Page 40 of Petals & Promises

“Goodbye, Mother,” I said, with one final squeeze of her hand before releasing it.

“I’m glad I got to meet you, Bailey-Rose, and know my son found love,” Mother called as we left the room.

twenty

Bailey-Rose

The low rumble of Waffles’ growl alerted me before I saw Jonas round the corner with two other men. We’d almost made it out of the house, but the expressions on these men’s faces told us they weren’t going to let us walk out just yet.

“Vili, stop,” one of the other men ordered.

He looked like what you’d picture for an older aristocrat with his gray hair, thick black-rimmed glasses, and gray suit with a black turtleneck. It was as if this man had no concept that it was still summer or maybe he never left the walls of this stone building.

“Yes, Wilhelm?” Vili asked, his tone matching the cool, detached nature of his father’s.

“Where are you going?” Wilhelm demanded. “I told you there was much we needed to discuss about your place in this company.”

Vili pressed a kiss to my temple before he released his hold on my hand, tucking his into his pockets. “There is nothing to say unless to remove me from Preidon location. If so, I won’t stop you.” He shrugged. “I prefer design to management.”

“If that’s what you want, then we need to change the contracts,” Jonas cut in. “There’s no way we can keep things as they are if you won’t give more to the company.”

Vili scoffed. “Give more? What do you give?”

“Excuse me? We took a small luxury jewelry company and made it an international success. I think we’ve done our part,” Wilhelm boasted.

Nodding, Vili scratched his jaw as if in thought. “No, the contracts stay. If you no longer want to pay for my designs, then don’t buy them… it’s simple.”

“You can’t be serious,” the third alpha blurted, an incredulous look on his face. “Just like that, you’d turn your back on us, your family? Your mother is upstairs dying, and you just want to spit on the legacy she helped create?”

Listening to these men who claimed to be Vili’s family and the way they twisted everything to make Vili out to be the bad guy was disgusting. While Vili might not be showing it outwardly, each attack chipped away at the shield Vili had placed around himself. A few more blows and they would start tearing into him, and I wasn’t going to allow that.

“Seriously, you must be joking with that shit,” I interjected with a harsh laugh.

The three men turned to look at me, and I couldn’t help but shrink back a little at the weight of their gazes. Waffles was there to remind me that I was perfectly safe as he nudged me forward. Quickly, I collected myself and approached the men who would no longer have a say in Vili’s life once we walked out the door.

“Who are you?” Wilhelm asked, looking down his nose at me.

“That’s his Omega,” Jonas answered as if I was nothing of consequence.

Vili started to speak up, but I gripped his arm. I wanted to handle this. “My name is Bailey-Rose Thatcher, daughter of the oil moguls Rawlins and Adrian Thatcher, owners of Infinery Petroleum Industries. I also happen to be part owner of the billion-dollar company, The Snuggery.”

This information instantly transformed the way these men looked at me. No longer was I some riff-raff girl with crazy-colored hair and eccentric taste in clothes. I’d just proven that I was worth more money than all of them combined.

“Now that I’ve proven my net worth and have your attention, I’d listen carefully to what I have to say,” I informed them. “Vili is no longer your son, nor does he have the last name Rantala. Instead, he’s a Thatcher, my bonded Alpha and a valued member of our pack. As for what his mother would think… she’s the one who told him to get the hell away from you. Now, Vili has told you he’s not changing his contracts, but should you have any further questions about them, feel free to speak to our lawyer.”

As if on cue, Yun-Sun walked up to Wilhelm and handed him a card. “Just so you know who you’d be going up against, my father is In-Su Lee of Lee, Holt, and McNeil. I'm sure you’ve heard of his skills in corporate law, and while I might not like the man, he taught me well. I look forward to hearing from you, but we need to be on our way. We have important dinner reservations.”

Vili’s fathers stared at us as I walked out hand in hand with Vili and Yun-Sun, a little pep in my step as we climbed back into the limousine. God, I don’t know that I’d ever had a moment where I went toe to toe with three Alphas and spanked them good. The shock and disbelief written all over their faces was something I would treasure, knowing it would be the last time I ever saw those assholes.

I gasped in surprise as Vili pulled me over to straddle his legs. With a hand holding the back of my neck, his lips crashed against mine. Instantly, I was purring as I wrapped my arms around his neck. All too soon, he pulled back to rest his forehead against mine.

“Did you mean it?” he asked. “Can I really take your last name?”

Grinning with delight, I nuzzled his nose. “Vili Thatcher has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?”

“I love you to the moon and back, Bailey-Rose,” Vili whispered, pulling me into another passionate kiss.

Dinner was a fantastic experience, and the food was as wonderful as Vili promised. The chef even came out and greeted us, bringing a dessert he made especially for Vili, knowing it was his favorite. This man had no idea the day Vili had gone through or how perfect his kind gesture was, but I could feel how much it meant to Vili.