The board room was quiet when he entered, but he heard some of them audibly gasp when they saw who was walking behind him. He felt a small tug of disappointment, he hates how they are so open about how they don’t really respect him, especially now that his company is in the brink of danger. They were at least trying to be subtle before. But now that they know they all have power over him, they are all showing him outright disrespect.
They were all standing up by the time they made their way to the front of the room. Mr. Wong was standing far back, and he has a suspecting look on his face.
Klyde roamed his eyes around the room, making sure to meet everyone’s eyes. He wants them to know that he’s not affected by what’s happening. He hopes his front is convincing, because he feels so fucking terrified right now. He has to physically stop himself from fiddling with his fingers because of how nervous he is. His head turned sharply to his left, where Wade is standing, when he felt his hand settle on his lower back. He must have sensed that he’s nervous, the scent is subtle but enough for Wade to smell because he is standing beside him. Wade wordlessly nodded at him, gesturing to start the meeting so he took a shallow breath before once again looking ahead.
“Good morning. Let’s start the meeting, shall we?”
Things settled like how it used to, the board sat down once the meeting started. Louis, Klyde’s secretary, got an extra swivel chair for Wade. He sat at the head of the table while Klyde remained standing. He went on to discuss his company’s current status, the case of investors pulling out and their financial situation. They were all attentively listening, some still shameless enough to cast obvious glances at Wade who is also quietly listening.
“My marriage with Mr. Curtis now will lead to a merge that will hopefully save our company. We have yet to discuss the grounds of the merging that will happen, but since his company handles travel agencies and chains of hotels like us, the merge would be easier—”
“So, you decided to sell yourself out?” someone said cutting him off, he turns to find the owner of the voice and of course, if someone had the guts to say that it would be him, Mr. Wong. That fucker.
“Excuse me?”
The older alpha looks so smug while sitting on his chair. His smugness oozes out of him, an irritating smell. He made a show of checking his fingers.
“You decided to sell yourself out. Isn’t that what happened? Pathetic excuse of a marriage,” other board members are exchanging nervous looks. They’re casting worried glances between the alpha and Wade who is still silent on his seat, observing.
“Do you really expect us to believe that you’ve been dating all this time? That sudden engagement was bullshit!”Klyde folded his hand into a fist. He can’t believe him.
“Mr. Wong—”
“The omega who built a legacy on his own, suddenly tying himself up with an alpha? Right in the middle of a company crisis too? What a coincidence, huh.”
Spikes of anxiety and fear permeated the air in the room but the alpha dominance and smugness was the most prominent.
“I wonder how you did it? Was your scent that good that it charmed Mr. Curtis? Or did you present yourself like the submissive omega that you should be? Whore.”
They all froze at the warning growl that resounded in the room. Low and long. Klyde is shocked when it registered on him that the growl indeed came from the alpha quietly watching the scene—Wade. His scent is strong, challenging. But Mr. Wong paid it no mind, the annoying smirk still present on his lips, eyes glinting with something like mockery.
“I advise you to watch your words Mr. Wong”, Klyde said sharply. He’s had enough of the older alpha. He can’t just let him humiliate him in front of his people like this.
“You be careful, Mr. Taylor. I am still the chairman of the board. We should’ve voted you out of the company the moment this problem started. You wouldn’t have made it this far without us. Know your place—”
A loud snarl interrupted them. It was dripping so much of alpha dominance that the other few omegas in the room all bowed their head, alphas letting out a low growl of their own in retaliation, fighting for dominance.
Wade stood up from his seat, his own angry scent battling the smug alpha scent Mr. Wong is emitting. His chest is rumbling with the vibration of his continuous growl.
“Mr. Wong,” Wade started after retracting his growl.
“You are very brave.”Mr. Wong scoffed at that.
“As I should be.”
“Your bravery won’t take you to the place you’re aiming to, I’m afraid. Threatening my omega in front of me?”
My omega. It should make him feel proud to be called that. But it drips with ownership, and that leaves a bitter taste in Klyde’s mouth.
