I shouldn’t have agreed to go out drinking on a Thursday night to begin with. The whole way home I curse myself out for not staying in.

  I instantly regret my decision to go home when I see that fuckface Jase standing out in front, smoking a cigarette like he fucking belongs here.

  There’s no way I can avoid him at this point. The back door and garage entrance are both locked with no way to get in, not even with my key—great security measure but highly inconvenient when trying to avoid someone.

  Tired and annoyed and ready for bed, I walk straight up to him.

  “Jase, what the fuck, man?”

  He turns, pulls the cigarette from his lips, and tosses it to the ground, stomping it out with his knock-off shoes.

  “Took you long enough to get home.”

  “How the fuck did you know I was out?” I ask aggressively.

  “Saw you leave.”

  “You’re a fucking creep, you know that? What the hell do you want?”

  “I already told you, Jensen. It’s Skye.”

  “Skye isn’t my problem anymore. What’s the real problem? You need money?” I pull out my wallet. “I’ll give you all I’ve got.” I take out the wad of cash and thrust it towards him. “There’s a couple hundred. Take it and go.”

  He looks at it, then at me, and shakes his head. “I don’t need your fucking money, Jensen. This isn’t about me.”

  I raise a brow. “That’s really hard to believe. Take the money.” I shove it towards him again and he scoffs, stepping back just enough to be out of my reach.

  “Fucking forget it. I don’t even know why I tried. She told me not to come here. I should have listened.” He starts to walk away but his words ring in my head.

  She told him not to come here? So he’s been talking to her, then? Who am I kidding? Of course he’s talking to her, they’re in a fucking pack together. They live together. They probably spend a shit ton of time together.

  I hate that.

  “Wait! Jase, wait!” I call out, chasing after him as I shove my wallet and money back into my pocket. I don’t know what makes me do it. The alcohol, the memory, the fact some slimy bitch had her mouth on my dick and it’s skeeving me out... He stops and turns, and I let out a sigh. “I know I’m going to regret this, like seriously fucking regret this, but whatever. Let’s go.”

  I turn around and head to the front doors of my building. If he isn’t following, that’s on him. I nod to the bellman, who gives me a smile in return, and go straight to the elevator. I swipe my key and the doors open. It’s only when I step on and Jase comes on after me that I know he followed. We don’t say a word as we ride the elevator up to the very top.

  Chapter Four

  Jensen

  The elevator doors open and I step off, heading straight to the kitchen for some water. By the time I’m filling my cup from the filter in the fridge, I find Jase across the room, looking around the place with a scowl on his face. I shake my head and bring my attention back to the water, pulling the cup away once it’s filled. I guzzle the entire glass before refilling it. One of the best ways to avoid a hangover is by drinking water before bed, let’s only hope it works this time.

  “Nice place,” Jase says, though I can tell by his tone he doesn’t mean it.

  Instead of arguing, because I’m just too damn tired, I respond with a “Thanks,” and finish my water. When I’m done, and he still hasn’t said anything of importance, I start to grow annoyed. He moves a little closer to me, stopping on the other side of the kitchen island.

  “You gonna tell me what you want or what? I gotta be up in a few hours. Meaning I need to go to bed ASAP.”

  “For that fancy office job of yours?” he asks, shoving his hands into his pockets and rocking back onto his heels. He smiles, but it isn’t out of happiness, instead, it looks like it’s out of spite.

  “Did you come here to talk shit to me, or do you have something to say?”

  “Oh, I have a lot of things to say, Jensen, but I don’t think we have time for all of that.”

  I stare at him for a long moment. “You’re right. We don’t. So tell me what the hell you want so you can leave. Last chance.”

  He huffs out a laugh, smiling bitterly as he shakes his head.

  “Desmond died, Jensen.”

  Those words have me freezing. Every inch of my body feels like stone. “Dead?” I husk out. “When?”

  “Four months ago.”

