Page 27 of Rejected by My Stepbrother Alpha (Billionaire Shifter Club #1)

H ighly Unlikely

Asher

When Ivy walked into my office, my heart nearly stopped. Her auburn hair was pin-straight, and she had on a cream-colored dress that hugged her curves the way I wanted to. Her plump lips were painted red to match her high heels, which made her toned legs even longer.

I’d been discharged from the hospital yesterday morning, but this woman was going to put me right back in there.

“Good morning,” she said in that alluring voice.

I sat there for a moment, staring at those red lips, wondering what they’d look like around my…

Get a grip!

I hadn't seen her since she snuck into my hospital room to see if I was all right.

We'd left things with my unanswered question about Damian and her. I mostly slept yesterday after Healer Emery released me. Well, I tried to sleep. I tossed and turned in my bed that was freezing cold, imagining Ivy’s warm body was there beside me.

But it wasn’t just Ivy that I couldn’t stop thinking about.

When I’d given up on sleeping yesterday, I went into my study to try to get some work done. But I’d be in the middle of checking emails or reading a report when Adrian’s gap-toothed smile would pop into my mind.

As crazy as it sounded, talking with that little boy had been one of the highlights of my life.

I’d displayed the card he’d made for me on my desk at home, and whenever I looked at it, my heart burst with joy.

I couldn’t explain the bond there seemed to be between us.

When Adrian said he wanted to be an Alpha like me when he grew up, I’d been rendered speechless with pride.

Although Ivy looked stunning this morning, I couldn’t let her beauty distract me. I wanted to know the truth about Damian and her. I wanted to know if Adrian was Damian’s son. I was aware that Ivy didn’t owe me this information—she didn’t owe me anything after I had rejected her—but I had to know.

Wondering was driving my wolf and me crazy.

Even though Healer Emery had advised me not to transform for a few days, I ran through the woods last night in my other form.

Of course, I ended up in the woods behind Ivy and Adrian’s hotel.

I sat there and stared up at the dark windows, wondering which rooms they were sleeping in, wondering what they were dreaming about.

As I sat there, I decided that even if Adrian were Damian’s son, I’d still want to keep in contact with the boy, given that I had Ivy’s permission.

There was this innate desire inside of me to guide Adrian through life, to give him advice and to be a trustworthy person he could come to when he was in need.

When I was running back to my house last night, I’d howled at the moon, my heart and soul aching for Ivy and Adrian.

Now, I stood from my desk chair and buttoned my black suit jacket. As I stepped toward Ivy, the pain in my chest lessened.

“Good morning, Ivy,” I said, putting my hands in my pockets so I wouldn’t reach out and cup her soft face between my hands.

Her pupils dilated when I said her name. Recently, I noticed that her body seemed to have a reaction every time I said her real name.

“How are you feeling?” she asked, her eyes glancing down at my lips for a fraction of a second.

“I’m as good as new. I was lucky. The accident could have been a lot worse.”

“Is your car totaled?” Ivy questioned.

“Yes, but I'm not worried about the damage, I'm worried about how the accident happened.”

Ivy let out a little gasp that made my mouth go dry. “You don't think your brakes failed by accident, do you?”

I leaned against my desk and crossed my arms. Ivy took a few steps closer to me.

“I think it's highly unlikely. I have my mechanic and an accident specialist looking into the matter,” I said. “Hopefully, I get some answers soon.”

Her eyes searched my face. “For now, you should be extra careful,” she murmured and took another step closer to me.

“Careful,” I warned, my tone slightly teasing. “You don't want to seem like you care about what happens to me.”

“Of course I do,” she answered without missing a beat. I froze as her blue eyes burned into mine. “How else would we finish the Alpha king project without you?” A small smirk ghosted across her face.

I liked when Ivy was in a playful mood. I never got to see this side of her.

“Is that all I'm good for?” I murmured and slowly reached my hand out to tuck a lock of her hair behind her ear.

Her red lips parted in a silent gasp, and desire filled her eyes.

“I can think of many other things that you're good for,” she whispered. As soon as the words were out of her mouth, shock flitted across her face as if she couldn't believe what she'd said.

Is Ivy flirting with me?

