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ONE
MAGNUS
Magnus leaned back in his chair. His office was so quiet that he could hear a pin drop, and that was just the way he liked it. No distractions and nothing to disturb the tranquil environment he worked so hard to create for himself and his panther pride.
This billion-dollar business that he built from the ground up sustained not only himself but the lives of the hundreds of panther shifters who relied on him. He took his job very seriously. Some would say too seriously.
There was never time for games. Magnus could not even use the excuse of adulthood when it came to the seriousness of his nature, for he was like that when he was a child.
Right now, the tasks in front of him were of paramount importance. He was in the middle of a corporate takeover, and the paperwork alone was considerable. Every time he made a dent in it, his assistant, Phoebe, came in and added more to the pile.
That pile, as mentioned earlier, stood over a foot high. Each sheet that required a signature was put in another pile on the other side of the desk. He signed and dated a piece of paper after thoroughly reading it and with a sigh, grabbed the next document that required his attention.
A knock on his door had him glancing at the clock. It was four-thirty.
“Shit,” he muttered to himself. Louder, he called. “Come in.”
Phoebe walked in, her red curls bouncing with each step.
He pushed his chair back, banging his knee on the side of the desk. At six foot seven, it was hard not to knock a body part here and there. He ran a hand through jet black hair as he turned the chair to look out the window. Amber eyes scanned the ground below, always looking for signs of trouble. Always expecting the worst …
When nothing out of the ordinary was detected, he returned to his desk to complete the ever-growing pile of paperwork. At least it was productive. Magnus hated wasting his time on trivial things.
“Hi, boss,” she said with a smile. “It’s time to go. It’s four-thirty, and you need to get ready for the masquerade ball tonight.”
He couldn’t hide his annoyance. The last thing in the world he wanted was to attend a masquerade party filled with sex and idiocy. His saving grace was that Callum, the wolf’s pack leader, was always the host.
This meant that Magnus could let loose without the fear of consequence. The full moon was tonight, and already its power was awakening urges in him he found hard to resist. As much as he’d like to stay in the office and get more work done, he knew that once the moon rose into the sky, it would be virtually impossible to focus.
“Do you have the hunter’s block?” he asked.
Phoebe nodded and returned to her desk just outside his office. A moment later, she came back and handed him a small bottle.
“Thanks.”
He held the bottle up in front of him between his thumb and pointer finger. This potion equaled freedom for shifters, especially shifters like him. It would allow him to fuck anyone he wanted tonight without fear of them targeting him for his wealth or status.
“Could you imagine if we didn’t have that stuff?” Phoebe questioned with a raised brow. She held her own bottle in her hands, but her green eyes were focused on the one Magnus held up in front of them.
Technically, they didn’t need their bottles of the spray since there would be a booth at the party’s entrance that all had to go through that coated each shifter entering the building.
He shook his head. “No, I imagine nights like tonight would go very differently.”
“Filled with complications.”
“To say the least.”
Phoebe tucked a curly red strand behind her ear. “Try to have fun tonight, boss. Callum is hosting. Let loose a little bit, okay? All this work will still be here in the morning.”
Magnus chuckled. “Am I that bad, Phoebe?”
“Worse.” The smile on her face reached her eyes, and she said it affectionately. “But you’re the best alpha I’ve ever had.”
“I’m the only alpha you’ve ever had.”
“Well, then imagine how much lighter this office might be if you had a bit of fun tonight. By the way, you gave me tomorrow off. I’m sure you remember doing that, but on the off-chance that tonight rattles everyone’s brains, I just wanted to remind you. I intend on not going to bed until I would normally come into work.”
She grinned up at him, and Magnus smiled down at her affectionately. “I remember. Be safe tonight. I don’t want to have to leave the office tomorrow to kill somebody.”
