by Lisa Lace
One week. The Gareths would be arriving shortly. They were known for raping and pillaging, just like pirates in the old days. She choked on a sob, knowing her options were limited. She could go down fighting them, but that would do nothing but incite a blood bath. Her people would rise up and so many lives would be lost.
Wrapping her arms around herself, she tried to find her courage and wisdom. Maybe the answers were in the damn safe in front of her, but she couldn't force herself to open it.
"Fuck," she mumbled through her tears, wiping at her face and rising to her feet. She hated to burden her father, but she had nowhere else to go. Sonya picked up her phone and purse as she left his office, careful to shut and lock the door behind her.
Alec remained in her thoughts as she walked to the car and sat in its hot interior for a few minutes before heading to the hospital. She was missing pieces to the puzzle.
Something happened between her father and Alec and it was long before earlier that day. Finding him in her father's room had almost caused her to slip into cardiac arrest.
She started the car and pulled it out of the long circle drive. If Alec had been there to kill her father or hurt him in any way, she wouldn't have stopped until he was torn to shreds. She shuddered.
"Stop thinking about it. He wasn't there to hurt him or you. Get over yourself." She punched a few buttons on the dash, needing air and loud music.
She would need to bring back servants to the old mansion to live with her if she decided to stay there. It was too empty and far too lonely. She would easily get lost in her grief and never find her way out of it.
Maybe she should call Alec.
She couldn't stop thinking about him. Why did her pride leave her wanting to fight him or refuse him? To show him how much she needed him...no, wanted him, was a vulnerability that she hadn't experienced yet. It scared her, stopped her dead in her tracks and made her reach for the fighter that lay within her.
The hospital was close to the house and within minutes she was parked in front of the huge complex, getting out into the cool spring afternoon. She tucked her hair behind her ears as she walked up, her white dress pretty and more feminine than she cared to see. She was out for comfort and nothing more.
Her phone buzzed in her purse and she pulled it out, stopping to have a quick conversation over text with Alec. He wanted her to come over, and as much as she wanted to ignore him or push back, the truth was becoming more and more evident. He was the savior her father had planned for. Why or how or when was a mystery, but she needed to stop denying the reality that he was the plan.
She agreed to meet him for dinner and dropped her phone back in her purse as she walked into her father's hospital room. A nurse looked up from drawing blood and gave Sonya a sad smile.
"Today's been a little rougher than usual." She moved out of Sonya's way and left without another word.
"Dad?" Sonya stopped beside the bed and reached down, sliding her hand into his. Even in his sickened state he was beautiful to her. He had been mother and father to her for a long time. He was her greatest supporter and for that, her heart belonged to him.
"Hi, my angel," he whispered and opened his eyes. The beautiful amber that once burned brightly was dull and glossy. She swallowed her pain and rubbed his hand, forcing a smile on her lips. "Did you get a chance to talk to the Alpha yesterday?"
"Alec? Yes. He and I have a long history, but it's not my history with him that I'm interested in. I need to know what you've been up to."
"No, you don't, baby. You need to trust your instincts. Just continue to walk forward into the woman you're becoming with the fearless spirit that your mother gave you." He blinked slowly, his eyes closing. She thought for a minute he had fallen asleep, but he squeezed her hand and opened his eyes again.
"He wants to take over Varetec. He's just a kid. He's an idiot." She shrugged and let out a long ragged breath.
"He was a kid when you met him, Sonya, but that was how long ago?"
"Ten years. When we broke up it was because I wanted to be mature and loyal to my pack. He wanted to run around the world and burn up the cities we visited with our insanity, our passion, our..." She stopped, choking on the last word.
"Your love?" Her father tried to smile, but it simply turned into a grimace.
"Yes. He's a playboy, that's all. Plain and simple."
"He's got a lot of life in him, Sonya, just like you. He was a silly boy, but then someone came to care for him. That someone was you. After you left him heartbroken, I intercepted and gave him a chance. He doesn't know that it was me, but I wanted to give him an opportunity to prove himself."
"Prove himself to you?" she asked, her mind spinning at the possibilities. She would normally pepper her father with questions, but he couldn't take it in his current state. It was taking him far longer just to get a sentence out than ever before.
"No, baby. I wanted to let him try and prove himself to you." He squeezed her hand. "He's very much like you, Sonya, and now he's trained and ready for the next phase of his life."
"Are you telling me that you took him under your wing? That you taught him how to do business?"
"Come here and sit down." He released her hand and patted the bed. She sat down next to him, careful not to move the mattress too much. "Did you know that when your mother and I got together it wasn't an easy union at all? I wanted her desperately and she was very much against the idea."
"No, she wasn't! Momma loved you like crazy. You're making that up to make me feel better." Sonya smiled as memories of her mother doting on her father washed over her.
"That's AFTER she fell in love with me, Sonya. She was just as strong and dominant as you. She wouldn't have anything to do with me because I was already Alpha of the Brown Bears. It's not a position she wanted to hold with me."
