Chapter 82

ARI

My heart was pounding as I stood in front of my father’s office, smoothing out the wrinkles in my dress for the third time. It wasn’t just the sterile, cold air of this side of the packhouse that made me uneasy; it was the man behind the door. Meeting my father was never a pleasant experience. Usually, Gabe would accompany me, his presence calming my nerves. But he hadn’t answered my calls or texts since the event. It’s been an entire day since the event, and he hadn’t returned to the packhouse, still angry about the pheromones incident. As if that was my fault. thing. Taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door.

“Come in,” my father’s deep voice called from within.

I pushed the door open and stepped into the room. The air inside was as suffocating as I’d expected. My father sat behind his large mahogany desk, his expression as stern as ever. To his right, Francesca, perched elegantly on a leather armchair, her lips pursed in disapproval. On the left, Amber, was scrolling through h