I kept my gaze fixed on the illuminated floor numbers on the elevator display, clutching my folder tightly against my chest like a shield. If I looked at him now, in this intimate enclosed space, he would surely see the effect he had on me how my body trembled slightly, how shallow my breathing had become, how my scent must be broadcasting my confused emotions.
When we reached the lobby, I quickly stepped out of the elevator, eager to escape the tension between us.
“Goodbye, Alpha,” I said, giving a slight bow of my head before turning toward the exit.
Just as I reached the doors, I heard a car horn. Derek’s gleaming black luxury car pulled up directly in front of the building. The window lowered to reveal his stern face.
“Get in. Now.”
The command in his voice brooked no argument. I hurried to the car, sliding into the back seat as the driver opened the door.
“Alpha?” I asked uncertainly, settling into the plush leather seat.
Derek didn’t look at me. “Drive,” he commanded the driver.
“Where to?” I asked, panic rising. “Alpha, I need to go home. I can’t work overtime today. Could the work wait until tomorrow?”
Derek gave me an amused glance. “Tell him your address. My personal secretary doesn’t need to wait for buses. It’s beneath the dignity of the Pack Alpha.”
Relief washed over me as I gave the driver my address. At least he wasn’t making me work overtime–he was just providing me with a ride home. The car pulled smoothly away from the curb and into the evening traffic.
We drove in silence for several minutes until my phone rang. I glanced at the screen, surprised to see Tomas’s name.
“Hi, Tomas,” I answered, acutely aware of Derek beside me.
“Hey, Erin. I’m good. I meant to see you today, but I couldn’t make it to the upper floors because of too much work,” Tomas’s friendly voice came through the phone.
“Oh, you wanted to see me? You could have called. I would have come to your floor without a doubt,” I responded, a note of surprise and warmth in my voice.
“You’re too kind. I wanted to talk to you about something. If you feel up to it, can we meet after work tomorrow?”
I hesitated, feeling Derek listening attentively beside me. “Sure. See you tomorrow,”
After hanging up, I noticed Derek watching me.
“It seems you and Tomas are quite close,” he said, his voice low and probing, with a dangerous undercurrent in his tone that made my skin prickle.
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Chapter 114
“Oh, we’re not–I mean, we’re just… I stammered, suddenly anxious to clarify. “Our mothers are best friends, so we’ve known each other since childhood. Ile’s like a brother to me, really.”
Derek’s jaw tightened at my words, his profile sharp and forbidding in the dim light of the car. He gave a curt nod, an abrupt movement. “I see.”
“He’s a good person,” I continued, nervously twisting my fingers in my lap. “When Bradley… when everything happened, and people were saying those terrible things about me, Tomas was one of the few who believed me.
The temperature in the car seemed to drop several degrees, Derek’s expression darkening, his knuckles whitening where he gripped his knee.
“It seems my brother’s transgressions have gained you… interesting friendships,” he said, each word precisely controlled yet still vibrating with restrained emotion. “How fortunate that someone extended their hand when you were in need.”
The possessiveness in his tone was unmistakable, sending a shiver through me from head to toe. My wolf immediately responded, whimpering softly within me, eager to prove her loyalty to the Alpha beside us.
When we arrived at my home, the driver immediately got out and retrieved several packages from the trunk–my clothes from last night, now neatly folded and packed.
I instinctively reached out to help, wanting to be useful. “Oh, please let me take those. They’re not heavy.”
“Stay where you are,” Derek commanded, his voice low and firm. “He will assist you. That’s his job.”
I immediately dropped my hands to my sides, my body responding to his command before my mind could form a protest. The driver carried the packages to my front door while I stood beside the car, suddenly very aware of how my purple dress clung to my figure in the cool night air.
As the driver returned to the car, I gathered my courage and looked at Derek through the open window. He remained seated, his strong profile illuminated by the soft glow from the dashboard, his gaze fixed straight ahead through the windshield. The set line of his jaw and the intensity of his gaze made him look like a sculpture carved from marble- beautiful, cold, untouchable.
“Thank you, Alpha,” I said softly, infusing my voice with genuine gratitude. “I promise I’ll work even harder tomorrow to deserve all your kindness.”
He didn’t respond, didn’t even blink, the muscles at the edge of his jaw tightening slightly. His continued silence left me standing there feeling both awkward and confused, yet strangely reluctant to leave.
Finally, I turned and walked toward my house, acutely aware that his gaze might have shifted to follow me. Only when I reached the door did I hear the sound of the car pulling away, as if he had waited until he was sure I was safely inside.
I leaned against the closed door, my heart racing as I tried to make sense of everything. Why had his mood shifted so dramatically? Was it Tomas’s call that triggered that possessive reaction? Or had my innocent question about his living arrangements somehow crossed a line?
This protective behavior, his insistence on driving me home, ensuring I didn’t take public transportation like a common employee… the way his eyes had darkened when Tomas called…
Was the powerful Alpha, who had once resisted our bond so fiercely, finally beginning to yield to it?
The thought was both terrifying and thrilling, sending warmth throughout my body. I pressed my fingers to my lips,
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Chapter 114
remembering how close he had come to kissing me in his office, how his breath had caressed my skin.
“What are you doing to me, Derek Stone?” I whispered to the empty hallway, my voice trembling with confusion and
longing.
Chapter Comments
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they’ve never mentioned knowing each other from childhood, in fact you made a point of introducing then to one another at stone Industries
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again she hadn’t met him at this point
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