Talons

Chapter 123: The Reason

Rhea’s POV

Colton wasn’t kidding when he said that he wanted me to use my phone within his view, so I had to sit in his office as I worked.

Fortunately, he didn't look over my shoulders, so I was able to get into my meeting platform, vote on important matters, and confirm a launch date for the newest product to be added to our lineup.

I still have the controlling majority for the company, but I don’t flex my power unless I absolutely have to. My compost mix is patented under my name which means it's in the company's best interest not to try and buy me out; otherwise, they will have to pay me to produce and sell the compost, which would ultimately cost them more money.

So far, I haven’t had any issues, but something is telling me that if I remain absent for too long, it will come back to bite me. So I’ll have to work up my trust with Colton fast if I don’t want that to happen.

After taking care of business, I called Coach Jim, who was surprised to hear from me. He gave me the information I needed, and I quickly put together a quote for Colton.

Instead of just repairing the temporary classroom, I'm going to buy another one and connect the two, using one end as toy storage and the other as the area where the children will learn and play.

Colton’s eyes go wide at the amount of money I will need, and he looks up at me as if he is going to be sick.

“Rhea… We can’t afford this.” I very desperately want to tell Colton that ‘he’ can’t afford it, but I refrain.

I didn’t even give him the real quote, because once it surpassed 100K, I knew he wouldn’t even let me do it.

“Remember, this is just a quote. Coach Jim will help me whittle it down more.”

“But 20k? Rhea, do you even have that much?” Caught in a situation where lying could accidentally lead to telling the truth, I settle for middle ground.

"When I worked for Claw, I saved my earnings. I have three times that amount in savings." I have millions in savings, but Colton doesn't need to know that.

"You have what? And when did you work for Claw? Babe, wait please. Sit and explain this to me."

I didn't miss Colton's use of the word babe, but I may be reading too much into it. People have always called me baby, and Jamie called me babe all the time.

"I'm a rogue, so I couldn't get a pack allowance. I had to work to survive."

"But I thought you were a tutor."

"I-I was, but I also surveyed their fields and monitored the soil quality."

"You're amazing," Colton says, and I can't help but to make a face at him.

Colton's POV

Listening to my mate tell me that she had to work to support herself while in school makes me angry, but also fills me with pride.

She clearly isn't someone who will expect me to take care of her, and while I want to, realistically speaking, she’s financially in a better place than I am.

I don't know if she realizes that what she’s doing is really going to solidify her position as luna among the omegas, but since her end goal doesn't seem self-helping, I concede to her plans.

"How long will you need to get everything done?" I ask, and my mate surprises me by telling me that everything will be delivered by a supernatural friendly crew in the morning. "You've already paid for it?" I ask in shock.

"No, no. My credit is good, so I can pay it over time."

"Babe, please talk to Mandy about managing your resources. I know there is nothing between us now, but soon, what's mine will become yours and I don't want us to struggle."

Rhea's POV

I gawk at Colton because I can't tell if he's being serious right now. The man literally threw mud in my face, now he’s talking about us becoming one; I don’t think so.

“Alpha Colton; this isn’t fair to you. I’m not the woman you want, it's the mate bond that’s clouding your judgement. Maybe you and I should stay away from one another so that you can have time to think.”

Unmarked mates who spend time away from each other can experience a weakening of the bond. The more time they spend together the closer they become, and from what I remember my mother telling me, the proximity can encourage a she-wolf to go into heat.

Since I have never gone through a period of s****l urges, I likely won’t be affected by it, but Colton’s pull toward me will still become stronger because he is.

“Rhea, please stop offering me solutions that only benefit you. I’ve told you already, I’ve wanted you for a long time.”

“And if I still looked the way I did when you said I was too ‘big’ or too ugly?”

“I would still want you, and if you looked the way you did when you were fourteen, I would still want you, and if you looked the way you did when that omega was hurting you, I would still want you.”

