14. Chapter 14
Chapter 14
Liam
The ride back home felt like a fever dream. We’d been successful by all means - our goal was to make it look like we went on a real date, and get some photos of Celeste with us for the media. She’d begrudgingly gone along with it, until she flipped the tables and started leaning too into her role. When she touched me, I nearly blacked out. I hadn’t had a woman touch me like that in forever - and I’d never had a reaction so strong. It took me several minutes and some deep concentration not to lose control right there in public and whisk her away somewhere where I could show her exactly what she was doing to me.
Then, when she straddled me, I lost it.
It was the single most difficult moment of my life. Every alpha instinct in me wanted her, in a way I’d never wanted anyone before. I was simply confused about why . Yes, I’d been in a dry spell, but wanting someone this badly didn’t make sense. And I couldn’t stand her. At least not her personality - but every atom of my being craved her body. Her core was directly on my erection at one point, and if we didn’t have clothes on I wasn’t sure I’d be able to hold back an incoming rut. I had to practically throw her off of me and get my head straight.
And after that steamy dance, I was even more worked up. I’d intended to set up some nice vantage points of all three of us for the spectators, but forgot about them completely when I felt her against me, and saw the way she reacted to Vigo caressing her from behind. Seeing the two of them looking so into each other was making me more excited than I could remember. My mind instantly went to what it would be like in a heat with her, how she would look with my cock in her, knotting her until she screamed my name.
And then I felt guilt. She was the reason our business was being sabotaged left and right. She was the cause of most of our headaches. And worst of all, she was a ruthless sociopath who caused my packmate immeasurable harm, and would continue to do so unless we stopped her.
Remembering the look on Dante’s face as he pulled us away from her made me feel shame that cut through me like a knife. How had I let a simple omega make me forget my purpose in an instant? I had to get back on track and stick to the plan. Luckily, Celeste had turned back into her cold, uncaring self on the ride home. It helped to solidify that fact that she really was a manipulative, conniving person. Looking at her now, she merely stared out the window, seated far away, her arms crossed as she ignored us. Dante was scowling, and Vigo had a smirk on his face. I couldn’t blame him though - he loved a challenge.
But I was supposed to be the leader, the responsible one - I always had been. My upbringing in the Eastern Province shaped me, instilling a relentless drive to create change. My parents had always believed that no matter the odds, the world could be better if enough people did the right thing. They taught me that integrity wasn’t just an ideal, it was a choice, one that mattered even when the scales were tipped against you.
I wanted to make a difference.
My parents worked hard to provide a life and an education for me, even when they could have dabbled in less than legal things to get more money. We lived in a lower middle-class area, and saw firsthand how those with money ran things. And the easiest way to get, and stay, on top was to be evil. But my parents never gave in. They made sure to show through example that you could live a good life, and be a good person, despite the temptations and challenges that existed in our province. I studied and stayed out of trouble, working hard to be as educated as possible to give myself a leg up.
I wanted to be different. I wanted to show that you could be successful and still make the world better, even in the Eastern Province. I was already a genius with tech, and knew with the right people on my side I’d go even farther.
After I met my future packmates, I knew we’d be a force to reckon with. They were just as talented and shared the same vision, especially Dante. We were still teenagers when we came up with a radical new concept, something that could shake the system, and from that spark, Manticore Technology was born.
Our success grew surprisingly quickly, and we started to expand into making electronics. We sourced our materials ethically and made sure to pay a living wage to our employees and give opportunities to every designation. Our biggest competitor was Harringday Industries. They had been around forever, had a stronghold in the region, and used every slimy practice in the book to stay ahead. But we knew we had something special. We also knew that Celeste’s company was doing horrible things, worse than most of the public realized. And so, our goal was also to chip away at their profits, fight until their slice of the pie shrunk smaller and smaller, and somehow, take them down.
Times were changing, and luck was on our side. Many consumers were eager to support an ethical alternative, even if it came at a higher price point. Our greatest challenge arose when we decided to expand into the Western Province. This also turned out to be our biggest win, and set us on the course to be a legitimate rival to Celeste’s company.
The Western province had a better designation rights track record, and took labor rights very seriously. Once we proved that our products not only matched but often surpassed the quality of Harringday’s offerings, we gained a warm reception from the community. Customers were willing to invest in our brand, valuing the exclusivity and integrity we provided.
