    ¡°So you tantly choose not to hear me out?¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± he let out an exasperated sigh. ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡±


    ¡°Maya withholds work from me. She changed all the E-mail passwords and doesn¡¯t talk to me. I need to do the work I was hired for.¡±


    ¡°It looks you and Maya can¡¯t work together. Do you want a transfer? We can transfer you to another department or branch if you¡¯d like. I need to go somewhere right now so get out of my office.¡±


    ¡°Mr. Harlow, why are you acting like this towards me?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not special,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯re just a na?ve little girl who thinks she can use what¡¯s between her legs to get to the top of the world. It won¡¯t work with me.¡±


    I wanted to remind him of the times he had himself between those legs but realized there was no point in that. He didn¡¯t seem inclined to go against sweet old Maya Bet so I had to go back ande up with a better n. I left his office and gave myself a day off since Maya didn¡¯t care whether I worked or not anymore.


    Two weeks back, Mane, my partner in crime had given me a tracking device he stole from some Chinesepany. I had ced it in Harlow¡¯s phone when he was showering after us having a good time. It was hard but I was able to do it without him finding out. I used to feel guilty but when he started acting different after sleeping with me thrice, I realized he had been using me and had probably found someone else. I didn¡¯t feel so bad about it anymore.  I wasn¡¯t sure it would evere in handy but the opportunity had finally presented itself. I hoped Harlow was off to do something dirty like the dirty old man he was.


    Later, Mane and I found Harlow in a restaurant in one of the city suburbs. It was a very private and exclusive one and we were only allowed in because I had a Milner Inc. ID and I lied that I was there to meet with the COO. Mane passed off as thepany¡¯s driver with his fake ID.


    We arrived just in time. Harlow was passing an envelope to a man seated across from him. I took a few pictures of the envelope and many of the other man. I needed to know who he was and I¡¯d find out. I also had to investigate in my ways. If this turned out to be a bribe, I¡¯d soon be the junior actuarial officer at Milner Insurance Company.


    I smiled because fate was finally smiling upon me. I couldn¡¯t wait to get rid of Maya Bet forever.

 Delicious

    Zane.


    Her body was perfect, a delicious snack just waiting to be devoured by me. I pulled her close and kissed her plump lips hungrily, savouring the delicious taste. She was so good, like a pro and our lips moved expertly against each other.  The scent of her arousal was tantalising, making my blood rush. Pulling myself away, I unbuckled my belt and pulled down my trousers before lifting her on the table and taking her.


    I had never thought of us having sex in the office but I realised it should have been one of my fantasies. Shey back down and moaned as I thrust in and out. By the time we were done, she was a quivering mess. I leaned down and kissed her before slumping onto the couch. She continued to lie on the table for a while before getting up anding to join me. Within a few minutes, I was up and ready to have a go again.


    Two hourster, we were getting into our clothes.


    ¡°My house,¡± I asked suggestively.


    Maya smiled and shook her head. ¡°I think we¡¯ve had enough for today. I¡¯ll go home now.¡±


    ¡°Seriously?¡± I said. ¡°Get serious. Are turning down all this?¡± I pointed to my amazing, rock hard body.


    She smiled further. ¡°You have no idea how hard it is for me to reject that.¡±


    I went towards her and pulled her close. ¡°You have no idea how much it hurts me.¡±


    She chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re exaggerating. I know you¡¯re okay with it.¡±


    ¡°Seriously, I¡¯m not. Why do you have to go to your ce anyway, when you can have the best night of your life with me?¡±


    ¡°Because I have to get up in the morning ande for work,¡± she said. ¡°Not all of us are CEOs who can decide whether toe for work or not. You can decide to stay away for weeks and nothing happen but if I stay away for a day, I¡¯ll be fired. You were there when Harlow warned me, weren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m in charge so I don¡¯t think anyone will fire you for no good reason.¡±


    ¡°By the way, you didn¡¯t defend me at all that way. You just looked on and said nothing.¡±


    I kissed her lips for a few seconds. ¡°That was thest time for me to do something like that. From now on, I will be your protector.¡±


    ¡°Protector?¡± sheughed. ¡°That¡¯s such an ancient concept. What are you, a caveman?¡±


    I chuckled. She was so close. I had no idea how she would react when she found out that I was what humans consider a monster. I was a werewolf and the human world painted us as flesh eating monsters. And yet humans are more monstrous than we are.


    ¡°You have no idea,¡± I said.


    ¡°I¡¯m going now. Are youing or not?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± I said.


    Maya and I went into the elevator together. We kissed each other passionately until the elevator door opened. The security guard looked down when he saw using out of it. Maya straightened her cloth. It seemed she was not used to PDA. I escorted her to her car.


    ¡°Goodnight, baby.¡± I said. ¡°Thank you for everything.¡±


    ¡°Goodnight to you,¡± she said. ¡°See you.¡±


    ¡°See ya.¡±


    I watched her car roll out of the driveway, feeling like stopping it. I was turned on again, even after all the lovemaking we had participated in. I smiled, lucky that I had finally found a woman I couldn¡¯t get tired of. She was perfect and I couldn¡¯t wait to spend the rest of my life with her.


    I walked on towards my car which was in my designated parking spot. I had already sent my chauffeur home earlier. I was about to unlock the car when I sensed a presence, a scent that was very familiar, a scent that made the hairs on my body stand straight.


    Suddenly, a figure jumped out of the hedge near my car. She stood up straight and faced me. ¡°I¡¯m very angry,¡± she said. ¡°How could you fvck that woman when I told you to leave her?¡±


    ¡°Because I could, and I love her. She¡¯s amazing, sweet, perfect i. e. everything you¡¯re not. What are you doing here?¡±


    She chuckled. ¡°You have decided to be defiant. You won¡¯t take me seriously, right. I could do some very bad things but since I¡¯m a good person, I decided to warn you first. Stay away from that woman or she¡¯ll pay for your sins. After watching the two of you, don¡¯t ask me how, I can tell that you¡¯ve the hots for her. She¡¯s not just any woman, is she? Why do I have a feeling that she¡¯s your destined mate?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I shrugged. I tried to act nonchnt but I was really worried. I could sense a great evil around the woman. Although I was an alpha, I knew that being a macho man didn¡¯t always solve everything. ¡°But I have no time for all this.¡±


    Suddenly, she was right in front of me. She grabbed my neck. I tried to pry her fingers off but they wouldn¡¯t budge. She was way too strong for me. I tried to activate my powers but for some reason, her touch had rendered me powerless. ¡°I¡¯m trying to be good to you but you¡¯re determined to make me be bad.¡±


    She let go of me. ¡°What the hell is wrong with you?¡± I asked angrily.


    ¡°I came here to help you out,¡± she said. ¡°I love you, Zane. I came from Misenium to warn you after hearing a lot of things. Something is going to happen soon, word has got around. Your father and the council members are nning to do something drastic and I don¡¯t have to know what exactly it is to know that it will not be in your father. So, if you care about your position in the pack, you better go there right now. Or you may wake up pack less.¡±


    ¡°You just want to make me go there so that I won¡¯t be able to see Maya but I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll give you that pleasure.¡±


    She rolled her eyes, before grabbing the sides of my face. Suddenly, I was transported away to an unfamiliar house. I was chained up to the wall and there was a man near a steaming cauldron, moving a stick around it. The man turned with an evil grin. It was my father.


    Suddenly, she let go off me.


    ¡°You just made that up,¡± I used, although it had felt real.


    ¡°Really?¡± she said.


    I didn¡¯t say anything. For some reason, it felt too real for me to deny.


    ¡°Go,¡± she said.Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org.


