Chapter Four-Luther

She's driving me crazy.

The sad part was that she didn't even realize that her presence had my wolf begging and pleading like a pup. When she called me out in my office, I wanted to pull her close and kiss her senseless, until her legs turned to rubber.

Even the look Mr. Brown gave her—a polite smile—sent my nerves up my stiffened spine. My heel tapped against the carpeted floor of the conference room, while my fingertips drummed along the table to the same rhythm.

"In all," he said. "We're very happy with the progress that Alpha Inc. has given us at Brown's Rentals, and we would like to extend your services to our partner company Brown's Towing, LLC."

"We'd be happy to take on Brown's Towing, Mr. Brown. Let's schedule a time for our normal consolation and get things set up," I said, almost robotically. Brown was a huge client, but one of many for Alpha Inc.

He smiled underneath his bushy handlebar mustache. "I'll call the front desk and schedule myself in then, Mr. Reed. As always, it's such a pleasure working with you all."

Scott stood up to see him out, while my gaze drifted to Blaire. I'd informed her to type out our meeting in shorthand, like a stenographer, and report back to me when we finished.

By the smug look on her face, I figured she'd done well. I wasn't sure what would have happened if it hadn't. My wolf wouldn't let me fire her, or send her home, he'd dug a hole so deep from his pacing that I feared he'd fall in if I didn't act on the mating bond soon.

"She's human," I mumbled so low I knew she couldn’t hear it. "And my employee."

Kiss her, he demanded.

Blaire looked up, her hazel gaze twisting my insides with a smidge of mischief that would be the death of me. She was a free spirit, a flirt, and I hated it. A Luna was none of those things. A Luna needed to be stern, no nonsense, and Blaire Summers was nothing but nonsense. 

"Reporting back to you, Sir," she said, sliding her laptop over toward me.

I glanced down, reading over her shorthand until I realized every time I spoke she inserted a Grinch emoji. I lifted my gaze toward hers, and found myself pressing my lips together so hard they hurt.

"Fix it," I said as calmly as I could.

Blaire chuckled, shoving her shoulder into mine, sending electric fire up my arm. "It's an easy fix. Take a joke, Mr. Reed," she said, rolling her eyes and standing.

I stood with her, looking down at her short frame, and the way she inclined her head to meet my eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me."

"Noted," she said in a soft voice that I could only take as passive aggressive sarcasm. 

"Ms. Summers."

The front desk receptionist—whatever her name was—Scott hired her because she was pretty, and was done with her shortly after. Being younger than me, and not the alpha, the fact that he hadn't found his mate yet wasn't that big of a deal.

Blaire perked up at her name. "Yes?"

She looked nervous, her hands interlaced in front of her, her thumbs playing war with one another. "There is …" she cleared her throat. "A gentleman here to see you. He says it's important."

Kill him, my wolf said. Kill him now.

Blaire huffed, but gathered her things and followed her down to the front desk without a glance in my direction. I shoved my cell phone into my pocket, and stalked to my desk.

I had no right to follow her or eavesdrop on her conversation. She didn't understand mating, or werewolves. Plus, I didn't want to mark her, I wanted to protect her. That was two completely different routes to take concerning her.

I sat down at my desk, pulling up my email, and getting my lunch order ready for Blaire to go get when I felt it. It started deep down in my bones, weaving its way through my veins with an electric current.

Blaire spoke with someone and my wolf didn't like it.

I cracked my neck to the side, dismissing my wolf's ludicrous accusations when the feeling intensified, and my fingers curled into a heavy fist on my desk.

Get up and go stop her. She's flirting with a man, his said.

"I don't own her," I mumbled, rubbing my temples. "She's human, and doesn’t know—,"

Now! he shouted, jolting me forward for the first time since I was a pup. It'd been impossible to control him when I was younger, but as we grew, I became in control. 

This is not me being in control. This is me being dragged around like a child in trouble.

"Stop it," I ground through my clenched teeth, digging my heels, in case he tried again. "She can speak to who she wants to—,"

"I had fun the other night. I must have put in your number wrong, because the text came back."

