The Wolf’s Billionaire by Layla Silver

Chapter 12 – Ainsley

Turning the creaky rack slowly, I selected three of the most beautiful postcards on offer. Carrying them to the counter, I showed them to the old woman sitting behind it. Her gnarled fingers never slowed their knitting but she smiled and nodded at me, indicating that she’d put them on my tab. Thanking her, I moved back out of the shop’s cool interior into the warm sunshine.

If I’d been more on top of things, I’d have been hesitant when Kaia suggested Isla Mujeres as a place to get away. I’d never liked traveling by myself and I was sure I’d have been overwhelmed by the idea of traveling across national borders alone. As it was, though, I’d been functioning about as well as a sleep-walker. When Kaia had promised that she knew somewhere safe and affordable and warm far away from Bas, I’d nodded and moved on auto-pilot to go pack. Kaia and Renly had put me on a plane at Logan and checked in by text at every stop to make sure I was okay.

I didn’t have clear memories of landing at Cancun International Airport or hiring a cab or the ferry crossing to this little island paradise. Nor did I really remember checking in to the small apartment Kaia had rented for me. I remembered only crawling beneath the sheets and breathing in the unfamiliar scents of the tropical air and then deep, blessed sleep.

Now, after being here for a few days, I could see why Kaia had recommended it. Aside from her own personal history here, it was quiet and beautiful. I spent long stretches of time on the beach, staring at the ocean, and went for long walks, picking up pretty shells and watching the boats far out at sea. Somehow, it was easier to think here, away from everything else.

The more I thought about my fling with Bas, the more I decided that the universe had meant it as a wake-up call. A smack upside the back of my metaphysical head to clue me into how selfish I was being. I had a wonderful new job coming up, my pack was on the path to restoration, and I had good friends. It was the height of greed to want anything more, much less to think I ought to have a mate who worshiped me the way Bas had pretended to.

Walking slowly along the worn plank sidewalk, I promised myself again that I would do better when I got back home. I’d find new ways to invest myself in my pack and our town. New activities to fill my empty hours that were more constructive and selfless than curling up on the couch with a good book or an old movie. I wouldn’t leave myself open to being taken advantage of again.

Glancing down at the postcards I carried, I rubbed a thumb over the one on top. I needed to reinvest myself in my family, too. Teagan was going to get married and Grayson would likely be expanding his business soon. Neither of them had ever needed me, per se, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t be supportive now. Maybe I could even mend the rifts between us. That would be good for the pack, and it was something I should have done ages ago anyway.

Yes, as much as it hurt—sometimes so much it felt like dying—my fling with Bas and his subsequent loss had been the hard shove in the right direction that I’d very much needed.

“Ainsley.”

I stopped dead in my tracks, my stomach flip-flopping. Bastian stood on the sidewalk ahead of me.

Brown cargo pants and a khaki t-shirt showed off his powerful form but dark circles under his eyes and fine new lines at their corners spoke of strain and sleepless nights. He held his hands up, palms out.

“Please,” he said, his tone pleading. “I just want to talk.”

“You’re not supposed to be here.” I took half a step back, aware even as I did that running would be pointless. My sandals were perfect for a walk on the beach but I’d break my ankle if I tried to run. Kicking them off would leave my bare soles at the mercy of hot wood and sand, which wouldn’t get me much further.

“Yeah.” His mouth quirked up into something between a smile and a grimace. “I know. I spent a lot of money on a PI and bribes to find you and if you decide not to forgive me, I’m pretty sure Renly’s already decided which foundation at the resort he’s going to bury me under.”

The hot words bubbling up inside me dissipated, uncertainty taking their place. “You hired a PI to find me?” That was as romantic as it was ridiculous.

He glanced around, making sure there was no one in earshot. “Your pack wouldn’t tell me where you’d gone and I couldn’t wait until you came back to explain.” His expression crumpled as if in pain. “I love you, Ainsley. I wasn’t lying when I said I’d leave my life in Baltimore for you. That’s what I was supposed to tell you over breakfast—that I didn’t mean to keep lying, I was just trying to protect you.”

Movement over his shoulder made me aware that in a moment we wouldn’t be the only people on the sidewalk any more. Jerking my head toward to beach, I said stiffly, “come on.”