Instead of pulling my hand away, I gently cupped her soft cheek in my hand. Under my touch, Ivy’s cheek grew warm and red.

I gently stroked her soft skin with my thumb. “What am I good for, Ivy?”

“Well, you’re pretty tall, so I suppose you’re good at reaching things off of high shelves?” she suggested, a small smirk playing on her lips. “I’ll call you next time I’m in need of something on the top shelf at the grocery store. ”

A low chuckle burst from my mouth.

Ivy’s quick wit was just one of the many things that had always attracted me to her.

My eyes strayed to her mouth. All I had to do was lean forward a few inches to find out what those sweet, plump lips tasted like.

Goddess, what I wouldn't give for just one kiss from this beautiful woman.

But one kiss would never be enough to satisfy my insatiable hunger for her.

Her eyes went over to the pots of ivy that I'd hung from the ceiling in the corner of my office.

“Do you like them?” I asked in a low voice and trailed my fingers softly down her arm.

She shivered in response, her eyelids fluttering closed. I grasped her hand and pulled her gently toward me until our bodies were only a breath away.

I leaned forward and put my lips right next to her ear. “Every day, when I look up at those plants, I think of you,” I confessed. “I have some in my office at home, too. Even when I wanted to forget you, I still couldn't help but surround myself with reminders of you.”

Ivy's eyes shot open, and her expression turned to one of deep longing.

The pull on my heart was persistently tugging me to her, demanding that I close the distance between us. Of their own accord, my hands pressed against the small of her back, pulling her warm body flush against my overheated one. Her honeysuckle scent surrounded me, affecting me like a drug.

“Ivy,” I muttered.

She bit her bottom lip and tilted her head to the side.

I cupped her face and drew her mouth to mine. My body ignited with desire when her soft lips pressed against mine ever so slightly, and I—

“Ivinia? Where are you? Everyone's ready…oh.” Damian's voice came from the door to my office.

Ivy and I sprang apart like teenagers caught in the act.

Damn it.

I narrowed my eyes at Damian.

Surprisingly, there wasn't a hint of jealousy in his expression, just embarrassment and a touch of dislike when his eyes met mine.

“We need you two in the conference room so we can start,” Damian said. Before we could reply, he turned around and walked away.

Hm.

His reaction was interesting. Damian seemed more annoyed than jealous to finding us kissing.

“We should go,” Ivy said, an attractive blush spreading across her fair skin.

“I'll catch up to you,” I replied, smirking. “I have to wipe your lipstick off my lips.”

“Which prototype do you like better, Asher?”

I barely registered Cooper's question. I was too busy staring at Ivy and Damian.

Ever since our moment in my office, Ivy had been avoiding me.

It could be my imagination, but it seemed like she was controlling the work so that we were separated.

Along with Damian, she was leading our project team in putting together our proposal to present to Anya soon.

My vice president and I were working with our engineers to nail down the design for our prototype.

I was convinced that with our combined efforts, we would win the Alpha king account.

All day, I'd been watching Ivy and Damian. My stomach stiffened with jealousy as I watched them work together. It seemed like they had an inside joke for everything. During a working lunch—where I’d ordered in from a Mediterranean restaurant around the corner—I saw Ivy point at a plastic fork, mumble something under her breath, and they burst out laughing.

The thing that I envied Damian for the most, was the calm that came over Ivy whenever she was around him.

Her entire body was relaxed around him, and her expression was open and inviting.

Whenever she was around me—or even when our eyes would meet across the room—her body would tense, as if she were preparing herself for something.

As if she were preparing for me to hurt her again.

I forced myself to concentrate as I looked down at the two sketches of our product prototype.

My finger traced the bigger motor that Ivy had suggested when Damian and I were arguing over which camera would be better to put into our product.

Ivy had found a better solution, which reminded me of my conversation with Adrian about mediating.

When Ivy had said that Adrian was a natural-born leader, a strange kind of hope filled me.

Even though I knew it was impossible, I thought that meant Adrian could be my son.

But now I knew that had just been wishful thinking.

Adrian had inherited his leadership traits from Ivy.

As I talked with him, I’d realized that she was the reason he was such a good kid.

I glanced across the room at Ivy, who was standing by the large touch-screen board, pointing to the screen and explaining a concept to the team. The group around her nodded and took notes on the tablets in front of them.

