Page 8 of Billionaire Wolf Needs an Assistant (My Grumpy Werewolf Boss #2)

KATIE

The Song family mansion loomed against the twilight sky like something from a Gothic novel. Its dark weathered stone made an intimidating impression and the ornate towers and spires reached toward the clouds like claws. It was a relic from another time, an era of robber barons and gilded age wealth. Bare trees lined the circular drive, their gnarled branches creating strange shadows in the gathering darkness. Everything about this place was screaming at me to stay away. I did not belong here.

Reeve’s hand was warm and steady as he helped me out of the car, his touch lingering protectively at my waist. The mate bond hummed between us, still new and fragile, yet as natural as the beat of my own heart. It was only a week after we mated and already I couldn't imagine life without this connection. His presence was a balm to my frayed nerves, but even his nearness couldn’t fully quell the unease coiling in my stomach.

"We don't have to do this," Reeve murmured. "Mother's emergency family dinner can wait." Even though I could feel his anxiety through the bond, he still prioritized my comfort and safety.

I smoothed my hands over the navy silk of my dress. It was a straight-line dress that had cost a month's rent, but Reeve bought it for me without blinking an eye, as if a four-figure sum was spare change in the bottom of his pocket. The dress was beautiful, elegant, and utterly out of place on someone like me. I felt like an imposter, a girl playing dress-up in a world where I didn’t belong. But I straightened my shoulders. Reeve had chosen me, and I had to be the best version of myself. The version who was deserving of being mated to a Song.

I managed a smile that felt braver than I was. "Running won't help. Besides, how bad can it be?"

The answer came as soon as Grayson, the elderly butler, opened the massive front doors. Power rolled out like a wave, suffocating me under its weight, sending shivers up my spine. My breath hitched, and the hairs on my arms stood on end. This wasn’t just a home. It was a den of predators, and I was the prey who stumbled into their lair. I was in the presence of old money, older magic, and the wild energy of a house full of wolves.

Grayson led us to a formal parlor where twenty members of the Song family waited. The room was opulent, with high ceilings, crystal chandeliers, and walls lined with portraits of stern-faced ancestors. As soon as Reeve and I stepped past the doorway, all twenty pairs of eyes shifted to me with predatory focus.

Bits of information flowed into my mind through our bond. Not words, but impressions, emotions, and fragments of his memories that gave me a sense of Reeve's relationship to each person in the room, and where everybody stood in his family's complex hierarchy. The younger and lower-ranking members of the pack lingered around the edges of the room, their voices hushed and their heads low. But at the center of the room, seated in ornate throne-like chairs, were the dominant wolves. And among them was Reeve's mother.

Victoria Song rose from her seat with a calm, deadly grace that was as beautiful as it was terrifying. She wore a simple black dress and a strand of pearls. Her movements were deliberate, each step a reminder of her authority. She was the embodiment of centuries of breeding and tradition, the queen of her domain.

"Reeve. Ms. Clark," she greeted us. Her smile didn't reach her eyes and it resembled a predator baring its teeth in a snarl. "How unexpected to see you accompanying my son."

"Mother." Reeve's hand tightened on my waist, his body growing tense. "You invited us both."

"Did I?" She gestured to the assembled pack members, all beautiful, all powerful, all watching me with varying degrees of horror and fascination. "I merely suggested you bring a guest to tonight's family dinner to discuss some concerning developments regarding the company. I didn't realize you'd bring your assistant."

The way she said "assistant" dripped with judgment. Hushed whispers rippled through the room, punctuated by the occasional warning growl. The words human, disgrace, and bloodline drifted across the room. I lifted my chin higher. The mate bond flooded with Reeve's pride at my defiance. It was a warm, steady presence in my mind.

"Katie is my mate." His voice carried the strength of an alpha wolf making a declaration that made even the strongest wolves step back. Power rolled off him in waves. "She has every right to be here."

"Does she?" A man who could only be Reeve's brother stepped forward. He was younger than Reeve, but unlike the hidden vulnerability that my mate possessed, this man was all sharp angles and barely contained aggression. Daniel Song had the same dark good looks as Reeve, but where my mate radiated controlled power, his brother's energy felt volatile, a ticking bomb waiting to explode. "Why does she have the right to destroy everything our family built?" His eyes gleamed with malice.

My eyes darted between the three of them in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Victoria pinned me with her razor-sharp gaze. "Perhaps we should move this discussion to your father's study. You too, Ms. Clark, since you're apparently involved."

The study felt like stepping back in time. Three walls in the room were lined floor to ceiling with mahogany shelves holding leather-bound books. Centuries of wealth and influence oozed from every antique surface. A massive portrait dominated one wall. A regal looking man with the same dark hair and high cheekbones as Reeve and Daniel. It was Reeve's father, Augustus Song, painted in oils that caught the stern set of his mouth.