“But-”

“No Rhea. There is no but.” Colton stands and starts walking closer to me. I retreat in fear, but he keeps walking until my back touches a wall, and when he raises his hand, I flinch. “I don’t like that you think it's your appearance that drew me to you.” I look up at Colton who pushes a strand of my hair behind my ear. “Can you please accept that I'm not the person I used to be, and it's all because of you.”

“What do you m-mean?” Colton takes a deep breath before taking another step, effectively pinning me against the wall with his body. I turn my face away from his, terrified by the proximity and the suggestiveness of the position.

Colton's POV

I take a deep breath of my mate's scent before backing away from her. She’s still terrified of me, and for good reason. When I backed her into the wall, it was the first time that I noticed how tiny she is.

Luna Mavis is on the shorter side as well, but Alpha Jay is as tall as my father, and Lark is in the same height category.

The twins are also tall girls, so unless their mother's genes are dominant in Rhea, something else must be wrong with her.

Wolves are typically taller than humans, and while Rhea is above average height for a human female, she’s short among our kind, even comparing her to omegas.

"Our mate is fine, and she asked you a question." I wasn't implying that Rhea was sick, but Orlin's irritation is justified. If I start doubting my mate’s health, I may inadvertently put a bigger wedge between us.

"Rhea, please believe me when I say that anytime that I've done something kind was because of you." My mate is still pressed against the wall, and I hate it. Well, I don’t hate it, I plan to press her against many walls.

“I never asked you to…”

“No, you didn’t, but every time I saw you being nice to someone, I would try to duplicate the gesture.” Rhea finally looks at me, and I take the opportunity to explain in detail.

After I caused her to prematurely shift was the first time I ever experienced any sort of empathy toward her. The way she looked at me back then was, and is still heartbreaking to me, and I tried hard to make up for what I did by doing nice things for other people.

Janet was only eight or nine when her mother died, and for some reason, I felt compelled to help them. In part because I told myself that saving three lives would make me feel less guilty about what I did to Rhea.

Unfortunately, it didn’t help much, so I kept treating people better until the pain went away, and it's part of the reason my father hasn’t given me the title yet. He sees me as weak, when in reality, I was just broken.

“Colton, do you not remember slinging mud in my face at my nephews meet and greet? All I did was look in your direction. Tell me, how is that being nice?”

“That was uncalled for. I was angry with you because I thought you and Jack were messing with my head. Especially since you had already blocked my number.”

“I didn’t even know who you were and I-”

“Rhea,” I interject. “You don’t have to explain. You owed me nothing, but I was already feeling a pull toward you, I was just too dumb to realize it.”

Rhea’s POV

Colton talking to me like this has my wolf on edge. I’m not sure what he is doing or what his end goal is, but I don't want any part of whatever mind game he is playing with me this time.

It was a mistake for me to have continued talking to him after the first incident with his girlfriend, and now he is trying to spin things as if he was just waiting for me.

“Colton, I-I blocked y-you because your girlfriend asked me to stop texting you, so I did.”

Colton’s POV

The closest thing I have ever had to a girlfriend is Jessica, and at that time, she was no more than a girl I liked having s*x with.

“She’s going to bring it up,” Orlin warns, and I hold my breath as my mate continues speaking.

“I’m nothing like girl A, or girl B; they liked you, and wanted you for who you are, you shouldn’t have to change yourself to please anyone. Please Colton: reject me so that you can be happy."

“Rhea, do you know that every time you ask me to reject you it makes me want to hold onto you tighter?” My mate’s face scrunches in bewilderment, and I find myself chuckling at how cute she is even when she isn’t trying. I don’t want her to intentionally try to turn me off, so instead of answering the question her face is asking, I move on. “I trust in the bond. If I have to change to be with you then that is what I will do.”

“But you won’t be happy with me. I’m not even your type.” It's true that Rhea was never the kind of girl I would have gone for in the past, but that was back then.

“When you're ready, I will show you how wrong you are.”