Chapter 4

Loretta's POV

Nobody at the company knew that Zane and I had already bonded.

So, I didn't answer Josephine. She just let out an impatient sigh. "Whatever. I'll have someone take over your current tasks.

"Get the financial statement analysis for Valemont Industries done before lunch."

Even though I'd been demoted to the lowest-ranking grunt in the office, Josephine still dumped mountains of work on me that had nothing to do with my job description. And I took it all, every single time.

But I knew Zane wouldn't give me a second look even if I killed myself working.

Once I finished the financial breakdown, I printed out a hard copy, saved the digital file, and dropped both on Josephine's desk before ordering some takeout.

I didn't want to go anywhere crowded. I couldn't stand people staring at my bloated, out-of-shape body.

Just then, a few colleagues walked back into the office after lunch, chatting excitedly.

"Alpha Zane's girlfriend is so young! Is she still in college?"

"Has to be. She's drop-dead gorgeous, literally looks like a living doll. You can just tell by the way she carries herself that she's from some filthy-rich elite family. Definitely not an ordinary person."

"Did you see the way Alpha Zane looked at her? He looked like he was about to melt! Who knew our cold, ruthless alpha had a soft spot like that? It's straight out of a romance novel!"

As they gabbed, they passed my cubicle and finally noticed me sitting there.

Suddenly, I felt being on pins and needles.

Their eyes stung.

Right on cue, my phone rang. It was the delivery driver. I grabbed my bag and headed for the elevators.

Before I even made it out of the office, I clearly heard a dismissive, mocking snort behind me.

And a muttered whisper: "Built like a pig."

My pace quickened.

Downstairs in the lobby, I ran into a couple of caterers at the front desk holding food delivery boxes.

I caught a glimpse of the bottle of red wine one of them was carrying. Just that single bottle cost around two million.

Two million. To someone high and mighty like Alpha Zane, that was pocket change—money he could make in under a minute.

I clutched my grease-stained box of cheap pizza and headed back upstairs.

Two o'clock in the afternoon, Josephine tracked me down, her voice cold. "Alpha Zane wants to see you."

My stomach plummeted. My wolf's instincts flared up, warning me of impending disaster.

Sure enough.

The second I stepped up to the CEO's office door, a heavy, suffocating pressure washed over me—the unmistakable aura of a top-tier alpha. Deep inside, my wolf shrank back in fear.

I walked up to the desk, kept my eyes down, and murmured, "Alpha Zane."

When Zane looked up, his handsome face was a mask of flawless ice.

Without warning, he hurled a thick stack of files right at my face!

"Is this the analysis you call work?"

The sharp edges of the A4 papers sliced across my cheek, sending a stinging pain through my skin.

I looked down at the documents scattered around my feet—it was the exact report I had put together earlier today.

One hand pressed against my heavily rounded stomach, I forced my body to bend down and pick up the mess off the floor.

I could feel it clearly—that man staring down at me from above with chilling, unfeeling eyes.

As I gathered the pages and scanned the financial breakdown, my eyes instantly caught several altered numbers. That wasn't my data.

Fighting to keep my voice from shaking, I defended myself. "Alpha Zane, this isn't the report I submitted."

"Spare me. I don't want to hear your excuses. If you can't handle the job, there are plenty of people who can."

My fingers turned white as I gripped the papers in a death-grip.

It wasn't that Zane didn't know my capabilities, nor was it simply that he didn't want to listen. He just didn't care about the truth; he was more than happy to let me take the fall.

To be loathed to this degree by the mate I loved so deeply—it was pathetic. Hilarious, even.

I took a deep breath, closed my eyes for a second, and when I opened them, I forced myself to meet his gaze head-on. "I saved a digital backup. I can send it to you right now, Alpha. You can chew me out all you want after you look at it."

Zane's dark eyes narrowed, a flash of violent displeasure crossing his face.

My entire body went rigid.

Standing before an alpha, my omega nature naturally triggered a deep-seated fear. Especially when he wore that freezing expression—in the past, I wouldn't have even dared to utter a single word back to him.

Yet right now, I forced myself to stay calm as I murmured inside, "I'm getting rejected anyway. I'm gonna walk out of his life for good as he wishes, and never step foot in this place again. I'm done expecting anything from him, so what is there left to be afraid of?"

"Feeling hard done by?" His voice cut like shards of ice, dripping with undisguised mockery.

I stared straight into those completely devoid-of-warmth eyes, digging my fingernails deep into my palms as my voice hardened. "You blamed me without even bothering to check the facts, Alpha. Don't I have the right to clear my name?"

Zane's face turned black. His suffocating alpha aura exploded in the room.

"You deserved it! If you can't take it, get the hell out!"

It felt like a heavy blow straight to my chest. A sharp, violent wrenching pain rippled through our mating bond, and all the color drained from my face.

Right then, the door to the private lounge clicked open.

A young girl stepped out wearing a pink silk slip dress. Her long, vibrant blonde hair fell around her shoulders, her skin practically glowing, and her delicate, flawless features were breathtaking. But what caught my eye—what burned right into my retinas—were the fresh, clustered hickeys dark across her fair neck.

"Zane..."

The girl's voice was soft and soothing, carrying a quiet, effortless warmth.

When I finally caught a clear look at her face, I was struck by a beauty that made me feel entirely unworthy by comparison.

The moment my eyes met hers, Zane's voice cut through the air, sharp and freezing.

"Get the hell out!"