Page 3 of His White Moonlight (Dominant CEO Shifter Romance #1)

“Bennett,” Storm cooed, catching his tailored coat sleeve. “It’s been so long since you came out for a run.”

He dislodged her breast-pressing arm hug.

“Unfortunately, I’m not out for a run.” His gaze shifted to me, and his pupils flared a little like Storm’s had. “What are you doing out here, Wrenly?”

I knew better than to lie. He’d smell it a mile away. So I smiled innocently.

“Running. Exchanging barbs with Storm.”

“I caught her trying to climb over the wall,” Storm said as if she were some kind of hero instead of a girl so desperate for a guy’s attention she looked two seconds away from leg-humping him.

“Careful, Storm. You’re close to panting.”

Her simpering gaze filled with rage as she glared at me. I grinned unrepentantly until Bennett grabbed me by the arm—the shoulder she’d stepped on—and started towing me back toward the car.

Storm’s whine followed us. I wanted to do the same, but for a different reason. My shoulder was still aching, and I didn’t want to go back home with Bennett and his disapproving stares. Or, worse, his mind-numbing interrogations.

He didn’t say anything by the time we reached the road, which just meant he was bottling up all his annoyance. He went straight to the car and opened the passenger door for me.

“I can drive us back,” I offered.

“Get in, Wrenly.”

With a sigh, I plopped into the seat. He closed the door and walked around the front of the car. He’d been smart not to put me in the driver’s seat. I would have been too tempted to run him over.

“Are you going to tell me why you were trying to leave?” he asked once he got in.

“And bore you with the inner workings of my insignificant mind? Never.”

He started the car and pulled away from the shoulder. “Why do you think you’re insignificant?”

“I don’t. You do.” I felt the weight of his glance, so I met it with an arched brow.

“I don’t think you’re insignificant, Wrenly.”

Of course, he didn’t. He found me to be a significant pain in his ass and had since as far back as I could remember. I didn’t say that, though, because I knew he’d feel obligated to prove otherwise.

Since I wanted to avoid the second Spanish Inquisition, I gave him what he wanted—an answer.

“I was going to surprise Mom, Dad, Aiden, and Karter at the office.” I purposely didn’t think of all the other things I’d also wanted to do so that I wouldn’t smell like a liar. In the few years I’d lived at home, I’d perfected how to lie-not-lie. It was a skill I’d kept honed.

Bennett didn’t say anything more until he’d parked the car in the garage.

“Aiden and Karter aren’t at the office.”

“Okay. Then where are they?”

“Away.”

He opened his door and got out. I scrambled to get out and follow him into the house.

“Away where?”

“Where doesn’t matter. They’re busy.”

If there’d been a pan on the stovetop, I would have tested my backswing on Bennett’s head…once I stood on a chair.

“I never thought I would miss school,” I said under my breath.

He paused and glanced back at me. “Because you can’t chase after Aiden and Karter?”

“No. Because I have the joy of experiencing house arrest and death by boredom. Welcome home, Wren.”

His pupils did that dilation thing again, letting me know I’d struck a chord.

Good. He could go tell Mom and Dad that I was already wanting to leave. Maybe they’d be more accepting of the “I’m going away to college” bomb I planned to drop later.

“If you’re bored, follow me.” He left the kitchen without looking back.

I glanced at the pot rack hanging over the island and cursed my five-foot-two-inch T-rex reach before following in his wake.

He took the hall leading to my old bedroom. I narrowed my eyes when he walked through the door, fully understanding why I’d been displaced.

Bennett.

I entered the office and watched him unplug the second laptop from the desk.

“Here,” he said, handing it to me. “Twelve subsidiaries are operating at a loss so far this year. Look at their expenses and find a way to mitigate further loss.”

“Why didn’t you just tell me to slam my head in the door?”

He sighed heavily. “I know you’re smarter than you pretend to be. Do the work.”

“What’s in it for me?”

“What do you want?”

My attitude did a quick about-face. Bennett never negotiated. That was what made him so boring. Had he actually loosened up a little while I was gone?

I considered him as I thought about what I needed most. Backup, inarguably. But could I count on Bennett? No. I needed to start small with him and build up some trust that these negotiation tactics were safe…then BAM. I’d own him.

“My dear, dear Bennett, you’ve asked the right question.”

His pupils flipped out, dilating and contracting at an alarmingly non-human rate, serving as a reminder that blatant flattery annoyed him. So I quickly toned it down.

“Going through five months of expenses for even half those subsidiaries is going to take forever. How about one, and you call Aiden to tell him I broke his moon lamp.”

