I know what she’ll be capable of: once her magic stirs and she remembers who she is, and the intimidation I felt before turns into awe, curiosity, a fixation on unearthing her true power.
Perhaps it’s that curiosity that drives me forward, shedding whatever inhibitions I might have had just now, to stalk forward like predator on predator, noticing the hesitationflickering in her eyes when I near her, and feeling—just for a breath—like I’m a step ahead.
It’s not normal to see Annika Singh hesitating in my presence. She’s always controlled, contained, measured, not flinching or batting an eyelid, because she has no idea what she is to me.
But just as quickly as her hesitation glimmered, her control returns, her spine straightening and chin tilting with defiance.
“Yes, Mr. Ralph?”
“I need you to clear our schedules for the rest of the week. We’re going on a trip.”
Her brows furrow. “A business trip? I didn’t receive—”
“You wouldn’t have received an email for this,” I interject, taking a deep breath as I tower over her and meet her eyes with a steady gaze. “It’s a leisure trip.”
Annika’s brows lift slowly, and for the first time since she’s been working for me, I see what she looks like when she’s surprised, and her eyes turn softer, doe-like and innocent in a way that beckons to the softness nestled deep within my being. The moment is tender, internally for me, and all I can do is fight the sudden urge to wrap my arms around her and protect her from even me.
Fuck!
This being a fated mate is new territory for me, and the subtle pull I always felt toward Annika has now become a force field. How am I supposed to fight my urges when they feel so strong?
Maybe when she looks at me the way she is right now—eyes full of accusation and fury—it’s my cue to take a step back.Not physically, but even the thought of her keeping her walls up feels like a challenge, and the alpha blood running through my veins is eager for the challenge.
“A leisure trip?” she asks flatly, arching one brow as she flattens out her initial surprise. “I don’t believe I agreed to this.”
“You don’t have to,” I return as I calmly shove one hand into my pocket and casually lean against the oval table with one hip. “As my employee, it is now a requirement. So is marrying me,” I blurt out with no regrets, ripping the Band-Aid clean off.
Annika visibly pales, the color draining from her face instantly as she stares at me in disbelief.
“What did you just say…?” she murmurs, and I see her fight every instinct to laugh at the absurdity of it.
“You heard me. I said you will have to marry me.”
“Marry you?” she asks as I turn my back to her and casually stroll toward the window that overlooks the city.
“Yes, Annika. You will marry me,” I repeat, and there’s an awkward pause before she lets out a laugh.
The sound is incredulous, strained with her disbelief, as if she’s on the verge of choking. “M-marry you? That’s insane, Mr. Ralph. I don’t mean to be rude, but have you lost your mind?”
Maybe,I think to myself, but I don’t let the doubt show when I turn to her, my expression even when I nod despite the look of utter dread in her eyes. “This is serious, Annika, and the company’s future is at stake. So is mine.” Though the former explanation is a lie, the latter is true. I choose to run with the lie. “We have another potential investor, and he wants me to marry his daughter before he invests in the company. I am not willing to sell my freedom, but his money is needed for research.”
I want to sigh with relief as if I’ve run a mile, but I don’t flinch. Annika gulps and finally says, “But you’d be giving up your freedom, anyway…”
“It’s a contract marriage, and it will be annulled as soon as I’ve taken care of the investor," I continue with the lie, not knowing what might come when Annika learns the truth about the valley and what I am. But what matters right now is getting her to the valley.
I’ll take care of the rest once she agrees to the trip and the marriage.
“No,” she says flatly, the color returning to her face like armor with her cold, indifferent expression. “I will not marry you, Mr. Ralph.”
“I am your boss,” I remind her, and she straightens up.
“And nowhere in my contract does it state that I am required to marry you.”
Annika doesn’t wait a breath before she spins on her heel and storms out of the boardroom, leaving me with my inner wolf’s sudden rage that comes from being defied in ways that a human could never understand. I’m forced to simmer in that anger, feel it crawl under my skin as I curl my hands into fists at my sides and turn to the door where Annika has just left.
Something inside me snaps—perhaps it’s my inner wolf, the part of me that cannot accept being rejected like this.
Does she not realize who I am?