The voice was definitely male, though vague and not familiar; he spoke to my mate about having fun a previous night, which meant he wanted it again. My jaw hurt from clamping my teeth shut.

"Maybe we can go out tonight."

I stood up and my chair flew back toward the opposite wall. I wasn't sure if I controlled my actions—, which were hardly controlled at all—or my wolf, but I couldn’t listen to this.

My strides were wide, and quick out of my office, and into the hallway. I shoved past Scott on my way out, noting everyone stared at me with wide eyes, no one daring to ask me anything.

Even Stephanie kept her distance as I took the elevator down to the first floor, and followed her scent out onto the sidewalk. The man in front of her swallowed my expectations of a good-looking guy, and demolished my pride.

He was tall, big, and staring at my mate as if he wanted to eat her. Not that I couldn’t easily take him, he was human, but I didn't like this at all. In fact, ten different scenarios, starting with pushing him down a manhole, and dragging him through the foot traffic around us, all filtered through my thoughts.

Blaire shifted her weight from one foot to the other, and I sensed her unease. I stopped behind her, drawing this man's attention first. "Can we help you?" he asked.

Blaire turned around, her hazel gave lifted to mine, and curiosity traveled across her face. "Mr. Reed I was just coming back up—,"

"Blaire isn't to be bothered again, son," I said, knowing he was my age, but feeling I needed to knock him down anyway I could. "She's working now, and I don't appreciate her being pulled away for pettiness."

He swallowed, shoving his hands down into his pockets. His heartrate picked up, and I felt him grow irritated. He had no idea how irritated I felt at the moment, and if he knew what was good for him, he'd leave without an argument. Blaire never looked away, the corner of her mouth pulled into a small smirk.

She turned around to face this guy. "Sorry, Thomas. I should have told you. Luther and I are dating, and he's really protective."

What in the …

Thomas grew pissed quickly. "I just stayed the night with you two nights ago, Blaire. Does he know that?"

Kill him, my wolf said. There is a dumpster out back where you can dump him.

Blaire crossed her arms over her chest. "What happened before I met Luther is none of his business. Now, you heard the man, I need to get back to work—,"

"You're screwing your boss?" he asked, his voice louder than I felt comfortable with since we stood outside of my place of business.

"I suggest you move along before I do it for you," I said.

Thomas' eyes narrowed to slits. "My dad is a lawyer, Blaire. Is your new boss sexually harassing you?"

Blaire chuckled deeply, but I was too pissed to take her lead. I stepped between the two of them, my resolve shattering into tiny pieces. "Let me get this straight," I said, my voice low. "You're accusing me of sexually assaulting my employee; yet, you show up to her job unannounced and pull her from her first day on the job? Maybe we should check your background, because I fear we may find a few restraining orders in there."

Thomas let out a long breath. "Says her boss that's currently dating her. Right. I'm in the wrong here—,"

"Brother," Scott's clipped voice came from the doors of the building.

I glanced over my shoulder, but I didn't move. This little punk wasn't going to accuse me of sexually assaulting my mate and get away with it. "Leave, and don't come back, or I'll make you regret it."

Against everything in my body, I turned on my heel and marched toward Scott, who held the door opened for me. When I made it halfway there, I glanced back to see Blaire staring after me. "Get inside," I hissed.

To my surprise, she scurried in before me, making a quick beeline toward the stairs. Her footsteps quickened as I gained on her. She shoved opened the stairwell doors, and made it to the first platform when I gripped her elbow and pinned her against the wall.

"What. Was. That?" I asked.

Her minty breath escaped her opened mouth, and she looked nervous for the first time since I hired her.

"You just told that stranger that we're dating? What possessed you to do that, Blaire?"

Her gaze dropped to my mouth, everything about her quietened, and she seemed almost … submissive. "I thought it would make him leave, Luther. He looked up jobs hiring assistants in the area, and went by a few until he found me. It was creepy. I thought if I told him he would back off. I didn't know you would go all Jean-Claude Van Damme—,"

"Don't ever do that again," I said. "Do you understand? This is my business—my world—and if his lawyer father gets pissed enough, he could ruin me. I am not dating you. Understand?"