  Four months... Skye has been mourning the death of her father for four whole months, and here I’ve been living my life none the wiser. She and her father were close... so close. She must be devastated, and fuck... Why didn’t I know about this? I didn’t get to go to the death ceremony or anything. Desmond was like a father to me...

  Of course, I don’t say any of this and keep my shithead facade in place.

  “What does that have to do with me?”

  As if he knew that’s how I would respond, he doesn’t react to it. Just gives me a blank stare before continuing on.

  “His death has nothing to do with you, but you know how the laws work; you haven’t been gone that long. Skye has been named stand-in alpha. She’s working her way up to the Trials, but it’s not looking good. She’s not at full strength. There’s talk of someone challenging her, though she doesn’t know it yet.”

  “Challenge?”

  “Yep.”

  “Who?”

  Don’t say Edgewood. Don’t fucking say E—

  “Edgewood.”

  “Fuck,” I curse under my breath, running a hand through my hair. “When?”

  “She has three weeks left.” I grit my teeth. That isn’t much time. When the alpha of a pack dies, someone is appointed as stand-in alpha until an actual alpha can be chosen by the pack members. It’s a majority-votes type of thing. Bunch of politics and shit. The Trials are supposed to sway voters’ opinions, but they make up their mind before they start. Of course, anyone at any time could challenge an actual alpha, but it’s less likely they’ll win. Unless the alpha is awful.

  “What’s the problem? Why don’t you think she’ll get it?” It doesn’t make sense why she wouldn’t. Everyone loved Desmond, and the pack has always been fond of Skye. She’d always shown interest in taking over when Desmond could no longer to do so, and I’m sure the pack is aware of this.

  “The pack seems split down the middle right now. Half supporting her, half thinking she isn’t strong enough since one of her mates rejected her.” I wince at the dig, knowing it was meant to be one. I don’t respond to him, just let his words sink in before he continues. “You know what this means, Jensen. Skye needs you. If you come back and—”

  “And what, Jase? Just take her back as my mate, tell everyone I’m sorry and I won’t be leaving again, and then they’ll accept her as alpha? What then? What about my life here? What about all this?”

  His face is blank as he stares at me, and I stare right back, neither of us saying anything, which gives me a good opportunity to finally take him in. He looks better than I remember. His face is fuller, his body more muscular. Even the color of his skin is better. His hair is clean and shiny, and it looks like he recently had a haircut. His clothes are clean and fit him well, not hanging off his body like they used to when he was caught up in all kinds of bullshit I used to have to bail him out of. Alcohol. Drugs. Fighting.

  My brother and I, though born only one minute and twenty-two seconds apart, could not be any more different. We may look alike, but that’s the closest thing in common we have.

  When our younger brother died at the age of two, we were only eight. It took a lot from both of us and even more from our parents. We felt it from all angles. When our father died when we were fifteen, things got harder again. Jase became distant, not wanting to do anything or go anywhere. He stayed in the house with our mother all the time, and they got really close. She no doubt had a serious case of depression, not that I could blame her, but she had other kids to take care of. Kids she pretty much ignored. Jase couldn’t handle it, so he stayed with her always. I did the opposite, needing to step up and make sure we all survived. I took care of everything, all the time. But when she died, Jase lost his shit. Maybe because he found her. Maybe because she did it herself… I’ll never know because Jase won’t talk about it. He rebelled in every way possible and I was left to pick up the pieces, until one day, I was done. With all of it. What was the point? Everything that came to me, left. Everything I was given in life, had an expiration date. I chose to leave and make a new life on my own terms, ignoring the pack life and the fact I’m a shifter.

  Skye was left with Jordy and Luka because I knew she’d be fine with them. They’ve made a happy life together, I’m sure. They’re still her fated mates, so it’s not like she’s stuck without the bond at all. They’ve survived this long just fine.

  “The pack isn’t my problem anymore,” I state when Jase still doesn’t respond. His eyes widen at my words. Did he really not expect me to say that? Did he expect me to uproot my life to go and save the pack? “Skye has Luka and Jordy, she’ll be fine.”