    ¡°I can¡¯t leave Maya.¡±


    ¡°Fine, let¡¯s go together. I actually want to help you.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the catch?¡±


    ¡°Being with me.¡±


    ¡°Get in,¡± I said.


    If things were about to go down, I needed someone strong on my side.

 Powers

    Zane.


    Two hourster, we were in Misenium. During the entire drive, I was pondering my situation and wondering if it was a good idea to use Chelsea to help me bring my father down and then destroy her afterwards. Her offer to help was tempting, but it meant me being without Maya. I couldn¡¯t see myself being happy in the case.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can work with you,¡± I told her after stopping near the hotel we had made love from. During the drive, I had texted three of my men to go and keep watch of Maya at her apartment and make sure they didn¡¯t find out who they were. I needed to know she was safe as I fraternised with the enemy.


    Chelsea smiled and opened the car door. ¡°You have no idea what you¡¯re dealing with. You can go, but I promise you will be back by yourself and by that time, the price will be higher. Now I¡¯m liking this more than ever.¡±


    ¡°I fought my battles before you came here, and I will continue to do so.¡±


    Sheughed. ¡°Do you even know where your father has been, and who he has been with? If you knew the answers to those two questions you wouldn¡¯t be talking big like this.¡±


    Now she was trying to scare me, and it was working. My attempts to get rid of my father had failed because some of the council members supported him. I had paused my fight to go and check on Maya and thepany.


    ¡°What are you?¡± I asked. ¡°You have extraordinary strength. You¡¯re not a werewolf, which I can tell.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right, I¡¯m not. See you soon, Zane.¡± She said before opening the car door and disappearing, leaving me more confused than ever. What was my father up to? It was then I realised that Joe had not called me, not even talked to me via mind link. If something was going on, my beta would have told me unless¡­unless something had happened to him. I tried to reach him via mind link but I couldn¡¯t so I pulled out his phone and dialled the number. It was not going through. I called Mark, but he was also unreachable.


    I had focused so much on Maya that I failed to pay attention to anything else. I should have known something was wrong. I remembered that Mark had tried to call me in the afternoon but I was in a meeting with an investor so I had ignored his calls and switched off my phone for a while. When I turned it on, I had forgotten all about the calls. I decided not to call anyone but go find out what was happening by myself.


    The pack house was silent and most of the lights in the residential side were off. The main building which housed the offices on the ground floor had a number of lights on. There were more guards than usual standing guard. I approached the first group but they didn¡¯t bow as they should have which left me puzzled. For a moment, I was scared that my father had already taken over the pack and left me high and dry.


    ¡°Where is Joe Hadden?¡± I asked.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know and don¡¯t care,¡± one of them, a brave short thing said. I grabbed his neck and snapped it then let his limp boy fall to the ground.


    ¡°Will anybody tell me where my beta and gamma are or do I have to kill you all.¡±


    ¡°We cannot tell you anything,¡± the two men said in unison. I was so angry that I lunged at one and knocked him down while the others charged at me. I used my powers to electrocute him and he fell backwards. Now I was royally pissed. For soldiers to turn against me like that, there had to be something big going on. I began to think Chelsea was right.


    I was about to make my way towards the building when I saw ten soldiersing out. It was strange. They were walking at the same speed and looked as if they were in a trance. They looked like a group under some sort of mind control. I waited for a few seconds. When I saw them heading towards me, I started taking a few steps backwards. They started to move faster, their eyes glowing in the dark. This couldn¡¯t be it, I kept thinking to myself but as they advanced, I realised they were out to catch me. So I did the only sensible thing I could do at that time. I ran.


    Ever since I became an alpha, I had never run away from anything. My father had finally brought me down. I had fooled myself into thinking he couldn¡¯t really do it but it was now clear that he could do whatever he wanted in order to get back on the throne.


    The only good thing was that he had not yet taken away my alpha powers. Two people couldn¡¯t have the powers at once in a pack. He needed me in order to take the powers, unless I relinquished them or left the pack like he had done.


    Iughed as I walked through the woods. I was not about to let that traitor take everything I had built from scratch. He quit on the pack after burning it to the ground. Now that I had struggled to make everything good again, he wanted it back. He wanted the easy stuff, and I had no ns of letting him have them.


    I had to do something, even if it meant going to my enemy. That¡¯s right. I had no other choice than to return to Chelsea.


    She was wearing lingerie when she opened the door. ¡°I knew you¡¯d be back,¡± she said with a big smile. ¡°Unfortunately, I already got someone to entertain me for the night.¡±


    A vampire appeared behind her. He was shirtless and wearing ck shorts. ¡°Zane Carrington, I heard that you¡¯ve been overthrown and they killed your beta. That¡¯s unfortunate but you can¡¯t findfort in thisdy. She¡¯s taken.¡±N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    ¡°Joe is dead?¡± I asked, feeling weak in the knees.


    Chelsea stood aside. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about your loss. Pleasee in.¡± she turned to her vampire lover. ¡°The moon looks like he needs some rest. Can¡¯t kick a man when he¡¯s down now, can we?¡±


    ¡°Fine, whatever.¡± The man said. They both followed me into the room. I sat on a small wooden chair. I didn¡¯t trust the couch to be sanitary, considering their state of undress.


    ¡°How did they kill him?¡± I asked the man.


    Chelsea sighed. ¡°You see that vision I showed you? That was not you being tied up. I manipted that part. That was Joe. Your father stabbed him after failing to get sensitive information from him.¡±


    I stood up, angry. ¡°I¡¯m going to kill that man.¡±


    ¡°If you want, I can do it for you.¡± Chelsea offered.


    I shook my head. ¡°No, I don¡¯t know if I really want to kill him.¡±


    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll take away the power that he has. It will be my revenge against Seline Walters.¡±


    ¡°Seline Walters is the greatest witch alive. How would that be revenge against her?¡±


    ¡°Because she is the one who gave your father the powers he has now.¡±


    ¡°My father has powers? I used my alpha powers to defeat him when he was in the cave.¡±


    ¡°He wanted you to think he was weak and powerless, only to turn on you when you least expected. Almost everyone at the pack is under mind control right now. Seline is using your father to get more power. She gives out her powers. When they are used, her powers increase.¡±


    ¡°NO wonder the soldiers at the pack were after me. They¡¯re being mind-controlled.¡±


    ¡°Yes. So you can take away the powers without killing that bastard.¡±


    She nodded.


    ¡°Do it.¡±


    She smiled. ¡°And I will, at a price.¡±


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°I want you to reject your mate.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±

 Play dirty

    Maya


    There are certain things in life that happen and leave you in a situation where you don¡¯t know what to think or do. That was how I felt on that day and I began to wonder if God really existed and if he did, why would he let something happen when he knew it¡¯d suck out all happiness from my system. I didn¡¯t consider myself a very good person, though a lot of people thought I was. I tried not to do bad things. Maybe I deserved what was happening but I didn¡¯t feel like I did. Why did happiness evade us so much when we chased after it? Why was it that when you lost one thing, you lost everything?


    I had lost my job due to unclear circumstances. Mr. Harlow had called me to his office and told me that I had to resign or he¡¯d fire me. I wrote the letter and gave it to him. He said I had to go because apparently I¡¯d been disrespectingpany values because of the way I had treated Kim. I had a feeling that it was not about him wanting thepany to be a safe ce for everyone. Something was going on behind the scenes. Kim had been very arroganttely. It was like she knew she was going to rece me and was sure of it.


    I considered going to court but I didn¡¯t think I had the emotional strength to fight a court case at the moment. Considering that Milner Insurance was a famouspany, the press would have a field day and I didn¡¯t want them hounding me with questions. Suing thepany I had grown attached to didn¡¯t feel right to me so I was not going to do anything about the issue other than calling the man who had promised to protect me. Unfortunately, his phone numbers were unreachable. So much for protection.


