Blair
Huge…
The single word echoed in my head as the gorgeous, dark haired, viking built like a tank, barged into the office. I auto switched into defense mode as my instinct reacted to the presence of what it considered an alpha male.
I shrank back against my seat with a gasp, trying to put some distance between us. My fingers gripped the armrests until my knuckles turned white as every nerve inside me screamed to escape.
“What the bloody fuck am I hearing about a new employee, Lucy?” His voice, deep and gravelly, came out in a growl and made the hairs on the back of my neck rise.
I was put in mind of a predator, a large, formidable one and the thought only served to ratchet my anxiety several notches up. Now, I couldn't help but wonder if Mac Walsh was Lorekind. Humans didn't breed them that massive.
I wanted to bolt, but his large frame was between me and the door.
Shit.
“I thought we agreed at the last meeting about not hiring more staff?” Mac crossed his arms across his chest. “And why am I just finding out about it, today?”
“Mac,” Lucy said in a calm tone. “I’m in the middle of a meeting with the new employee. Can we talk later?”
He whipped his head to the side, finally noticing me and I stifled a flinch at the sudden movement. I wasn’t the best at dealing with large, furious men and irrational fear crawled its way up my spine but I tamped it down and forced myself to sit up straight, lifting my gaze to his face.
Glossy dark hair lay in expertly styled waves, high on top, tapered to a fade at the sides and back. Thick brows framed shrewd obsidian eyes, a nose that looked like it had seen a few fistfights in its lifetime and a soft, sensual mouth currently pulled into a frown.
Despite the irritation clearly written in his expression, any one would be hard pressed to deny the fact that Mac Walsh had been blessed by Hermatta, the goddess of beauty. He wasn’t just tall. Underneath the navy sweatshirt and jeans, it was evident he had a well proportioned, muscled body.
Resse, my mate, was also well built, thanks to a strict fitness and diet regimen, but even he didn’t hold a candle to Mac. Now, I knew firsthand how strong Resse was, and that made me even more terrified of Mac, who could swat me away with less effort.
Those obsidian eyes pierced me with a look from head to toe, and from the downward turn of his mouth, it wasn’t hard to guess he found me less than impressive.
“We’ll talk about this now.” He took his eyes from me to glare at Lucy. “We don’t need a new fucking employee, and certainly not one that looks like she should still be in high school.
I winced at the insult. I knew I looked a lot younger than my twenty-three years, but calling me a teenager? Granted, I had become even skinnier over the last month, and the fact that my hair was dyed almost black instead of my natural tawny brunette (and the dark eyeliner I’d taken to wearing) did give me a bit of a grungy edge, but still…
“Mac!” Lucy looked aghast, her eyes flitting to me, full of silent apology before she glowered at her boss. “There’s no need to be rude. And the reason I didn’t mention it was because I didn’t want to bother you while you were away at the conference.”
“Well, I’m here now and I’m saying we don’t need the extra staff.” He looked downright belligerent. I waited for some form of an apology but as the seconds ticked by, it was clear he wasn’t going to offer one.
If my job wasn’t already in a precarious position, I would have responded with something snarky. But pissing him off further wasn’t going to help, so I remained silent.
“Well, I think we do.” I marveled at Lucy’s calm manner. “We need someone to proofread and decipher the mess that’s your research notes, which - if I may point out - you always grouse about doing. And maybe we can finally have the supplies put away on time rather than having boxes sit for weeks in storage or the used lab equipment put back in their proper places because no one in this company can be assed to clean up after themselves, or how about the million other things that need to be done but aren't because everyone is busy?”
“We can manage just fine. We’ll set up a roster for the extra duties and I’m not about to have some stranger nosing around in my notes.”
“We’re already paying for overtime, too much in my opinion and that’s money that can be used elsewhere.”
“You’ve got your argument all figured out, huh?” Mac threw her an accusing scowl. “But you forget, that it’s still my fucking company and what I say, goes.”
“And you bloody well put me in charge of managing what you called ‘the aspects you couldn't give a fuck about,” and that, you bloody ass, is exactly what I’m trying to do, so butt the fuck out.”
My mouth fell open and I’m sure my eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. The cool, collected Lucy was gone and replaced by this ballsy woman swearing like a sailor on a stormy night and did she actually call him an ass? I seriously doubted my hearing.
My eyes flew to Mac, and I waited, tense, for the explosion I was sure was imminent. If any woman… or man had dared talk to Resse like this, he would have ripped out their throats in a heartbeat.
Mac smirked.
I blinked.
Had he lost his mind…or had I?
“Well, it just so happens that I do give a fuck when its my pocket in jeopardy.” Mac huffed and threw up his hands and I flinched - goddess, I was doing that a lot around this man and it wasn’t helping my mental health in any way. “I just had to spend a bloody week schmoozing with those assholes in Washington trying to get secure funding without planting my fist in their pompous, overstuffed faces. And that money is not to be wasted on frivolities.”
