Chapter 5
Nyah
“ Damn, damn, damn ,” echoes in my head as I make a beeline to my office.
Not only was that arrogant son of a bitch my boss, but also the wolf who was on our land. Talk about being stuck between a rock and a hard place. Because Mr. Hillard is my boss and I need my job, I can’t let daddy, and his men tear him to shreds even though he deserves it. Then the craziest part is my wolf clawing beneath my skin when he grabbed my wrist. What threw me off is she wasn’t trying to get out to attack his ass, but as if she wanted to give him a love tap. As if?!
Daddy always told me I should bridle my tongue at times but there was no way I was going to let Mr. Hillard get away with what he said to me. Even if I knew at the time he was my boss, I would have responded the same way.
Flustered by his dominance and touch and to quiet my wolf, I left him standing there and went to the ladies’ room. My skin felt hot to the touch, so I rolled out several paper towels, then put them under cold water before laying the cool material on the back of my neck. While my temperature began to go down, I slowly breathed in through my nose and exhaled from my mouth. Yes, he’s an ass but I would be lying if I didn’t say the man was finer than baby hair. Down to those sexy blue eyes surrounded by long eyelashes, neatly cut brown hair, tanned olive skin, and a muscular body hidden under his tailored suit. I’m five feet seven, so I know he had to be at least well over six feet the way he towered over me. And his smell, no it wasn’t an expensive cologne but his natural scent. It was spicy, woody, and herbaceous. Whoever he was, I knew it would be in the best interest of my wolf and I to steer clear of him.
Once my wolf and I were back to normal, it was time to go to the conference room. After throwing the paper towels away, I glanced at my watch. The meeting was already five minutes in progress. Hopefully, my new boss wouldn’t blast me for being a few minutes late.
I gently opened the conference room door and snuck in like I was entering church after the services had already started. I made my way to the closest available empty seat. I wasn’t really paying attention to the man speaking but once he announced Mr. Hillard as the new owner of the hotel, my eyes diverted to the asshole sitting at the head of the conference table.
My first instinct was to grab my shit and get the Hell out of there, but my ego wouldn’t let me. New boss or not, I wasn’t going to let him think I was one of those weak employees who’s afraid to be in their presence. Alpha female wolves raise their heads high through any situation. I went to the seat, sat down, then pulled out my pen and pad.
As the meeting went on, I felt his eyes on me as I ignored him. I listened to the other managers until it was my turn. When I introduced myself, I noticed from the corner of my right eye Mr. Hillard’s bewildered expression. I wanted to give him a smug look while telling him, “That’s right, Mr. Asshole. I know it was you trespassing on my family’s land yesterday,” but I kept it professional. We were in a room full of humans and shifters and the last thing I wanted to do was out our kind in front of those we felt superior over. After saying what I needed to, I politely re-took my seat.
When it was Blake’s turn, I can’t say that I was surprised at what happened with him. I had suspected something funny was happening in his department, but they were so good at keeping it hidden. Now that Mr. Asshole had sniffed it out, I know with me being the new General Manager, he will expect me to be the first to find any problems and form solutions before he does, which I planned on doing before meeting Mr. Hillard. I knew what my job entailed and even though I have a rapport with the hotel staff and some I have hung out with after work hours, that wouldn’t stop me from disciplining or firing them. When I’m on the clock, it’s all about the hotel.
I have so many notes, I can’t wait to hear what Mr. Hillard has to say about them. Just thinking about being in his office alone with him makes butterflies flutter in my stomach. My wolf whines in my head. What is up with her?
I don’t know why she’s acting this way towards his cocky ass. We’ve attended many coupling ceremonies held by my daddy for mates to find each other and at the end of each one, I walked away, alone. Thank goodness daddy wasn’t one of those Alpha’s who pushed their daughters off on any available male wolf who sniffed around them. Most of the males in the Pack I grew up with and never saw myself being with any of them. They chose other females, except for Corey Clydell.
Corey is the son of daddy’s Beta, Horace. We’re the same age and we were in diapers together. I’ve always thought we had like a brother-sister type of relationship, but once we entered High School, Corey started seeing things differently. For some reason he had it in his head the two of us were destined to be together.
He wasn’t a bad looking guy. Actually, Corey was very handsome and very charismatic. He reminds me of a modern-day woodsman with his tanned skin from working in the sun, sandy blonde man bun, long rugged beard, always in jeans and a flannel shirt whether long or sleeveless. Corey’s built like one of those thick trees in the forest. He could have any girl out of the Pack, but he ignores them as he continues to try to claim me. That shit will never happen because neither my wolf nor myself have any type of attraction to him.
