Page 5 of The Wrong Bond (Wolf Billionaire #4)

CHAPTER 5

ARLENE

A fter binge-watching five episodes of One Percent Love last night and cozying up in bed with Coral, I found myself lost in thought about the text Leah had sent me. Now, back at work, my overthinking had only intensified.

I glanced up from the glasses I was absentmindedly arranging upside-down to dry. My hands worked in very quick motions, and the low hum of the bar was quiet compared to the whirlpool of anxiety inside me.

I’d left Leah multiple texts since last night, asking her to give me a hint, at least, but it was very obvious that she enjoyed watching me panic. And I wasn’t just panicking; I was almost losing my mind.

But still, it had ignited a glimmer of hope in my otherwise very gray financial life. Leah was smart most of the time, and I knew she was doing her best to help me.

Just as I was about to grab my phone and text Leah, she burst through the bar doors, her cheeks flushed and her blonde hair all over the place from running. She was always in a hurry, and tonight was no exception.

“You look like you just ran a marathon,” I said to her as she practically collapsed onto the barstool in front of me.

“I had a date, and then I kept getting your texts.” She paused to catch her breath. “Also, you need to calm down with the texting, Ally. I have a life.”

I rolled my eyes at her. “You can’t text me something that urgent and then expect me to relax.”

“Fair enough,” she responded, tossing her designer handbag onto the bar with dramatic flair. “I’m done with your taxes, finally!”

I batted my eyelashes at her. “Oh, what would I do without you?”

“Absolutely nothing!”

“It’s almost the end of my shift, Leah. Spill the tea,” I demanded, my voice tight and impatient.

Leah, ever the dramatist, leaned back in her chair and tapped the bar with a perfectly manicured finger, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “First off,” she said, savoring the moment, “a drink, please, in exchange for information.”

“You’re just going to be a pain about this, aren’t you?”

She giggled. “Of course! I think my plan is brilliant, and you’ll have to work for it before you hear it!”

I rolled my eyes, but reached for a glass. “What will you be having then?” I asked, trying to keep the irritation out of my voice but failing miserably.

“Surprise me,” Leah said with a wink.

I mixed the drink quickly, my heart in my stomach. Leah knew how bad my finances were. Heck, she was the one who did my taxes, so she knew everything there was to know. And with Coral’s medical bills piling up, her upcoming surgery, and the hope that she’d get her own hospital room, I was swimming in debt.

Not to mention my late payments on almost all my bills.

Getting extra income that wasn’t dependent on the tips from the bar would go a long way, and I needed it with everything in me.

When I was done mixing, I poured the drink into the glass and added a mint leaf on top to appease Leah. I handed it to her and raised an eyebrow.

Leah took a sip, swirled the drink around in her mouth, and swallowed dramatically.

“Okay, so here’s the deal,” she began, leaning closer to me conspiratorially. “You know how my parents are trying to get into the clubs uptown so they can make connections and be considered part of the werewolf elite, right?”

“Yeah?” I said, and it sounded more like a question than a statement.

Leah’s parents had been trying to break into the uptown elite for what felt like forever. Even though they’d been wealthy for over twenty-five years, they were still seen as new money. It turned out that mingling with the uptown crowd was a lot trickier than they’d thought it would be.

“Well, they haven’t had any luck so far,” Leah started, twirling a strand of her blonde hair around her finger. “But my mom now has a couple of friends who are pretty close with the Eltons and?—”

I cut her off quickly. “Woah, woah. Where’s this going?”

She sighed and leaned forward again. “Okay, okay, I’ll get to the point. Remember when you were talking about Shawn the other day?”

“Yeah, for like two minutes.”

“I noticed a look in your eyes.”

I sighed, having an inkling where this was going. “I don’t like him.”

“You had that same look with Gerald Neeson back in college.”

“I was young and stupid, Leah. Can you stop bringing that up?” I groaned.

She shrugged, ignoring me. “That was the one time you looked like you genuinely cared about a guy, and I saw that same look in your eyes yesterday.”

I shook my head. “It was definitely the alcohol you laced my coffee with. It was freaking strong. I’ve barely known Shawn for a week, and we’re not even in the same league, Leah.”

“Nope, you like him. And you can be in denial all you want, but that’s not the point of all this.”

I felt my face heat up and quickly busied myself with wiping down the bar. “So what is?”

She took a sip of her cocktail for dramatic effect before she continued. “You don’t have to date him or anything, but you can use him to make some money. Shawn has a lot of mistresses, or so I’ve heard, and he is very generous with them. He clearly wants you for your body, so why not take advantage of it? No need to mention how sexy he is. There’s no harm done, and it’s a win-win situation.”

I stopped wiping and stared at her. “You can’t be serious.”

“I am.”

I scoffed, clearly shocked. “This is the wildest thing you’ve ever said, and that’s telling, because I’ve heard you say a lot of crazy things.”