Blaire tugged her grasp from me, lifting her head in a defiant way. "Obviously. Who would want to date The Office Grump? Not this girl," she said, taking a few steps up until she was my height. "Plus, you wouldn't know what to do with me."

She swayed her hips up the stairs, leaving me with a howling wolf and the urge to bring her back down to the lone stairwell and have her every which way.

Blaire sat at her desk when I finally got back to my office. I'd taken the long way to allow myself time to cool down from being inches away from her luscious mouth.

She looked over from her laptop, a pen caught between her teeth while she leaned back and glared at me.

I ignored her infuriating stare, taking a seat and listening to a few of my voicemails, while sending Blaire notes on my schedule.

After several minutes of utter silence she asked, "I should have asked before. Are you married? It was rude of me to assume you weren't. I mean, I can't imagine the woman that could put up with your brooding, but that's none of my business. So," she asked, "Are you?"

My God, … she's annoying.

She's curious for herself, my wolf said.

"No, she isn't," I said.

"What was that?" she asked.

"I’m not married."

"Dating?"

"No."

She spun back and forth in her chair. "I'm just trying to get to know you, since you're wound up pretty tight over there."

I ignored her stare. "I've sent you emails. Work them."

She made a face, but quickly flew through her emails, and turned back to me, her elbow braced against her desk. "I'm more of a casual dater myself. I don't really take guys too seriously, because they're mostly playboys anyway."

My wolf didn’t want to hear about her dating, and his anxiety coursed through me. I turned from my screen and began writing down notes for the Brown's Towing I'd searched online.

"Oh, what about that girl. The redhead. She's pretty."

My gaze snapped up. "What are you talking about?"

She shrugged. "She was ogling you, and giving me dirty looks. I think she likes you. What was her name? Stephanie. Why don't you ask her out?"

The pen in my hand snapped in two, splattering ink all over my white button-down. I jumped up, shaking out of my jacket, and un-buttoning my shirt until I tugged out of it.

Blaire became quiet, her gaze lingered on the lines of my chest as I grabbed a spare shirt folded in the bottom drawer of my desk.

This was the first time she'd been this quiet. When I glanced up at her, red tinted her cheeks, but she looked down at her laptop as if she hadn't been staring.

My office door opened, and Stephanie walked inside. Her mouth parted slightly, but she hid her gazing much more than Blaire had. "Um," she cleared her throat. "Mr. Brown set up his appointment for next Thursday at 2PM. I just wanted to make sure you received it."

"I did. Thank you."

She glanced over at Blaire who continued to type on her keyboard until she shut the door.

Blaire chuckled. "See, she was totally eyeing you. You should ask her out. It may relieve some of that tension gathered in your shoulders."

Biting my tongue wasn't working anymore. I buttoned the last button and stared at her. "So because she looked at me, I need to ask her out?"

Blaire smiled. "Why not?"

"Does that mean I should ask you out, too? Because I saw you looking as well."

"I looked for research purposes," she concluded. "Plus, when a man takes off his shirt, you just look. It's natural."

Unable to stop myself—I laughed. It felt foreign and light, something that hadn't happened in months. "I see."

"What happened to your pen anyway? What are you The Hulk?"

Not quite.

"I've written down my lunch order for you, order whatever you like, the restaurant is right across the street, and they deliver to me several times a week. They know how I like my steak."

She opened the email and glared. "You just eat a steak? No salad or side dish?"

Being a wolf, I didn't crave anything but meat—mostly.

"Order it," I said.

Blaire mumbled something to herself, and thirty minutes later, Trent brought in our food. I tipped him, and dug out my plate, opening it to see lettuce … a  salad with my steak.

"What is this?" I barked.

Blaire hid a smile, and snatched her sirloin salad from the bag. "I don't know how that got in there. Better eat it. It's good for you."

I balled my fists on my desk. "You don't determine what's good for me—I do."

Blaire sat down, turned toward me, and crossed her legs. "Yeah? I think I may have a few good ideas that would be good for you, Luther Reed. Maybe you should keep me around and find out."