Chapter three: Unfinished Flames

"Bullshit? What bullshit?" he asked, leaning back against the cushions, his grin only widening as he played dumb.

"Whatever you're trying to do with my older sister," I snapped, the growl in my chest dangerously close to breaking the surface.

He scoffed, swirling the remaining liquor in his glass. "My sources didn't tell me she was your older sister."

I tried to ignore the sheer arrogance dripping from his tone, "Well, let's just say now you know. What's your plan now?"

"Am I not allowed to marry whoever I want?"

"Whoever you want?" I echoed, a harsh, mocking laugh slipping from my lips. "Since when do you do anything without a twisted motive, Gideon?"

"Yeah, me and your sister have a thing with each other," he continued smoothly, completely ignoring my bite. "I see no reason why we shouldn't be married."

"What do you want? What's your motive?" I demanded, leaning into his space, my Alpha pheromones flaring in an attempt to choke out his calm demeanor.

"Well... you should know by now, but you seem to be still gullible and naive, like you have always been. And a little ignorant as usual... but..." He drifted closer, his movements slow and deliberate as he closed the distance between us.

He reached out, putting his heavy, warm hand on my shoulder, his fingers digging slightly into my leather jacket.

"But still as sexy as ever. I mean, wolves have that feral nature to them, and having a mix of vampire... guess that makes you... enticing..."

I grabbed the open bottle of blood-wine from the table and poured it directly onto his face.

The dark, thick crimson liquid splashed over his forehead, dripping down his nose and soaking into his expensive designer shirt.

His sycophants instantly reached for their holsters, the sound of drawing weapons clicking through the VIP section, but Gideon threw his hand up, freezing them in place.

He closed his eyes for a brief second, the wine dripping off his jaw, before a dark, deeply unhinged smile stretched across his face.

His men rushed forward immediately, pointing their guns at me, the metallic clicks sharp against the pounding bass of the club.

"No, she's not someone you can hold on with a gun," Gideon drawled, his voice dangerously low as he kept his hand raised to hold his guards back.

His eyes never left mine.

"You already know that," I hissed.

"I don't want to see your fangs or your sharp claws. I don't repeat a nightmare twice. Would really hate to see that," he said, giving his men a sharp nod.

They reluctantly stepped back into the shadows, lowering their weapons while I stood up immediately, towering over him with pure malice.

"Whatever plans you have with my family, don't you dare get close to them," I warned, the threat vibrating in my throat.

"Why? But I love your mother."

I froze, my brow furrowing in disgust. "You love my mother now? Why do you sound so confused every time you speak?"

"Oh, sorry. I meant your sister," he chuckled, a completely hollow, mocking sound as he casually adjusted his collar.

"I love your sister so much. And you know, she's a recessive mixed of an omega, and like I've always observed...I mean, *heard*, and now I'm experiencing... recessives are the better breed of omega wolves to sleep with. Considering that she has birthed a child before, the sweeter she becomes."

What the heck was he saying? My sister birthed a child before?

All I knew about Cynthia’s past were the series of tragic miscarriages she had supposedly suffered over time across her five previous marriages.

The family had mourned them. Mother had lamented the loss of potential heirs. Did she birth a secret child that I knew absolutely nothing about?

Then how did he know something I didn't know?

Gideon’s grin widened, "Looks like you came here utterly clueless about who your sister really is. Why don't you get your facts straight before showing up right in front of me? You still have zero ways to fight me."

"Fight you?"

"Isn't that what you came to do? Fight me." He grabbed a silk handkerchief from the table, slowly wiping away the dark blood-wine dripping down his face.

"Thank you for pouring this on me, by the way. It made me realize how importantly you still think of me."

"I was wrong to come here in the first place," I spat disgusted by his behaviour.

"Oh, darling," he murmured. Before I could predict his movement, his hand shot out like a striking viper, grabbing my wrist and dragging me violently forward until my chest flushed against his.

"Come on. You know... of everyone that I've fucked, you seem to be my best fuckmate ever. There's always this... this side to you that..."

I pushed him away immediately, my supernatural strength sending him barking back against the leather cushions of the couch. "Go fuck yourself."

"I'm fucking your mom and not myself!!" he shouted after me.

I spun around, my eyes flashing a lethal, glowing crimson. "Keep my mother out of your mouth!"