    I heard soft footsteps on the grass and turned my head towards the sound. Anna was walking towards me.


    ¡°Oh my friend, I¡¯m very sorry about what happened.¡± She sat by my side and wrapped her right hand around my shoulder. ¡°That man is a bastard.¡±


    She was referring to Harlow.


    ¡°I know.¡±


    For a few minutes, we didn¡¯t say anything to each other.  We were used to sharingfortable silences when going through tough times. She didn¡¯t have to say anything for me to realize I had her full support. She had always been there for me. We had been through many things together and we always gave each other strength.


    Later, we yed ser with random people that came to hang around the field. They were mostly young high school day schrs that had juste from school. They were all male and quite impressed with our skills. It was nice to get back to my favorite hobby and release everything.


    ¡°I have never met girls who can y like the two of you,¡± Onemented at the end of the game. It wasn¡¯t our first time hearing something like that. After doing simple exercises to cool off, we grabbed our ball and left.


    Ever since I got fired the previous, I had been waiting for Zane to call or send me a message but that hadn¡¯t happened. Instead it was Harry who called me after hearing the news.


    ¡°I can get you something in anotherpany. I have a friend who works at Landmark insurance.¡± He told me after I had narrated everything to him. ¡°Would you like that or do you prefer to work somewhere else?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to think about that right now,¡± I said, getting up from the couch. ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t want to think about anything at this point. I want to drink until I can¡¯t think anymore. Everything sucks.¡±


    ¡°You know that won¡¯t solve anything,¡± he told me.


    ¡°I do but what else can I do?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what you can do. I want you topile everything you know about Kim and send it to me.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t follow.¡±


    ¡°My friend Birthmark is a private investigator,¡± he said and I wondered who would give their child a name like that. ¡°I¡¯ll send everything you have and he¡¯ll try to find something we can use against her. She sounds like someone who has a dirty past.¡±Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    ¡°Why is he called that?¡± I asked, unable to ignore it.


    He chuckled. ¡°Sorry, it¡¯s nickname we gave him back in high school. He has a distinct birthmark near his left eye.¡±


    ¡°Oh okay. Are you sure you can trust him?¡±


    ¡°Yep, are you in?¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± I smiled. I had nothing to do and I was unemployed. ¡°Thanks, Harry.¡±


    ¡°I owe it to you,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ve contributed in making the rift between you and Zane so I¡¯m trying to fix things.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, Zane Carrington is an insensitive jerk. I want nothing to do with him.¡±


    The truth was he was. He had not called to console me when I got the sack yet we¡¯d been together just the night before and he had promised to protect me even though I had not asked. He had promised to always be there for me? What kind of person makes a promise like that and just leaves? If there was anything I had learnt about Zane Carrington, it was that he was very unreliable. I had been stupid, to believe that a man like that could care about me.


    Harry was such a wonderful soul. Even after rejecting him, he was trying to help me. Now that was a man who knew what being there for someone was. I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d ever forgive Zane for abandoning me when I needed him most. How dare he act like he loved me during good times but disappeared when life got rough? I had been stupid, thinking he actually loved me.


    I tried to forget about him, telling myself to never think of the man again. I was going to get Kim out of Milner from the outside, and that was if Harry¡¯s friend managed to find something against her. Even though I would probably not be epted again, I¡¯d be content knowing that the person who ruined my life was outside thepany I had worked so hard for.


    I was dealing with dirt, and therefore had to y dirty.

 Peaceful

    Zane.


    The warriors that had surrounded the cottage started running after me and the two warriors I was with. They started chasing after us without shooting. It was apparent they wanted to capture me without injuring me. One of the warriors was captured and his neck was snapped before he was left on the ground. I was very good at running but my chest was starting to ache and my head was throbbing due to my father throwing me down. When the next warrior was caught, I knew it was only a matter of time. As strong as I was, I was alone and it was going to be almost impossible to outrun 30 strong men. For some reason, my powers were no longer working which was very annoying.


    Suddenly, the men stoppeding after me and stood there, looking very confused. I figured it was a trick so I continued running but when I looked back, I saw that they seemed genuinely confused.


    ¡°Alpha!¡± One of them yelled. He was a short guy that was always guarding the pack house. I stood, wondering if they were up to something. They all went down on their knees at once, confusing me even more. I tilted my head. If this was a trick, it was a really good one.


    ¡°We¡¯re sorry,¡± the men said in unison.


    Suddenly, one of the warriors that had been on my side outside the courage came running. I watched as he came to a stop in front of me. ¡°My condolences,¡± he said, bowing to me.


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± I asked, although I could tell what he was about to say.


    ¡°Your father has been killed, sir.¡±


    ¡°Who killed him?¡±


    ¡°Miss Chelsea.¡±


    I was enraged. I set off immediately, running to the cottage as the men followed me. When I reached, I went straight inside. My father was on the ground, bleeding out. The thin dagger he had threatened to use on me was stuck to his chest.


    ¡°Father!¡± I said, going on my knees next to his body. I couldn¡¯t believe he was really gone. This was my second time losing him and it felt more real this time because I knew I would never see him again. This was not what I wanted. Feeling furious, I stood up. ¡°Where is she? Where is that woman?¡±


    The men around shook their heads, looking uncertain. ¡°She was not supposed to kill my father.¡±


    I nced at the man who had given me life. I knew for a fact that my father would have not killed me. Had he been capable of that, he would have killed me a while back. He had several chances. Memories of the old days when I deeply loved and respected my father came back in waves and I felt my eyes getting misty.


    ¡°Take my father to the pack house,¡± I said, before stepping out of the house. ¡°Charles, Myron. Come with me.¡±


    The two warriors who had been zapped by my father followed me.


    ¡°Do you have them?¡± I asked Charles. He nodded.


    We ran through the woods, using our super speed. Within a few minutes, we were at the hotel Chelsea was staying in. I thought she would have checked out after what she had done but she was still there. I went into the room with my guards.


    ¡°You were not supposed to kill him,¡± I said.


    She stood up from the couch. ¡°I know, but he wanted to kill you. Why are you defending him? You hated the man. Why are you acting like he was the love of your life?¡±


    ¡°He was my father, and I just wanted to stop him from taking over. I didn¡¯t want him dead.¡±


    ¡°Well, we¡¯re not perfect. Things happen. I stopped him from taking over, and now it¡¯s time for you to honour your promise. You have to reject your mate.¡±


    ¡°You were not supposed to kill my father.¡±


    ¡°Are we going to do this the easy way or the hard way?¡±


    ¡°I choose the hard way,¡± I said, lunging at her. She chuckled and sent me hurtling back to the wall with her powers. I nodded at the men with me and we all attacked at once. She was trying to repel my attack when Charles rammed the syringe into his buttocks. Sheughed. ¡°What do you kids think you¡¯re doing?¡±


    Herughter starting dying as her skin paled. She twisted her face and gritted her teeth before screaming. ¡°Ahhhh¡­¡± with her eyes wide, she fell on to the floor.


    ¡°Quick, grab her. We don¡¯t have much time.¡±


    I had done research and found out that she was a tribrid. She had vampire, werewolf and witch blood. Her witch blood was from one of the strongest covens, which was why she was one of the strongest witches alive.


