He grins, and it’s the first time I’ve worried about the alpha I’m working for. “It is.”
“And what does that have to do with me?”
“Mosley’s right eye twitches when he lies, and when he was telling me this vivid story of a young omega shamelessly watching porn in the office, it twitched. Four times, to be exact.”
“That’s because he’s lying,” I say with a shrug. “I’ve never watched porn on a work computer.”
“I wonder, though, why would he be so intent on ruining your reputation?”
It’s my turn to narrow my eyes. “What’s your game?”
“You don’t trust me,” he says. “Probably smart after what Mosley’s been doing, but I think we have something in common. We both hate him.” He pauses and waits for me to deny it, but I don’t. “And we both want to see him eat his own shit.”
I cringe.
“Right, gross, I know, but you know what I mean. We want to take him down. I just need to know your reasons.”
“And will you tell me yours?” I challenge. He can’t just expect me to tell him things and trust him.
Mr. Wallace hums and searches my face. “Fair enough. He ruined my father’s company. We went to school together. He was always a pompous prick. I went to work for my dad at his modest CPA firm. Mosley got hired with the top firms. I wasn’t mad about that. I’d always intended to help my father, and thebig firms expect you to live your life within the walls of the company.”
He’s not wrong there. Almost every employee worked late and on the weekends while I was an intern at Mosley & Adams.
“And then Mosley wanted to move up the corporate ladder, and what better way to do that than bring in new clients?”
“He took some of your father’s business?”
Mr. Wallace’s jaw tenses. “He took it all. He started a nasty rumor about my father stealing from the companies he worked for. He went to each of them directly and offered them a new contract at a lower price for the first year. His way of doing what was right.” He scoffs. “My father’s company went under, and then he fell into a bottle and never found his way out.”
“I’m sorry.”
He shrugs, like it’s not a big deal, but there’s a flicker of pain in his eyes. “So. That’s why I hate him. Your turn.”
Compared to what happened to his father, my story sounds kind of lame. “He, uh, he invited me to dinner. He said the firm got a new client and everyone was going out to celebrate.” I avert my gaze and stare at the clock on the wall, ignoring the moisture pricking at the edges of my eyes. I’m not crying for that bastard. Fuck him. “That wasn’t true. It was dinner with his pack, and they were ready to take me as a mate before they even met me. I left before dinner was over. He fired me the next Monday.”
“Quinn?”
I force myself to look at my new boss.
“That was incredibly inappropriate of him, you understand that?”
“Yes.” But even him just acknowledging that out loud is validation I didn’t know I needed.
“That crosses several lines, most of which are illegal.” He rubs his hand over his face. “Fuck. I’m probably crossing lines too, and for that, I’m sorry. I just saw him lying and so intent ontaking everything from you like he did my father and I...well. You know the rest.”
My forehead wrinkles. “So, what now? Do I still have the job?”
“Of course, you do. There’s no way I’m listening to that asshole. You’re going to be a great intern, I know it.”
“Thanks, Mr. Wallace.”
“If you need the rest of the day off?—”
“I’m fine. Really.”
He frowns. “Okay, but I’ll understand if you do need to leave. I meant what I said when I hired you. This is going to be great.”
Nodding, I stand and head to the door, but before I can open it, something stops me.We both want to take him down.