I was the stupidest man alive for allowing her to get away—for sending her away.

“I like option two,” I said, finally answering Cooper’s question.

He nodded and wrote down my vote.

Was I one of Ivy's options? Would I even make the list?

An hour later, we were wrapping up after a long day.

Only Ivy, Damian, Cooper, and I were left in the conference room.

Damian and Ivy were packing their things and discussing what they should have for dinner.

I was trying to pay attention to Cooper telling me about a date he had last night, but all of my attention was focused on planning a way to get Ivy alone to see if she and Adrian wanted to have dinner with me.

I nodded goodbye to Cooper when he left, and I was just about to go over to where Ivy was sitting, when the sound of light footsteps distracted me from my plan. When I glanced up, I saw Adrian running through my office.

Automatically, my face broke into a large grin as Adrian bounded into the room.

I thought I felt Ivy's eyes on me, but when I glanced over at her, she was gazing adoringly at her son.

He was wearing a shirt with a bright red race car on it, brown shorts, and a dark green baseball cap stuffed on top of his wavy hair. Adrian's mismatching clothes just made him even more endearing.

“Hi, sweetie,” Ivy said and hurried over to pull her son into a hug. “Did you get yourself dressed this morning?”

“He sure did,” Mason said from the doorway, grinning at Adrian.

There was always a twinkle in his eyes when he looked at Ivy's son. Again, I wondered if this was because he was fond of the boy and was helping out Ivy by watching him during this business trip. Or because Mason was Adrian's grandfather.

Tonight, I will find out the answer to my questions.

I would find out the truth…even if I didn't like what I learned.

“Asher!” Adrian said excitedly, to the surprise of everyone in the room—including me.

Ivy's son raced to my side and threw his arms around me. I was frozen for a moment, but instinct took hold of me, and I embraced him back. My heart filled with so much joy that it felt like it was going to burst. Adrian carried the faint trace of Ivy's scent, but he also smelled like…me.

The room was silent as Adrian pulled away and grinned.

“I'm glad you're not in the hospital anymore. How are you feeling? Did my get-well card make you feel better? I bet it did.” Adrian said as he bounced on his toes. He was talking so fast. It took me a moment to process what all he'd said.

“I'm feeling a lot better, thank you. And it's definitely all thanks to your card,” I told Adrian.

His answering smile had the same effect on me as watching a beautiful sunrise.

“How much sugar has he had?” Ivy asked Mason.

“None,” Mason replied. “He's been begging me to take him here all day so he could see a certain someone.” He inclined his head at me.

My heart lifted .

Adrian turned to his mom, but stayed by me. “Mom, can I please go to the playground with Asher? Pretty please?”

Ivy and I looked at each other. She raised her eyebrows, and I nodded.

“Yes, you can. But on one condition,” Ivy said and held up her pointer finger.

Adrian looked at his mom with suspicion. “What's the condition?”

“I'm going to come with you guys, and we’re going to the diner first for dinner,” Ivy said and grinned.

“And dessert?” Adrian said as he jumped up and down.

When Ivy nodded, Adrian pumped his fist in victory. “Asher, you have to try this key lime pie. It's the best ever!”

“I can’t wait to try it,” I said. “You’re the expert, so I trust your opinion.”

Ivy giggled, and the sound was music to my ears. “You say that about every key lime pie you try,” she told her son.

“Yeah, because every slice I have is the best ever,” Adrian said like this was obvious.

Everyone in the room laughed at that.

Five minutes later, I was in my office packing my briefcase when I heard a pair of whispered voices gradually growing louder. Curious, I looked out my doorway and saw Ivy and Damian talking farther down the hallway.

“—really think this is a good idea? Have you even told Asher the truth?” I heard Damian whisper, his voice carrying.

My stomach dropped. The truth about what? That he was Adrian's father? Maybe he was Adrian's father, but Ivy and he weren't a couple? My head spun with all the possibilities.

“I know what I'm doing, Damian,” Ivy replied, her tone terse. “This is my life. Let me live it.”

Damian sighed. “You're right. I'm sorry for butting in.”

After that, there was only silence, and I retreated back into my office with even more questions bouncing around my head.