I released the breath I'd been holding while waiting for the explosion that never came.
He huffed and threw his large frame into the chair beside me, then pinned me with a look, his lips rising in another smirk. “No offense.”
This was it. I was going to be fired in less than an hour. I took a deep breath and summoned up a bit of courage.
“I…I can do whatever you need,” I whispered, and then cleared my throat, willing my voice to be stronger. “You can cut down my wages, if that helps, but -”
“Have you told her how much she’ll be paid?” Mac asked, his eyebrows going up and his gaze flicking from me to Lucy.
“Not yet, we hadn’t quite gotten to the employment contract yet.” Lucy threw him a look filled with accusation. “That’s part of the paperwork we were looking over before you came in.”
Mac ignored her and turned back to me, eyes narrowed. “So, how do you know you’d be comfortable if we decided to cut the pay?”
I felt heat rise to my cheeks and wrung my hands. If I told him I was willing to take any amount, then I’d look too desperate and probably raise more questions than I could answer. And that could lead to them finding out about how I’d spent the last three nights in a homeless shelter and in an abandoned building four nights ago, or that my worldly possessions were stashed in the backpack at my feet or that I couldn’t afford three meals a day, sometimes even one if the food ran out at the soup kitchen that day.
I’d intended to put in a fake address on my employment form and lie that I had lost my mobile phone to escape putting down a contact number.
“Uh…I…” I looked down at my hands and saw they were shaking. I clasped them together and inhaled too deeply because my ribs protested. “I have experience with SAS. Do you use that here?”
SAS or Specimen Analysis System, was a revolutionary computer program that was capable of running virtual tests in a matter of seconds, cutting down the wait times for lab tests by eliminating the need to wait for bacteria cultures to grow in petri dishes. These days, most modern research facilities have adopted the use of it and couldn’t praise the system enough.
But from the sour look on Mac’s face, he was not one of those scientists.
“I hate SAS.” Mac muttered, mouth curling in disgust and my heart sank.
“You only say that because you haven’t been able to figure out how to use the damn thing.” Lucy quipped, a wry smile playing on her lips. Her gaze fell on me, eyes lit with excitement. “We recently got the program, but Mac hates it because he’s been unable to use it. If you’re proficient at it, that would be a great start.”
“I am,” Grabbing onto this lifeline with both hands, I scooted to the edge of my seat. “I attended the seminar that the creators gave last year, and I have used it at my previous workplace.”
“Bloody waste of time. We can manage without the damn thing.” Mac looked unconvinced.
This was it. The moment when I had to let go of the last shreds of my pride. To be honest, it was surprising that I still had any left at this point.
“Please…” I whispered, keeping my gaze lowered. “I’m willing to do anything, but please, don’t fire me. I really need this job.”
Mac I was still in a shitty mood from my ten hour flight. My wolf, Aries, absolutely hated being out of touch with solid ground and stuck in a metal contraption that was an airplane, soaring thousands of feet in the sky. Each time I had to take a flight, it was a constant battle of wills inside me, and even though I usually had my way, Aries never gave me a moment’s peace during the entire flight, making his displeasure known in my head until I was an irritable, miserable fuck by the time the plane landed. Because of this, I avoided taking flights whenever I could. Lucy usually would go on those business trips that necessitated flying. But a trip to Washington for the quarterly shareholder meeting was something that requires my presence and was unavoidable if I wanted to keep the funds flowing. Added to that, the meeting had been a bloody waste of time and I’d hated every minute of the time I’d spent trying to convince those stodgy farts to shell out the funds Gen Pro needed. All th
BlairI stared at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. A pale, dark haired girl with haunted brown eyes that looked enormous set against a face made gaunt from hunger and malnutrition stared back at me. I studied my sunken cheeks and chapped lips sadly, thankful that at least, the swelling was gone and the bruises mostly faded.Grunge emo chick.Mac’s words echoed in my head and I let out a sigh. To think my life had come to this, where a bastard like Mac Walsh could casually level insults my way and assume I was a drug addict because of my physical appearance.Not that I blamed him, I did look exactly like he’d described, I’d give him that, but it didn’t make it hurt any less. I’d endured years of verbal abuse from Resse that I thought I’d developed a thick skin, but somehow, Mac’s words cut me deeper than I cared to admit.My lips trembled as unwanted memories swarmed me, triggering tendrils of anxiety that tightened a vice around my chest squeezing until every breath was a struggl
