Chapter Five

                        Shawn

The silence had been maddening. Inside the limo, she didn't breathe a word to me. After the heated stare we had exchanged, she looked through the window for the rest of the journey. 

Now at Apex Models, she silently but gracefully walks behind me, as we're being led to the top floor. 

"Here, Mr. Monteal", the secretary says, pointing me to a door she had just knocked on and opened. 

"Thank you", I sidestep her and walk into the office. 

"Mr. Monteal!" the CEO calls out, rising from his seat for a handshake," Thank you for making the time. I know your schedule is… legendary."

I laugh softly. "It's exaggerated. I just say “no” a lot. Today feels like a good “yes”. Please, call me Shawn," I say, accepting the handshake. 

"Then you have to call me Maya. Deal?"

"Deal."

"So… collaboration. You didn’t come all this way just to admire the view," his eyes stray behind me, and I watch it widen "Holy moly! She's beautiful."

He stretches his hand towards her. "Maya Chen. What could be your name?"

She carefully places her hand in his, and he kisses it. "Eva Roderigo." 

Eva. I hadn't asked her name. For the few days we had spent, training and conversing little, I had never asked her name. 

I felt my wolf claw at me, it was disgusted by the scene, and I was too. What right did I have to break them apart? She was my captive, not my lover, and definitely not my mate. 

"Your model, Shawn?" Maya asks, still holding her hand. 

"No no… a companion." I say before I realize what I've just said. I mean, companion is not bad, since he immediately lets go of her hand, and apologizes. 

"I'm sorry. Lord, you should have said something," he laughs "any man would."

You wouldn't even speak to her if she was more to me. I felt my wolf relax a bit, but still lurking around. 

"Not that kind of companion, Maya," Eva says, smiling at him. "For all I know, you're blameless. Right, Mr Monteal?” her eyes, not moving an inch from him. 

I howl, low. Not loud enough for anyone but her to hear. I was pissed. My wolf was super pissed. But she wasn't wrong. 

Maya must have felt the air grow uncomfortable, because he chuckles weirdly, and claps his hands. 

"Please, have a seat", showing us the cushion. 

"Tempting as it is, I’ll be direct. Apex Models wants to partner with Monteal Fabrics on a long-term campaign. Not just runway shows__editorials, digital content, sustainable fashion storytelling". 

"Storytelling is doing a lot of work there. Most people just want the cloth to look good under lights."

"And that’s exactly why I contacted your secretary. I had them send over a file, it includes a well detailed outline. I'm sure you've seen it. You see, your fabrics don’t just look good—they have a philosophy behind them. Ethical sourcing, innovative blends, sustainability without the greenwashing. Models today want to represent brands with substance."

"Interesting," I say, relaxing further into the cushion. "I must say, you have a way with words. Usually I hear that from PR teams, not CEOs."

"I started as a model. Substance matters more than people think, especially to the next generation."

"Fair point. Let me ask you something bluntly. What do you get out of this that you don’t already have?"

"Access", he replies, clasping his hands together Infront of him. "Not just to materials, but to your design labs, your R&D process. I want our models involved earlier—understanding how fabrics move, age, breathe. It makes their work more authentic."

"And in return?" I ask. He has to be, hands down, one of the most engaging humans I've met. 

"You get exclusive representation. Our top talent becomes the face of Monteal Fabrics globally—fashion weeks, campaigns, behind-the-scenes content. We help humanize the material."

I smile. I love that there are no filler words. He knows his point and he delivers it well. "You make cotton sound like a character arc.'

"Everything has an arc if you frame it right," he says smiling, then his eyes stray to Eva, and his smile widens. 

"I like how you think", I say, eying him. "But I’m cautious. My brand doesn’t chase trends, it outlasts them". 

His full attention back to me, "That’s why Apex isn’t offering a one-season splash. I’m proposing a three-year collaboration. Slow fashion, consistent faces, evolving narratives".

"Three years is practically a marriage in business terms."

"I’m not afraid of commitment. Are you?"

Take this question and toss it somewhere else that's not business related, and my answer may be "yes". 

I chuckle. "I built factories on less confidence than you’re showing right now".

"I’ll take that as a compliment."

"You should. Alright, next step. My team and your creative director sit down. No lawyers yet. Just ideas".

"That’s all I was hoping for."

"Maya, this could be interesting". I say, standing to my feet, adjusting my left lapel. Eva stands with me. 

"It already is". He stands and we shake hands, the city lights glowing behind us. 

I turn ready to leave, when I see his quick movements to get something from one of his drawers. 

"Eva Roderigo", he says, handing her a business card. "Contact me, if you will. I see great potential in you." 

"Thank you, Maya". She takes the card, and slips it into the side pocket of her jacket. 

"You'll take the offer?” I ask Eva, when I see her looking at the card in the elevator, back at the mansion. "I mean, it's not bad, but how do I trust you to not escape, with leaving for work as an excuse?" 

I don't look at her, my whole attention is on the door, so I don't see her reaction. 

"Well, one way or the other, you'll have to trust me. I can't just be sitting in your pretty mansion doing nothing. I've never been idle, my whole life. I don't intend to start now."

"And if I hadn't taken you along with me today, and you hadn't had the opportunity to get this offer? What then? You'd still be sitting idle in my pretty mansion." I say, putting emphasis on the"pretty". It annoyed me.

"Then, you'd have had more of a chance of seeing me escape than now. Now, I have a reason to stay back, besides training my wolf."

And she wasn't wrong. Hell, she had never been wrong since she stepped her feet in this place. I noticed it. And one thing usually happens when I notice a woman.