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“My name is Storm Walsh, and I was wondering if I could have a word with you.”She asked her how she got the number.“You know it, so I was able to get it.It wasn’t as easy as I thought.You have a very complex mind.”

“I don’t know what that means, so I’m going to assume that you haven’t complimented me.What do you want?”The woman laughed, and she felt her temper flare up.“I’m having my first breaksince I got out of bed this morning, and you’re fucking it up.What do you want and just so you know, the answer is going to be no.I have no trouble saying that nowadays.”

“No, I was just speaking to your sister, and she is upset with you—”

“What do you mean you were just speaking to my sister.Justine has her own life, and if she said I was going to pay for something, she’d be wrong about that, too.So whatever you’re selling, I don’t want it.Neither does she.”The laughter again, and this time, she found herself smiling.It was the sound of bells.She hadn’t any idea why it made her smile, but she did, and it lessened her temper just enough that she could talk to the woman.“Look.Justine has it in her head that I have an endless supply of money.I don’t.I have investments as well as other things that my money is going for.Whatever she conned you into, I have nothing to do with it.”

“She doesn’t know you won the lottery, does she?In fact, no one knows that you won nor that you’re the only one that did that week.”She asked her how she’d found out.“I told you, when you know something, I can find it.Not as easy as I thought it would be, but it’s right there in your mind for me to pick through.”

“You’ve read my mind.I didn’t get that the first time you said it.What is it you want?I’m not going to get suckered into a blackmail scheme with you.Whatever you think you know, it’s not going to get me to pay you hundreds of thousands of dollars, so you don’t tell on me.So state your business, and let me tell you no as well, and we’ll end this conversation right now.”She told her that she didn’t need her money.“That’s what everyone says just before they tell you how much they want from you.”

“All right, I’m going to get to the point.Several days ago, there was a man that came into your offices to get on as a potential job.And in doing so, you were going to do a background check on him.That would have led you straight to me.But he got waylaid and didn’t get to see you, so we have to do this the old-fashioned way.I call you.Now.I don’t know what was supposed to happen when you hired him.Once he got to your office and met you, you were to go to me, and since that didn’t happen for either of us, you didn’t get to meet my son, Melbourne.He’s your mate.”She didn’t say anything, thinking that the woman was quite mad.“I’m not mad at all but a very brilliant woman.I will tell anyone that.But you and Melbourne were to meet, and it didn’t happen, and it has to.”

“Perhaps the fates decided that I wasn’t supposed to meet him after all.Maybe they realized their mistake and decided to waylay him, and they were finished with me and him.”Storm said it didn’t work that way and that she was indeed supposed to meet him.“Whatever the reason that I didn’t, I’m happy for that.I don’t want to meet anyone who thinks that I’m going to be their slave forever.”

“Why does everyone think that?Has everyone read the same book and come to the conclusion that you have to be a slave to a shifter?I don’t know, but I do know that it won’t work that way with him.He’s a good man, and you two will have a good long life together.I promise you I raised him better than that.”Sammy told her good for her.“Yes, and it will be good for you as well.You must meet him.”

“No thanks.See how that worked?I told you that I’m really good at saying no.I have things in my life just the way that I want them, and I don’t want a man in my life.I had one of those in my father, and I don’t want to go through that again.You have a nice day, Storm, and I hope you find someone to pawn your son off on.It’s not going to be me.”

Hanging up the phone, she felt really good about herself.But her break time was over now, and she had things to do.When her phone rang again, she stepped out of the office and went about her daily chores at the restaurant.There were a million and one reasons she didn’t want to talk to Storm again, and only one of them had to do with her supposed son, who was to be her mate.