“I am not threatening him. I am merely telling the truth. No matter how much he denies it, how much he wants himself to appear as the omega who succeeded, he wouldn’t have done it without me. I am the chairman of the board. I built this company the same way he did. And if firing him would save it, and so be it.”
“Of course, you’re the chairman of the board. I wonder how you got there,” Wade said, tone mysterious.
“That doesn’t excuse you disrespecting my omega, though. You’re on thin ice.”“Are you insinuating something?”
“I don’t know. Am I?”
His scent spiked, irritated. Wade turned to everyone else inside the room, producing a deep low growl from his throat, effectively cutting of the low rumbling of growls from the other alphas in the room. He looks powerful like that.
“A meeting will be held another time to discuss about the merging. We will continue this another time. Meeting adjourned,” Wade concluded before reaching for his left wrist, his grip tight but at the same time gentle, dragging him as he walked to get out of the room. He is silent, shame burning in his system as his mind plays the events of the meeting.
Wade pushed the door and paused on the threshold, making him stop on his tracks too.
“I almost forgot,” Wade started, their backs facing everyone in the room. His voice is void of emotion, it almost made Klyde, himself, shiver.
“I don’t fucking care if you don’t believe the actuality of our marriage. I don’t fucking care if you think he did it for money. I don’t give a flying fuck, believe me."He made a show of lightly turning his body to the right, meeting the eyes of everyone else in the room, hanging onto his every words. His jaw clenched, eyes sharp and threatening. Only a fool wouldn't bow before him. He uttered his next words with so much venom that made everyone flinch, including Mr. Wong, who had been sending them his own glares.
"What irks me, though, is how you address him. Treat my omega with respect. He’s a Curtis now. The husband of the most powerful alpha today, right? Refer to him as such.”
Wade tugged at his wrist, grip tightening as they both walk away from the room. Leaving stunned board members and a seething elderly alpha.
I hope you're enjoying the story so far.
Wade did not let go of his wrist until they were in the safety of his office once again. The ghost of his touch leaving a warm sensation on his wrist.“That was embarrassing,” Wade started before he turned to look at him; eyes void of emotion. The door of his office clicked shut behind them.“They won’t take you seriously if you continue to act like that. Was that how you built this company? You look weak and afraid all the time.”That, that hit a nerve.Klyde straightened his posture and bravely met his eyes, blood boiling.“You don’t know anything. You don’t know a thing I did to build this company, so don’t talk to me like that,” he spat out; venom in his voice.“Exactly. I don’t know anything. But with how you acted today, how do you think that looked to me?” h
Everything was like a déjà vu. He woke up to the sound of his secretary’s voice calling his name. He didn’t even know he fell asleep. He is hunched on his table, arms on both sides of his head, right hand still holding his pen. His right cheek is squished on his table and he had to hold the papers down as he straightened to sit up. He groaned, eyes squinted as he looked blearily at her, standing in front of his desk. “Yeah?” he yawned. His body feels so heavy. The breath coming out of his nose is warm, too warm. His eyes stings in a way that it does when you have a fever. Fuck, does he have a fever? He stretched his arms above his head, getting rid of the kinks. “It’s past 10 in the evening, Sir. You might want to go home.” He turned his head sharply at that, a bad move. His vision is swimming, the world feels unsteady on his feet even as he sat. He feels like shit. “I’
tw// panic attack, mentions of panic attackHe stared at the note in his hand, contemplating whether he should really go down to eat. Frankly, he doesn’t think he has the stomach to eat as he still feels like shit, refreshed but still shit, even after that shower. But he figures if he wants to recover faster, then he really needs to eat. He sighed. He walked to hang his towel back to its rack, before walking out of his room.Now when the note said there was food downstairs, he kind of expected a take out placed at the kitchen table or counter. Food he can just bring to his room so he can eat peacefully. He definitely did not expect for it to come in the form of Wade Ashton, wearing a black sweater and a pair of grey sweatpants, topped with a baby blue apron.Klyde stopped on his tracks, shocked at the sight that greeted him. This is the first time, ever since they got married, that he saw the alpha in a casual fit,