    There was a concoction of herbs that could put her down for utmost 10 hours. That was an average estimate, which meant it could keep her for less or more time than that. The concoction was very expensive and rare. I had only been able to get 5mls, which meant I had to figure out how to get rid of her within 10 hours which was really hard. Tribrids were very hard to kill.N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    We took the unconscious woman to my house and I had a number of warriors guard it, after telling them to call me in case she got up. We put her in a cage in the basement. It wasced with vervain and wolfsbane on the sides and other substances I wasn¡¯t sure what they did. There was something I needed to do within ten hours. I didn¡¯t know if I would be able to kill her but I had to make sure those I loved were safe in case I failed to get rid of her.


    She looked so peaceful as shey unconscious on the floor. I shook my head as I headed to the basement stairs. Appearances can be very different from reality.

 Move on

    Maya.


    People always say just move on. As if it¡¯s that easy. When you have a strong connection with someone, it¡¯s not very easy to let go and move on. For a while after they disappear, you keep hoping that they wille back. That they will realise how amazing you were and realise you¡¯re the only one for them. If they don¡¯te back, it really affects you especially when you don¡¯t get closure. After waiting for Zane to turn up after days, I decided to go and confront him at his residence since Harry told me had not been showing up at work. I just wanted to hear it from his mouth that it had all been a game and he no longer wanted me. I had tried to forget him but it seemed I first needed to hear that in order to move on.


    The apartment was in an upscale area of town in a magnificent building, the type of building that I could only dream of living in. the security officer told me that Zane was not around which was a disappointment.


    ¡°Did he go to Misenium city?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he said. ¡°The fact that you don¡¯t know where he is signals that he doesn¡¯t want you to know, either. Have some dignity. Leave the man alone. You¡¯re a very beautiful woman. I¡¯m sure there are lots of men who want you. It¡¯s a pity that you women always want those who don¡¯t want you.¡±


    Those cold words from the security guard was what I needed to hear in order to put that nonsense behind me. It was time for me to forget about Zane Carrington and move on. The guard was right. If Zane wanted me to know where he was, he would have told me.


    A few minutester, I was trudging up the stairs of my home. I was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. I decided to go and pack my things so I could go for a vacation, away from anything that reminded me of Zane. When I entered my living room, I felt like something was amiss. I nced at the door again. I was a hundred percent sure that I had just opened it. Why then, did I feel there was someone inside? Did the apartment manager let someone in?


    I nced at the table and the couch. Everything seemed untouched, except¡­there was a slight depression on the couch. I had not sat on it since morning. My heartbeat increased pace as I tiptoed towards the kitchen. I heard movement and that prompted me to run towards the front door. My heart nearly stopped when I found Zane standing there. He grabbed me and ced a hand on my mouth, muffling my scream for help.


    ¡°I promise I¡¯m not here to hurt you,¡± he said.


    Immediately, my body rxed. For some reason, I actually believed him. I turned and faced him as he let me go.


    ¡°What are you doing in my house, Zane Carrington? Most importantly, how did you get in?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s sit,¡± he said. ¡°I will tell you everything.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t sit until I know what is going on here.¡±


    ¡°Suit yourself,¡± he said and went to sit on the couch. Reluctantly, I followed suit.


    ¡°I love you, Maya.¡±


    I chuckled. ¡°You have a funny way of showing it. Do you think I¡¯m a fool, Zane Carrington. Something else is going on here.¡±


    ¡°Yes. We are destined to be together. You and I destined mates.¡±


    ¡°Did you escape from the asylum?¡± I asked, losing my patience. ¡°I don¡¯t have time for this nonsense,¡± I pulled out my phone. ¡°I¡¯m going to call the cops if you continue to sprout nonsense like this. I just went to your house looking for you after you ghosted me. Now you¡¯re here saying things that don¡¯t make sense.¡±


    ¡°You went looking for me?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s beside the point.¡±Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    ¡°No, there¡¯s a reason you fell for me so fast, a reason you feel safe around me even though we haven¡¯t known each other for long.¡±


    ¡°Of course, there is. I¡¯m a stupid girl infatuated with you, but it ends now. I¡¯m done.¡±


    Zane stood up. ¡°I¡¯m a werewolf.¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°Any other time, I would haveughed at this. But, this is not funny. If I¡¯m stuck here listening to you, I may as well get myself a drink.¡± I stood up and went to the kitchen. I grabbed a bottle of wine and two sses then brought them to the living room. ¡°I¡¯m sad, depressed and lonely. I might as well listen to your silly stories while drinking because I have nothing else better to do.¡±


    ¡°This is not a joke.¡±


    ¡°Whatever, just tell your silly stories? So, you¡¯re a werewolf. Are you a big bad werewolf like those in horror movies or are you the nice heartthrob in romance and fantasy fiction? Are you here to take me to your pack?¡± I said beforeughing. ¡°Yeah, this is actually funny when one is drinking. Tell me more, Zane. Are you the alpha of a pack or what?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± he said.


    Iughed. ¡°Hey sit and drink with me. Did I ever tell you that I¡¯m a mermaid?¡± Iughed some more. ¡°Yeah, I get a fish-like body when in water.¡±


    ¡°This is not funny. I¡¯m the alpha of Bloodmoon pack and you are my mate. I came to this city solely for you. I was the one who attacked Aaron, and just so you know that vampire is alive. What were you thinking going off with him in the dark? He could have bitten you.¡±


    ¡°This story is getting ridiculous,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m going to get some chips. Want some?¡±


    Zane sat down and started to pour himself a ss of wine while I went to get snacks from the kitchen.


    ¡°Where were we?¡± I asked when I got back. I sat down and gulped the wine in my ss.


    ¡°Maya, we don¡¯t have time to waste. You¡¯re in danger and we have to go to Misenium.¡±


    ¡°When I first saw you, I thought you were a great reasonable guy. For you toe here and make up things just to avoid ountability says a lot about you. You ghosted me and now you want me to take you back but I won¡¯t do it this time. I won¡¯t be a doormat¡­¡±


    I started to feel weak, my vision getting blurry. ¡°What is going on?¡±


    Zane just stared at me. A few secondster, my eyes widened in realisation. He had drugged me. I tried to scream but my voice was barely a whisper. The world slowly faded into darkness.

 Your turn

    Zane.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I want to kill her,¡± I told Uriel, a vampire friend of mine. I had been confiding in him to find out what the vampires knew about the woman in my custody. Having kidnapped Maya and ced her in my pack house, I had only three or four hours before the fierce tribrid woke and broke down the cage. From what I had heard while doing research on her, she had broken out of so many ces and destroyed those who imprisoned her.


    ¡°I would kill her,¡± I said. ¡°But I know nothing about the woman. I don¡¯t know her enemies and friends. I¡¯m not scared of the enemies but the friends. She may have friends in high ces and they will want revenge. I¡¯m not sure I want to risk the lives of my pack.¡±


    ¡°Well, leaving her alive would also be risking the lives of your pack unless you¡¯re ready to abide by her rules.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t reject my mate. I would live a very sad life if I did. I don¡¯t think Chelsea can give me the happiness Maya can.¡±


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re stuck, bro. I wish I could be of help. The only thing I can think of is killing her. ¨Csays he has the dagger that can kill her. There are only three in the world and you¡¯re lucky there¡¯s one in Misenium. You have two hours to decide. And if she wakes up before the estimated four hours, things might go real bad for you so you better decide quickly.¡±


    After he left, I paced around the bedroom, unable to make a decision. What the hell was I going to do about that woman?


    Suddenly, I heard a crash from downstairs. With a burst of supernatural speed. i went out of the room and leapt from thending to the ground floor. I turned and saw a man with extremely pale skin walking towards me, his yellow eyes ring at me with sharp intensity.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± I asked the vampire who was wearing a long, ck cloak. I immediately transformed to my werewolf form and growled, baring my teeth.


    ¡°Where is she?¡± the vampire asked with a cold voice. I couldn¡¯t tell whether he was Chelsea¡¯s friend or foe.