  “Luka and Jordy are not enough, Jensen!” Jase shouts, throwing his hands up. “Not for our pack or the Edgewood Pack, and you know it. Without the strength of all her mates—all three—she isn’t going to win this.”

  I lean against the counter behind me and cross my arms over my chest. His eyes are pleading with me, which is something I’m familiar with, only it’s a little different than I remember. Back then, his pleads were out of fear. Now? It’s pure desperation. He doesn’t want to lose his pack, lose the only way of living they’ve known their whole lives. Even if I go back, who’s to say Skye will want me? And if she does, it’s still no guarantee they’ll choose her. Edgewood could have gotten to the entire Blackcreek clan already. They’re well-known in the area. The biggest pack around. They have strict rules but live good because of it.

  “Then I guess you should get used to your new life as an Edgewood Pack member.”

  “Unbelievable,” he mutters as he starts to pace. “Fucking unbelievable!” His hands find his hair and he tugs, letting out a growl.

  “It’s best you leave, Jase, and don’t come back. I’m not changing my mind about this. I have a life here, and I don’t plan to forget about it,” I say firmly. I move towards my room, knowing he’ll leave at some point. He may have threatened my secretary to get my attention, but really, Jase wouldn’t hurt a fly, and if he hasn’t changed, even though deep down I can sense he has, the worst he’s going to do is steal my shit and I’ll just have it replaced.

  “You’re a fucking coward, Jensen, and all because you don’t know how to deal with your own fucking pain. Mom and Dad would be so disappointed in you!” he bellows. My heart stutters in my chest at that, and I almost turn around. Almost. My fists clench at my sides and I take a steadying breath, closing my eyes and counting to ten.

  Every single morning when I wake up, the first thing to pop into my head is how disappointed my parents would be in me if they saw how I chose to live my life. If they knew I left my mates to be on their own, to move here and be a part of the human life. They’d be so ashamed. Devastated. They were proud bear shifters, like the entirety of the Blackcreek Pack. Blackcreek may not be big, which is why they treat eve member like family. They’re loyal and kind. My parents would never have supported my decision.

  But the fact of the matter is my parents aren’t here. They’re dead and gone and they’re never coming back, so their opinion of my life doesn’t matter.

  Chapter Five

  Jensen

  “I’ll take my usual, with an extra shot of espresso,” I say as I reach for my wallet from the inside pocket of my Armani suit jacket. “Actually, better make it two extra shots.”

  “You got it, Mr. Stone,” the barista says with a flirtatious smile. The girl has had eyes for me since she started working here a few months ago. There’s no way she’s even old enough to get into a bar legally. Definitely not my type.

  The morning is dragging and I haven’t even made it to the office yet. My eyes feel like they’re filled with sand, my mouth is dry, and my head is pounding something fierce. No doubt I’ll have a full-on migraine by lunch and I’m highly regretting going out last night. I’d completely forgotten about the Norwick meeting this morning, thanks to last nights antics. Had I stayed in, I’d have checked my schedule and woke up earlier to prepare.

  Norwick is a dick, but he’s my biggest client, and he can tell when I’m off my game and won’t hesitate to call me out on it. He’s already threatened to leave me once due to me running a few minutes late. At the time, I hadn’t realized how important he would be to the company, but ever since then, I’ve done everything in my power to ensure he’s my top priority and that I’m in the best shape possible for our meetings. It’s my ticket out of this place and moving on to bigger and better things.

  He’s going to call me out on my shit today, but hopefully, I can play it off and he won’t care. I can’t afford to lose him as a client. I have plenty of smaller fish, but he’s the big bucks. A few more deals with this guy and I’ll be able to hire someone as CEO so I can sit on my ass and run the company from Santorini.

  I’m so close. So fucking close I can practically smell the sand and salty beach air.

