Didn't that cold man promise not to let me meet Dexton alone? Or had I misunderstood his words at the time? In fact, I was already in Dexton's office, waiting for him to come out of the special room where, according to his secretary, he performed his 'special rituals'.
Yep! The woman said that word while moving two fingers obviously, meaning he was probably making love to who-knows-who. Probably Ophelie since she was his fiancée according to Rona, my foster mother.
Thirty minutes in, a blonde, slender woman came out of the room, followed by Dexton with slightly disheveled clothes and long hair. A far cry from when we were teenagers—he looked like an idiot with his neatly cut copper hair. Now, the true depiction of a bad boy was evident in his style. He was a CEO, the son of the company's owner, and the alpha of the Blue Eclipse Pack, but he was haphazard in his appearance.
He was only wearing a shirt with a tie that he had just righted, but his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. Seeing my arrival, he grinned, although earlier, the look of surprise was clearly on his face.
"You've come at last," said Dexton, who sounded like he had been waiting for me for a long time. I had actually suspected that the failure of the agreement between our law firm, which represented him, and the jet-haired woman who was said to be his business enemy the other day was a lure for me to come and take responsibility. I didn't know why I thought that, and in fact, that was how Dexton reacted when he saw me coming.
His words alone made all my hairs stand on end. The dream flashed back like a rerun of my favorite show. For this one, I didn't want to remember it, and if I could, I'd erase it from my memory. However, my being in this place was like a key that opened a Pandora's box of memories and nightmares.
"I-I came to..." Always! I still couldn't stop being stupid whenever I was in his presence. I was afraid to hear him call me a freak, a granny hair, or a fat old woman, like he always did. I would tremble if I heard that and was around him. That fear never disappeared, even though I tried to be brave before him. "I want to negotiate with you about the mediation from the other day."
Please don't discuss anything else, Dex. Just say what you want for a negotiation without involving the court; if that happens, you might lose.
"Well, what are your considerations for wanting a negotiation? Do you think accepting that woman's offer will make all the problems go away?" He snorted, then laughed lightly before reaching for a cigarette and lighting it, then puffing on it with relish. "Do you know who that woman is?"
I shook my head. "Our client is you, Mr. Elmer."
He laughed again. Louder this time. "What did you call me? Don't you know me? Oh, you pretend you don't know me and want to look professional, eh?" He gave a mocking look. "Try it, Foxy. You won't be able to stand it, and you'll definitely be reminded of how that night and–"
He stopped his sentence at once. I waited for Dexton to finish everything he wanted to say to know if my dream was a reality or just a dream. That one sentence alone, though unfinished, made my body almost sag to the floor. However, I quickly gripped the back of the chair near me. He didn't even invite me to sit down and I wasn't about to lay my ass down in this filthy place. Dexton must have fucked his whores all over and in every corner of this room.
"Let's not get into that. I'm just curious how it feels to fuck a fat girl like you."
Asshole! Why did I have to hear that word? Why am I always affected by that one word, when it has been stuck with me since childhood?
He stepped closer until the two of us were no longer apart, and then his sturdy arms impolitely reached out and grabbed me tightly.
"Let go of me, Mr. Elmer! This is an act of harassment, do you know that?"
"Oh, yeah? It would be considered harassment if I did it carelessly, wouldn't it? However, I'm not, Foxy. I'm doing all this for many reasons, and one main reason you've never heard of. I'm waiting for the time to say it."
Shit! What was this smell? The scent of his body wafted over me like a stab in the nose, and he smelled like a stray dog. I almost threw up if I hadn't gotten back to my focus and purpose for coming here. I pushed him hard until his grip slipped away from me.
"I don't want to hear any of that nonsense because I'm here on business. Tell me, do you want me to continue or not? If not, I will leave this place."
***
I was still stunned in my room in the pavilion that Mr. Levy provided. It felt strange to be in a place I didn't want to be. If any other girl would feel so privileged to be treated this well by a man, I didn't. There was too much suspicion because no one had ever been so kind to me, although Mr. Levy obviously wanted something from me—a good performance as his personal assistant.
The waiter had prepared the food, but had no appetite to enjoy it. Being alone, in such a big place, without a friend, made me lose my passion for life. It felt like I was imprisoned, but I wasn't here because Mr. Levy was offering me something, but because I had a lot of daily duties.
One of them was to accompany him to dinner. Every day. However, I didn't want to.
I would have been very awkward and nervous around any man except Gerald. However, there was no more Gerald in my life. After Mr. Levy's long-winded sentence, I immediately broke off the relationship and threw away the ring that he had given me and that I had been wearing for the past year.
Unfortunately, my life didn't settle after breaking up with that bastard. Something else bothered me, and I still didn't believe the information was true. Why? Because the one who gave me that astonishing information was the man who, in my dreams, had raped and killed me.
"Why the heck do I have to deal with you again after all this fucking time?" I asked the man who stood proudly in the Kiton suit that clung snugly to his burly body. A smile spread across his red lips that made me recall glimpse after glimpse of the incident where he took away my honor and then killed me.
He eroded the distance, bringing his face closer to mine, so I could feel his menthol-smelling breath from the cigarette he smoked touching my skin. I couldn't forget how all the hormones in my body worked against what was in my heart—I felt a strange thrill that I couldn't understand, and I hated it.
"Because I'm your mate, Foxy. Whether you like it or not, you must accept that and..." He took a pause for his sentence to reach me in his arms once more and touched my chin. "I'll make time for us to perform the mate bond ritual whenever you want. I won't let anyone take you away from me, so I'll mark you immediately. Do you hear that?"
... and instantly the world seemed to come crashing down. I didn't want to be his mate, and everything he had done to me was a crime. Why had the Moon Goddess destined me for him? Although it hadn't been proven yet, and I didn't see any signs—or perhaps didn't recognize them—it felt impossible for me to be his mate. I hadn't found my wolf yet; he was an alpha descendant. He must have wanted to seize the opportunity to harass me.
If what he said was true, what would be my fate? Could I reject him and accept the risk of not getting a mate for an undetermined time? Or it seemed like not having a mate would be much better than having to be the mate of a bully and murderer. Right?