Rejecting My Shifter Boss by Skye Alder

Six

Roman

MovingKiera’s desk into my office three days ago was a stroke of genius. My wolf had demanded it after being forced to pace inside of me and watch her sitting so close, yet so far away.

I thought having her near me would be enough, but I was wrong. There were too many feet between us, not to mention a door. That wouldn’t do, especially considering the claw marks I left on my oak desk while I was trying to hold my wolf back.

God, every glimpse of her was sweet torture. Watching her little brow furrow in concentration, and the way she nibbled on her bottom lip while reading through her emails drove me right up to the edge. When Kiera combed her fingers through her bright red locks, I had to tear myself away from her and hide out in the private bathroom in my office.

My teeth elongated when she pushed her hair away from her neck, revealing her creamy skin. My wolf charged at me, snarling for us to mark her, mate her, now, now, now.

Despite almost shifting out of pure, primal need, I couldn’t have her so close but so far from me. I’m supposed to be wooing her, after all, and I can’t do that by just staring at her or growling about fated mates. I need a way in.

That’s why I’ve been stopping before work for the last few days to grab her a bouquet of flowers and something to eat from the café down the street. The first day was roses, but she didn’t seem impressed by them. Next was daisies, then tulips. The tulips seemed to be her favorite, so I stopped and got her some blue ones today.

The same goes with food. I’ve learned she doesn’t like anything too heavy, so pancakes and breakfast sandwiches are out. Instead, she has a bit of a sweet tooth and prefers pastries and tea.

Learning more about her has helped to calm my wolf. It’s certainly not the kind of claiming he wants to be doing, but I remind him she’s human. She needs me to claim her heart and her mind before she lets me claim her body, too. He’s constantly sulking these days, unless Kiera is near. The beast really is trying to be on his best behavior now that we have a plan. Breakfast and flowers don’t seem like enough anymore, though.

I need more. More of her time, more of her attention.

It’s time for stage two.

“Why don’t I order us lunch today?” I suggest half an hour before her normal lunch break.

“I brought my lunch,” she says with the utmost professionalism. The woman has been more determined than ever to remain neutral toward me, which is precisely why I need to step up my game.

“Save it for tomorrow,” I suggest. She looks up at me and I can see her debating it. Those green eyes tell me things her pretty mouth never would. My mate isn’t completely unaffected by me. “Please,” I say before she can turn me down. Kiera seems surprised that I didn’t demand her presence, and to be honest, so am I. Nothing about my feelings toward Kiera are polite.

“Alright,” she finally responds. I barely refrain from beating my chest in victory. “I’ll need to tell my sister and Everly that I’m not able to meet them.”

“Go ahead. I’ll order us lunch. What would you like?”

“I can get anything?” she asks and my wolf sits up inside of me. Her smile is more playful than I’ve ever seen, and Christ, my dick likes it. I want her smiles every day. Sweet, sassy, playful, devilish, I want them all.

“Anything,” I growl. “Just name it.”

“New York strip steak and fried potatoes, with a Caesar salad and the chocolatiest thing on the menu for dessert.” Kiera looks at me with a satisfied grin, as if she thinks ordering an expensive steak meal will put a damper on my feelings for her. Not a chance in hell. I think it’s hot that my mate wants to eat the very best, and it does my wolf good to know we can provide that for her.

“Done.”

She smiles again, this one a little sweeter as she grabs her phone and sends off a message. My wolf whines. He wants her phone number and for her to smile at us like that.

I send a text to my beta, telling him our order and he promises to have it here in under half an hour. I spend the next twenty-two minutes studying Kiera and researching strategies for first dates.

Today, this lunch, is my chance to learn more about my mate. Kiera isn’t like any human that I’ve ever met. She doesn’t like to talk about herself and getting her to share anything can feel like pulling teeth most times.

The only piece of personal information I’ve gotten from Kiera was when she came into the office Wednesday morning, looking absolutely exhausted. Her hair was a mess piled on top of her head, there were heavy bags under her eyes, and she kept yawning every five minutes. I asked if she had a rough night, and my mate nodded her head sleepily. She said it’s exhausting always being on the lookout, and confided that bad dreams kept her tossing and turning all night.

