018

LILA POV

Cold brown eyes pierce into mine, his mouth curling into a slow, predatory smirk.

My legs feel weak. My hands clammy.

That look-fuck-I hate it.

It makes me wish the ground would just open up and swallow me whole.

I'm shivering. Every instinct in me screams to run. But where? The other employees would notice. They'd question me.

I try to look away. I fucking try.

But how could I?

His suit jacket is undone, two shirt buttons left open, exposing a teasing glimpse of his defined chest. Hard, tanned muscles. That same body I've been fucking craving to touch. That same body that-

No.

I swallow thickly, my throat dry. His note. The flowers. The way my body feels sore in places it shouldn't. The terrifying possibility that he might have fucked me, and I don't even remember it.

Fucking hell.

His gaze stays locked on me, challenging. I know others have noticed by now. The way he stares at me. Like I belong to him. Like I always have.

Memories claw at my mind, dragging me back to the past. Those nights in the packhouse. The way he would pin me down, fill me with his cum, ruin me until I couldn't walk.

My toes curl involuntarily.

No. I can't think about that now.

I force myself to breathe as he finally tears his gaze away and strides toward the head of the room.

Silence falls instantly.

The atmosphere is filled with awkward tension , the weight of his presence pressing down on everyone in the room.

"So," his deep voice cuts through the silence, smooth yet sharp, filled with quiet authority. "As you all know, there's been a change in leadership."

No one dares to speak.

Not a single fucking sound.

I hear the silent sound of someone swallowing. The shuffling of feet as a few employees shift nervously. But no one, no one, meets his gaze directly.

I do.

And I regret it instantly.

Rafael's cold eyes flick to me once again, and something dark flashes in them. His smirk deepens, but it holds no warmth.

He's fucking toying with me.

"Things will be different now," he continues. His tone is calm. Deadly. "I don't tolerate incompetence. I don't tolerate disobedience. And I sure as hell don't tolerate weakness."

The words pierce through the air like a knife.

I hear a muffled gasp from someone at the back. A few others bow their heads lower, as if that will make them invisible.

It won't.

Not with Rafael.

"You will all work harder. You will all be more efficient. I expect results, not excuses," he says, pausing deliberately. His gaze sweeps over the room, like a predator surveying its prey.

No one breathes too loudly.

"We start implementing changes immediately. If you have complaints, keep them to yourself. If you have excuses, don't bother coming to work tomorrow. I don't need dead weight."

The silence is killing.

I don't think I've ever seen grown professionals look so terrified before. Even Anna, who usually has something sarcastic to say about everything, looks as if she wants to shrink into the floor.

My fingers tighten around the hem of my skirt, my knuckles turning white.

Rafael hasn't changed.

If anything, he's worse.

"That will be all for now," he finally says, leaning back slightly. "You may leave."

The tension snaps.

Employees bow their heads deeply before scurrying out as fast as possible. No one stays. No one wants to be the last person left standing.

Except me.

Because I don't have a fucking choice.

"Lila," his voice stops me in my tracks.

My stomach twists.

I turn back slowly, my pulse hammering in my ears.

He leans against the desk now, watching me with something I couldn't name. His smirk is gone. Replaced by a colder look. 

"Stay," he orders.

The door clicks shut behind the last employee.

And just like that, I'm alone with him.

My breathing is uneven as the last employee hurries out, the heavy door clicking shut behind them.

The room feels too big. Too empty.

Too fucking dangerous.

I'm alone with him now.

Alpha Rafael.

His name tastes bitter in my mouth.

He leans back slightly against the sleek mahogany desk, his cold brown eyes locked on me with the same intensity that makes my skin prickle. 

Silence again. The kind that makes my heart beats at every interval.

"Come here."

My pulse stutters.

I don't move.

His lips twitch, as if amused. "I said, come here, Lila."

The way he says my name, it shouldn't make my stomach clench. It shouldn't make my legs feel weak.

But it does.

My body remembers things my mind is trying to forget.

Slowly, hesitantly, I take a few steps forward. The sound of my heels clicking against the marble floor 

He watches me like a predator playing with its prey.

And fuck, I hate that it still does something to me.

When I'm just a foot away, he tilts his head, taking his time as his eyes drag over my figure.

I resist the urge to fold my arms over myself.

"Still stubborn, I see," he muses, voice deep and smooth. "But I wonder... do you remember?"

My breath catches.

I fucking knew it.

"Remember what?" I force my voice to stay steady.

I needed to tell him, I wasn't the same Lila he wanted to ruin. This isn't his fucking pack. He no longer fuckimg owned me.

His smirk returns, slow and knowing. "Oh, come on, don't play dumb. You woke up sore, didn't you?"

My entire body locks up.

I hate that he's right.

I hate that I feel anything at all.

His smirk deepens. "You did."

I shake my head. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Liar.

His fingers trail along the edge of the desk, casual yet deliberate. "You always were a terrible liar, Lila."

I swallow hard, heat rising to my cheeks. "If you called me here just to fuck with me, then I'm leaving."

I spin on my heel, ready to storm out-

But I barely take two steps before his voice halts me.

"You need a loan, don't you?"

My breath hitches.

I turn back slowly, my heart slamming against my ribs.

He's smirking again. Because he fucking knows.

How the hell does he know?

"You submitted a request just this morning," he continues, amusement In his tone. He's fucking mocking me 

"Desperate, weren't you?"

My nails dig into my palms.

Derrick.

I need that money.

I force myself to straighten, ignoring the way my pulse pounds. "It's none of your business."

His gaze darkens. "Oh, but it is, Lila."

I don't like the way he says that.

I don't like the way his voice drips with something dangerous.

My mouth is dry as I force myself to ask, "What do you want?"

He leans forward slightly, his smirk never fading.

"You already know what I want."

My stomach twists violently.

No.

No fucking way.

I step back. "That's not happening."

He chuckles lowly, shaking his head. "Oh, sweetheart... you'll find that in this company, everything happens on my terms."

I hate him.

I hate that a shiver runs down my spine.

I hate that I have no choice.

Because Derrick needs that surgery.

As for Rafael?

Rafael holds all the fucking cards.