The next few weeks were riddled with mishaps and stumbling moments, but we pushed on—or rather, Leo pushed the employees to think positively about the changes and to just keep working. I already had a meeting with them on my first week in order to brief them about the changes and to introduce myself, but it was different coming from someone they trusted.

And obviously, they trusted Leo a lot.

After Leo agreed to the changes, we started working on the goals we had set out. It was a major shift in assignments, but everyone tackled it without complaint—at least, not very vocal ones. I was used to this part of the job, with people calling me ruthless, an asshole, and all kinds of insults under their breath or between the lines. I was even used to older employees and higher-ups getting into a power struggle with me—this was nothing out of the ordinary for me. It just came with the territory.

To my surprise, Leo was making it easier for me, by taking the brunt of the backlash on my behalf and doing his best to let everyone know that it was in their best interest to accept this new direction.

There was no denying that Leo was bold and very decisive about a lot of things. I didn’t realize just how bossy he was until I started dealing with him on a day-to-day basis. But on top of that, he was smart—very smart, in fact, that it was obvious that half the people in the office admired him exactly for it. He helped out everyone that he could—even if it meant he had to do some overtime for it. A work ethic and drive I had not seen in a long time. From an omega no less.

My curiosity was still getting the better of me on who exactly he’d been seeing behind Walter’s back, but I decided to let it slide. Instead, I concentrated on running the show and checking figures, at the same time checking up on Andrew and the business we’d acquired in Paris.

“They’re snobs, all of them,” Andrew said over the phone. “They all think they’re better than Americans and we’re not gonna be able to do this.”

“What do you think? Are we really not going be able to keep that up?”

It was a small-time book publishing company, and Andrew had been very passionate about getting it from the get-go because ebooks were still not a big deal in France, which meant that traditional print was still thriving over there. I could hear the same passion in his voice now as he responded. “Give me two months. I got this.”

And I knew he did. We got off the phone on a positive note. Then there was another knock on my door. Walter’s head popped in to tell me he wouldn’t be attending the meeting today. I nodded. Five minutes later, I was already inside the meeting room, and Leo arrived ten minutes later. His hair was all over the place and his shirt collar was uneven as he sat on the chair beside me.

“You’re late,” I said.

He nodded his head.

I hadn’t teased him since that first day on the job. I’d been resisting. But I couldn’t resist this time, not when he was looking so… wound up.

“And you’ve been thoroughly messed up.”

He shot me a look that would have burned a lesser alpha. I smiled in response.

“By my new segment,” he groaned. “It’s not a walk in the park, you know.”

As if to emphasize his point, he stacked a bunch of papers in front of me with a loud thump. I picked up the first one and read it over, while Leo quietly glared daggers at me.

It was one of the articles I wanted him to write as a test—and reading it now, I shouldn’t have doubted him for a second. Not only was Leo smart, but he had excellent writing skills that I didn’t see in just anyone. He had a way with words, and dear I say it—a gift.

“It’s okay,” I said instead. “Make sure you keep the other articles just as… passable.”

His mouth gaped open. I waited for his sarcastic comment, already anticipating the next coming argument. This was almost like that elevator moment, except it wasn’t, because it was a completely professional one—at least, I was going to keep it that way.

But Leo shut his mouth instead. Then he settled back on his chair and got comfortable.

“Of course, I will,” he muttered. Then he got to reporting.

I tuned out of my amused state and listened, knowing the bumpy start we had still hadn’t ended.

* * *

By the beginning of the second month, whatever bumpy start we had finally smoothed over enough for us to stop disagreeing all the time and start agreeing on things, which wasn’t as much fun, but sure was more productive.

It was yet another night of us staying after hours in order to meet our deadlines—the second one for this week, as Walter increasingly became absent in our working together. I knew it was his way of slowly easing out of the company and into retirement, and I was fine with it, because it showed me he had faith in me handling things without him. Leo, of course, was still not used to it and my vastly different style of running things. It seemed that Walter cared more about being liked than actually getting results. I admired his dedication and leadership, but I had to put my stamp on this business if I was to make a difference.

Once Leo and I were on the same page regarding the business, it was surprising to find out that there were, in fact, a lot of things that we agreed on—particularly in our taste in books and literature, and how we wanted it to influence the magazine in the long run.

Leo was the one more surprised by it.

“You said you liked motorcycles and manly alpha stuff,” he accused. Then he shut his mouth when he saw me smiling as I recalled our elevator conversation.

“And you said you knew how to have fun.”

“Not at work,” Leo said. “At work, I work.”

“Then there lies your problem.”

“I don’t have a problem.”

“Having fun at work does not equate to not being productive. You should try it sometime.”

He looked at me in exasperation. I think it spoke of his ease with me already that he was no longer as stiff as before, and could already show his annoyance at me. I didn’t know whether I should be bothered that he wasn’t feeling the sexual tension I was feeling, or relieved.

Relieved. Definitely relieved.

It was so damn inconvenient, too. On the surface, Leo was plain and boring. He was still not my type. So why did I still keep thinking about him?

Because I needed to be inside him in ways that my body knew better than my mind did.

Right.

“I don’t have to loosen up and have fun just to please you,” Leo said. “I can do that whenever I feel like it and—”

Suddenly he stopped talking. I was so surprised that it took me a while to register something else.

He was taking my hand.

And he was leaning very, very close.

I could immediately smell his omega scent. That same fresh lily scent that was unique to him. I could feel the warmth of his body, which was sending signals to my cock until it was swelling uncomfortably in my pants. His eyes locked onto mine, playful and sultry.

No, he wasn’t plain. Far from it. He was a mystery, and one I wanted to solve.

Suddenly, Leo started giggling.

“Oh, stop it! Lucas, you are so funny!”

Okay, something wasn’t right. I narrowed my eyes at Leo. The sultry look in his eye turned to a pleading one, which puzzled me. Then a flash beside the meeting room’s open door caught my eye, and I saw someone pass by. A blond guy.

Everything clicked into place.

A few seconds later, there was the quiet ding of the elevator closing. Leo removed his hand right away and breathed a sigh of relief. I immediately missed the warmth. What the hell?

“Seriously? You’re using me to make your cheating ex jealous?”

He gave me an apologetic look. “You’re the last person I’d have wanted involved in that, but he’s been trying to talk to me for a while now.”

My voice turned hard. “So, he’s been harassing you?”

“No. No. Just… I just don’t want him to keep pestering me, okay? If he thinks there’s something going on between us, he’s not going to blab. And he’s going to leave me alone.”

It was a pretty complicated move, and it made me wonder what was going on in that omega brain of his.

“I don’t do pretend hook-ups, you know,” I finally responded.

“Trust me, it won’t happen again.”

“It better not. You might fall madly in love with me.”

He shot me a look so scandalized, I couldn’t help but grin.

“Trust me, Lucas, that won’t be happening either.”

I leaned back on my chair, satisfied at the cleared air between us. Yes, I was still madly attracted to him. No, I wasn’t going to pursue it—not when his dad would kill me if I did and it was against company policy. But that didn’t mean I wouldn’t enjoy looking at him or thinking about what I wanted to do with him.