Victoria settled behind the massive desk like a queen holding court. "Let me be clear," she said, steepling fingers tipped with perfectly manicured nails. "This attachment cannot continue. The board of directors already has concerns about your leadership, Reeve. If word spreads that you've taken a human mate, then your position in the company will be at risk."

"My personal life is none of their business," he shot back, but I felt his anger simmering through our bond as he sensed the trap closing around us.

"It becomes their business when you control a company built on pack alliances." Daniel straightened his Italian suit, every movement screaming old money and older prejudices. "Or did you forget that your original investors were all wolf shifters?"

A lump formed in my stomach as Victoria pulled out a stack of documents, her movements calculated. "The formation documents are quite clear. If any pack partner objects to company leadership, they can force a vote of no confidence. And I'm afraid several members have already expressed concerns."

"You're blackmailing me?" Reeve's growl rattled the windows, his wolf pushing close to the surface. Pain and rage flooded through our bond. The betrayal cutting deeper because it came from family. "Using my company as leverage?"

"I'm protecting our legacy." Victoria's eyes flickered with specks of gold, her own wolf rising to meet her son's challenge. "Break the mate bond now, before it fully forms. Marry Sophia Roberts as planned. Or watch everything you've built crumble."

The mere suggestion of breaking the bond sent a searing pain through my chest. My hand flew up to clutch my chest and I let out a gasp. Reeve flinched beside me, his pain mirroring my own.

"This is insane." I found my voice, anger burning hotter than fear. "You'd destroy your own son's happiness for what? Pure bloodlines? Pack politics?"

"You know nothing of our world, human." Daniel's sneer revealed lengthening fangs, his control slipping. "Nothing of our traditions."

"Your traditions are destroying the person you claim to love." I met Victoria's gaze, refusing to back down even as her power pressed against me like a physical weight. "Reeve is brilliant at running this company. He's respected, successful, and honorable. And you'd throw that away because you can't accept that his mate is human?"

"His mate?" Victoria’s voice rose to a screech, her composure shattering as she stood. The air itself seemed to bow before her authority. Power crackled around her like lightning bouncing around the room. "You're nothing but a temporary distraction. A passing fancy that threatens generations of careful breeding. You think you can walk into our world and change everything? You're not worthy to be part of this family."

"Mother!" Reeve's booming voice cracked like a whip. "Enough."

But the damage was done. Tears burned behind my eyes as Victoria’s words cut deep, every insecurity I’d ever had about not being good enough for Reeve crashing over me. My pain and fear of losing Reeve reverberated through our bond, mixing with his own pain at his mother's cruelty.

Then Reeve's arm wrapped around my shoulders, his warmth and scent enveloping me. I leaned into him, drawing from the strength and comfort he provided. "You're wrong, Mother. Katie is exactly what our family needs. She brings light to my darkness, joy to my solitude. She makes me better." His chest rumbled against my back. "And if you force me to choose between her and the company? I choose her. Every time."

I held my breath, not really believing what I was hearing, but the mate bond resonated with the truth of his words.

"You'd throw away everything your family has given you? Your birthright?" Daniel demanded. "For her?"

"For love." Reeve's voice softened to something almost gentle. "The way Father should have done, before you forced him to marry for bloodlines instead of the woman his heart wanted."

Victoria went white. "How dare you."

"I found his letters." Reeve's words fell like bombs in the silence. "The ones you hid after his death. I got them out of the house before you could destroy them. There were boxes of letters spanning decades. I know about Caroline, his human mate. The one he gave up to marry you instead. The regret he felt haunted him until the day he died." He straightened, every inch the alpha wolf. "I won't make his mistake. I won't let fear and tradition steal my happiness."

In the portrait above us, Augustus Song's eyes seemed to glow in approval of his eldest son.

"Then you leave me no choice." Victoria's hands trembled slightly as she pulled out a folder from the stack of documents. She opened it. "After your father's death, Daniel and I control fifty-one percent of the Alpha Fang's shares. As of tomorrow, you're suspended from all duties pending a formal review. Perhaps some time away from the situation will help you reconsider your choices."

My heart shattered, but Reeve just laughed. It was a wild, animalistic sound I'd never heard from him before. "Keep the company. Keep the pack. Keep your precious traditions." He laced his fingers through mine, our pulses pounding in sync. "I choose Katie. I choose love."

We walked out of that mansion together, the weight of generations of expectations falling from Reeve's shoulders. With each step we took, his gait seemed lighter and more carefree, as if he were shedding chains he hadn’t realized he wore. His joy and relief flowed through the mate bond, a balm to my bruised heart.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered once we were in the car.

He silenced me with a kiss, long and deep, his love pouring into me through the bond. "You're worth more than any company," he murmured against my lips. "We'll build something new together, something fresh and untainted."

I leaned my forehead against his. "What about your family?"

"You're my family now," he said, his voice firm and unwavering. "You and whatever future we create together. The rest is just details."