Chapter 16
Lucas
Another bouquet was returned this morning just before I set out for the Black Manor. Those were five in a row now, and each had been returned without Alison opening the card, so she never even got to read the heartfelt messages in the note I sent along with them.
I hoped to see her today. I was meeting with William Black, and after the meeting, I had to see her. I couldn't bear being away from her any longer. I looked up as the door to the waiting area opened and Thomas, the Black Manor butler, came in.
"Mr. Black is expecting you in his study," he said with a perfunctory smile.
I nodded, adjusting my tie before heading down the hallway.
William Black's study was a testament to old money—leather-bound books lining mahogany shelves, a massive desk topped with green leather, oil portraits of stern-faced ancestors watching from the walls.
The man himself sat behind the desk, reviewing documents through half-moon spectacles. He looked up as I entered.
"Lucas, right on time." He gestured to the chair across from him.
He removed his glasses, fixing me with a penetrating stare.
"Let's get straight to this, shall we? We both know you could have sent your legal team to handle this proposition.
Just as we both know, your sudden interest in Black Industries' Asian expansion isn't what brings you to my home today. "
I met his gaze without flinching. My wolf recognized another alpha when it saw one, even in human form. "I've never been one to separate business from pleasure."
"No," William agreed, a hint of amusement creeping into his voice. "Though in this case, there appears to be very little pleasure involved. My daughter seems quite determined to ignore your existence."
My daughter. He'd adapted to the DNA results quickly, claiming Alison with a fierceness that spoke of years of subconscious longing for a true connection.
I couldn't blame him. Despite her initial wariness, Alison embodied the Black family's better qualities—intelligence, dignity, quiet strength—without Victoria's brittleness or cruelty.
"Alison has every reason to distrust me," I acknowledged. "I hurt her deeply."
William leaned back in his chair, assessing me. "Yes, I've heard the story from multiple perspectives. Victoria's, of course, is rather biased. Alison refuses to discuss it at all, which speaks volumes."
I remained silent, accepting the implicit rebuke.
"What exactly are your intentions toward my daughter, Lucas?" William asked bluntly.
"I intend to marry her," I responded without hesitation.
To my surprise, William laughed—a genuine, warm sound I'd rarely heard from the normally stoic businessman. "Well, at least you're direct. Does Alison know this?"
"She knows I love her. The rest... will take time."
William's expression sobered. "She's had a difficult life, thanks in no small part to my failure to recognize the switch. And then your treatment of her..." He shook his head. "She won't be easily won, especially now that she doesn't need anyone's financial support or social standing."
"I don't want her to need me," I said, something fierce rising in my chest. "I want her to choose me."
William studied me for a long moment, then reached for a leather-bound notebook on his desk. "She reads in the rose garden most afternoons. Eastern corner, near the stone bench beneath the arbor. Usually around three."
I stared at him, momentarily speechless at this unexpected alliance.
"Don't mistake this for permission to hurt her again," William warned, his voice hardening. "DNA tests have confirmed she's my daughter, and I've missed twenty-seven years of protecting her. I'm making up for lost time."
The threat was clear: a powerful businessman to a powerful businessman. But beneath it lay something else—a father's desperate hope for his daughter's happiness.
I stood, extending my hand. "Understood."
William shook it firmly. "Good. Now, these merger documents won't sign themselves."
At precisely three o'clock, I made my way through the sprawling gardens of the Black estate.
May sunshine filtered through century-old oak trees, casting dappled patterns on the immaculately maintained paths.
The rose garden lay in the eastern corner, separated from the main grounds by a latticed archway covered in climbing white blooms.
My wolf senses picked up Alison's scent before I saw her. I paused at the garden's entrance, taking a moment to simply look at her.
She sat on a stone bench beneath a rose-covered arbor, a book open in her lap.
She wore a simple sundress, her long brown hair loose around her shoulders, catching glints of gold in the afternoon light.
Without the corporate armor of blazers and heels, she looked younger, softer—yet the determined set of her chin remained.
Beautiful. Unattainable. Mine.
My wolf growled possessively at that last thought, and I forced it down. She wasn't mine, not yet. Perhaps never. But I would fight for the chance.
I stepped into the garden, deliberately making enough noise that she wouldn't be startled. Her head lifted, wariness immediately replacing the peaceful expression she'd worn seconds before.
