Chapter 7: It’s She Again
Oliver’s POV
??"Number forty-two. Aurora Sterling."
??My assistant’s voice echoed in the hallway, and for the first ti in my life, my heart did sothing it never did: it skipped a beat.
??I stared at the file in front of . It was her. The sa girl who had haunted my thoughts for the past twenty-four hours. The girl who had looked at
with such pure, unadulterated hate that I’d felt it in my marrow.
??Suddenly, I was anxious. I, the Alpha King, felt a prickle of nerves. I stood up abruptly and walked to the mirror in the corner of the office.
??Yesterday, at the club, I had been a different man. To move through the city’s shadows without being sward and noticed, I’d dyed my hair black. It was a simple trick—red hair like mine was rare, a feature of mine that people recognized instantly. I’d also worn piercing green contact lenses to mask my true gaze.
??But today, the disguise was gone.
??I ran a hand through my hair. The fiery red—so similar to hers—was back. I blinked, my eyes once again the deep shade of sea-blue I had been born with—the sa shade as hers. I had scrubbed the dye away and tossed the lenses the mont I got ho, never expecting that the girl from the club would be the one walking through my office doors.
??"She won’t know it’s ," I told myself, adjusting the cuffs of my shirt to ensure my sleeves were down, hiding the tattoo that I knew she had noticed.
??I took a breath, forced my features into a mask of coldness, and sat back down. I gestured for my assistant to bring her in.
??When she walked in, the air in the room seed to vanish.
??She looked different in the daylight. She was wearing a professional blazer, her red hair tucked back, but that sa fire was still there. I kept my head down, pretending to be deeply engrossed in her file, but my senses were dialed into her. I could sll her fear, her confusion, and that faint scent of wildflowers that had driven
insane the night before.
??I felt her eyes on . I knew she was staring, likely struck by the resemblance between the King before her and the man she’d encountered in the club.
??I looked up, letting my scowl deepen to hide the fact that I wanted to reach across the desk and pull her to . She was frozen, her breath hitching in her throat.
??"Have you lost your manners, young lady?" I asked, my voice sounding annoyed. It was the King’s voice—heavy with authority. "When you enter the presence of your King, you bow."
??She stamred an apology, her voice trembling in a way that made my inner wolf stir with a strange protective urge. She dropped into a bow, and I let her stay there for a mont longer than necessary, just so I could study her without her knowing.
??"Sit," I commanded curtly.
??She scrambled into the chair, looking like she wanted to bolt. I picked up her resu, tapping my fingers against the desk.
??"Aurora Sterling," I read, my voice flat. "Top of your class. A degree in managent. And yet..." I leaned forward, letting my sea-blue eyes lock onto hers. "You have no work experience."
??She swallowed hard. Looking stunned and confused, I could tell she hadn’t yet recovered from the shock of how much I looked like the man she t.
??I noticed how her eyes drifted to my wrist, but luckily the sleeve of my white shirt was long; there was no way she could see my tattoo.
??"Hey... eyes up here," I ordered.
??She jerked her gaze upward, her face flushing a deep crimson that made her sea-blue eyes pop. The resemblance between us was startling—if I didn’t know better, I’d think I was looking into a mirror of my own soul.
??"I... I apologize, Your Grace," she whispered, her hands trembling as she gripped her folder. "I was just... montarily distracted."
??"Distracted?" I leaned back, crossing my arms over my chest. The movent made the fabric of my shirt tug, and I saw her eyes instantly dart back to my cuffs. She was hunting for that scorpion. She was looking for a reason to link the King to the man who had offered her half a million dollars. "I don’t hire people who are easily distracted, Aurora. I need focus. I need soone who can handle the weight of my world without crumbling."
??I watched her swallow hard, her throat bobbing. She was terrified, yet there was a spark of that sa defiance I’d seen last night.
??"I am focused," she insisted, her voice gaining a fraction of strength. "As for my experience... I’ve spent the last few years dealing with... private matters. But my academic record proves I am capable. I learn fast, and I work harder than anyone you’ve interviewed today."
??I looked down at her file, though I wasn’t reading a single word. My mind was back at the club, rembering the way she moved for , the way her body felt against mine.
??"Private matters," I echoed, my voice dropping into a whisper. "Like what?"
??She swallowed hard. "It’s personal, sir."
??"Personal?" I growled, slamming the folder shut. I stood up and walked around the desk, stopping just inches from her chair. I leaned down, invading her personal space until I could sll the wildflowers on her skin. "If you want to be my assistant, then I need to know everything about you."
??I reached out, my fingers hovering just inches from her chin. I wanted to touch her so badly it was a physical ache, but I didn’t.
??"Tell ," I murmured, my blue eyes searching hers. "What are the private matters?"
??I watched her hesitate, her fingers digging into the leather of the folder. She bit her lip, a flicker of vulnerability crossing those sea-blue eyes that made my chest tighten. For a mont, she looked like she might bolt, but then she took a shaky breath and spoke.
??"I... I have a lot of debt," she admitted, her voice so soft I had to strain to hear it. "dical bills, mostly. I have to pay them off, so I do a lot of jobs at once. My ’private matters’ are simply
trying to survive."
??A jolt of worry surged through , sharp and unexpected. Debt? How much could a girl like her possibly owe? And what kind of dical bills were draining her? My wolf, usually a creature of pure aggression and dominance, let out a low, concerned whine in the back of my mind. He wanted to scent her, to find the source of her pain and crush whatever was hurting her.
??I forced my expression to remain a mask of stone. I couldn’t let her see the crack in my armor. I was the Alpha King—cold, devoid of emotion, and legendary for my lack of rcy. I couldn’t start showing concern for a bar girl now, no matter how much her scent called to .
??I walked back to my desk, the heavy thud of my boots the only sound in the room. I sat down, leaning back into the expensive leather of my chair, and watched her. She looked so small in that oversized chair, yet so incredibly brave.
??"You’ll get the job," I announced.
??Her eyes widened, a spark of hope—and perhaps a little more fear—igniting in them. "Really?"
"But on one condition," I added calmly.
??
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