REJECTED AND LOVED BY A RED WOLF

THE PRICE

CHAPTER 3

Ava stood in the middle of the room lost in her thoughts.

What happened to her a while ago? She asked herself.

Aside from that, what was more disturbing was Brandon himself. Ava had almost forgotten how handsome he was. Time made him into a mature-looking man that even increased the striking charm that made people easily surrender to him.

Werewolves always had a unique charm inherent to them, but Brandon’s charm was more pronounced, more notable–more lethal.

Brandon walked closer to her. Her breathing started coming in short bursts, and her heart pounded in her chest rapidly. She wanted to take her eyes away from him but couldn’t.

He had the same charming face as she remembered, but his eyes lack the gentleness that she had seen with him before–as a matter of fact, the gentleness was replaced by aversion, hardness, and resentment. He looked dangerous, ruthless–with a heart made of stone.

A cold sensation run down her spine. What exactly happened to Brandon for the last five years that made him like this? The question roamed in Ava's head.

Her breathing eased when his steps halted a few meters away from her, and he turned in the direction of a mini-conference table.

“Are we going to talk about business, or you’d rather… we stare at each other for the rest of the day?” he shook his head from side to side, expressing his objection to such an ordeal, “I have no time for a staring game, Miss Stark,” Brandon spoke in a monotone voice. He walked towards the small conference table and sat on one of the chairs without even asking Ada to join him.

Ada followed him just the same. She pulled one of the chairs opposite him and gathered her bearing, breathed in and out several times, and then faced her opponent with determination in her eyes.

“Ah–I-I am so sorry. I was a bit distracted,” Ada shakily apologized. “Of course, I am ready to discuss the proposition.”

She wouldn’t allow Brandon to shake the little courage she managed to build over the past two days.

She was prepared for the difficult bargaining as they haggled on terms and conditions and whether or not he would allow them to purchase the plant for them, but–she was unprepared to feel the mate pull from someone she had long rejected, not to mention the very obvious changes in Brandon’s personality.

And the way Brandon was treating her…he seemed over the MATE PULL. He seemed unaffected.

Strange--Ava thought.

Ava couldn't understand any of it. If Brandon was over the mate pull, why was she not?

His presence, scent, and whole being intoxicated her to a point where he was like the very air she breathed…without him—there was no difference between life and death. Only a real mate's pull could make wolves think and feel that way.

“Shall we begin?” Brandon asked, bare of emotions.

“Right!" she bobbed her head, " I believe my brother Avie sent you the proposal?” she asked objectively.

Brandon checked the time on his wrist, in a way letting her know how bored he was and there was somewhere else he would rather be than waste his precious time with her.

“Ms. Stark, I receive numerous proposals daily. Would you expect me to keep a copy of something that I had already rejected?” his face grim.

She felt a sword had been pushed into her heart. She figured Brandon had no intention of agreeing to the proposition. He simply wanted to tell that straight to her face.

Ava was beginning to believe coming to this negotiation was a terrible mistake.

But–not yet. Ava pulled a folder from her document case and gave Brandon a copy of the same proposal. “Here–” she pushed the folder gently towards him.

Brandon smirked, he had expected that Ava would present to him another copy, and he was right. He took it, opened the folder, and read the content.

After a minute or so, Brandon put down the folder and said, “Nothing about this interests me. I suggest—”

Ava cut him off.

“Even if we increase the buying price by 10%?” Ava proposed. She kept her voice nonchalant.

Brandon scoffed, “Even if you double your offer, I still won’t accept.”

He stared at her with his cold, sharp turquoise eyes.

His response made all of Ava’s hope that she could convince him to sell them the woodii plant, jump out of the window. Although half of herself expected it, she still felt that he had driven a knife into her chest for some reason. The pain caused a hot sensation at the back of her eyes, and in seconds she knew that tears would well in her amber eyes if she couldn’t contain herself. She blinked those tears away.

She also didn’t expect her heart would ache. It was only a business proposition, but she couldn’t disassociate the rejection of the business deal and the rejection of a personal deal. It felt like he had rejected her.

Weird. Strange. Odd.

Considering she was the one who rejected him five years ago.

Ava took a couple of deep breaths, putting back her defenses.

“Why?” she asked softly. Meeting the coldness of his gaze with equal coldness. Her face and eyes were red, but she didn’t care about his opinion of her appearance.

He frowned and looked at her with probing eyes. Assessing her need and how far would she go to get hold of Nickwell’s commodity–he got the answer he needed.

