All Chapters of Taming the Alpha CEO: Mine to Ruin: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

53 Chapters

11: Breaking Point

I can hear raised voices coming from the parking lot and I run toward them, my heels clicking on the pavement, and when I round the corner I see them next to a black SUV. Rhys has his back to me and the other man is standing in front of him with his hands on Rhys’s shoulders, talking to him in a low urgent voice that I can’t quite hear. “What’s happening?” I call out. They both turn and Rhys’s eyes flash that gold color for just a second before fading back to gray, and he takes a step toward me but the other man blocks him. “Stay there,” the man says to me. “Don’t come closer.” “Why not?” “Because he needs a minute.” The man looks at Rhys. Rhys is breathing hard, his chest heaving, and he’s staring at me with an intensity that makes me want to take a step back. “I’m fine.” His voice is rough. “Let go of me, Kade.” So this is Kade, the one he called on the phone. Kade steps back slowly, keeping himself positioned between me and Rhys. “You sure about that?” “I’m

12: Explosion

At two I make his coffee because apparently that’s still my job. I walk into his office and cross to his desk and set the cup down. He reaches for it at the same time and our fingers brush. That spark shoots up my arm like an electric shock and I gasp and jerk my hand back, and the cup wobbles between us for a second before he catches it. We’re both frozen, staring at each other, and I can see his chest rising and falling too fast and his pupils are blown wide and I wonder if he felt it too or if it’s just me losing my mind. “Thank you.” His voice comes out rough like he hasn’t used it in hours. I leave without saying anything because I don’t trust what might come out of my mouth, and I go back to my desk and sit there with my hand tingling and my heart racing. The rest of the afternoon is torture, every email he sends me is clipped and professional, every time I glance up he’s focused on his work with his jaw tight, every minute that passes feels like it’s stretching t

13: The Morning After

I stare at him because surely I misheard, surely he didn’t just tell me to quit after having his tongue in my mouth thirty seconds ago. “What?” “You need to quit.” He’s not looking at me, he’s staring at the wall behind my head like he can’t bear to actually see me. “I’ll give you recommendation letters for anywhere you want to apply, whatever you need—” Reality slams back into focus and I slide off the desk so fast I almost trip. “No.” That makes him look at me. “Excuse me?” “I said no.” I’m trying to fix my skirt with hands that won’t stop shaking but I force myself to meet his eyes. “I’m not quitting.” “Astrid—” “You don’t get to do this.” My voice is steadier than I feel. “You don’t get to kiss me like that then fire mr because you can’t handle it.” “I’m not firing you, I’m asking you to resign—” “By fucking me on your desk and then firing me?!” My voice is getting louder but I don’t care. “I didn’t fuck you—” “You were about to! Your hand was literally in

14: Five Thousand Reasons to Break

I sit up straighter. “What?” “They found drugs in her apartment, cocaine I think, they’re saying she had enough for distribution charges—” “Distribution? Patricia, how much did they find—” “That’s not important right now, what’s important is getting her out of jail, the bail is set at five thousand dollars—” “Five thousand?” I’m already doing the math in my head, already knowing I don’t have anywhere close to that. “Her father won’t help, can you believe that? His own daughter sitting in a cell—” “I don’t have five thousand dollars—” “But you’re making good money now, Lena mentioned you got promoted, surely you can get a loan or use a credit card—” “Wait, you talked to Lena?” Betrayal stings sharp in my chest. “When did you talk to Lena?” “I called her yesterday to see how you were doing since you never call anymore, she mentioned your new promotion,—” “I haven’t even gotten my first paycheck yet—” “So you’re telling me you can’t help?” Patricia’s voice goes co

15: Tell Your Alpha

“Care!” The word breaks on a sob. “You don’t get to care about me one minute then treat me like I’m nothing the next, you don’t get to make me feel things then tell me I’m stupid for feeling them—” “I never said you were stupid—” “You said I was delusional, you said I was living in a fantasy, same thing—” Silence falls between us. He’s staring at me with an expression I can’t read. “Take the rest of the day.” His voice is quiet now. “Go home, clear your head—” “So you can what? Pretend this conversation never happened? Add it to the list of things we’re not allowed to talk about?” “I’m trying to give you space—” “I don’t want space, I want answers!” I’m crying again, angry tears that I can’t stop. “I want to know why you kissed me if you regret it so much, I want to know why you’re pushing me away, I want to know what I did wrong—” “You didn’t do anything wrong.” He runs both hands through his hair, destroying the perfect styling. “This isn’t about you—” “Then what