    Snarling, I lunged at the tall man but he was quicker than I anticipated. He dodged my attack and then punched my face. I stumbled back, feeling angry. I charged upon him again and we entered a fierce and brutal fight, trading blows. I even tried to use my powers to fight against him but he was so much stronger. He sank his fangs in my neck and started draining me of blood which quickly weakened me. I fought against him but two other pale creatures entered the room. They held me down while the vampire sniffed the air, before opening the basement door and going down.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked the two strong vampires.


    One of them reached into his pocket and pulled out ducttape. He unrolled a strip and wrapped it around my mouth despite my struggle. I stopped fighting against them when I realised it was pointless. They handcuffed me with metal handcuffs. I smiled inwardly because I knew how to break them, I had mastered the technique a long time ago. Wanting to know what they were up to, I decided to watch.


    After tying me, they took me to the basement where their master was waiting. He was seated on a chair and had his eyes closed as if he was meditating upon something. I was chained to the wall. It was crazy that the chain hooks I had made for prisoners ended up imprisoning me. After chaining me, the two men left the basement.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    For three hours, their master never moved. He neither spoke nor opened his eyes. I was getting impatient having to wait. I wondered if he had brought me there so that Chelsea could torture me when she finally woke up.


    Suddenly, Chelsea started stirring. The man immediately opened his eyes. He stood up, straightened his cloak and went to the cage. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a vial of red liquid. He poured the liquid on his hand and started smearing it on the metal bars of the cage. Chelsea¡¯s eyes shot open. They widened when she saw the person looking at her and she quickly stood up. She started coughing.


    ¡°Zane, what¡¯s going on?¡± she asked when she saw me. ¡°What is this monster doing here?¡±


    ¡°Am I really the monster?¡± the vampire asked. ¡°You took everything from me and ruined my life. I have waited years to take my revenge.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for what I did, Killian. I was fooled by Yves and I really regret leaving you there. It¡¯s great that you¡¯re still alive. I thought they burnt you alive.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what you wanted. Not so?¡±


    ¡°No, i-


    ¡°Let¡¯s just say you¡¯re not the only one with friends in high ces. I was able to survive the trap youid out for me after I was so good to you. Everyone said you were not worth it but I didn¡¯t believe them.¡±


    The man reached into the cage and grabbed Chelsea¡¯s neck.


    ¡°Zane, do something.¡± she said. She grabbed the cage but it burned her fingers so much that there was smoke.


    I wanted to risk my life and break the chains but I remembered my father¡¯s lifeless body and the threats she had issued to me.


    ¡°Zane, do you know that this woman killed my entire family and framed me? I lost everyone I loved and she still wanted me to get killed in a painful way.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Chelsea said. She didn¡¯t even deny it. The woman was a monster. She tried to break the cage again but it burnt her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t waste your time,¡± the vampire said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t even want to see your face,¡± the vampire said and started squeezing Chelsea¡¯s neck. Her eyes bulged as she struggled and cried out in deep pain. The man reached into his pocket and pulled out a dagger. It looked like the one Uriel had told me about, one of the three that could kill tribrids. The man sunk it deep in her chest and moved it as she cried out in a pain. Within minutes, she was dead. The man let her body fall before muttering some words to himself.


    Then he turned, and faced him.


    ¡°Now, it¡¯s your turn.¡±


    My turn? What had I done to this man?

 Baby

    Maya.


    I was angry at myself for not screaming when I found Zane in my house. I hated myself for being foolish enough to believe that he wasn¡¯t going to hurt me. Clearly, he was a psychopath who preyed on women who were attracted to him. The room I woke up in was quite good, luxurious in fact. However, it was devoid of personality as if it was a guest room. I could hear voices outside but I couldn¡¯t see anything since the windows were boarded with wood. Thankfully, the light was on and the room was well ventted. It also had a fan and a restroom. At least he was kind of enough to think of my needs.


    Eventually, the door opened. To my surprise, the person who walked in was not Zane. It was a young woman. I wondered if she was also a captive of his. I had read a novel about a man who kidnapped woman and kept them in his house, calling them family. Was this a case of that?


    ¡°Who are you?¡± I asked the woman.


    ¡°I¡¯m Celeste,¡± she said, setting a jug filled with juice on the table. She ced a ss aside. ¡°I brought you some juice. Would you like food?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want anything from you. Who are you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Alpha Zane will be back as soon as he can. There are a lot of things going on.¡±Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g


    ¡°What the hell. Is that really true. He is a werewolf?¡±


    ¡°I am, too.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe this sh! t,¡± I said.


    ¡°Anyway, I can¡¯t say more. I¡¯m here to take care of you. You join us for dinner if you¡¯d like.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m allowed to get out of this room?¡±


    ¡°Of course you can. We had only locked the door because you were asleep.¡±


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s go.¡± I said, eager to leave that ce. The house, rather mansion was huge and seemed to house a lot of people. There were kids running around the yard and a few adults here and there. The ce felt quite homely. Had I not been surrounded by total strangers, I may have felt quite happy there. I had been living by myself for a very long time and it had got quite boring.


    After dinner, Celeste took me outside for a tour around the pack house. It was so weird saying that out loud and meaning it. Pack house. I had only heard of that in movies and books that I thought were purely based on the extraordinary imaginations of writers. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think these supernatural creatures existed. I would have believed aliens existed before I could believe that werewolves really existed. Now that I knew it, I was beginning to wonder if science fiction was really fiction or fact. What if aliens really existed and were just waiting for the perfect time to attack those of us who lived on earth?


    There was not much outside. It was just a regr luxury property in the outskirts of a city. There was arge front and back yard, nice cars, a small vegetable garden, and a swimming pool. There was a smaller house within the fenced enclosure as well. As expected, everything was expensive and sophisticated. Celeste showed me around before taking me back to the room I had been staying in. I asked her for my phone but she said she didn¡¯t know where it was. It was probably locked in the alpha¡¯s room.


    At night, I struggled to fall asleep. Iy on the bed and stared at the ceiling, still thinking of the shocking things I had discovered existed. Suddenly, the door opened and I whipped my head to see who had opened it.


    He stood at the door, watching me. Seeing him made my bodye alive instantly. He looked exhausted as if he had got beaten up. I sat up on the bed.


    ¡°What happened to you?¡± I asked.


    He didn¡¯t say anything, but walked into the room and sat on the bed next to me. He wrapped his hands around me. Instead of feeling angry like I should have, I felt good and rxed. He held me so tight as if his life depended on it. After over a minute, he pulled away. ¡°How are you doing?¡±


    I rolled my eyes, forgetting all the nice feelings. ¡°How am I doing? And you¡¯re asking it so casually, as if you didn¡¯t just kidnap me.¡±


    ¡°I had to, because you were not going to ept toe and I needed to ensure you were safe. If I hadn¡¯t brought you, there¡¯s a chance that you wouldn¡¯t be alive anymore. I¡¯m sorry for how I did things. I really didn¡¯t have a choice.¡±


    I sighed. ¡°Well, at least I was taken good care of. Because of that, I can believe you. I¡¯ll need to leave as soon as possible, though. I can¡¯t stay here, locked away from the world. I need my phone.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t give that to you until youe to terms with your new reality. This secret affects many people¡¯s lives and I need you to be sure that you can keep it. If this gets to the wrong people, it can cause great harm.¡±


    ¡°But you guys are stronger than humans so why should you be worried.¡±


    ¡°We may be physically stronger, but we are significantly fewer and humans have developed so many weapons that can end us. In the ancient days, humans weren¡¯t much of a threat but things are different now.¡±


    I sighed. ¡°I¡¯m not going to talk about this with anyone.¡±


    ¡°What about us? Like I told you, you are my mate. I need you by my side, Maya. Especially now. You have no idea what I have been throughtely. So many terrible things have happened, and the hope of being with you was the only thing that kept me strong. Why don¡¯t you give us a chance?¡±


    I sighed. ¡°I really don¡¯t know what to say about that. I need time to think about this.¡±


    I stared at his face and realised I had made a big mistake. His fiery eyes caught mine and I felt my insides exploding. I found myself leaning closer and capturing his lips with mine. The kiss was short and slow but it was enough to make me want more.