"Lucas," she acknowledged, closing her book but keeping her finger between the pages to mark her place. "I didn't realize you were here today."
"Meeting with William about his expansion into the Asian market. We're looking to partner," I explained, approaching slowly, as one might a skittish deer. "May I join you?"
She hesitated, then nodded almost imperceptibly, shifting slightly on the bench.
I sat beside her, and my wolf was almost howling. Her smell was so intoxicating that it took great restraint on myself not to kiss her and have her right there. Instead, I put on a smile and spoke. "What are you reading?" I asked.
She showed me the cover—a financial text on international market strategies. "William suggested it. I'm trying to understand the Black Industries portfolio before the next board meeting."
"Taking your responsibilities seriously," I observed. "I'd expect nothing less."
She shot me a look. "Did you come to talk about my reading habits?"
"No," I admitted. "I came to see you. The flowers I sent—"
"Are beautiful," she interrupted. "As were all the others."
"But you returned them all."
She sighed, setting the book aside entirely. "Lucas, what do you want from me? Really?"
"Everything," I said simply. "Your time. Your trust. Your heart." Your body. Your future. Your soul. My wolf added silently.
She shook her head, a sad smile touching her lips.
A rose petal drifted down from the arbor above us, landing in her hair—a splash of pink against the brown.
Without thinking, I reached out, my fingers gently brushing it away.
She stilled at my touch but didn't pull back.
My wolf took that as a sign to push for me, to get more from her and satiate the hunger for her that has been growing within me since I sat down by her side.
I knew she held some feelings for me. I couldn't tell if it was love, but her body had always responded to mine.
We'd always connected, and if we were to be in a more private area, I would have kissed her.
Hell, we would have made love right here on the grass.
There was no denying the physical connection.
It was fierce and enveloping. What I couldn't decipher was the status of her emotional connection to me.
I had tried to be assertive with her, to make use of the undeniable physical hold I had on her to win her over, but that hadn't worked.
We ended up making love, but it was just to satisfy a physical yearning.
I wanted more than that from her. I wanted it all.
"You've adapted well," I observed, nodding toward the mansion visible through the trees. "To all of this."
She followed my gaze, something complicated passing across her face.
"It's strange. Parts of it feel... familiar, somehow.
As if some cellular memory recognizes this as where I should have been all along.
" She turned back to me. "Other parts are completely foreign.
I still can't remember which fork to use for what course. "
I smiled. "Fork etiquette is overrated."
That earned me a small laugh—the first genuine one she'd directed at me in years. The sound warmed something cold inside me.
"Leo seems to be thriving," I ventured. He was part of the reason I needed this to work out with her. He was growing, and it was only a matter of time before the signs started to exhibit themselves, and he would need my help when the time came.
Her expression immediately guarded again. "He is. Children are adaptable."
"He has your resilience," I said carefully.
She stood abruptly, gathering her book. "I should get back. Leo will be finishing his nap soon."
I rose as well, knowing I'd pushed too far. "Alison, wait. Please."
Something in my voice must have reached her, because she paused, her back to me.
"I'm not here because of your newfound status or the Black fortune," I said quietly.
She turned slowly to face me, her expression unreadable.
"I'm here because five years ago, I met my mate—and I was too blind with pride and suspicion to recognize it.
" I took a step closer, close enough to catch the subtle intake of her breath.
"I'm here because I'm going to spend however long it takes proving to you that I'm worthy of a second chance.
Even if you never regain your trust in me.
I'll still be here, sending flowers you donate and sitting in meetings just to catch a glimpse of you across the room. "
A flush crept up her neck, but her gaze didn't waver. "You're very persistent, Mr. Hawkins."
"You have no idea, Ms. Black." I reached for her hand, bringing it to my lips for the briefest kiss. "
I left her standing in the rose garden, the afternoon sun gilding her silhouette.
As I walked away, my wolf howled in triumph.
Because despite her wariness, despite her walls, I'd seen it in her eyes—the smallest crack in her armor, the first hint that her heart wasn't as closed to me as she pretended.
It was enough for now. A beginning.
I had always been patient in business, willing to play the long game for the greatest reward. This was no different, except that the stakes were infinitely higher. Alison wasn't a company to acquire or a deal to close. She was my future, my mate, the missing piece that would make me whole.
And I would wait for her, court her, prove myself to her, for as long as it took.