Bennett’s typically stoic expression cracked a little, and I saw a very brief frown.

“Are you going to break his lamp?”

“Of course not. I know he loves that thing. I just want him to experience a little emotional damage. A teeny amount of harmless revenge for standing me up today. That’s all.”

“No deal.”

I set the laptop on the desk and turned to walk away.

“One subsidiary, and I’ll take you for a drive.”

I whirled around. “With me behind the wheel?”

“Yes.”

“You have yourself a deal.”

Did I want to drive Bennett around? No, I did not. But this wasn’t actually about getting something I wanted. This was about opening negotiations with the resident dictator.

I scooped up the laptop and settled sideways into the oversized chair positioned near the door. He didn’t say anything about my choice of location, which was good. I knew I’d have questions he’d be able to answer.

The accounting classes I took in school helped me figure a lot out on my own. I exported the expenses and created a spreadsheet with several pivot tables—by vendor, account, and user.

I immediately spotted several places where savings could be made. Office expenses were extremely high. Who still needed that much printer paper? It was called email. Save some trees. And why were there so many meals expensed? It was a car dealership.

Was Bennett messing with me?

I snuck a glance at him. He had his elbows on his desk and his hands clasped in front of him, putting his shoulders in a position that seriously strained his suit coat as he read something on his screen. Whatever it was, it couldn’t be good. His jaw was clenched, and his pupils were wide.

Was he ever in a good mood? I doubted it.

Even if he was messing with me, I knew to let it slide until he looked less angry.

I typed up all the “misappropriations of funds” in a separate documentation, summarized my recommendations, then minimized those screens to download an old-school Minesweeper game for Bennett to find on the hard drive later.

When I stood, he looked up from his screen.

“What are you doing?”

“Getting a snack and moving around. Want something?”

He looked down at his screen without answering.

I shrugged and left his office with a better understanding of why he was at home and not at the main office. Wulf Enterprises would lose employees left and right with Bennett’s cold presence.

Since it was already past five, I raided the fridge and found a square of lasagna that I could pop into the toaster oven. Mom didn’t believe in microwaves. She said it changed the taste of food. My taste buds weren’t as advanced as hers. Neither was my patience. Using the toaster oven took forever.

So, I set the timer and wandered my way upstairs to spread some torment via text.

Me: Well, that’s disturbing.

Aiden: What?

I grinned, glad he was the one to take the bait.

Me: What I found in your room.

Karter: You’re that bored that you’re going through our rooms?

Me: Yes! Bennett made me do loss analysis on a subsidiary.

Aiden: I pity Bennett.

Karter: May he rest in peace.

Me: You should pity yourselves.

“What are you doing?”

Since I was lying on my back with my head toward the door, I had to arch my neck to see Bennett.

He didn’t look happy. Again. Or maybe still.

He glanced at my neck. It probably was a little bold to expose my throat to someone who looked like he wanted to rip it out, so I sat up.

“Harassing Aiden and Karter while I wait for my dinner to warm.”

“And the analysis?”

“Done.”

“All twelve?”

“We agreed to one.”

“You said it would take forever. It didn’t.” He stepped back and gestured for me to follow him.

“After you,” I said with a smile.

His gaze narrowed on me in a way that looked like both a threat and a promise, and my brows shot up. He growled something I couldn’t hear and stalked away.

Me: Bennett’s in a mood. Come home soon.

Mom: We will. Love you.

“Soon” turned out to be ten at night. I was already in bed with Bennett’s dumb laptop. I’d analyzed another subsidiary and had a good start on the third when I heard voices in the hallway.

I looked up as Mom and Dad walked in, smiling.

“Wrenly, I’ve missed you so much,” Mom said, coming to hug me.

“I missed you, too, Mom. Dad.” I smiled at him over her shoulder, and he smiled back. Mom was the touchy, affectionate one. Dad was the loving-from-a-distance one. I knew it was a mate thing.

“Sorry we weren’t here to welcome you,” he said.

“Is something bad happening at Wulf Enterprises? Milo said staff was cut, you’ve been at work all day, and Bennett has me doing expense analysis on loss-leading subsidiaries.”

“Oh, sweetheart, no,” Mom said, hugging me harder briefly before pulling back and meeting my gaze. “Everything is fine. I promise.”

I didn’t believe her for a second. She looked nervous, and if I had the nose she did, I’d bet my hard-won savings she’d smell nervous too.

“Okay. Fine. Don’t tell me what’s going on then.”

She glanced at Dad, and they shared a look.

“Bennett said he gave you something to do because you were bored.”