16:You’re My Mate

I take one step toward the SUV and the parking garage spins. My knees buckle and I’m falling, except Rhys moves faster than should be possible and catches me before I hit the concrete, his arms wrapping around my waist and pulling me against his chest. “Astrid, can you hear me?” His voice sounds like it’s coming from underwater. I try to answer but my mouth won’t cooperate and the edges of my vision are going dark, and the last thing I register is Kade’s voice saying “Get her in the car now” before everything goes black. ----- I wake up disoriented with my mouth tasting like cotton and my head pounding like someone’s using it as a drum. The first thing I notice is that I’m not in my apartment, the ceiling is too high and the bed is too comfortable and there are floor-to-ceiling windows showing a city skyline that’s lit up against a night sky that’s way too dark for six PM. I sit up too fast and immediately regret it when the room tilts sideways and my stomach lurches,

17: Too Late to Protect Me Now

“Because you’re my mate.” I open my mouth to respond but nothing comes out because what am I supposed to say to that, congratulations, thanks for the info, sorry your supernatural DNA picked the wrong person? “Okay,” I finally manage, and it sounds pathetically inadequate. “And you hate that.” I’m not asking, I’m stating a fact. “You hate that your wolf chose me.” “I never said that—” “You didn’t have to.” I cross my arms over my chest. “I can see it every time you look at me, every time you treat me like I’m a problem you need to solve.” “You’re not a mistake.” He runs both hands through his hair and for the first time since I’ve known him he looks completely rattled. “This situation is a mistake, you being anywhere near me is a mistake, but you’re not—” “Then why did you follow me tonight?” I cut him off. “If I’m such a problem, if you want me gone so badly, why didn’t you just let me leave?” “Because I CAN’T.” The words come out rough and angry. “Do you think I wan

18: Ambushed

“I almost didn’t get there in time. Another five seconds and he would have—” He can’t finish the sentence. I cup his face with both hands and his eyes close like the touch causes him physical pain. “But you did get there, I’m alive because of you. Who is Victor? The man said the name. Tell your Alpha.” I repeat the words. “He called you my Alpha.” “Because that’s what I am.” Rhys stops pacing. “You’re like a king?” “More like a warlord.” He laughs but there’s no humor in it. “I took the position five years ago, I’ve spent every day since then defending our territory from other packs who want what we have.” “And Viktor is one of those other packs?” “Viktor is the Alpha of the Cascade Pack, we share a border to the east, three years ago his pack started encroaching on our land, taking our resources, attacking our wolves.” He sits back down on the bed. “I tried to negotiate but Viktor wanted war, so I gave him one.” “What happened?” “His pack tried to expand into our te

19: Welcome to My World

The wolf is the size of a small car and it’s standing between me and Rhys and my brain is trying to process the fact that there’s a fucking wolf in the penthouse that just came through the window like it’s a goddamn action movie except this is real and I can even smell the thing,. Rhys moves and he’s so fast I don’t even see him leave my side, one second he’s there and the next he’s slamming into the gray wolf with enough force that they both go crashing through the coffee table and glass explodes everywhere. Two more wolves are climbing through the shattered window and I’m backing up and my hands hit the floor and there’s glass everywhere, I feel it slice into my palms but the pain is distant because one of the wolves is looking directly at me with eyes that glow yellow and its lips pull back showing teeth that are way too long. I hear fabric ripping and bones cracking and when I look back at Rhys he’s got the first wolf pinned and his hand is around its throat except his han

20: Future Luna

The elevator ride down feels like it takes about years and I’m standing there with Kade’s hand still on my elbow while blood from the dead wolves dries sticky on my clothes and all I can think about is that Rhys just called me his future Luna in front of witnesses. Kade guides me to a black SUV that’s idling at the curb with another man I don’t recognize behind the wheel and I climb into the back seat with my hands shaking so badly I can barely get the seatbelt fastened. “You okay?” Kade asks from the front passenger seat and he’s turned around to look at me with genuine concern on his face. “He called me his future Luna,” I say finally because the words have been sitting in my throat like stones. “What does that mean?” Kade shifts in his seat and I see him exchange a quick glance with the driver before he answers. “It means you’d be his mate officially, the Alpha’s partner.” “He doesn’t even want that though,” I hear myself say and my voice sounds bitter. “About two hours ag

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