Page 13 of Howl About That

"How exactly are you handling it, cousin?" The question dripped with false concern. "Because from what I heard, you bid everything you had and still lost. To a wolf." He emphasized the last word like it tasted bitter. "Do you have any idea how that looks to the pride? To the other Alphas?"

Poppy stepped forward, closing the distance between them until she could feel the heat radiating from his body. Her lioness pressed against her skin, lending power to her voice as she spoke with the full authority of her position.

"Don't worry about it. It's none of your concern."

The Alpha command hit him like a physical force. Sander's eyes flashed gold as his lion responded instinctively to her dominance, his body taking an involuntary step backward before he could stop himself. For a moment, his carefully constructed mask slipped, revealing the frustrated rage beneath.

But he recovered quickly—he always did. The smile returned, colder now, more calculating.

"Well, you better not make another embarrassment out of yourself." His voice dropped to that dangerous register she remembered from childhood fights. "Or our pride."

He paused, letting his gaze rake over her face like he was memorizing every line of exhaustion, every shadow under her eyes that betrayed how close to breaking she really was. When he spoke again, his words carried the weight of a promise and a threat.

"I'm watching you, Poppy."

Then he turned and strolled away with that infuriating confidence, his hands in his pockets like he hadn't just issued a challenge to his Alpha. Like he hadn't just reminded her that one more failure would give him everything he'd been waiting eleven years to claim.

Poppy slammed the door hard enough to rattle the antique glass panels, the sound echoing through the estate like a gunshot. Her hands shook with suppressed rage as she pressed her back against the solid wood, trying to center herself.

How dare he.

But beneath the anger lay something worse—the cold finger of doubt tracing down her spine. Because Sander wasn't wrong about how last night looked. A female Alpha outbid and humiliated by a wolf Alpha in front of the most powerful shifters on the East Coast. It was exactly the kind of ammunition her critics had been waiting for.

And now she'd agreed to partner with that same wolf. To invite him into her territory, her home, her life. The mate bond pulsed between her ribs like a second heartbeat, reminding her that Keiro Izell would be here in a few hours. That she'd have to sit across from her fated mate and pretend this was purely business while every cell in her body screamed for his touch.

She pushed away from the door and climbed the grand staircase, her heels clicking against the marble steps in a rhythm that matched her racing pulse. The portraits of previous Mintz Alphas watched her ascent—generations of strong leaders who'd never had to make the impossible choices she faced daily.

Minutes later, her private chambers felt like a sanctuary after Sander's poisonous presence. She headed straight for the walk-in closet, then stopped in the doorway, staring at the rows of clothing like they might provide answers to all her problems.

What did one wear to a business dinner with a billionaire wolf Alpha who happened to be their fated mate? Something that projected competence without screaming desperation? Professional enough to maintain boundaries, but not so severe that she looked like she was trying too hard?

I need help. Lots of it.

The admission burned, but not as much as the prospect of facing Keiro alone and unprepared. She pulled out her phone and dialed Neve's number.

"Come over immediately."

"Is everything okay?" Neve's voice carried that note of concern reserved for true emergencies.

"Not really. Just hurry. I need you."

Ten minutes later, Poppy's enhanced hearing detected Neve's key turning in the front lock, followed by the sound of efficient footsteps crossing the marble foyer and up the grand staircase. Then she appeared in the bedroom doorway like a guardian angel dressed in tailored black, taking in Poppy's position in the closet with one sweeping glance.

"Why are you standing in your closet looking like you did before senior prom? All nervous energy and suppressed panic?"

Poppy turned to face her best friend, her Beta, the one person who'd stood by her through every crisis and catastrophe of the past eleven years. "I might have just made the worst decision of my life."

Neve's eyebrows rose. "That sounds dramatic, even for you. I'm sure it's not that serious."

"I just agreed to become business partners with Keiro Izell." The words tumbled out in a rush. "The powerful wolf Alpha andbillionaire CEO who outbid me last night. The man who—" She took a shaky breath. "The man who also happens to be my fated mate."

Neve's eyes went wide, her usual composure cracking just enough to show genuine shock. "Oh, Poppy. That is a really bad decision."

"Well, what was I supposed to do?" Poppy's voice cracked with frustration as she spun away from the closet to face Neve. "Just let him build on our land and push us out? Have the five million dollars in outstanding loans come due in ninety days and lose everything—lose all our land, lose my Alpha title, lose my very identity?"

The words tumbled out, each one carrying the weight of eleven years' worth of accumulated pressure. Her lioness paced, feeding off the emotional turmoil and making her want to shift and run until her paws bled.

Five million dollars. Ninety days. Everything gone.