    ¡°Close the door, please.¡± I said.


    Zane tilted his head and smiled.


    ¡°This doesn¡¯t mean anything,¡± I said.


    ¡°Whatever you say, baby.¡±

 Love you

    Maya.


    Lying down, I watched as Zane locked the door and returned to the bed. He took off his shoes and came to lie next to me. Immediately, our lips locked once again. I felt as if my body was on fire, in the best way possible. His hands found their way to my back and started moving, caressing and touching everywhere all at once.


    He brought his hands down from my back to reach the pink pyjama bottoms I had been given. His surprisingly soft hands touched the soft flesh of my ass and my body tingled. He pressed the cheeks making me release moans I had been trying to hold back. Knowing that werewolves had supernatural hearing, I didn¡¯t want to risk waking up the whole building.


    Zane flipped me till I was lying on my back. As he leaned over me, I did the honours of taking off his shirt. He had to pause from kissing my neck to let me pull the shirt over his head. The shirt had barely reached the floor when he tried to get rid of my top. I let him and when it was done, he stared at my breasts in awe, as if they were the most beautiful things he had ever seen. He even licked his luscious lips which earned him a chuckle from me.


    Hey on his side and leaned lower, starting licking my already aroused nipples. His tongue licked a few times before he put his whole mouth around my tit and started sucking. I could feel his bulge pressed against my thigh, and I could tell he was harder than a rock, making me want it even more. When I couldn¡¯t take the teasing anymore, I got rid of bottoms and let him have me.


    The next day, Zane took me to the forest. He said he wanted to show me something so I went with him. The woods reminded me of Aaron. It was crazy to think that we had worked closely and I never found out that he was a vampire. I wondered how many times he had fantasized about drinking my blood and I hadn¡¯t noticed.


    We came to a clearing in the middle of some thick trees and bushes. We had to wade through huge undergrowth to get to it. I couldn¡¯t see anything outside the clearing.


    ¡°Is this your favourite ce to be?¡± I asked him, looking around. I had not seen anything peculiar in the vicinity except that spot itself.


    Zane shook his head, giving me his billion dor smile. ¡°I brought you here to see who I am. If you¡¯re going to ept to be with me, I want you to first see the real me.¡±


    ¡°I have no intentions of epting you,¡± I said with a huge smile.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± he said. ¡°I still want to show you who Zane Carrington is.¡±


    I shrugged. ¡°Okay.¡±


    I leaned against an enormous tree and looked at him. He was standing at the centre of the clearing. ¡°Are you ready?¡±


    I nodded. I was scared but ready. Zane had assured me that he would not harm me even in his wolf form.


    Zane¡¯s body started shaking, and I could hear bones cracking in his body. His clothes ripped apart and I could see the bones of his back growing and twisting underneath the skin which was growing fur. It was so weird to see a human turn into something very different. ws started sprouting from his hands and feet as they twisted and elongated.


    My lips parted as I watched him shifting slowly from a human into a wolf, an animal. It was mesmerizing and it left me breathless. My mind seemed to have frozen as I took everything in. a growl brought me back from my trance and I saw a big ck wolf staring at me with glowing eyes.


    It was so big and strong that it scared me. I started taking steps backward, not taking my eyes off it. The wolf approached me with puppy dog look on its face, reducing my fear. I reached out to touch it and it leaned in to my touch, making me smile. I could tell, from its eyes, that it could recognize me. I caressed it, not knowing what else to do with a wolf.


    ¡°Hey.¡±


    I looked around, frightened. What was that? I could swear I heard the voice in my mind. Was I hearing voices?


    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡±


    I looked at the wolf and it nodded.


    ¡°Oh my goodness, you scared me. I love this, but I think I¡¯d feel better if you shifted back to human form. I¡¯m a bit scared out here. The woods are not making things better.¡±


    Suddenly, the wolf snarled and its ws reached out for me. I turned on my heel and started running through the small path. It ran after me. Looking back, I screamed and ended up bumping onto a tree which sent me tumbling down to the forest floor.


    I looked back to see Zaneughing so hard behind me.


    ¡°I hate you,¡± I said, my eyes observing his very sexy naked body. My eyesnded on the part I loved most. It immediately rose up to attention. I swallowed and moved my eyes upwards to his. Zane took a few steps forward and proffered his hand. I grabbed it and he helped me back to standing position before pushing me against a tree and kissing me senselessly.


    ¡°Thank you for being here,¡± he said when he pulled away.


    I smiled and kissed him, driven by overwhelming emotions and feelings. Zane kissed me back for a few minutes before stepping back and pulling my flowered dress over my head. He started kissing my neck as one of his hands travelled to my back, expertly undoing my bra. His other hand was moving over my ass and pushing me closer to him. i was no longer scared of the forest as we proceeded to make sweet love.N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    Zane was right. I had epted him. Werewolf or not, there was no way I was going to leave a man who made me feel the way Zane did.


    ¡°Howe you can turn at will?¡± I asked when we were returning home. ¡°Are you a lycan?¡±


    ¡°Most of the pack cannot turn at will,¡± Zane said. ¡°They only turn on the night of the full moon. But pack members with alpha blood can turn at will. I¡¯m an alpha so I have special powers. I can turn whenever I want.¡±


    ¡°Wow. I don¡¯t understand all this stuff fully but I know that I want to be with you. I love you, Zane.¡±


    ¡°I love you too, baby,¡± he said, pulling me close for a kiss. ¡°A lot. Never forget that.¡±

 Birthmark

    Emma.


    When we got to the pack house, Zane gave me my phone back and I was able to talk to my family. I told them I was fine and on vacation. I stayed at the pack house for a full week, getting to know everyone and enjoying Zane¡¯spany. His family was great and it was heart-breaking to see them looking so sad as they buried their father. Zane told me everything that had happened and I told him he should have told me earlier. I would have been more understanding. He didn¡¯t agree.


    I began to prefer pack life over my lone metropolitan independent lifestyle. The whole pack was like one huge family and everyone loved and supported each other. It was so nice to see and experience. I felt like I had been given another family. I enjoyed the stay there to the point that I didn¡¯t want to leave. But Zane insisted it was important for us to go and see how things were running at thepany. Although he was getting updated every day, he wanted to go there and ensure that what was being forwarded to him was urate.


    I had been talking to Birthmark, the private investigator I hired. He was a very good hacker. After seducing Kim at a club, he had been invited to spend the night with her. When she slept off, he got to work and got into her phone. He sent himself all thepromising videos and photos Kim had and then deleted them from her phone and cloud storage. Some were stored on her email. Birthmark managed to delete all of them before leaving.


    When I got to Sunham, I met up with birthmark and he told me about the videos and photos. It appeared she was ckmailing both the COO and human resources officers at Milner Inc. she hadpromising videos of them. I realised that it was how she managed to get her way. Those men were too scared of the videosing out.


    Birthmark sent me the relevant videos and I went to the COO.


