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“That was amazing,” she said blissfully. She seemed sorry that she had to return home, but she had work to get back to tomorrow. She gave Jude and Graham both a passionate parting kiss.
Jude hoped Delilah got to a place where she could truly call the city home. He hoped that all of her days there were as peaceful as this one.
Chapter 20
Graham
Grahamlefttheofficeenergized. Deciding to walk home, he pulled up Jude’s number and called him, tapping his fingers against his leg impatiently. It rang twice.
“Jude Sable, Techy Things.”
“Please tell me that’s not how you answer the phone with clients.”
Jude snorted. “Of course not. Just you.”
“Can I ask why?”
“No. Why did you call?” Jude always knew how to ruffle Graham’s feathers. It was usually only mildly annoying, but when he had such important news to deliver, it was excruciating.
Reminding himself that some things were more important than communicating his frustration, Graham took a deep breath. “We landed it! We got the contract!”
“Which one?”
Graham was losing his patience. “What do youmean, which one?Theone! Wriston Investments—we got it!” Satisfied to finally hear a whoop on the other end, he imagined Jude fist-pumping and smiled.
“Where are you now? Let’s celebrate!”
“Maybe later. I’m headed home to wrap up some stuff. I got a cryptic call from another alpha and it might take a while to sort out. Plus, I’ve still got to call Delilah with the news.”
“Sounds like you’ve got your hands full. I can call Delilah,” Jude offered.
Graham sighed with relief. “Would you? Just loop me in on the plans.”
“Sure! I’ll let you go. And hey!”
“What’s up?”
“Congratulations!”
Graham’s grin stretched across his face. “You too, man!” He hung up the phone as he reached the front door. After stepping inside, he opened his voicemail to play the message he’d received from the alpha who had contacted him earlier that day. His heart sank as soon as he heard the voice. “Alpha Grimmaw, this is Jonah Deacon. I need to speak with you at your earliest convenience. It’s about our plans.”
Graham laid his keys and jacket on the kitchen counter and sighed, rubbing his face with his hands. “Full moon. Why is it always on a full moon?” he muttered under his breath.
His mind raced with a million details from the contract he and Jude had landed with Wriston Investments. The firm was the largest in the region and arguably the most successful. It had taken the two of them months of work to establish contacts with the board of the firm and schmooze each of its members individually.
In the end, their work had paid off. No one had thought they’d be able to convince such a large corporation to let them handle all of their technological needs, but they had done it! Now they had to prove they hadn’t bitten off more than they could chew.
On top of that, Graham had the full moon run and dinner to plan. He had delegated most of the preparatory responsibilities to other members of the pack, but he took a special pride in being fully present as the alpha. He had guests to make welcome.
Any and all of those things would have plenty to occupy his attention, but then there was the call from Jonah Deacon. Graham put a kettle on to boil and made a production of preparing a cup of tea. How he wished he could pretend the call had never come in and simply go celebrate with his friends.
The image of Delilah’s version of friendship came to mind and his face grew warm. He made his way to his home office, but instead of switching on the computer to attend to administrative tasks or calling Jonah back, he swiveled his chair to the window.
Lifting the shades, he sat back in his chair as far as it would recline and looked out over the gardens. A couple of the members of his pack were out tending to the plants and harvesting what they would need for dinner. It was soothing—pastoral, even—and it warmed Graham’s heart.
He knew he couldn’t put off the phone call any longer. Taking a deep breath, he tried to get himself into a positive mood before dialing Alpha Deacon’s number. He disliked few things quite as much as speaking with him.
Jonah Deacon was exactly the kind of alpha that Graham aspired not to be. Controlling, deceptive, and self-important, he ruled his pack with an iron fist, holding them to a strict hierarchical structure and ensuring every member knew their place.
