THE REJECTED BLOOD BOND

CHAPTER 8

The gala was a public success, but behind the closed doors of the Obsidian Tower boardroom the next morning, the alliance was already fracturing.

"The Northern transit lines are being harassed by rogue packs, and your enforcers are doing nothing to clear them, Vance!" Lord Sterling shouted, slamming his fist onto the mahogany conference table.

He was a large, arrogant male with a scarred neck and an aura that screamed for dominance.

Julian sat at the head of the table, his face a mask of absolute boredom, though beneath the desk, his fists were clenched.

"The Northern lines are currently operating at a ninety-eight percent efficiency rate, Sterling. The 'harassment' you're referring to is a minor territorial dispute that my security team is handling without violence."

"We don't negotiate with strays!" Sterling hissed, his eyes flashing gold as he looked around the room, his gaze landing on Elena, who sat at Julian's right hand, calmly sorting through the real-time shipping data.

"And why is this Omega sitting in a high-security briefing? She doesn't belong to a pack. She shouldn't even have clearance to read these files."

The temperature in the room dropped thirty degrees in a single second.

Julian didn't just lean forward; his entire presence expanded, a massive, suffocating wave of pure Alpha dominance rolling off him so violently that two of the Silvercrest advisors sat back in their chairs, their breath catching.

"Elena is the Chief Operating Strategist of this company," Julian said, his voice a low, terrifying growl that vibrated through the floorboards. "She has higher clearance than you do in this building, Sterling. If you insult her standing again, I will throw you out of this window myself."

Elena didn't look up from her tablet, but her heart skipped a beat. The sheer, protective fury in Julian’s voice was intoxicating, a remnant of the bond trying to force its way through his corporate armor. She had to fight herself to remember the terms she had set.

Sterling narrowed his eyes, looking between Julian and Elena with a malicious, calculating smile. "Defending a stray over your future brother-in-law? Interesting priority, Vance. I wonder what the High Council will think when they hear that the Alpha of Manhattan is letting an unaligned female dictate his military movements.”