Not the passionate, wild kiss I’d expected - something so precious that it filled me with a feeling that I couldn't describe. Almost like I was shy, feeling like he was somehow seeing more of me than I’d ever shown anyone. Slowly, softy, his lips traced down my own, across my cheeks, and covered my face. He kissed my forehead, my neck, then back up, taking his time to hold me and demonstrate such restraint for an alpha that it blew my mind.
In all my experience, I’d never had an alpha treat me quite like this.
There was no rush, only savoring as he ran his hands through my hair, tracing my face and neck like he wanted to memorize me. And despite the fact that I did want more of him - eventually - this right here was more intimate than anything I could have ever imagined. Spending this time together, quiet while we explored each other, was more than enough. It was something I had always been missing.
Dante enthralled me. This mystery of a man was now so close to me that I could almost feel what it would be like to bond with him. I knew that no matter what had happened in the past, this man, and his pack, were my future.
I don’t know how long I lay there with him, enjoying his touch as he held me and made me feel so safe and accepted that I could nearly cry with joy. But at some point I was so comfortable that I drifted off into the most beautiful sleep.
A loud ringing woke me from my slumber, and though Dante’s arms were wrapped around me, I felt a pang of anxiety as I groggily tried to reach for my phone. The only reason someone would call me this late at night was an emergency. I finally grabbed my phone and answered it.
“Hello?”
Chapter 48
Dante
I was holding the unexpected girl of my dreams in my arms, watching her sleep. She was so peaceful like this, so much more beautiful than I’d ever imagined. Someday, I would learn everything about her. But for right now, I was content to just have this.
Life is so strange. In all my years, I never could have guessed in my wildest dreams that I’d end up here, with this omega. All this time I spent, the twists and turns of fate, made me believe this woman was the cause of so much pain that it poisoned my life. Instead, it turns out that she might just be the antidote.
Her phone rang, jarring her out of her sleep. She quickly answered it, pulling away from me as I heard her talking to someone.
“Crap. I’ll check it right now.” She said as she quickly stumbled out of bed and to her desk. I felt the loss of her immediately, but I knew that running a company as large as hers that emergencies happened. Still, I wished I could hold her next to me all night.
She flipped open her laptop, and my eyes went laser-focused as I watched her make a critical error.
She logged in, and I saw her type in her password.
The dual security measure pinged her phone, but just the password was enough for me. It was what we’d been missing before we could get deeper into Harringday Industries servers, and find the proof we needed. I could easily hack her phone and get access to everything I wanted with just knowing her long, complicated code - the key to everything I’d been looking for. Unfortunately for her, I had a fantastic photographic memory.
I repeated it in my head as she quickly got into managing whatever fire she had to put out at work. Whatever it was, it didn’t matter. All that mattered now was what I would do with this new information.
Celeste was so focused on her work emergency that she barely noticed me getting up.
“Sorry, Dante. I have to take care of this.” She said in a tired, contented voice, not peeling her eyes from her screen as she handled her work issue. I looked down at her, noticing that between her sleepiness and her focus on the emergency, that she wasn’t on guard. Maybe she trusted me, maybe she was just too focused to notice what she’d done.
Her password would probably give me every answer I needed. I’d have to break her trust, hacking into her most private files, to finally be sure of what she was or was not responsible for. It would be a huge breach of trust, especially since we’d just agreed to court for real. She even wanted us to help her through her heat.
But I had to make sure I knew who she really was. I cleared my throat.
“Sounds important.” I said in an understanding tone.
“It is. I’ll manage, though.” She answered, still half asleep and absorbed in whatever was going on with her company. I had an idea, an urge to test the boundaries a little bit. Find out if she had any idea about what really happened in Arkala.
“You know, I had a work emergency that kept me up for several days. It made it worse that I was traveling. My flight got diverted and nearly had to land on Arkala island. You’d probably know more about that place than me.” I said, trying to keep my voice casual.
“Yeah, I’ve been there once or twice.” She said, still not really paying attention.
“I hear it’s developed somewhat, but I never ended up seeing it myself.” I said, trying quickly to come up with another lie to get her to confirm the sinking feeling in my stomach.
“Oh, I was only there for a short bit. It’s more commercial than tourist. Harringday gets a lot of our metals from there. I was there for business purposes.” She said, still biting her lip in concentration.
“I'll let you get back to your work.” I said, giving her a gentle kiss on the top of her head, my body now sweating as I started to understand what I already knew to be true. I headed for the door, but stopped when I reached it.
“About how long ago did you last visit Arkala?” I asked, and waited to see if she would respond. Maybe she would catch on to me. Maybe not. Either way, I could almost guarantee her secrets would be mine soon.
“Oh, a long time ago. About six years, if I remember correctly.” She let out a small laugh before refocusing on her screen. “Boy, that was a problem. There was a huge mess with outdated safety protocols. I had to fly out and fix things. It was one of my biggest wins.” She said, her attention mostly on the computer.