I speak normally. No one would guess that every nerve in my body is screaming at me to look at her, to acknowledge what she is to me, to close the distance between us.
“And if the assessment reveals deal breakers?” another division head asks.
“In that case, we won’t proceed,” I say simply. “This only works if it benefits both packs. I’m not interested in a merger that weakens either of us.”
Darius nods. “Agreed. Which is why we’re being thorough up front. On that note, leading the Moonvale assessment team will be our newly appointed chief strategic advisor,” he says, his eyes moving in a direction that makes my stomach drop.
No. There’s no way—
“Sienna, would you stand?” he prompts.
As was my dreaded expectation, it’s her. Three seats down from me. Close enough that if I turned my head at all, I could see her properly instead of just in my peripheral vision.
Sienna. So, that’s her name.
I can’t help the small feeling of pride and respect that blossoms in my chest. She’s the head of her division? She must be very talented to have gotten that position at her age.
Instantly, I squash the thought. This is not a good thing. Of all the positions she could hold, why does it have to be the one that puts her directly in line to work with me?
I don’t turn my head to acknowledge her.
“Sienna will handle our pack relations,” Darius continues. “She’ll be selecting a team of four additional members from various divisions to accompany her for the first week, afterwhich she will spend three weeks at Silvercrest conducting the assessment on her own.”
Four weeks. Four weeks of her in my territory, in my estate house, close enough to—
My wolf surges against my control, and I have to lock every muscle to keep from reacting visibly.
“I trust her judgment completely on team composition,” Darius adds.
My throat is tight. I nod once, not trusting myself to speak.
Sienna sits back down. I can feel the tension radiating off her even from this far away.
“And Silvercrest’s team?” the operations head asks.
“I’m leaving Marcus Rodriguez behind,” I say, keeping my voice professional. “He’s my own chief strategic advisor. He’ll be working with your teams here to assess Moonvale’s security infrastructure and protocols.”
Marcus, sitting across the table from me, nods. He knew this was coming; we discussed it on the drive over this morning.
“Marcus will report directly to me,” I continue. “Weekly updates on his findings, any concerns, any recommendations. Just as Moonvale’s team will report to Darius.”
The meeting continues. We walk through the specifics of what each assessment team will be examining. Security protocols. Financial systems. Pack hierarchy and governance structures. Training programs. Territory management.
I contribute when expected, answering questions about Silvercrest’s operations and explaining our corporate structure, our pack dynamics, our security systems. I’m careful, precise, giving them enough information to understand what they’ll be evaluating without revealing anything we can’t afford to make public yet.
Darius does the same for Moonvale’s operations.
Through it all, I don’t look at her. Don’t acknowledge her presence beyond the bare minimum professionalism requires.
My wolf is furious. Howling. Demanding I stop this charade and claim what’s ours.
I ball my fists under the table and ignore him.
“One concern,” the operations head says. “Four weeks is a long time to have outside observers embedded in our daily operations. How do we ensure sensitive information stays protected?”
“NDAs,” I say immediately. “Everyone on both assessment teams signs comprehensive non-disclosure agreements before they arrive. Violation results in immediate termination of the individual and forfeiture of significant financial penalties.”
“And if the merger doesn’t proceed?” someone else asks.