“The answer is simple, and our managers had expressed it to your brothers numerous times. The plant you need is intended for something else, and if I sell it to CatStark, the harvest won’t be enough to sustain our own need.” He explained objectively.

“Even the excess? No matter how low the quantity–we are willing to buy,” Ava stressed out. She was certain that even if the quantity was low, it could still be helpful in their perfume production until they could find another source.

She sounded desperate, but her company's desperation had long been obvious. It didn't matter now.

“There is no excess,” Brandon stated firmly.

Ava's shoulders and jaw dropped. No matter how she tried, Nickwell’s response to CatStark’s proposition remained the same–they wouldn’t sell.

Silence fell in their midst. Ava couldn’t find the right word to say anymore.

Brandon looked at her intently, observing every emotion he could read in her face.

Ava stared at the window right on the back of Brandon to avoid staring right back at him but saw nothingness. Her mind was full of remorse at her failure to secure the one thing CatStark ever needed from her, and she was near tears at her failure and guilt.

Ava was startled when Brandon's deep voice entered her headspace.

“How much are you willing to sacrifice to get me to agree to your proposition?”

For a brief moment, Ada’s eyes beamed with excitement, and a flicker of hope crossed her mind, but realizing Brandon’s lack of consideration and indifference to CatStark’s needs, she shouldn’t hope much, she told herself. Otherwise, he would crush her heart with his bare hands easily.

“It is not all about business, Brandon. For sure, you know that the perfume CatStark sells helps werewolves conceal our distinctive scent. They could interact with humans without revealing their true identities. If we stop producing and selling this product, how about them? What would happen to those wolves?” Ada spelled out.

Brandon’s response was full of inconsideration and indifference as she expected: “It’s still business no matter how you look at it. I’m sure you still have another source that could help with the werewolves' requirements. But you also profit from humans–that perfume was sought after by men and women worldwide. It remained your best-selling product, won many awards, and everyone seemed enchanted by it–Your enhanced enchant collection is a money-maker.”

After what he said, they both fell into another void of silence.

Ava forced a smile on her lips after a few minutes of silence. She had accepted defeat. It would be better to leave the place as soon as possible to avoid further humiliation in front of the now stone-hearted Alpha in front of her.

“I think I can no longer change your mind. Thank you for your time, Mr. Nicholas,” she followed him in addressing with formality.

Ava took the folder she gave him back to her case and prepared to stand up from her chair.

Brandon frowned.

“I gave you time, even if I didn’t want to. I say when the conversation is over…right now–I did not dismiss you yet.” Brandon’s voice was not even this time.

The ice he built around himself seemed to crack and melt a little–he showed some emotions and he didn’t like it. He was not supposed to show emotion in front of the woman who broke him.

On the other hand, hearing his words, Ava stared at him blankly. Her movement stopped as she gazed at him with displeasure building inside her. She was fully aware that if she listened to him more, she couldn’t hold on to her temper.

Ava was red-haired, after all. Her temper was naturally short, but she was thankful that she was raised with an emphasis on courteous goodwill. Poise, grace, and good manner were strictly instilled in her upbringing. She learned how to control her temper and her RED wolf, Hera.

“Answer my question, Ms. Stark. What will you sacrifice to make me agree to your proposition?” Brandon repeated his question.

“Tell me instead what can make you agree to sell to CatStark. It will save us from back and forths,” Ada responded boldly. Challenging him this time as she was near exploding without regard for its outcome.

Brandon laughed sarcastically.

He repeatedly shook his head, left and right, annoying Ava even more.

“I am not interested in selling our harvest, but what can entice me is the business itself. I want a piece of CatStark!” He stared at her with a peculiar expression in his eyes.

Ava’s eyes open widely at his bold remark.

She breathed out exasperatedly and accepted that they had reached the end of the line.

“We stopped selling shares a long time ago. We had bought back the stocks of our investors, and I don’t think any of us would be willing to sell now and in the future. My father was firm on this. CatStark would always be 100% Starks,” Ava responded sincerely.

“Did I say I am buying?” he chuckled in such a way that whoever had heard of it would feel foolish and crazy.

Both their eyes spoke volumes when they locked.

The sarcastic smile rose on Brandon’s face once again. He said, “My dear Avalline Stark. If you want the uninterrupted supply of the almost extinct plant? I will offer you no option but to–” he paused. Evil intention crossed his eyes.

Ava held her breath, expecting her doom, the price she had to pay.

His retribution, his revenge! Her blood.

“Marry me!” Brandon declared.