We were flying high, but every time we thought we would finally be a true contender, something disastrous would happen to set us back. When we finally traced it to corporate espionage and found that Harringday was behind it, we weren’t surprised. But we needed to win. And to do that, it seemed like we’d need to bend in our ethics for once.
The car came to a stop, jolting me out of my thoughts. Celeste opened the door and quickly trotted to the house, her heels clipping away on the stone of our walkway. I followed my pack in behind her, still trying to ignore the massive white elephant in the room. My inexplicable attraction to her was a risk, and a betrayal.
“Well well, if it isn’t the media’s hottest new pack.” Elijah's voice startled me out of my thoughts. He came strolling into the entryway, clapping his hands at us as he grinned. “I have to hand it to you, that video was so spicy it nearly had me believing it was real.” He said with a smirk.
Vigo stepped toward him, running his hand through his hair, now carefree and wavy from the dancing. “What video?”
Elijah pulled out his phone, and we crowded around to look at the screen. A news outlet had uploaded someone’s cell footage of our night - me, Vigo and Celeste, in such a close position that I felt my pants get tight again. From the looks on our faces, even I would have been convinced that we were all madly passionate about each other. That is, if I hadn’t seen Celeste’s ability to act first hand. When she turned to kiss Vigo, you could hear the crowd gasp. She even lifted her knee up against his thigh for a moment, as if she was asking to be picked up.
Dante let out a sound of disgust and turned away. I felt ashamed again. He had every reason to hate her, and we had lost ourselves momentarily in an effort to make the date look real.
“Hey, I’m sorry man, I know it was probably hard to get through.” Elijah said to Dante as I looked around.
“Where did she go?” I asked, and Elijah put his phone away.
“She went straight back to her room.” He said as he looked at us conspiratorially. “But let’s go somewhere private anyway. I have news.” Elijah motioned us to follow him, and we went to one of our offices. We’d tasked him to search Celeste’s room while we had her distracted. Once we were certain that we had no ears on us, Elijah sat down and we gathered around.
“I looked for cameras and recorders, but so far her room appears to be clear. I did manage to find her laptop, but she might have triggers set up to notify her if it’s been tampered with.” His words hung in the air, heavy with implication.
Dante let out a low growl of frustration, his tanned skin taut with tension. He ran a hand against his stubble, the gesture a habit from all the trauma that lay beneath his stoic facade. “Then how are we going to get anything from her?” he snapped, his voice a mix of anger and frustration.
“Just let me finish; there’s more,” Elijah said, his confidence unwavering. “As long as she’s connected to our Wi-Fi, I can try to hack into her computer. She’s likely anticipating that, but right now her cell and laptop are using a portable internet device. We need to figure out how to get her onto your network, and then we can proceed.” Elijah’s eyes gleamed with excitement, a stark contrast to the weight of the situation.
I leaned back against the wall, considering his words. “Are you sure she hasn’t planted any spyware devices here?” I asked, skepticism creeping into my voice.
“None that I can find,” Elijah replied with a shrug. “That doesn’t mean there aren’t any. She might have some advanced ones that haven’t hit the market yet.”
He had a valid point. The biggest challenge with Celeste and our pack under one roof was we both had access to cutting-edge technology and pre-market developments. Vigo crossed his arms and sat up straighter, his tone lightening. “I’m not worried about our secrets. We don’t play dirty. What’s she going to find? Our plans to start a mining company with transparent labor rights?” He chuckled, dismissing the thought. We didn’t have any real dirty secrets - well, maybe one, but that was something Elijah had already handled.
Dante stood up, his frustration still palpable, a lingering reminder of our earlier encounter. “For now, let’s focus on finding a way to hack into her accounts. We need proof before we can make any moves.” His intensity was a reminder of the grudges he held and the depths of his determination. I was jealous at the way that he didn’t seem to be a prisoner to his instincts, like I had been tonight.
“Alright.’ I said, desperate to stay on track and not lose sight of our ultimate goal. “I'm going to make us some coffee. We’re going to need to come up with some new strategies if we want to win this. Let’s find a way to get her to use our Wi-Fi at least.” As I stood to prepare us the drinks, I mentally braced myself for the idea of the next month with her. This woman was more trouble than any of us realized.