    ¡°Good afternoon, Miss Bet.¡± Mr. Harlow said. ¡°I¡¯m surprised to see you here.¡±


    ¡°I can imagine you are,¡± I said, looking directly at him. ¡°You¡¯ll be even more surprised by what I have to tell you.¡±


    He studied me for a few seconds. ¡°What could that be?¡±


    ¡°I could show you a video, pictures or recordings but I¡¯ll save you the embarrassment.¡± I said, pausing for a while. ¡°Do you understand what I¡¯m talking about?¡±


    His head tilted a little. ¡°Go straight to the point. I don¡¯t have all day.¡±


    ¡°Neither do I. I know why you fired me.¡±


    ¡°I told you why.¡±


    I chuckled, shaking my head. ¡°I mean the real reason not those lies you told everyone.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you¡¯re talking about,¡± he says. He was ying dumb but that was okay.


    ¡°Should I refresh your memory? There¡¯s hotel and in that room are two people. One is a COO of one of the biggest insurancepanies in this city. The other is the assistant to one of his employees. These two people-¡±


    ¡°Stop,¡± he almost yelled. ¡°How did you know that?¡±


    ¡°I have everything that Kim used to ckmail you,¡± I told him.


    ¡°How did you-¡±


    ¡°I have my sources,¡± I interrupted. ¡°What I want to know is why you¡¯d chose me to take your fall. You fired me to save yourself and didn¡¯t have the courtesy to tell me what was going on. We could¡¯ve made a n to trap her but you chose to let her into thepany, knowing she could destroy it. I once had respect for you but now, I¡¯m not even sure if I want to work here anymore.¡±


    ¡°You have to understand. I had to save my family. She was going to pretend it was rape and I¡¯d go to jail for that. I didn¡¯t care about myself but what would happen to my family.¡±


    ¡°You mean the family you don¡¯t care about? If you had any love for your family, you wouldn¡¯t go around sleeping with any woman that came your way. Didn¡¯t you have any shame? Didn¡¯t you think about your wife, children? How would they feel if they knew how much of a moron their father is?¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯te here to judge me so stop talking like that.¡±


    ¡°Why shouldn¡¯t I? You have done wrong. You fired me unfairly. I think I have the right to point that out in whatever tone I want. I¡¯m a good person Mr. Harlow but I¡¯m not stupid and I¡¯m not afraid to inform you that I have those videos. I can use them if I want. I could¡¯ve gone to the police but I came here so we can work this out. You better be careful how you treat me.¡±


    By the time I finished speaking, Mr. Harlow¡¯s lips had parted and he was staring at me. He had never seen me speak with so much anger before. Usually, I kept my anger inside and don¡¯t show it especially at work but this was too much. This man didn¡¯t seem sorry about what he did to me even though I was trying to help him. With these videos and photos, I could get him into so much trouble but I chose to talk to him. I wanted us to find a way for Kim to get out of thepany, without her having the ability to sue us. We couldn¡¯t use this evidence because Harlow would be in trouble. We needed more and Birthmark had said I just had to give him more time.


    ¡°I¡¯m truly sorry, Miss Bet. Please forgive me. I¡¯m d you chose toe here so we can decide on the best possible course of action. I can promise you that you¡¯ll get your job back when all this is over. Infect I¡¯d already rmended you to a few of my friends but I¡¯ll make sure you stay here. You¡¯re a valuable-¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s not go to that. I need to go to the children¡¯s center right now. I¡¯ll give you the number of the man who helped me. Call me after speaking to him so we cane up with something.¡±N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    Right outside Harlow¡¯s office, I meet Harry who was heading to the boardroom.


    ¡°Hey,¡± he stopped, looking at me sheepishly.


    ¡°Hi,¡± I smiled, not wanting to remember that I had turned him down after he helped me so much. Unfortunately, there was nothing I could do for him. I had fallen in love with someone else.


    ¡°I want to talk to you. Do you think we can get some and go out for coffee, maybe?¡±


    ¡°Sure, when?¡±


    ¡°Hey,¡± Kim had somehow reached where we were without me noticing. ¡°It¡¯s your turn to make a presentation and everyone¡¯s waiting. Could you please hurry?¡±


    ¡°Give me a few-¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± I raised my hand. ¡°I was just leaving. Please go make your presentation.¡±


    ¡°But-¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll talkter,¡± I said, walking away.

 Calm down

    Kim


    *One weekter*


    ¡°We¡¯ve all raised some good ideas and-¡±N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    Harry stopped speaking when I stormed in after opening the door of the boardroom with maximum aggression. He was seated around the table with Sara, Maya, Harlow and one of the ountants. I charged upon Harlow and punched his old head. The idiot somehow managed to erase everything I had on him and I¡¯d never been angrier.


    I was just about to send the video to Harlow¡¯s wife after struggling so much to get her phone number. The n was to send it and ckmail her. There was a possibility she was okay with him sleeping around with younger women but she wouldn¡¯t want to have a video of her husband in thatpromising position spreading all over the inte.


    ¡°Stop it!¡± Maya yelled as I rained punches on her boss¡¯ head. Someone grabbed me by the waist as Sara called out for security guards from the doorway.


    ¡°Let me go,¡± I shrieked, trying to get off the strong grip of the person whom I recognized as Harry. Maya was now attending to Harlow who seemed disoriented and pretty shaken up. Iughed, he deserved it and more. I didn¡¯t know how they did it but even Mane lost the two copies of evidence he had. He even lost the evidence of Harry and I¡¯s teamwork. How convenient!


    I wanted to suspect him but he was my best friend and I was pretty sure would never betray me. Harlow must have used some kind of software to siphon my data. I didn¡¯t remember clicking on any suspicious link because Mane himself was good at making people click on them. He got paid for spreading malware or some kind of crooked shit like that. He was always warning me to be vignt.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t seen thest of me,¡± I yelled as two guards dragged me out of the room. No, I didn¡¯t deserve to be treated like that by anyone. I saw two people from the actuaries department which I had been managing in Maya¡¯s absence. I lowered my head in shame as I used to boss them around. They were probablyughing inwardly at me and that assumption made me feel terrible.


    I couldn¡¯t believe Harry didn¡¯t try to say anything to support me. He was acting like a saint. I wondered if he had betrayed me somehow. Was he the one who gave Maya the evidence? I couldn¡¯t believe I had been outsmarted by that idiot.


    Outside, the security guards went back to their positions. I dialed Mane¡¯s number while arranging my blouse and making sure there was enough cleavage showing. Mane told me to go to his ce and I did exactly that. Where else could I go? After this, I couldn¡¯t even afford the apartment I¡¯d recently moved in to.


    ¡°The best thing you can do right now is to let it go,¡± he told me after listening to my narrative which had been filled with very colorful words. ¡°Find another job and start a new life.¡±


    ¡°What!¡± I grimaced, wondering what had happened to my friend. ¡°Why would I give them the pleasure of defeating me? And by the way, whose side are you on?¡±


    ¡°How can you ask me that?¡± He said, putting his feet on the table. Gross. ¡°Of course I¡¯m on your side but we both know that those people haven¡¯t done anything wrong. You brought this upon yourself, Kim. You¡¯re still very immature.¡±


    Mane had always been my number one supporter and he was thest person who¡¯d care about morals. What was going on?


    ¡°You know what, I don¡¯t need your help.¡± I stood up and zipped up my cross bag. ¡°I¡¯m a strong woman and I¡¯ll figure it out on my own. I¡¯m going to destroy all those people¡¯s lives single handedly if you don¡¯t want to help me. Don¡¯t forget that I¡¯ve helped you a lot in your crooked deals.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll do no such thing,¡± he got up from the couch and stood between me and the door. I took a step back, surprised. Laughing, he said; ¡°You¡¯ve watched too many movies and now you feel like some sort of badass viin. This is real life and things are not always like the movies.¡±


    ¡°Who are you to tell me what not to do?¡± He was below my league. He needed to appreciate that I actually spared time for him. What a lowlife.