I begin to pant. The morning has already started off badly and I don’t know why Corey’s neva-gonna-get it ass has popped in my head. Taking my cellphone out of my purse, I hit the speed dial to call the one person who could calm me.
“Hey, Ms. General Manager. How’s the new day going for you?” Daddy’s jovial deep voice comes through on the other end.
Just like that, a sheet of serenity covers me. “Hey, daddy. I met my new boss.”
“And how did that go? Was he an ass? Do I need to come up there and swipe his jugular out?” Daddy playfully asks, but I know if I tell him yes, every wolf in the Midnight Pack along with daddy would be here within the next half hour to demolish the place.
Not wanting to let that happen, I reply, “No, daddy. Mr. Hillard seems all right so far.”
“Hillard, you say?” Daddy questioned. “That name sounds familiar. Is he a wolf?”
Shit. How could the name Hillard sound familiar to him? Daddy’s been around for a long time, long enough that Kenia and I don’t know his real age because he keeps it to himself. We know the date of his birth, and always do a cookout with the Pack to celebrate him, but to know his exact age still remains a mystery to us.
I wasn’t going to lie to daddy about Mr. Hillard being a wolf, but I chose to keep the part about him being on the Pack land to myself.
“Yes, he’s a wolf, daddy.”
Daddy hums in my ear. “I can’t recall where I know the name from but let him know he’s welcome to let his wolf out on our land, but I need him to meet with me first.”
Ah, Hell. This was the perfect opportunity to let daddy know that Mr. Hillard had already been on our land. He had already crossed the line of disrespect. At this point, I’ve been put into the position of finding out if Mr. Hillard came to our city with good intentions or to try and overthrow my daddy. Shit like that has been done in the past and daddy still remains Alpha.
“Okay, daddy,” is the only thing I could say before changing the subject. “I was just calling to see how things were going with the fawn.”
Daddy chuckles. “He’s fine. His little ass has been following me around while I feed the other animals. I’m tempted to keep him here instead of taking him to the forest conservation.”
“Then why can’t we?” I ask, not wanting the fawn to go.
Daddy sighs. “You know why, Nyah.”
Not even the shit I went through with Mr. Hillard outweighs what I’m feeling right now about the fawn. It’s because of me he is parentless. If daddy takes him to the forest conservation, they’ll look out for him the first two weeks he’s there, after that, they will release him into a strange environment he doesn’t know how to fend for himself. In my eyes, he would be better off with us.
Ready to argue my side, I tell daddy, “I do, daddy but he’ll be out there by himself and that is my fault. Let me keep him and I will assume all responsibilities for him.”
“Nyah” daddy groans.
“I know what you’re thinking about our customs, daddy but I have a feeling if we send him to the forest conservation, he won’t make it. We’ve seen how other animals turn their backs on orphans. Nine times out of ten, they won’t make it. I have been given a chance to make things right with the fawn.”
There’s a moment of silence before daddy inquires, “I get what you’re saying Nyah, but what are you going to do when you’re out on the hunt and he sees you bringing in the body of his kind?” Daddy pauses, then adds, “Baby girl, don’t forget we’re the predator and they are the prey. No matter how cute we may think the fawn is, at the end of the day he’ll grow up to be an eight plus point stag. I will say this, the decision is yours. However, you decide, Kenia and I will respect that.”
To me, my answer is a no-brainer. “Keep him there, daddy. You know I’ve been wanting to clear out grandma’s house for a while now. The area around it is more than enough room for me and Crown.” My grandma’s house sits about three acres away from our house. Daddy has kept up the maintenance on the two-bedroom home and will occasionally let shifter families who have experienced hard times stay there until they get back on their feet.
Daddy roars with laughter. My own laughter leaves me as much as I tried to hold it in.
“Okay, I already know who you are, but who is Crown?”
I reply, “Crown is the name I’ve given the fawn. His fur is brown but what makes him stand out is the white ring around his forehead that looks like a crown.
Daddy chuckles again. “We’ll discuss everything when you get home.”
Glancing at my watch, I notice I have ten minutes left before my meeting with Mr. Hillard.
“Sounds good, daddy. I have to get ready for a meeting, but can you do me a favor?” I request.
“What is it?” Daddy asks.
“Will you go to the feed store and get feed and supplies for Crown? I’ll pay you back.”
“You don’t have to pay me back, Nyah. I have to go to the feed store anyway. I’ll get what you need,” daddy replies.
“Thank you, daddy. I love you.”
“I love you too,” he says before we end the call.
Placing the cellphone back in my purse, then picking up my leather portfolio and bottle of water, I take a calming breath to prepare myself to face Mr. Hillard.