CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“You,” Megan growled.
“You!” I bounced my brows, taunting her. “I’ve never seen a princess cuss before. That was very entertaining and a new experience for me.”
Wolfe eyeballed both of us before staring straight at me. He shook his head, reading the situation right. “Is there anyone here you haven’t managed to piss off?”
Rune’s regard jumped from person to person inside the room, and he answered for me, “It’s doubtful.”
Megan leaned toward me, probing harshly, “Are you going to continue with your articles on us, kid crusher?”
Great. Not a nickname I liked. Those tended to stick.
“I did not run into any kids, nor crush any kids, during my time at Sparkle World. I would like to clarify that to everyone eavesdropping on this conversation right now.” Half of the men in the room chuckled under their breath. That was what I thought. Everyone wanted to know if I was trustworthy enough to not take me as a prisoner again. “As for an article on the truth of shifters, mates, and humans, I have yet to decide. I can tell you, I am a little overwhelmed right now. I doubt I’d be running it anytime soon—if I ever do.”
“Work on something else,” Theron shouted from across the room, his attention turned from the girl to me. I’d rather he be watching her again. He lifted a glass of whiskey in my direction. “I’ll create something newsworthy for you if you want. Anything to keep you from running another article.”
“Uh…I have plenty to keep me busy. But, uh, thank you for the offer.” I bumbled through my words, scared of what the hell a shifter king would do to create a buzz.
Megan’s mien gradually lightened, watching me fumble all over myself. “How about this, Noelle. We’ll pretend this is our first meeting and go forward from there.”
“I can agree to that.” I held out my free hand, the one that wasn’t holding onto the table, in her direction. “Noelle Harvey, hacker extraordinaire. It’s nice to meet you.”
She shook my hand firmly, a grin etching her lips up. “Megan Marshall, Princess of Love. It is a pleasure to meet you.”
Wolfe pried my fingers off the table and hauled me toward the elevator. “Thank you for having us. We’ll see you later.”
I huffed in an effort to keep up with him, his hand hard on mine as he pulled me behind him. “Bye, everyone. Lovely to meet you all. And, Faith, don’t forget to call me! I want to hear all about the story you’re writing.” And get your shifter husband off my ass.
The elevator doors closed on my last words.
My eyebrows rose as I stared at the side of his face. “Is there a reason why you acted like your ass was on fire to get me out of there?”
The wolf inside him huffed. He kept his eyes straight ahead, his hand releasing mine. His nose scrunched twice, and then he grumbled, “It wasn’t because of you.”
“What then?” I pushed.
His sigh was heavy. “I wasn’t lying about hating his house. I can’t be in there too long before taking a break. I went down to the forest three times while we were there tonight.”
“Oh my.” My eyebrows almost hit my hairline, not knowing that. “How do you work in an office if it’s that bad for you? Cooper Corporation is tall and locked down hardcore.”
“Plants. My office is full of plants,” he stated matter-of-factly. “And I sometimes sprinkle dirt on the carpet so it smells like home.”
I tipped my head back to the elevator door as it opened on the ground level. “I guess everyone has their quirks.”
“Yes, they do.”
We headed toward the Cooper Corporation train, a wolf logo on its side, waiting in line with all the other different corporate trains.
Wolfe pulled his hair back from his forehead and shifted his attention down to me. He yanked at his hair a little, and then swiftly blurted, “Do you want to have dinner with me? I’m hungry.”
I stared into his eyes. Hissadeyes. I questioned gently, “Are you sure you want to do that right now? It’s okay if you want to go home.”
He shook his head, still pulling on his hair. It was like his teeth were being pulled out, he grimaced so badly at saying, “I’d rather not be alone right now.”
“All right. Let’s go to dinner.”
I wasn’t entirely sure why I was staying around him, not saying no to his requests to go here or there. The one thing I did know was when I was in his presence, it felt like coming home to a friend I hadn’t seen in a long time. I may have to forgive him for knocking my ass out, because this feeling, deep in the soul, was absolutely warm and comforting. Even when we argued, the warmth stirred in my veins—maybe more so then if I was honest with myself. I really did love to argue with people, get the blood pumping and thoughts churning.