It wasn’t much, but to me, it was everything. Of course, as soon as Kiera realized her slip up, she turned away from me and promptly ignored me the rest of the day. I still consider it a win. I don’t know why she’s always on the lookout, but I’m hoping she’ll open up about it to me over lunch today.

“Here you go,” my beta, Fredrick, says as he sets our lunch down over in the sitting area.

“Thanks. That will be all,” I tell him and he nods, being careful to keep his eyes to himself as he heads past Kiera and over to the elevator.

I place my hand on her lower back as I lead her over to the couch and my wolf breathes her in, wanting to take a bite out of her instead of our steak. I wish my hand was on her bare skin. I’ve been dying to feel her skin against mine, to see all of her. My mate is a tiny thing, but she’s still all woman. Her breasts look like they’d fit perfectly in my hands and mouth, and her ass...Jesus, I fantasize about grabbing it, lifting her up, squeezing her cheeks as I press her back against the wall and plunge into her depths. Soon. But not yet.

Kiera starts to take out the food and I sit down next to her on the couch, only leaving an inch between us.

“What do you like to do outside of the office?” I ask her as she passes me my salad.

She shrugs. “Eat. Sleep. Read.”

Okaaaay, not exactly the opening I was looking for.

“Are you from Colorado?”

“No. Out east.”

“Any family nearby?”

A look of panic flashes across her features, but it’s gone in an instant. If I couldn’t smell her momentary fear, I probably would have missed it.

“No,” she’s quick to respond. “Except my sister.”

“What brought you to Colorado, then?” I press.

“Job opportunities.”

I’m starting to grow frustrated that all of my questions are met with one or two word answers, but I’m not giving up that easily.

“Your sister works at Leader of the Pack Advertising, right?”

“Yeah, she’s really creative and she’s always been great at drawing and design. I’m glad she likes her job so much. It makes everything worth it.”

I’m not sure what “everything” is, but Kiera has a smile on her face. I can’t help but match it. It’s obvious she loves her sister very much. It’s the only thing she’s talked about with any level of excitement in the last few days.

“Is she older than you or younger?”

“Younger by a year.”

That also fits. Kiera is the protective older sister, always looking out and taking care of her.

“Is that who you usually have lunch with?”

“Her and this new girl that I met, Everly. She was your second assistant.”

I vaguely recall the shy girl who used to work up here. I think she’s Archer’s assistant now, or at least she’s working over there.

Kiera devours her food like she hasn’t eaten in weeks, and I make a mental note to correct that. I don’t know what all she and her sister have been through, but it’s clear they haven’t had an easy go of it. As much as I want to scoop up my mate and tell her I’ll take care of everything from now on, I know that would be too much.

She’s the protector, the one who has called all the shots in the past. My mate isn’t used to being the center of someone’s universe, but she will be soon enough. Patience, I remind my wolf.

“I should get back to work,” she suddenly says as she starts to clean up the mess.

I move to help her and our hands brush together. She looks over to me, our faces are so close together I can feel her warm breath blow across my lips.

My wolf howls, wanting to bite and claim her and I only barely manage to hold him back. This close, I can see a few freckles splashed across her cute little nose and rosy cheeks. Her sweet cotton candy scent wraps around my body, drawing me closer to her.

She sways toward me, ever so slightly, craning her neck to look up at me. I brush the tip of my nose against hers, breathing in her scent, her warmth, her very essence. I want to kiss her. I want to do so much more, but now isn’t the right time. I can’t rush this. She needs to know about me, about what I am first.

I reluctantly pull back, shoving the empty takeout containers in the bag. Kiera stands there for a second, as if collecting herself. I can’t help the grin that spreads across my face. She feels the pull, too. She has to.

Kiera clears her throat as she moves back behind her desk. She seems almost disappointed that I didn’t kiss her, which pleases me to no end. However, I didn’t get to be the CEO and alpha of my pack without being able to read people.

Kiera isn’t ready to learn the truth yet.

But she’s close.