Page 94 of Alpha-Ex Wedding Ruse
If he still believed I betrayed him, why do all this? Why protect me? Why go this far?
Did he think throwing money at my problems would make me forget what happened five years ago? That it would somehow cancel out the nights I cried myself to sleep while raising our son alone?
I curled my fists until my nails bit into my palms. Rage burned through me.
I didn’t crawl my way through hell just to have Luca Vaughn sweep in and play savior like I was some kind of charity case.
He didn’t get to buy back his conscience. Not like this.
Before I could think betterof it, I found myself hailing a cab to the last place I wanted to be: Vaughn Industries.
The entire ride, my pulse thundered in my ears. My wolf stirred restlessly, scraping the edge of my control. She was anticipating seeing our Mate.
Thirty minutes later, the cab pulled up in front of the Vaughn Industries—a sleek building, with mirrored glass on every inch and corner. Once upon a time, this place had been my dream. A career milestone. Now, it looked like a nightmare. One I had no business walking into. But I walked in anyway. No, I stormed in.
The lobby came to a standstill the moment I crossed the threshold. Heads turned. The ones who knew me gawked like they’d seen a ghost.The ones who didn’t just looked confused—probably newer hires who had no idea why the air had just cooled ten degrees.
I stalked past them all toward the front desk, where Jasmine, the receptionist, froze mid-sip of her green smoothie.
“Leila…” she said, her voice coated in disbelief.
We weren’t friends. Just two women who used to nod politely in passing five years ago.
“I want to see Luca Vaughn,” I said firmly.
Her lips parted, hesitation already forming. “I don’t think he’s—”
“Just call him and tell him I’m here.”
Something in my tone made her blink. Then she nodded, picked up the phone, and dialed.
Her eyes flicked to me. “Could you inform Mr. Vaughn that Leila Carter is in the building?”
A pause.
“Okay.” She hung up and looked back at me. “He said to send you up. Would you like me to show you the way?”
“I’ll find my way. Thank you.” I turned before she could follow me.
Luca’s office was on the executive floor, the eighth floor. I hit the button for the eighth. The elevator dinged open to the familiar hallway leading to Luca’s office.
When I reached his door, I didn’t knock. I shoved it open, trying to suppress my excited wolf.
Luca was behind his desk, sleeves rolled to the elbows, his tie hanging loosely around his neck. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing the hard lines of his throat. His eyes were already on me, like he’d been expecting me.
He leaned back in his chair like a king on his throne and dragged his gaze down the length of me—slow, deliberate, lingering too much on my waist. Heat surged through me.
The air in the room seemed to pull tight.
I hadn’t worn anything remotely seductive—just a green jersey T-shirt, black leggings, sneakers, and a coat thrown over it all. Functional. Practical. Uncomplicated. But the way he looked at me made me feel like I’d worn something provocative.
“Color me shocked, Leila,” Luca spoke, his voice smooth like whiskey poured over ice. Dry humor laced every syllable. “I thought you’d impaled a stick the size of a javelin between us to keep me at bay. And now, here you are. Miss me that much?”
“I do not,” I snapped.
I crossed the room and planted my hands on the edge of his desk, gripping it hard enough to ground myself.
“Don’t you play coy with me, Luca. You know exactly what you did.”