  The barista calls out my name for my coffee, and I snatch it up quickly before heading out the door and around the corner to my office building. The normal morning crowd is already gathered by the elevators, and I move in to wait. Ignoring everyone around me, I sip my coffee and check emails on my phone. Nothing sticks out to me, so I close it and pull up my social media feed, scrolling through mindless memes and inspirational quotes against calming backgrounds. It’s even more boring than my emails and I have no idea how people get lost in time, scrolling through this shit for hours. It’s all trash.

  The elevator is stuffed full by the time I get to it, and I’m the last to squeeze on, not at all caring that I should have waited for the next one. I have a meeting to get to, and I can’t be late for it. The elevator stops on just about every floor, and I’m growing more impatient by the second. The ride up in the morning is always the worst, the elevator filled with everyone’s morning aftershave and perfumes, creating a toxic-like environment that is sure to knock anyone out if they spent more than three minutes in here. It’s grotesque.

  I rush off when it finally stops on my floor and push through the main doors, heading straight to my office without responding to Debra’s good morning greeting. She follows me in to ramble off my schedule as I get settled, as we usually do first thing in the morning.

  “The board room is already set up for the Norwick meeting, pastries and coffee laid out. I made sure to get the maple ones he likes. After that, there is an interoffice meeting from the accounts department, then lunch, then your afternoon is free. Would you like me to book the flight early into the afternoon, considering, or would you prefer a red-eye flight as usual?”

  “Come again?” I turn to look at her. She glances up at me through her large, round glasses.

  “Your flight, sir. When did you want it booked?”

  “Did I schedule a vacation that I missed?” I ask. I know I don’t have any business trips until this fall.

  Her cheeks flush pink and she adjusts her glasses before clearing her throat. “I’m sorry, sir. I just assumed you would be going after the email—”

  “What email?” I groan, pinching the bridge of my nose and falling into my tall back leather chair.

  “The one that came in last night. I’m sorry, Mr. Stone, I assumed you’d seen it already, considering you usually check your emails frequently...”

  I smile tiredly. “Jog my memory, Debra.”

  “Frances Norwick has requested you take a trip to look over the land he is wanting to purchase. He wants to build a resort of sorts, something along those lines, but mentioned he wanted your opinion on it first. He’s requesting you spend one week out there getting to know the area and the folks who live there.”

  A client wanting me to fly out to survey land? That’s uncommon...

  “Google Maps and a phone call won’t suffice?”

  She shakes her head before fixing her glasses again. “He said the images are inaccurate and he doesn’t trust them. If you can’t go...”

  I hold up my hand. “I can go. Any flight is fine, as long as I can have my things prepared before then.”

  “It’s already taken care of. I spoke with Nat this morning, and she has someone packing your things as we speak.”

  “Wonderful. Just leave the itinerary on my desk, please. I’ll look it over during lunch.”

  She nods, scrolling through her tablet where she keeps all of her notes. “The only other thing I have here is that a Hank Brookes is requesting a meeting.”

  I perk up at that. Marcos really did come through then. Fantastic.

  “Set it up for as soon as I return. Whatever works for him, cancel anything on my end that conflicts. We need his account.” If I can get this guy on board, I’ll be sipping martinis on the beach sooner rather than later, and Norwick’s stuffy, old ass can kiss mine goodbye. He makes me money but he’s too high maintenance. He needs to be replaced.

  “Of course, Mr. Stone.” She makes a quick note on the tablet before looking up at me. “Is there anything I need to know for the day?” I shake my head before leaning back in my chair and closing my eyes.

  “Call me in ten minutes!” I shout as her footsteps move towards the door.

  “Yes, Mr. Stone.” I hear the door open and then close before I let out a deep breath and focus on getting in a ten-minute nap before this meeting.

  I’ve never been asked to travel for anyone before, and honestly, I feel it’s below my damn pay grade, but Norwick is a big account, and if the asshole wants me to trudge through some old shopping mall he plans to knock down, I guess I can do it. I’ll do whatever the fucker asks until he’s no longer needed.