“Alpha Blackwell is waiting for you in the conference room down the hall.”
That wasn’t soon, Sebastian wanted to protest. That wasnow.
“Can’t we do it tomorrow?”
“I’m afraid not. In fact, Alpha Blackwell specifically requested I bring you straight to him. The reason I wanted to talk to you first was to prepare you for the possibility that he might want to take you home today, right after the meeting.”
Sebastian’s stomach swooped, his head feeling light and distant.
“Today?” he repeated, even though he’d heard Harding perfectly fine the first time.
“His reaction to your sample was… very strong.” Harding looked like he was choosing his words carefully. “Within an hour of receiving your packet, he’d wired the money for your contract fees into an escrow account and contacted me about getting the rest of the formalities out of the way. He’s being very impatient.”
Sebastian breathed in slowly, trying to understand why this was happening to him. Harding wasn’t making any sense.
“Why?” he finally asked.
“Instinct, I suppose.” Harding spread his palms and shrugged. “You smell right. Usually, that’s just the first step for a werewolf choosing a human, but Alpha Blackwell doesn’t seem to be worried that you’ll be incompatible.”
Sebastian didn’t know what that meant. How could you pick someone to be your mate without even talking to them?
“And if he wants to take me home today?” Sebastian couldn’t shake the feeling that this was all a strange prank the universe was playing on him. “Can he do that?”
“If he signs all the paperwork and pays the fees, then yes. That would be within his rights as your new alpha.”
“What about my stuff?” Sebastian asked, feeling like the walls were closing in on him. “What about my job? My mom? I can’t justleave.”
Harding pinched his lips. “If Blackwell chooses you, you’ll become part of his pack. Since he’s an alpha, ultimately all that will be at his discretion. In my experience, however, most alphas are very accommodating of the careers, social lives and family of their human pack-mates.”
Most. Sebastian noted the word with dismay. Not all. He knew he’d signed up for this, even though he’d argue that it was under duress, but it seemed wrong for one person – werewolf alpha or not – to have that kind of power over someone, especially if it was someone they wanted a relationship with.
“Does Alpha Blackwell strike you as the type tobe accommodating?” Sebastian couldn’t help the panic in his voice as he parroted Harding’s words back at him.
“I’m not sure.” Harding licked his lips and looked down at his desk. “Alpha Blackwell hasn’t been very forthcoming in regards to what he actually wants.”
That didn’t sound good.
“You should discuss your concerns with Alpha Blackwood directly,” Harding said, very much like he was ending the conversation. He pushed his chair back and rose to his feet. “Are you ready or do you need a moment?”
Was he ready?Was that a joke, or did Harding seriously think that Sebastian was prepared to meet with a werewolf who might want to take him away from the only life he’d ever known?
There was no way to be ready for that.
“Can I call my mother first?” he asked. He should have been home from the grocery store a while ago now, and he didn’t want her to worry. Of course, if she knew where he was, she’d probably worry a lot more than if she simply thought he was late coming home from the store.
“I’ll give you a few minutes.” Harding tucked the folder under his arm. “I’ll be right outside to escort you to Alpha Blackwell when you’re ready.”
Harding exited the office, closing the door quietly behind him.
Sebastian slid his phone out of his pocket and dialed his mother with shaking hands, hoping that talking to her would calm his racing thoughts. He lifted the phone to his ear, his stomach in knots.
The phone rang for a good thirty seconds, the knot in Sebastian’s gut tightening, until the call switched over to voicemail.
Sebastian didn’t leave a message. He could call again, but he knew that if his mother didn’t have her phone with her, calling a second time wouldn’t do any good. She was probably out in the garden, working on her tomatoes, the phone left somewhere in the house.
Not ready to face the alpha that wanted to claim him, Sebastian navigated to his phone’s browser and searched forViggo Blackwell.
Nothing much came up except for a few news articles. They were about things in the finance sector and didn’t tell Sebastian anything.
