Chapter Fourteen
“Alpha mate, you need to eat.”
“Just a little more, Billie, and I’ll be right there.
“You said that three hours ago, young lady, and two hours before that. It’s nearly midnight and you haven’t done more than pick at a breakfast sandwich.”
Fabiana winced. She wasn’t hungry. Anytime she had a puzzle to solve or work to do in a lab, it was easy to lose herself in it. Pasquale or Giuliana usually forced her away, but here, no one but Adonis would put his hands on her, and he was away handling some issue at one of the casinos.
She remembered what he’d told her about people fearing when he had to show up, and she may have been trying to distract herself more than normal.
He still hadn’t returned.
“Let’s go.”
“Billie, really, I’m fine. It’s been nearly a week and a half. The Alpha,capitán,andtenientesall have their suits, and with a bit more coding we can be on schedule for the others to have theirs. If I can beat the deadline and streamline the process a little more, I can get a unit outfitted in three weeks instead of four.”
“And maybe drop dead while you’re at it. Adonis would kill us. Just come eat. We can come back after that.”
Fabiana nodded but didn’t move. She needed to work on this evergreen scent algorithm for one of the suits. It was proving to be one of the hardest so far. Every time she thought she had it, the markers went a bit haywire. If that happened out in the field, the wolf wearing the gear would alert scent-sensitive paranorms because the smell wavered unnaturally.
“You won’t beat me, little bastard. I wonder if the waves–”
“Alpha mate.”
Fabiana froze.Uh oh.
She spun in her chair to find Raphael resting against the doorjamb. Billie hovered behind him and stuck out her tongue .
Fabiana narrowed her eyes playfully. “You little rat.”
“Should have listened the first time. Goodbye, Fabiana,” Billie sing-songed as she skipped away.
“So she went and got you, huh?”
“She shouldn’t have to. Just like our Alpha, your care is primary to everyone in this pack. They can see you’re tired and you are working yourself to the bone.”
“We don’t know when Skuld is coming and this needs to be ready.”
“Not at the cost of your health and well-being.”
She sighed and rubbed her tired eyes. “I promise I’ll be finished in the next two hours and I’ll go to bed.”
Raphael rubbed his chin and stepped fully into the room, dark strands of hair sliding across his forehead. As usual, he donned his signature all-white attire. “And what if you come across another error that needs to be fixed before production?”
Fabiana didn’t answer. She never liked to lie, but if the problem he presented did occur, she’d be working on it until sunup if her mate didn’t come fetch her.
“Go ahead and keep going.” Raphael leaned against the table holding samples. He was careful, only touching where the table was bare, but she still looked it over to make sure before turning back to her computer.
“Adonis and I grew up together in Guatemala. I had it rougher than him though. He was royalty, bred and raised there and the golden child of the local leader.”
Fabiana paused but didn’t turn around, too afraid he may stop.
“Me? I was a halfie, son to a white mother and Guatemalan father. Most of the time, despite my father’s position, his children from his first wife were considered the heirs. I was just something he should have been ashamed of.”
She spun around and faced him. “That ridiculous.”
“But you understand, being Family and all.”
