Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Luca’s POV
I stood in the corner of the hall and twisted my champagne glass in my hand, watching as Leila walked—no, strutted—her way through the small crowd in the hall.
The Grand Alpha’s Summit boasted the best business and networking event.
CEOs and business owners of the most lucrative brands were always in attendance.
Not to mention all the Alphas of the eight packs in New York.
It was the best place to strike your next multi-million dollar deal or dig up new business partners.
But instead of networking or doing any of that, I was watching her move across the crowd gracefully with that pretty, polite smile on her face.
And honestly, no talk with these boring businessmen could come close to watching Leila walk, speak, talk—or do absolutely nothing.
She’d done well to avoid me last night. Even if our beds were across from each other in the large suite, I could still hear her heart thudding loudly. I could still smell her scent like she was right next to me. And it had been absolute torture.
When I booked the double suite, I’d thought it’d be a good way to get Leila to lower her defensive armor against me.
But I was wrong.
She’d intensified it—brought AK-47s and a whole wall of grenades that might blow up if I so much as attempted to pass.
She barely acted like I existed the entire night.
She went to bed early, covering her entire frame with the duvet until the only thing I could see was her hair.
And as early as six a.m., she was up. I’d heard her when she was in the shower, and when she walked out of the room.
A few minutes later, her text came in, informing me that she was at the café in the hotel and we should meet there to go over her pitch.
I hated playing nice. Hated that I had to go to bed last night with a fucking hard-on when even the sound of her breathing was turning me on. This wasn’t about being a gentleman. Fuck that. That was just a word coined for men with no balls.
I wanted her. And I knew she did too.
She threw her head back in laughter at something Gabe said. He was Alpha of the smallest pack in the region—Staten Island. She’d ended up in the corner of the room where no one except me was paying attention to her.
My grip on my glass tightened. I saw the way he was looking at her—like she could be his one-night stand after this summit was over. It took everything in me not to stomp over there and haul her away from fucking Gabe.
A man came to call Gabe away and whispered something in his ear before he walked off. As the man moved, his purse fell from his pocket. Leila picked it up and ran after him to return it.
Something in my chest tightened.
And it wasn’t just the way Gabe looked at her like he’d found his next conquest. That irritated me, yes—but not as much as the thought gnawing at me now.
Five years ago, I’d believed Leila capable of stealing something she would’ve returned without thinking.
That moment—her chasing after a man to give him back something he didn’t even know he’d lost—was a reminder of who she really was.
The same woman who took on three jobs to pay off a debt that wasn’t even hers.
Kind. Honest. Good to her core.
And the thought was starting to gnaw at me, keep me restless—had I made the biggest mistake of my life by not trusting her?
Her gaze landed on me across the room, and I saw the moment her breath hitched. After a few seconds, she started walking toward me.
“Apparently, Alpha Gabe has this whole wild idea he is picking the Alpha Regent,” she said.
“Is that what you two were talking about that made you laugh so hard?” I couldn’t even hide the sharpness in my voice.
Leila turned to me with an amused expression. “Don’t tell me you’re jealous.”
“Oh, I’ll tell you,” I leaned in, letting her scent wash over every one of my senses. “I. Am. Jealous.”
She didn’t respond. Just lifted her champagne flute and took a slow sip, her gaze fixed ahead. But I saw the shift in her posture—the slight angle of her shoulders as she placed a little more distance between us.
“Just so we’re clear,” she said after a beat, her voice rough around the edges. “If we don’t win this pitch, it doesn’t mean I still owe you, right? I mean…the deal was to work on it together.”
“And win it,” I added, turning toward her. “Where’s your optimism, Leila? Five years ago, you would’ve been oozing confidence.”
“I’m confident,” she replied. “I’m just a little…nervous.”
I smirked. “Because of the summit? Or because of me?”
Leila’s eyes cut to mine, sharp and full of defiance—confirming everything I already knew. “Don’t flatter yourself, Luca.”
She turned away, already smoothing down the front of her dress and pulling her confidence over her like armor. “Let’s go,” she said. And just like that, it was business again.
Leila killed it.
Her voice didn’t waver once as she delivered her pitch.
Her ideas were seamless—confident, clear.
She handled the tough questions from the Regent’s panel with grace, countered objections, and redirected skepticism with charm.