He followed me, dropping his hands and keeping his distance but carefully staying where I could see him, too. Pausing just out of reach of the water, I took off my sandals then walked forward into the edge of the surf. The water lapped refreshingly at my toes as I turned to face him and lifted my chin.

“What exactly did you think you were protecting me from?”

“Renly.”

My incredulity must have shown on my face because he hurried to continue.

“My father’s firm, Spire Investments, has had a longstanding relationship with his mother. Allegra Carrington suggested to my father that whatever her son was up to was a cover for fraud. I went to check it out, to see if it was a threat to the firm or the Carrington Foundation.” His mouth flattened. “I didn’t know about shifters or shifter politics. When I figured out that Renly’s project was the one you were involved in I was afraid for you.”

“That’s absurd,” I spluttered. No one had ever worried about me, certainly not like that.

“Is it?” he insisted. “You were so happy, Ainsley, and I know what kind of person Allegra Carrington is. If her son had been like her—I needed to make sure everything was above board so that I could get you out safely if it went bad. It’s stupid, I know that,” he added, bitterly. “Renly told me that lying to the woman you love is a recipe for disaster and I meant to tell you at breakfast, but then you were in that damn dressing gown and my brain just shut off. I had to have you, to make sure you knew how I felt before I tried to explain the messy bits.”

“But you got interrupted,” I said slowly.

I didn’t want to believe him. I wanted to stay angry, to wrap my hurt around myself like a shield and send him away and make sure I’d never have to suffer like this again. But if he’d truly been trying to protect me…

“My father had a heart attack.” He scrubbed his face with his hands. “And several strokes. I spent four days at the hospital, doing nothing but coordinating with his doctors and trying to keep him alive.”

Oh.

His face set into a mask of control but the wolf in me could smell the grief on the air. “We lost him and in the rush to try to save him I lost you, too. I never meant to hurt you, Ainsley. I swear it.”

“You are what they said you are, though,” I accused. “A financier. Not a photographer.”

“I am a photographer,” he countered. “Semi-pro. I’ve sold my work for a lot of money and I do love it. I also use it as a cover story so that I don’t have to tell every person I meet that I’m a stupidly rich banker and endure their scorn as they assume the worst.”

That sourness was back but this time I thought I could see the pain underneath.

“Kaia and Renly didn’t lie. I was a Vice President for Spire Investments—I guess technically I still am for a few more days until all the contracts go into effect.”

“Contracts?” I asked in spite of myself.

“I’m founding my own firm.” His eyes fixed on mine, the hope in them enough to make tears spring to mine. “I’m going to call it Ally Investments and I’d like to set up on Main Street. Offer funding for the kind of infrastructure your Inn is going to need. Join the fight the revitalize the region and protect the pack.”

“Why?” I asked, my voice cracking.

“Because I want you to marry me,” he said, stepping closer. “I want to buy you a house, Ainsley, and fill it with our pups. I want to be there every time you have an anxiety attack and I want to buy you vintage gowns and take you to the openings of all Renly’s snobby restaurants. I promise I’ll never lie to you, again.”

“Bas—Bastian.” His full name felt odd on my lips. “I’m not—I’m not sure I can. My mother—she’s been married five times and she can’t ever make it stick and I think I’m like her.” I could feel anxiety starting to spiral again. “I love you, I do, but I’ll ruin this. I’m selfish and—”

Bas’s arms were around me and he lifted me up, heedless of the wet sand on my feet smeared on his pants as I wrapped myself around him.

“You’re not.” He kissed me, shorting out my dark thoughts and snapping the anxiety off at the root. “What happened to your parents is on them, Ainsley. It won’t happen to us.”

“You can’t know that,” I mumbled into his shoulder, clinging tighter. “I could make you miserable and you’d be trapped—”

“I’ve been trapped.” Bas brushed my hair back and then tugged gently at it, pulling my head back to make me look at him. “I was trapped in Baltimore, Ainsley, searching desperately for where I belonged. And then I found you. The only thing that will make me miserable is losing you. Say you’ll take me back, that you’ll marry me and let me spoil you rotten for the rest of our lives. Or at least that you’ll give me the chance to win your trust back. Please.”

Tears came in a hot rush as I nodded, burrowing into his embrace again. “Yes. Yes.”