"Really? Mom was so proud of you. All she talked about was your accomplishments." Sonya smirked, trying to get her mind to catch up with this new reality her father was painting.
"Yes. It took a lot of proving myself to her, but the one saving grace was that she allowed me to do it."
"To prove yourself?"
"Exactly. This man that came to see me yesterday, the one you loved once before. Have you let him prove himself? He's a man now, right?"
"Yes, Dad, but there is nothing to prove."
"No?"
"Just tell me what you did for Alec. Tell me what road you constructed while I wasn't looking. I want to understand it."
"All I will tell you is that Alec is the answer to the help you seek. You do not have to mate with him, but make this union happen from a business perspective. It is the plan I set into action many, many years ago, Sonya. It's the only plan I have and it's a good one."
"Why would you put your trust in this one plan working? Who would put that much faith into one person?"
"I would."
"But Alec isn't the man you think he is. You've put your faith in the wrong person."
"My faith isn't in Alec, love. It's in you."
She didn't have time to change before going to Alec's place, but it didn't matter. She was too tired to play games with him and his desire for her wasn't based on her outfit or the exposure of some body parts.
She would play with his emotions another night, but for now, she was too lost, too tired and far too confused.
Why didn't she just get into the damn safe and get the answers she was after? Parik told her that there were documents that would clear everything up. Was she going to be so loyal to her father and his wishes that her own needs would never be met?
She growled softly as she weaved through traffic. Going too fast made her sense of control evaporate and she let her instincts take over. It was a breath of fresh air and helped to clear her mind.
She wasn't upset with Alec because he was trying to take over their company. She was pissed at herself for not wanting him to win. It was about her pride and her unwillingness to bend before him, and yet, if she thought back on her life, h
e was the only man she would want to hover above her.
Sonya stopped the car in his driveway and sat there for a minute. She glanced to her left as the door opened and he walked out on the porch. His jeans sat on his hips perfectly, his shirt off and his feet bare. She took a slow breath, suddenly feeling overdressed. She had to fight the need to run far and fast from him.
Opening the door to the car and getting out, she turned to him and pulled her sunglasses down.
"Aren't you a little casual for a business meeting?" She smirked as if his lack of clothing was horribly inappropriate.
"Don't be a prude. Get in here and try this fish I just finished grilling."
She shut the door and pulled her purse on her shoulder before walking toward him. She let her sunglasses fall back into place, grateful for the cover. Her eyes dragged across the beautiful swell of his chest, his abs a perfect washboard. How long had she spent lapping at his body in the past?
Not long enough, obviously.
Chapter Ten
She couldn't be more beautiful if she tried. Alec sucked in a quick breath as Sonya walked toward him. Her sundress was playful and fit her so well he couldn't help but stare. It barely covered the top of her thighs and her legs went on for days. He forced himself not to kneel before her and kiss his way up her leg. A growl left him as she moved to stand in front of him.
"Behave. I came to talk business." She moved into the house and he closed the door, the smell of her leaving him dizzy.
"You said that a few days ago and almost killed me."
"Sorry about that. I was pissed." She spoke nonchalantly.
He chuckled at her brashness and moved to the fridge when they got into the kitchen. He pulled out a bottle of white wine and held it up.
"White or red? What's the lady's pleasure?"
"Red please." She walked from the kitchen toward the large glass doors that opened to the backyard. The pool was a recent add to the house, the mammoth construction too extravagant for one man, but the house would be used for gatherings, without a doubt.
"How's your father?" he asked, walking to her and extending the glass as she turned. Her amber eyes burned with a passion he wanted to own.
"He's not expected to live for too much longer." She took a drink of the crimson liquid as she watched him over the top of the glass.
He stifled a groan as she used her eyes to make him feel like the most important man in the world. The woman was a vixen, a deadly disease that would quickly destroy his resolve to do anything but what she wanted. He swallowed and lifted his drink to his lips, taking a long slow sip. Alec quickly took hold of his thoughts and tried to focus on the reason he needed her to come over.
"I'm sorry to hear that, Sonya. He seems like a really great guy."
"He is. Tell me how you know him and what you were doing in there yesterday. I still think killing you might be the best option for me." She licked her lips, the subtle action causing him to growl.
"You know how I feel about you. Don't tease me in the slightest or I'll let myself go. You wouldn't like the loss of control." He finished his glass of wine in two long gulps before letting out a tight sound of appreciation. "I saw his name on the door yesterday and walked in because I thought he might have some insight on you."
"Why does that sound less than plausible?"
"It's ridiculous, but if I didn't believe in fate before, I sure as fuck do now." He ran his fingers through his hair and turned to walk back to the kitchen. "Grab a seat on the patio and I'll bring dinner out."
"Do you need..." Her voice lost strength as she let her words die. The sound of the glass door opening and closing left him alone. He pressed his hands on the counter in front of him. She wasn't the bitch she was playing, but simply an animal who had been cornered.
He didn't want to be a threat to her, but he needed to move forward with his plans regarding Varetec, regardless of his personal preference to smooth everything over with her first.