"Sorry, I meant your sister," he said, entirely unfazed by my lethal gaze. He threw his head back and began to laugh, a sound that filled the VIP lounge.

He gestured to his guards, inviting his men to join in his laughter.

As their mocking chuckles echoed over the blaring club music, I angrily turned on my heels and stormed out, the humiliation and fury blinding me as I pushed through the crowded exit.

I was so angry the entire night. Because of it, I ended up bursting into an open company presentation the next day because I woke up late.

The heavy glass doors of the conference room swung open with a loud click, drawing every single eye in the room straight to me.

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry," I apologized in a hurried whisper, slipping into the nearest empty seat.

As I adjusted my jacket, my eyes instantly met Elias’s. He was sitting at the head of the long mahogany table, glaring at me with a cold, piercing intensity that could have frozen water.

"So, the actual sense of market projection for the next quarter..." the presenter continued, shifting the focus back to the projector screen.

I tried to focus, but my mind kept slipping back to Elias. For the rest of the meeting, he had zero interest in looking at me again, keeping his sharp profile turned toward the charts as if I didn't even exist.

Once the presentation was over and opinions were aired, the room finally began to clear out.

I stood up to leave with the rest of the staff, but his deep, commanding voice sliced through the shuffling of papers.

"Assistant team leader," Elias spoke, using my formal title. His gaze locked onto me. "Stay back."

The remaining board members quickly scurried out, sensing the thick tension in the room. Once we were completely alone, the heavy double doors clicking shut, he didn't waste a second.

"Why are you late today?"

"I was actually... I'm sorry, Boss. I have no excuse," I said, leaning against the edge of the table and trying to keep my breathing steady.

"Because you enjoy pissing me off every time, right?" Elias scoffed, stepping closer, his imposing stature casting a shadow over me.

"I'm the CEO of this company, and yet you're always incompetent. Do you think you can't lose your job? Maybe it's because you're trying so hard to mix our relationship at home with here at work."

Oh, Elias won't cease to remind me why I hate when he opens his mouth.

And honestly, I really wasn't in the mood to argue with him today, but he was just *so* incredibly angry.

Why? It wasn't the first time I had walked into a meeting ten minutes late, and it certainly wouldn't be my last.

Before I could even formulate a snappy comeback, he stood up straight and left abruptly, throwing a cold command over his shoulder.

"Report your work to me by the end of the day."

I sighed heavily as the door slammed behind him. He should always count himself lucky.

His powerful aura and strict demeanor continued to save him from my wrath.

His absolute handsomeness and the infuriating fact that I desperately wanted to sleep with him was the only reason he got away with addressing me like that.

Damn his age, and damn the way his tailored suits hugged his broad shoulders.

The moment I stepped out of the conference room, dozens of eyes followed me down the corridor.

The office gossip mill was already turning; everyone knew I had gotten on the boss's nerves again and was getting scolded.

The whispers always carried the same bitter tune: I was taking advantage of the fact that I was the boss's sister-in-law to cause trouble.

Because I got the job by connection, I really didn't know what they all had to do to get what they have now.

I ignored their staring, sat down at my desk, and poured all my lingering frustration into the paperwork.

By the end of the day, I walked into his private office, holding the completed file out to him. "Here it is, Sir."

He opened the folder, his sharp eyes peeking toward me over the top of the pages.

I immediately brushed my eyes away, looking at the city skyline so I didn't completely eat him up with my gaze.

"Why didn't you show up last night?" he started, his voice dropping into a low, quiet register that lacked all of his previous corporate steel. "I waited..."

I snapped my head back to look at him, my heart skipping a beat.

Oh. Is *that* where all this explosive anger was coming from?

But wait... he really did wait for me? He sat there, in the dark, waiting for me to show up?

Holy shit.

A sudden, fierce wave of heat flooded my core, turning me on so brutally that my inner wolf practically purred.

The raw vulnerability beneath his anger was intoxicating.

"I had something to take care of," I murmured, my voice losing its sharp edge as I took a slow step closer to his desk.

Elias closed the report with a quiet thud.

He stood up from his leather seat, towering over the desk as his dark, intense eyes locked onto mine, stripping away every ounce of professional distance between us.

"I thought you had a thing for me?"