Andre’s POV
I was getting some paperwork done in my office when I heard a soft knock at my door.
I looked up and gave a soft ‘come in’. I already knew who was at the door.
“I didn’t think that I would find you here. I simply took a lucky guess. And to be honest, all my hopes were staked on you being with your new lady friend.”
I chuckled at his reply, and he settled in the chair opposite me.
“Is there any news for me?” I asked Doran, dropping my pen and looking at him.
“None for now, actually. But I think I should be the one asking you that question. Nicole is getting restless; any news on that?”
I exhaled deeply and relaxed in my chair. I honestly hadn’t given Nicole any thought; she had disappeared from my mind just as quickly as when the guards dragged her out of my study. I never let my mind dwell on her for too long.
“I know that she’s starting to step out of line. She even came to my office and was begging me to tell her how she can be a part of my life.”
Doran looked surprised and reclined into his seat as well.
“That is a very ballsy move coming from her. Andre, you need to do something about it, and soon.”
I nodded my head in agreement. I couldn’t let her go free. She had to remember her place in this pack. She was not my Luna, and she would never be. I had found my fated mate, and I was determined to make sure that I had her all to myself.
“Nicole joined this pack three years ago, if I am not mistaken, and her stepdaughter, Olivia, said that her mother had been absent from her life for thirteen years. Three of which are the ones she spent here. I want to know what she has been doing for the other ten years. Do we have any tabs on her or anyone that we could speak to or ask?”
Doran looked at me confused and tried to get his bearings right.
“Hold up for one second. Olivia? Who is Olivia?”
I rolled my eyes.
“Olivia is Nicole’s daughter.”
I immediately saw the shock on Doran’s face. He seemed perplexed, and I wanted to laugh at his confusion.
“Nicole has a daughter? You never told me that you had a stepdaughter. Why haven’t you told me that this Olivia is your stepdaughter? Why haven’t I even met her?”
“Doran, can you just focus and work with me here? After the meeting that day, I knew that Nicole was acting off. She has guts, but not like this. Something is coming over her, and I need to find out what it is.”
Doran scoffed and rolled his eyes. I could tell that he was quite annoyed at the fact that I was trying to hush up the discussion about Olivia.
“Well, we can already establish a fact. Nicole definitely tells Fentris the things that happen in the mansion. But I doubt she has mentioned the contract that she signed with you three years ago about her being your nominal Luna. In fact, I think she has forgotten about the contract altogether.”
My mind immediately went back to my little meeting with Nicole. I made sure to remind her of her position in this pack, and she seemed prepared to do more just to get a promotion and be more than a nominal Luna, but she wasn’t going to get anything out of me.
Doran sighed and leaned in closer to me.
“I’ll get started on Nicole’s case. I’ll send my men to investigate things about her. Hopefully, we will find something of use to us, and maybe we can establish a link between her and Fentris.”
My ears immediately perked up as soon as I heard it. He was right. There had to be some kind of connection between Fentris and Nicole.
He seemed way too comfortable with her, and the way she managed to wriggle herself into the council’s good graces so that they could even consider her an option for me as a Luna was still very surprising.
“There is something else that I need you to do as well,” I said, turning to Doran again.
“Sure. What is it?”
I took a deep breath and started to talk.
“If it is true that Nicole is working for Fentris, we need to make sure that the eyes watching us are fewer. Nicole has hired a lot of staff to work for her, and she did so without my permission. I need them all to be fired. I want to narrow the search down. I want eyes on Nicole only.”
Doran nodded knowingly and took out his phone.
“I’ve added it to my to-do list and to the number of favours that owe me. And just in case I do save your life again in the near future, you are going to owe me big time.”
We both shared a chuckle. Doran was the best Beta that I could ask for.
“So, when do I get to meet her?” He asked out of the blue.
I looked at Doran in confusion. What was he talking about?
“What do you mean?” I asked.
Doran rolled his eyes and stared back at me.
“When do I get to meet your stepdaughter? You are being awfully secretive, very unlike you. You won’t let me meet your lady friend, and now, you won’t let me meet your stepdaughter.”
I groaned. Doran could be a pain in my ass too, but he was a good pain. He was my best friend. “Doran, please…”
“Andre, you are being suspicious, and it is unusual for you. Is something the matter?”
My mind immediately drifted to Olivia. She didn’t understand that I was ready to tell everyone about us. I wanted her to be mine, and I wanted everyone to know. It hurt that she was pushing me away and nervous to tell people about us. Half of me thought that maybe she was ashamed of me, but I shook the thought off before it could have time to grow in my head.
She loved me, and she just needed time to adjust. I only hoped that the time would come soon.
“You will meet her soon, Doran. Very soon.”