All Chapters of TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS : Chapter 291 - Chapter 300

Isabella POV My skin crawled where Gwen had touched me.Anyone watching us would have thought she'd come to check on Maverick out of kindness or whatever story she'd cooked up. No one would have guessed she'd walked away after quietly reminding me how easily everything I'd built could disappear.I'd stood my ground and reminded her she wasn't the only one with something to lose. But the more I replayed the conversation, the less comfort I found in my own words.Yes, I had leverage. If Gwen exposed me, questions would be asked about why their family had spent years pretending I didn't exist.Even so, what did they really have to lose?At worst, Wesley would question Barbara. People would gossip for a while. The embarrassment would pass. Barbara was beautiful, accomplished, and loved by everyone around her. They could explain things away, mend the cracks, and move on with their lives.I, on the other hand, had nothing waiting for me outside these gates.Gwen's voice echoed inside my he

Isabella POV I had five minutes left before lunch break ended.Five minutes that should have been enough to eat the sandwich I'd packed that morning. Instead, it sat beside my sketchbook exactly where I'd left it, untouched and already beginning to go stale.Emerald took charge of the department the moment Luna Lisa left for her trip on Sunday. Coming in on Monday to find out Doris had traveled with her should have warned me how the week was going to go. The only two people Emerald ever seemed to restrain herself around were gone.Iris hadn't traveled with them, but she called in sick, and just like that, I was alone.Emerald didn't waste the opportunity. Every criticism she'd apparently swallowed in Doris' presence came pouring out the moment there was no one left to stop her."You don't belong here. You don't even have enough experience to be a janitor. You got this job because someone pitied you."She said it while I was sketching. I ignored her and kept working.Anita's gala dres

Isabella POV My hand fumbled for the transfer letter inside my bag. I'd checked before leaving the Alpha House and checked again while waiting for the shuttle. And now, sitting on the bus, my fingers found it one more time to make sure it hadn't somehow disappeared between stops.After everything that had happened yesterday, I needed the reassurance of feeling the stiff paper beneath my fingertips.The seat beside me dipped."Good morning, beautiful."I looked up to find Harrison from accounting smiling as he settled beside me."Morning."He placed his bag on his lap before looking at me with an expression that was far too cheerful for this early in the morning."I keep thinking this transfer was somehow meant to happen."I scoffed."What do you mean?""Think about it." He gestured between the two of us. "Out of every department in the administration, you somehow end up in mine."I shook my head. "I wouldn't exactly call being framed for theft destiny.""No," he admitted with a chuck

Wesley POV The conference room slowly emptied after the meeting with the supervisors from the oil fields. Chairs scraped against the floor and conversations drifted toward the hallway as the men headed back to their respective sites.I was making a few notes on the production reports before filing them away when the door opened and Barbara stepped inside carrying a large cream-colored gift bag with neatly tied handles.I looked up and smiled."I thought the meeting would never end.""It almost didn't," I said, getting to my feet as she walked around to my side of the table and hugged me.One of the supervisors poked his head back through the doorway."Alpha Wesley, the oil spill from this morning has been fully contained. The cleanup crew finished about twenty minutes ago.""Good. Keep me updated if anything changes.""Of course."He disappeared again, finally leaving Barbara and me alone.I pointed toward one of the chairs across from my desk."Sit."She did, setting the gift bag ca

Isabella POV Day three in Accounting, and things couldn't have been going any better.It wasn't all smooth sailing as I'd been handed a mountain of files. But it wasn't the kind of stress that came from bullying or people going out of their way to make life difficult. No one was watching my every move anymore. I could get up to use the restroom without worrying I'd come back to find my work drenched in coffee.At first, I'd been reluctant to ask for help, worried people would think I was incompetent, especially when it came to things I genuinely didn't know. Harrison had been busy, and I didn't want to interrupt him, so I asked someone else on the team instead. He walked me through everything without mocking me or making me feel stupid. I hadn't realized how much I'd been expecting ridicule until it never came.As for Emerald, the devil in human form, she'd been called in for questioning. I couldn't stop myself from smiling when HR informed me they were investigating my complaint an