I filled in where I needed to—strategy, scalability, the numbers behind the vision. But make no mistake: she was the star.
I saw it on the faces of the Alphas. Of the crowd. They weren’t just intrigued—they were impressed.
And I…I was fucking proud.
After the pitch sessions ended, the Alpha Regent announced that the winner would be revealed at the end of the summit, once the panel had enough time to weigh the pros and cons of each pitch.
As we made our way toward the main hall, Leila’s phone buzzed. I caught the caller ID. Valerie.
“I think I’d like to go to the suite now,” she said. “I promised Ollie I’d call before his bedtime. And I want to pack up my things ahead of tomorrow.”
I don’t know why, but the thought of her leaving sent a sharp pang through my chest. Maybe it was knowing I wouldn’t see her gliding through the halls in that dress again tonight, all grace and purpose and temptation wrapped into one.
“Do you want me to walk you back?” I asked.
She chuckled. “The suite is just an elevator ride away, but thanks for the offer.” Then, glancing over her shoulder—just once—she added, “I’ll see you later.”
The moment Leila left, the room felt different. Emptier. Like something important had been yanked out of place. I missed her. Missed the curve of her smile, the way she pretended not to be affected when our eyes locked.
And just like that, I was bored. Impatient—because I wanted this over with so I could get back to the suite. Back to her. And irritated—because Gabe wouldn’t stop yapping about how he’d spend the contract money if he won.
“You’re awfully quiet tonight, Luca,” he said. “Missing your fiancée back home?”
I grimaced at the reminder that I was supposed to be getting married next week.
“Saw the engagement photos all over social media. Congrats, man. Another Alpha off the market.”
I clenched my jaw. Elena had gotten what she wanted—our wedding plastered across every damn platform like a royal announcement.
I didn’t say a word. I just sipped my champagne.
Gabe leaned in a little, his voice dipping like he thought we were sharing some secret.
“By the way…that woman who pitched with you—your secretary or something?”
I looked at him.
He chuckled, mistaking my silence for amusement.
“Damn, she’s a knockout. I’d pay good money to have her in my bed tonight. Maybe more, if she talks like that while—”
“Careful, Gabe,” I growled at him.
He blinked, clearly not expecting that tone.
“I’ve been civil tonight. Smiled at your bullshit. Even listened to your little spending fantasies like they matter.” His eyes grew wide. “But there’s a line. And you just crossed it.”
He started to say something, but I didn’t let him finish.
“I’ll only say this once, so listen carefully,” I said. “She’s not my secretary. She’s not someone you pay for anything. And the next time you speak about her like that, you’ll find yourself shut out of every deal I’m tied to. Including the ones you don’t even know I’m behind.”
He gave a weak laugh, tried to play it off. “Relax, man. Just a compliment.” He brushed my shoulder with his hand, and when he noticed the disgust in my face, he immediately retracted his fingers.
“I’ll go get another glass of champagne.”
When I returned to the suite, Leila was packing.
She was kneeling beside her open suitcase, folding her clothes with more aggression than necessary.
Her robe hung loosely over her shoulders, and the thin satin slip beneath it clung to her like a second skin.
The ceiling light caught the delicate outline of her breasts, her nipples visible against the fabric.
I clenched my jaw. My grip tightened around the bottle of wine in my hand.
She looked up when she noticed me, her eyes sweeping over the wine.
“Is that a celebratory wine or consolation?” she asked, raising a brow. “Please tell me it’s the former.”
I smirked, stepping into the room. “The Alpha Regent team called.”
“And?”
“They loved your pitch and would like to move forward with the contract signing as soon as tomorrow.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Are you serious?”
“Dead serious.”
She beamed, and before I realized it was going to happen, she threw her arms around me.
Her body was warm and soft against mine, and my wolf groaned when she pulled back.
“I can’t believe we won this. I mean—I was blown away listening to those other pitches.
Everyone was so high profile, so sleek. And Gabe kept going on and on about how he’d use the money to rebrand his entire security fleet. Like it was already his.”
I raised a brow. “That’s what you two were talking about?”
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that was the only thing that caught my interest.”
Satisfaction settled inside of me.
Her face glowed with the kind of joy I hadn’t seen in her since we reunited. She was thrilled.
“This is surreal, Luca,” she whispered.