The Art of the Deal

A low chuckle from the doorway yanked my attention back.

Andrew leaned casually against the frame, an infuriating smirk tugging at his lips.

His abs are on full display, golden in the lighting, every sharp cut of an elite werewolf athlete impossible to ignore.

"Didn't think you had that kind of bite in you, Peach," he hums.

I lift an eyebrow, annoyance and curiosity bubbling up inside me. "Peach?"

He pushes off the door and takes a step closer, his hand reaching toward my chest. I recoil sharply, a strange shiver running down my spine. His grin only widens.

"Relax," he says, tilting his head. "Look down."

I glance down. Right in the middle of my shirt is a smeared peach graphic from the campus fruit stand.

Heat rushes to my face. I roll my eyes with an amused scoff, bulldozing past him into his living room.

"Put on a shirt," I demand.

"Why?" His voice hums with smug amusement. "Getting a little distracted by the view, Gina? Alpha genetics too much for you?"

I spin around to face him. "Ever heard of the word decency? It’s spelled…"

"Hey, I can spell that," he cuts in, feigning offense. "What do you take me for? A dumb enforcer?"

He shuts the front door and strolls over to the counter.

A can of cold beer sits on the granite. Before I can process it, he tilts it back and gulps the entire thing down in one smooth motion.

"Is that alcohol?" I ask, my fists clenching at my sides. "You're drinking? Before a tutoring session?"

Andrew shoots me a confused look, crushing the aluminum can effortlessly in his grip. "Yeah? Aren't you supposed to be one of the smartest ones in the college?"

"Did Tony not tell you why I was coming over?!"

"He called me this morning," Andrew says, tossing the crushed can toward the recycling bin. "Told me his little sister's friend was coming to babysit my GPA."

"And you're getting slammed on a night I'm supposed to help you with your grade?" My voice tightens. "Are you serious?"

He sighs dramatically, leaning back against the counter.

"Don't be so preachy, Peach. It’s one can. It takes a lot more than a light beer to knock out an elite forward's metabolism.

“Besides, we can just get to know each other tonight. Tony definitely left out the part where you grew into a hot female."

Irritation crawls up my neck.

I glance longingly at the door, ready to leave, but then I remember Tony’s desperate pleading, and the thousand dollars he promised to pay me toward my new laptop if I kept his slack-jawed teammate eligible for the season.

I fix Andrew with a death glare.

"First of all, don't call me Peach again. Second, have you considered that the reason you're flunking your classes is because you flirt too much, and you have an unhealthy obsession with hockey?

“If you actually stop trying to hit on me, maybe we can get something done tonight. But if you don't, I'll be more than happy to walk out and watch you get punished by your father."

Andrew tilts his head, catching me off guard.

"Do you even have friends? Or did they all ghost you because all you do is read and forget how to socialize?"

The words sting, instantly echoing Daniel’s harsh sneers from this morning. I swallow the bitter hurt and push my shoulders back.

"You must be so good at socializing that you forgot other things matter," I counter, raising my textbook. "Oh, minor things, like staying eligible for the playoffs and graduating college."

His smirk widens. He’s taking this as a challenge.

"Where’s your room?" I ask, keeping my tone clipped. "Let's get started."

He leads the way down the hall.

Posters of the NHL and pack hockey legends cover his walls, but as I step over the threshold, bile rises in my throat.

The sheets are thrown everywhere, and two empty condom wrappers sit casually on the floor near his nightstand.

I turn on my heel and bolt back into the living area, clutching my books tightly.

Andrew follows me, looking genuinely surprised. "Why’d you run like that? Can’t handle being in the same room with me, Peach?"

"You should clean up your bedroom after sex, especially if you have company," I snap, dropping my heavy stack of books onto his dining table. "It’s called basic decency. Clearly, your wolf missed that lesson."

In a flash of speed, his fingers close around my jaw, gently tilting my face up to force my eyes to his.

"Are you sure that’s the only reason?" he purrs, his eyes flashing with playful heat. "You know... I can make time for you if you're jealous."

"That's it."

I snap. I yank my face away, snatch my books back off the table, and march toward the front exit. "Find someone else to save your grade!"

"Hey! Wait, I'm sorry, okay?" Andrew’s voice loses its cocky edge, pleading as he reaches out and catches my arm.

"Get your hands off me!" I twist hard against his grip.

"I’ll behave! I swear!" he rushes out, holding his hands up defensively. "I'll put on a shirt! I'll stop calling you Peach! I won't say another word you don't like! Just... Please, tutor me. I'm desperate, Gina."

I whirl around, ready to tell him he doesn't look desperate enough, when my phone buzzes violently in my pocket. Once. Twice. Three times.

I yank it out with a frustrated huff, expecting my study group. But the caller ID makes my blood run cold.

Daniel.

My stomach twists into a knot as I open the notification. There are no apologies. No remorse. Just a string of bitter, nasty texts, ending with one that makes the world stop spinning:

Daniels' text read, “Return my team jacket. My new girl wants it.”

Hot, blinding anger sears through my veins. His new girl. It hasn't even been twelve hours, and he's already parading someone else around, demanding my jacket just to humiliate me.

His mocking voice echoes in my head, “You were nobody before me, Gina. Nobody else will ever make you feel alive.”

"Hey..." A soft tap on my shoulder jolts me back to reality. Andrew is staring down at me, his brow furrowed with genuine confusion. "Did you hear a word I said? I said I'll do anything you want. Anything."

My head snaps up.

Anything.

I look at Andrew Shaw. The campus golden boy. The star forward of the pack's hockey team.

The guy every female on campus wants to be seen with, and every male envies.

He's ruthlessly picky, arrogant, and possesses the kind of high-status Alpha aura that commands a room the second he steps into it.

And most importantly... he’s Daniel’s direct rival on and off the ice.

My gaze rakes down his broad frame and back up to his eyes.

"Anything?" I ask softly, my voice dropping an octave.

Andrew studies me, a flicker of uncertainty crossing his face for the first time since I walked in. But he slowly nods. "Yeah. Anything."

I take a slow, steady breath, stepping closer to him.

"Then here’s the deal. I’ll tutor you. And not just enough to scrape by, you're going to ace every single class with at least a B. That’s my part."

Andrew narrows his eyes, waiting. "And mine?"

"In return," I say, meeting his gaze dead-on, "you'll use your charm, your reputation, and your status to pursue me publicly.

“We build a high-profile fake relationship, and we make damn sure everyone sees and believes us.”