What he expected to be a one-time thing happened again the next morning, and then the next again, and then the next until waking up to the sight of Wade cooking in the kitchen didn’t look unusual anymore. It’s the fourth day, and now he just automatically slips and perches himself on a stool by the kitchen counter to silently watch him cook. It’s the fourth day of him being absent in the company too, and he’s in constant worry. He wonders how everyone is doing there, what’s happening and their current state. He tried to tell Wade multiple times that he’ll be fine to go to work but the alpha only just looks at him dead in the eye, and it effectively makes him quiet. He huffs every time it happens. He’s also worried for the alpha’s work. He, too, hasn’t been going to his company to work for days now. Isn’t he worried? But then again, he had established his company for years. Wade surely has confidence in his workers, something Klyde lacks, especially now that th
Klyde’s heart is hammering in his chest as he sees the familiar sight of Wade’s building. It’s quite far from his so he had to drive to go there. His hands are sweating on the steering wheel, he took his feet off the pedals of his car as he can’t stop them from fidgeting. He’s been taking deep breathes too, but he can’t seem to calm down.But how is he supposed to calm down, his mind supplies. His husband, contract husband, just called him to inform him that his pack wanted to meet him! How is he supposed to calm down?!Packs aren’t really that common nowadays, but not rare either. Wolves evolved from living in packs to carrying on their own. Packs are not necessarily supposed to be family related; it’s usually just made up of wolves who find deep connections with each other. Klyde never had a pack, his family doesn’t count. So, he’s freaking out with the thought of meeting one toda
The waiter poured them wine as soon as they sat on the table. The chattering of Wade’s packmates is a nice comfort to Klyde. They’re in a nearby restaurant for lunch. The pack insisted on taking them to lunch as a “compensation”—their words, for not telling them about their marriage sooner. Wade tried to escape but his attempts were futile as they quite practically dragged the two of them outside. So now there they are. “Do they have pasta?” Aien asked out loud to no one in particular, he’s scanning the menu. “Of course, they do,” came Kez’s quick reply. He said it with a roll of his eyes.“What kind of restaurant doesn’t serve pasta?” Aien scrunched his nose. “It’s my first time here.” “That’s because you don’t go out of your apartment. Explore the world, pup.” Klyde chuckled at the brothers’ bickering, the rest of the p
Frankly, Klyde never thought he’ll meet the pack again, or at least one of them. But he should have known when he met them for the first time that the bunch were stubborn. Of course, they’ll meet again, it’s inevitable. It was totally unexpected. He carried on with his life, pushing the memory of meeting the pack at the back of his head and once again buried himself with work in the company. It’s as if the interaction didn’t even happen at all. So, when one day, Aien suddenly quite literally just barged into his office, trailed by his stressed-looking secretary, to say Klyde was shocked would be an understatement. “Aien?” he uttered bewilderedly, surprise coloring his tone as he watched the beta march in his office. Aien’s eyes roamed around the place before it finally landed on him. A big smile stretched on his lips, eyes lighting up at the sight of him. “Klyde!” he exclaimed, walking towards his office table. Lou
Klyde swears he swallowed all his food properly, so he doesn’t understand how he just suddenly choked on nothing, maybe air. But he blames Aien’s unexpected question. He found himself in a coughing fit, struggling to breathe, and he’s so fucking embarrassed. “Aien!” Wade called sharply as he hurried to hand Klyde his drink and tissues. Klyde’s eyes are teary as he accepted the drink, wincing as he drank the soda. He also accepted the tissue, wiping his mouth and eyes as he finished drinking. “What? What?” Aien asked frantically.“What’s wrong?” Klyde continued to cough. Wade turned to Aien, glaring at him. “What’s wrong—did you really have to ask that?” Wade asked, irritated. Aien blinked at him in confusion. “What’s wrong with my question?” “You were asking about pups.” “And?