“Is it really that crazy? Why can’t you at least try? He’s loaded, and it’s not like you’d be doing anything wrong. You’d get a lot of money, and he’d get what he wants.”

“Leah, that’s…I don’t know if I can do that,” I stammered.

“Why not?”

“Because he doesn’t like me like that?”

That was the worst thing I could say at that moment. I’d thought I didn’t really care what he thought about me, but now I found myself caring a bit too much.

I should’ve been more scared of the idea of being a mistress of one of the wealthiest alphas uptown, and while that was nervewracking, my current financial situation was much scarier.Coral’s hospital expenses were essentials, and everything I did was to give her a life I’d never had. And somehow, it still felt like I was letting her down. I would choose her any day, over anything, and I didn’t care what I had to do, even if that meant being someone’s mistress.

But Shawn Elton? There was something about him I couldn’t quite put my finger on. And no matter how confident I tried to look in front of him, I knew it was all a facade.

Could I handle meeting a powerful man like him behind closed doors? A man with a name that was whispered in hushed tones, a man with bank accounts that could swallow countries whole? It was a lot to think about.

Not to mention how devilishly attractive he was. Maybe the decision would be easier if I didn’t find myself sinking into the gorgeous blue of his eyes anytime I looked at them. He oozed alpha dominance that could melt glaciers, the kind that made grown women forget their names, let alone morals.

Leah shook her head quickly. “Arlene, this is not about him liking you. This is about him wanting to pay you to spend time with him. Those are two different things.”

To be fair, this was a brilliant plan, no matter how I wanted to look at it. It was the best way to secure Coral’s future and mine, to pay for the top specialists and experimental treatments that might buy her more years.

Coral deserved to watch One Percent Love every night without the fear of being poked with needles.

“I think he likes you,” a voice said beside me.

What? How long had Connor been standing there mixing drinks and eavesdropping?

“You know it’s rude to eavesdrop, right?”

“Oh, come on,” Connor said. “Don’t be modest. We both know that Shawn Elton wouldn’t leave his comfortable mansion uptown to come here and stare at the wall. He wants you.”

My stomach did a nervous little flip, because that seemed true. For a week now, he’d perched on the barstool in front of me and talked to me for hours on end. But a secret part of me, a part I refused to acknowledge, felt a flicker of…interest.

“So what do I do about this?” I asked, confused.

“Take advantage of it! If you won’t accept help from me, this is the next best thing,” Leah said.

I groaned.

“I’ve seen how he looks at you,” Connor added. “He likes what he sees, and he’ll definitely pay a lot of money for it.”

I chuckled nervously. “I feel like some kind of property he’s buying.”

Leah sighed, the sound heavy with exasperation. “Look, Ally, I get it. You’re fiercely independent. But come on, honey, your pride isn’t going to cure Coral. This could be the answer you’ve been waiting for.”

I knew she was right. Logic, cold and calculating, urged me to swallow my pride and consider this option.

“There has to be another way,” I muttered, my voice barely above a whisper. My gaze drifted across the deserted barstools. The bar was pretty slow tonight, which meant that I wasn’t going to be making a lot in terms of tips.How long could I keep going like this?

“If you won’t do this, will you at least let me and my parents cover Coral’s bills?” Leah asked.

I quickly shook my head. That was not up for debate anymore. “You and your family have done enough, Leah. I can’t keep accepting your help. I know I have to handle this stuff alone. I’m a grown-up.”

I wasn’t made for this kind of arrangement, though. I didn’t think I could handle giving just half of myself to him, considering that I found him very attractive. And the thought of just being another notch in his bedpost made me cringe a little.

“Think about it,” Leah insisted. “You’ve been struggling for so long, and this could be your way out. It’s not like you’re carrying out some insane crime. He’s more than willing to pay for your company. Besides, he’s sexy. To be honest, I’d be willing to pay to have sex with him.”

I took a deep breath, my mind going a mile a minute as I thought about what Leah had said. She was correct. This was a straightforward way to make money, but I’d never imagined myself doing something like this.

In college, I’d heard about downtown girls who got with uptown men like this and made a lot of money. Maybe Shawn was attracted to me, as they’d said, and perhaps I could actually use that to change my life.

Still completely lost in thought, I sifted through the documents Leah had helped me sort through. On the first page, she had written down all my urgent bills and their due dates, and the sprawling red ink all over the page made my stomach drop.

From car bills to water bills to rent to Coral’s overwhelmingly high hospital bills, there was no way I would be able to pay these off with just the money I earned from the bar.

Leah and her parents had bailed me out a lot of times. Now, I needed to get this done myself.

It was not the first job option I would normally jump at, but it was incredibly hard to get a good job downtown. Most people in my position would consider this a steal.

I sucked in my breath and exhaled. “I need to talk to him. What should I say?”

Leah reached out and held my hand. “Don’t overthink it, Arlene. You’ve got this.”

I nodded. “Yeah. I need to talk to Shawn.”