Page 44 of Devil May Hunt
All of those people had been wrong about him.
He wasn’t friendly or carefree.
He was a master of disguise.
Chapter 13:
It felt good being honest. Refreshing. Like a weight was lifting off his shoulders, and there was a chance he really could come up for air.
That was probably why he pressed forward, despite the danger. Despite knowing if he took one wrong step and pissed the alpha off, he’d be dooming himself to a punishment he most likely didn’t want to endure.
He’d realized something since waking though—a few somethings.
Maybe this wasn’t as bad as he’d initially thought.
Maybe Gunho was right, and they had more in common than either of them knew.
“You chose a mate who can’t procreate to stick it to your grandfather,” he surmised. “But you get anxious and annoyed whenever I’m not speaking my mind.” He knew he was right when Gunho’s brow dipped low. “Really, you want the same thing I want. A partner. Someone who will have your back. It’s that. That’s your weakness.”
“How so?”
“I can exploit it.” Brennon took a single step closer but then stopped. “Give,” he retreated the same distance, “and take.”
He’d thought the alpha had acted on impulse when he’d made a claim on him, but he could see now there was more to it than that. Gunho wanted him, and not just for his smell or his hole. The alpha truly wanted to make this work, to form something lasting between them.
Set his own terms? No one had ever cared about Brennon enough to offer something like that before. But, even though that was what he’d always wanted, to have someone care about him, Brennon realized why it’d been so easy for the people he’d taken an interest in to not reciprocate.
The alpha was phenomenal in bed, easy on the eyes, and an interesting conversationalist.
But Brennon didn’t care about him the same way he did. He hadn’t spent thirty-plus years longing for a mate the way Gunho had. He’d sought out understanding and interest, sure, but if the situation with Rin had taught him anything, it was that Brennon had never yearned for romance.
The alpha had tricked him, trapped him, and used him.
Why couldn’t he return the favor?
Gunho was quiet for a moment and then drawled, “I give you Cree Cosmetics, and—”
“You take me.”
“I already have you.”
“On paper.” He shrugged a single shoulder nonchalantly. “On paper, I’m the run-of-the-mill boy next door type. Non-threatening. Vanilla.”
“I’ve had you in bed,” Gunho stated appreciatively. “There’s nothing boring about you, pretty lover. Do you dim yourself on purpose? Whatever for? What are you hiding from?”
“Inadequacy?” He shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. Sure, you’ve technically got me right where you want me, and if you were only interested in pissing off your grandfather and appeasing those alpha instincts that are attracted to the fact youcan smell me, that might be enough for you. But you’re like me. Greedy.”
Brennon had practically made it an art form to want things he couldn’t have. To want the unattainable. To reach for the stars, so to speak.
To hide that fact and act nonchalant about it all.
Instead of getting angry and fighting against them whenever his parents said he couldn’t do something, he’d gone along and proven them right. His stubbornness meant cutting off his nose to spite himself, just for the fleeting burst of satisfaction that came from knowing they were disappointed.
Cree Cosmetics was never going to be his, despite his last name. He’d overheard that part as well. They’d been planning to pass it off to one of his cousins. The fact that they’d changed their mind and ended up selling it to a member outside of the family meant Gunho had made an offer they couldn’t refuse.
But that offer had nothing to do with Brennon.
He’d given up on his childish dream of following in his grandmother’s footsteps. Helming the company had always been her plan for him, but she’d died before he’d finished his teen years, taking with her the only person who’d ever had any sort of faith in his abilities.