BlairA similar heat flared in Mac’s eyes, and from the depths of his chest, I heard a deep rumbling that came out as a growl. His arms tightened around me, possessive and passionate and for one moment, I caught a glimpse of the beast within him, ferocious and magnificent all at once.For the first time in months, Trish stirred within me, I could feel her agitation because she was me and I was her, but it wasn’t an agitation borne of terror, no this was different. It almost felt… joyful?I heard a word and realized it came from my own mouth and even more shocking were the words I uttered, words I never expected to utter again in this lifetime.I went cold all over as shock rocked through my entire body.“No…” I shook my head in denial. Placing my hands on his chest, I pushed and mercifully, he let me go, so abruptly that I almost lost my balance again.His arm reached out to cup my elbow, but I shrank from him and to my absolute horror, I whimpered in fear, my arms coming up to shield
MacDespite my best efforts, the scene with Blair in the hallway kept playing over and over in my head as I drove towards the ranch. I had gone after her, haunted by the hurt I’d seen reflected in her eyes as she hurried away from my office. I might be a bastard, but I still had a shred of a conscience left and I knew I had gone too far and that an apology was in order.I had just rounded the corner when Blair had bumped into me at full speed, her tiny form bouncing off mine and if I hadn't reached out and grabbed her, she’d have definitely landed her ass on the floor.I still couldn’t figure out why I had reacted to her the way I had. From the moment our bodies had come into contact, my senses had flared into hyperawareness, my beast had craved to have the woman in my arms.And it hadn’t just been me that had felt it. I’d seen the flare of arousal in Blair’s eyes, the way she’d titled her head, lips parted, longing for satisfaction. That look had almost been my undoing. I’d nearly gi
Mac“Well, if it isn’t Tweedle dum and Tweedle dee,” Lucy quipped as Blake and I walked into her office. Brice, her assistant, who happened to be in the room, choked back a laugh, disguising it with a cough. I scowled at him and the cheeky bugger mumbled an excuse under his breath and hurried out, shutting the door behind him.“Please tell your mate to mind the way she speaks to her boss.” I complained to Blake in exasperation. “It’s bloody disrespectful.”Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee was the nickname Lucy had adopted for Blake and I back in boarding school, because in her opinion, both of us were practically one and the same person, just split into two separate bodies. It was a nickname I didn’t find particularly amusing and Lucy took full advantage of it, using it when she wanted to rile me up.“Just admit that you like it, dude.” Blake chuckled, clapping me on the back before crossing to place a welcome kiss on his mate’s cheek. He pulled her into his arms and she went willingly. “H
Blair“Please have a seat, Blair.” Dr. Strand spoke in the same gentle tone he’d used with me out on the main floor. I shook my head to decline his offer and moved instead to stand close to the door. I could feel him watching me intently and it made me even more uncomfortable.“I prefer to stand.” I replied, careful to not meet his gaze. My heart was frantically pounding in my chest, and I could feel goosebumps prickle my skin as fresh panic seized me.What kind of bad luck was this? Of all the people to run into, it had to be the doctor who’d treated my injuries, and even unfortunate, he remembered me out of all the dozens of patients he must have attended to in the two months since our encounter.Strand…I silently cursed myself for not making the connection sooner. Lucy’s last name was Strand and so was this doctor. He had called her ‘babe’ back there, so did that mean they were a couple? Probably.Another memory popped up in my head, confirming my earlier suspicions. He had litera
Mac“I just want to get the general idea of what you two talked about.” I told Blake for what felt like the hundredth time. I could literally hear his eyeballs move as he rolled his eyes, fully fed up with my bullshit, but I didn’t let it deter me. “She’s my employee - if there’s something to know, you should tell me.”Blake snorted and began unbuttoning his shirt. “Key word being ‘employee’. That doesn’t mean you have the right to nose into her private business. An employee is not an indentured servant, no matter what you may think of yours.”“I’m aware of that, but still, c'mon dude, at least give me a hint.” I urged, tugging my shirt over my head and tossing it unceremoniously to the side, which earned me a scowl from the fastidious Lucy. I shot her an apologetic smile and picked the offending fabric back up, folded it neatly then placed it among the pile.“I’m not telling you shit. Leave it alone” Blake declared. He shucked off his jeans and underwear and stood there arms on waist
BlairI’d intended to get off work early today, it was a Friday after all, which usually meant everyone was in a hurry to start the weekend and fucked off as soon as they could. By 2pm, almost everyone had already left, including Mac and I’d been prepared to lock up, but a phone call from the logistics company that handled our deliveries had kept me back. By the time Ben, the driver, pulled into the loading bay, it was already close to 3:30pm.I watched him place the last box containing lab supplies at the top of the stack, shifting impatiently from foot to foot, silently urging him to hurry up so I could close up for the day.I glanced once more at my watch. It was already 4:14pm which just left me a little over half an hour to get to the shelter closest to the office. If I was lucky, there would still be available beds and a warm place to pass the night and if I wasn't lucky…I didn't want to think of the consequences just yet.It would certainly be unpleasant. That much I knew. A co