    ¡°The person who knows all your secrets,¡± he smirked.


    ¡°So what? You¡¯re a criminal who has been in jail before. No one will believe what you say so shut up and don¡¯t waste my time. I need to go now.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve learnt all you know from me.¡±


    I rolled my eyes. ¡°You didn¡¯t even finish University. You¡¯re just another illiterate criminal.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be so arrogant, my friend. I can make them annul the degree you¡¯re so proud of.¡±


    ¡°How would you do that?¡± I challenged him.


    ¡°I have proof that your internship report was made by someone else and you slept with some of your lecturers to get marks for three of your final year course units.¡±


    ¡°What proof? You¡¯re only trying to threaten me but you know what, it¡¯s not working.¡±


    ¡°Not only of that but of many bad things you¡¯ve done. I have a video that shows you setting up a camera in the hotel room where you went with Harlow and full feed that proves that sex between the two of you was consensual. He now has a copy, too. Do you remember when you took that professor to your room and after having sex, he changed your marks on his phone and showed you?¡±


    ¡°I never told you about that? How-?¡±


    ¡°I have an audio recording. I was right there under the bed. I used to be infatuated with you and I was burning with jealousy.¡±


    ¡°You bastard. You¡¯ve been working against me all this time.¡±


    ¡°Not really. When you¡¯re a criminal, learn to never trust anyone. If you¡¯re working with someone, always have something against that person. That¡¯s my final lesson to you. I knew that one day, you and I would fall out and I had to be quite prepared. Note that if you say anything about me to the police, I¡¯ll say more about you with evidence. You have no proper evidence against me. You¡¯re a girl trying to build a career and I¡¯m a professional criminal. Let¡¯s see, who stands to lose more?¡±


    ¡°Why have you turned against me?¡±


    He pressed the unlock button on his phone and scrolled through it. After a minute, he raised it. His bank ount bnce was in millions of dors. For a moment, I was stunned. He sold me out for money. What a prick!


    ¡°How dare you!¡±


    Heughed. ¡°Calm down, my sweetheart. We can enjoy together if you like.¡±


    He stepped forward and hugged me. Although I was furious, I ced my hands around him. I could pretend, just so I could screw him overter. Secondster, we pulled away. I needed to get out of there and unload all the frustration I was feeling.


    ¡°Can I go now?¡± I asked.


    ¡°No, darling. From today onwards, you¡¯re going to live with me.¡±


    ¡°What the-¡± he pulled out a handkerchief from one of his pockets and ced it over my nose and mouth. As I breathed in, I felt my body bing weak.

 The dynasty

    Maya.


    After all the drama, Zane wanted to fire Harlow. But after some serious thinking between the two of us, Zane decided to sell back thepany to the previous owners. Mr. Milner had realised it had been a bad decision to sell of his family legacy. Thankfully, Zane didn¡¯t want it anymore.


    ¡°I bought it because I wanted to be close to you,¡± he said. ¡°I got what I wanted. I don¡¯t need thepany anymore. I will continue to expand the dynasty I have already built. I¡¯ll probably have branches of mypanies here in future. For now, I¡¯m quite contented with all thepanies I own. Besides, morepanies means more work and I just want to enjoy my life with you now.¡±


    ¡°Are you bragging, Mr. Carrington?¡± I asked, smiling.


    ¡°Maybe,¡± he said, leaning closer to me. ¡°Do you like that?¡±


    I shook my head, trying not to smile. ¡°I hate arrogant men.¡±


    ¡°And yet here you are with me. I guess you, miss Bet, don¡¯t know what you want.¡±


    ¡°Shut up,¡± I said, kissing him. Even though we had kissed over a million times since we started staying together, it still felt like the first time, even better. It was like the passion between us kept growing after each time.


    ¡°Can we take this to the bedroom?¡± he asked.


    I pushed my te away. ¡°Yes.¡±


    We stood up and pushed away chairs back. He scooped me up and carried me up the stairs of his house. We were back in Misenium city but we decided to stay in his house for a while before going to the pack house.


    ***


    Having a werewolf as a partner was the most special thing that ever happened to me. The mate bond was something that words couldn¡¯t do justice to. The ability for us to feel each other¡¯s happiness, pain and other emotions was amazing. I had never felt that close to anyone in my whole life. It was like when we were one. After marking and mating, Zane was able to read my thoughts. Had I been a werewolf, I would have been able to read his thoughts as well.


    Werewolf mates could build a wall in their minds to prevent their mates from reading their thoughts. Since I was not a werewolf, I couldn¡¯t do it. Because Zane wanted me to have my privacy, he took me to a witch who was able to block Zane from reading my thoughts. I was d he was very understanding and knew that it was important for me to have my privacy.


    I was still not sure what to think about the moon goddess. At first, I was tempted to believe she didn¡¯t exist. But the existence of vampires and werewolves, creatures I had always thought were fictional, made me think twice. I knew it was going to take a while for me toe to terms with everything but I was ready to face it all. Whether I was ready to be the Luna of Bloodmoon pack was a story for another day.


    Sitting on the balcony of our beautiful home, I thought about the year and how it had been. I had been living in Misenium for four months. I had been given a job at one of the pack¡¯spanies as an administrator. My family had gone crazy when I told them I was moving to Misenium because of its reputation. Fortunately, I was an adult and they had to understand that I had made my choice for reasons best known for me. They insisted on meeting Zane and it happened. They actually liked him and didn¡¯t notice that he was a werewolf.


    Suddenly, Zane called me from thewn. I looked down below and saw him holding a soft ball and smiled. I still couldn¡¯t believe the most perfect man I had ever met was mine. Sighing, I rose and descended the stairs.


    ¡°Would you like to y with this ball?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Yes,¡± I stood a few meters away from him and raised my hands, ready to catch the ball. ¡°Give it to me.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± he said and threw it into my hands. Something rolled from inside.


    ¡°What¡¯s in this ball and how did it get in there?¡± A part on the ball looked like it had been punctured and then fixed. ¡°What did you put in there?¡±


    He handed me a scissor which I used to puncture the ball. I created a little hole and peered in. ncing at Zane and back to the ball, I held it facing downwards and shook until something fell out of it.


    It was the most beautiful ring I had everid my eyes on. I dropped the ball and stared at the ring, open mouthed. ¡°Zane?¡±N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    ¡°I know you love ser so much. Will you let me be your second love forever?¡±


    ¡°Of course!¡± I shrieked, running into his arms. ¡°I love you, Zane.¡±


    ¡°I love you, too.¡± He pulled away slightly and kissed me. ¡°Thank you foring into my life and making it better. You¡¯ve given me so much happiness, Maya.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m so lucky to have you in my life.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m the lucky one.¡±


    What did I do to deserve such a man in my life? He had proposed to me in the best way ever, acknowledging the love I had for ser. Having my two loves with me filled my heart with a lot of joy.


    ¡°We¡¯ll start the new year as an engaged couple,¡± he told me, reaching out for my hand. ¡°Where¡¯s the ring?¡±


    ¡°Uhmm,¡± I figured it fell when I hugged him. I spotted it on the grass. ¡°It¡¯s over there.¡±


    He picked it up. ¡°I hope you won¡¯t throw the ring again.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t throw it,¡± I defended myself.


    I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d ever have a reason to remove it. Why would I, after all he was the only man I wanted. He was the one I¡¯d been searching for, all those years. Now, that I had him, I didn¡¯t n on letting him go.


    He was the love of my life and my alpha. And I was going to be his luna. Together, we would take Bloodmoon pack, and his dynasty to greater heights.


    THE END


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