He picked up the plates from under a warmer just above the stove and walked to the patio, pushing at the door with his foot and moving out into the cool spring evening.
"Go grab the bottle of wine and my glass."
"Please?" She smirked and moved to the door.
He set the plates down and looked over his shoulder to watch the way her dress moved along her legs. His eyes moved to the thick swell of her rear and he turned back toward the food, his cock having a mind of its own as it rose to the occasion. Closing his eyes, Alec breathed in deeply, trying to think of anything other than the color of her panties, or the hope that she wasn't wearing any.
They were there for business. Nothing else.
"Yeah right," he muttered and waited until she walked back out to pull her chair out and take his seat. He poured them another glass of wine and turned to look at her.
"Don't think for a minute that I'm good with what you did to me recently. I'm not. I'm here to help you and your actions make it far more difficult for me to get my pack to listen. I've withheld the truth that it was you that put me in the hospital simply because I don't think you or your father would survive the retribution for a death attempt on an Alpha."
"You didn't die and the message was clear. My company. My pack."
"Not for long. You're not nearly as brilliant as I thought if you believe that you have the power alone to hold on to all those things."
"We're here to talk about Varetec, correct?" She picked up her fork and took a bite of the fish, her eyes closing briefly. She liked it.
"Yes. Initially."
"Only."
"You know someone will come for the pack, Sonya. Don't fool yourself that it won't happen. I think you'd better start considering sleeping with the bastard you know versus the one you don't."
"I'm willing to discuss us working together to bring my father's empire out of the dirt. It was running beautifully a few months back and then he set it on another course. A course that would lead me to sit at this table with you."
"He's a smart man, baby." Alec reached over and brushed his fingers along her hand as it rested on the table.
She jerked her hand back and he realized he had been too familiar. It was natural to want to touch her and comfort her. The animal inside of him had already claimed her as his mate for life.
"Don't call me baby, Alec. I'm serious about you keeping your distance. I'm trying to deal with the death of my father looming over me, my clan being taken and my company being destroyed. I don't have the energy to beat you back too." She glanced up, pinning him with her gaze.
"I want to apologize, but I can't. Whatever Victor has done to put me in your path again, I owe him everything. I'll give you time to decide on us, but the company must be worked out immediately. The rest of the world is waiting to move in and do exactly what I'm willing to do right now."
"What are you proposing?"
"A split. Run the company with me, and you and I as partners will split the revenues down the middle."
"My clan is barely surviving on what we have now. If I agree to this, it will leave half of them hungry and without. Most of them work for me as well."
"We will grow the company. I have plans that we can work through. Let's just agree on the split for the next year and then put in the contract that we will renegotiate next year. If the company has not doubled in size, I will yield and give it back to you."
"And if it has?"
"Then we sign a lifetime contract that Varetec will be under common control with us as partners."
"Deal. I cannot imagine you being capable of pulling the company out of its current position." She looked down at her plate and ate for a few minutes. He did the same, wanting to tell her a million things, but knowing the timing was bad.
The last ten years had been a lifetime without her. Nothing had felt right or tasted good. He put his free hand in his lap to keep from touching her and leaned back, picking up his glass and watching.
"You're upset with your father about what he's done. Fee
ls like deceit?"
"Yes, but I know him well, Alec. He loves me and wouldn't do anything that would harm me in the long run. In the short run, it will break me in half, but I'm sure he knows what he is doing." She sighed and sat back, her eyes slowly moving across him. Lust flared in her gaze and the delicious aroma of her desire filled his senses.
He growled softly as she watched him.
"I agree. I hope I have a child one day that respects me as much as you respect him."
"I've given up more than I care to discuss to honor that respect." Sadness brushed across her beautiful face briefly. He swallowed his need to ask if she regretted giving him up.
"So we're good on Varetec?" He took another sip of his wine and sat up, the chill in the wind feeling good on his bare back.
"Yes. Draft the papers and I'll sign them."
"Let's talk about the threat to your pack."
"No. I'm not sure what I'm going to do, but mating or joining with someone just for the sake of saving my people is something I cannot do. I won't." She wiped her mouth and smiled. The expression did not reach her burnt orange eyes. Heaviness sat on her like a well-worn coat and Alec wanted to remove it and replace it with security and peace.
"Don't go yet. I know you don't want to discuss the pack, but let me at least offer you protection. I'm not sure how it would work, but I can't bear the thought of seeing someone take over your people."
"You mean over me?" She smiled slyly and stood, stretching and giving him a perfect view of her budded nipples as they pressed through the soft cotton of her gown.
She was magnificent. A treasure to be held and coveted. No other man was going to have her. He would kill anyone who tried.
He stood as well and picked up their plates and the bottle. "Grab our glasses and help me get this inside. I'm glad we came to an understanding. You won't be disappointed. I'm not the boy you remember."
They walked into the house as he smiled, loving how relaxed he felt around her. It was most likely going to be the death of him, but it would be a good one. He chuckled as she moved in beside him near the sink, turning on the water and glancing his way.
