To Love a Shifter: A Paranormal Romance Boxed Set (22 page)

            Misty taught her the filing tricks she had picked up in Moretti Inc., mainly because most people had assumed she would file the documents she had proofread and she was too much of a wimp to say otherwise.

            The girl’s face brightened after Misty also showed her how to create her own database for easier file management. “Oh. That makes sense. Thank you!” She smiled shyly. “I’m Penny, by the way.”

            “Misty Wall. I, umm,
liaise
for the Moretti pack.” It felt like she was campaigning, but oh well.

            “Oh. That’s nice. I’m from the Buenaventura pack,” Penny revealed. She glanced at the digital clock display on top of the filing cabinets. “Maybe we can have a coffee break later before clocking out?”

            Misty followed Penny’s gaze and almost groaned at the time. Rebecca would bite her head off if she was late – as she had already done a few times.

            As it turned out, she was already too late.

When Misty reached the mail department, Rebecca was already there, tapping her foot impatiently as she gazed at Misty’s approach from behind her cart with narrowed dark eyes.

            “Good afternoon, Ms. Findley.”

            “What took you so long?”

            “I’m sorry, Ms. Findley. It won’t happen again.” There was no sense telling Rebecca about Penny’s dilemma. It might just get the younger girl in trouble.

            “Is getting mail so hard for someone like you?”

            Misty heard a snicker but forced herself to remain calm even though she had a strong urge to cry. She should be used to being treated like this. She had to have faith in Domenico. There was surely a good reason why he hadn’t made it clear she was his wife-to-be and not his mistress.

            “It won’t happen again,” she repeated.

            “It better not or I’m going to report you to Mr. Cavalier myself.” Rebecca shoved past her, strong enough to have Misty hit the wall and bruising her in the process. Her shoulder blazed in pain, but she wasn’t going to show it, aware that people around her were waiting for her to make a scene.

            Not long after, Misty was staring at the mirror, aghast at how ugly the bruise actually was. ‘Strong’ was definitely an understatement when describing Lyccan women. It looked like she had been shoved by a sumo wrestler.

            Someone entered the restroom, and Misty quickly rearranged her clothes to cover the bruise.

            The woman was sniffing but when she saw Misty, a glare immediately replaced the look of hurt on her face. “What are you staring at?”

Ignoring that, Misty asked in quiet concern, “Are you alright?”

            “Like you really care.” The woman went to her side and began washing her hands. Her face was heavily made up, making her look older and more unattractive. It was easy for Misty to see the youth and promise of real beauty underneath the cosmetics, though.

            “I know all about you. You’re the infamous Moretti mistress.”

            Misty inclined her head. “That’s what people say.”

            The woman looked at her suspiciously. “You won’t deny it?”

            “Will you believe me if I do?” Misty countered helplessly.

            The woman laughed harshly. “You have a point.”

            “Are you really alright?”

            “I’ve been dumped, okay? I was having an affair with an officemate. I knew it was wrong but I couldn’t help hoping…and now everyone’s laughing behind my back.”

            “Why did you do it?”

            “I’m not a gold digger, if that’s what you’re insinuating,” she snapped.

            “Then it was for love.”

            The younger woman said nothing.

            “Did he lead you on?”

            “You think I’m that stupid?” she snarled, but her eyes said yes.

            “You’re not entirely to blame. You were just foolish.” Misty impulsively took the younger woman’s hand. “I’m not just saying this because we outcasts have to stick together--”

            The woman’s lips curved into a reluctant smile.

            “But really, if you need to talk, I’m just at the mail department, okay? We can even have lunch together. It would be just like high school.”

            The woman laughed. “I was popular back then though.”

            “I wasn’t,” Misty admitted cheerfully.

            “Thanks for the pep talk. You didn’t have to comfort me, but you did.”

            Misty leaned close and whispered, “The truth is, I’m not really the mail girl. Oprah sent me here to give everyone pep talks.”

            They shared another laugh and only later, when the woman had left, did Misty realize that she had forgotten to ask for the woman’s name.

            Before going back to the mail room, she went to her locker to return her toothbrush and that was when she saw the note.

Urgent: pick up mail at Mr. Cavalier’s office.

            If it was so urgent, why not call her mobile phone instead of leaving a note? And why not leave the note with someone else instead of slipping it inside her locker, which she could have so easily overlooked?

            Misty frowned. Maybe this was Rebecca’s doing. If she hadn’t seen this in time, Rebecca would be able to blame her for being tardy or inefficient.

            Hmph.

            She went to Mr. Cavalier’s office. Rebecca was not at her desk. Misty wondered if she should wait for Rebecca before entering Mr. Cavalier’s room. After all, she was his secretary.

            But the note said the matter was urgent.

Sighing, she knocked on Mr. Cavalier’s door for good measure before opening it.

            No one was inside.

            She went to the desk. There were several stacks of paper so she went through them one by one, looking for the mail.

            And then the door slammed open.

            “What the hell are you doing here?” Rebecca shrieked before calling for security.

Dear Diary,

 Domenico told me earlier that his proposal for allying themselves with the Caros – whoever those were – was not welcomed by most of the other Lyccan packs. I want to help him but I don’t know how. Sometimes, I wonder if I should do what I think is right and leave. I don’t think I could be the princess that he needs me to be to save his kind.

When I see him at his desk, painstakingly working on a proposal that some of his kind don’t have the foresight to appreciate, I want to comfort him. I want to kneel before him naked, offering myself to him. Let him hold the whip in his hands, the leash to the collar around my neck – I am his.

          This is all a misunderstanding,” Misty stammered.

            Rebecca stared coldly at her. “That’s what they all say.”

            Misty knew things looked bad for her. She also knew she should be worried about what was going to happen to her, but she was more worried about how this would reflect on Domenico.

            Minutes later, security had escorted her – thankfully without any handcuffs – outside Mr. Cavalier’s office, marching Misty past open-mouthed employees and into the main hall. They brought her up the circular platform and as time passed, the cavernous hall became crowded with Lyccans. There were hundreds of them – maybe more – waiting alongside her to hear what the Cavalier pack leader would have to say about the “breach”.

            After a half hour of tense silence, Filippo Cavalier came in. He looked like a guy in his forties, but who knew how old he really was? Lyccans seemed to age very well. He had a kind face, although it wore a somber expression now as he took a seat at the head of the table and looked at her.

            “You are the one Domenico Moretti recommended?”

            Misty swallowed. “Yes, sir.”

            “And is it true that you have entered my office without authorization?”

            “There was a note --”

            “Which seemed to have disappeared out of the blue,” Rebecca inserted.

            “
Rebecca
.” Mr. Cavalier said softly before glancing back at Misty. “Continue.”

            She recounted what happened, leaving nothing out except her suspicions about Rebecca.

            “You do understand that if the note is missing, then you’ll have a difficult time proving the veracity of your story, don’t you?” Mr. Cavalier asked sadly.

            “Yes, sir,” she whispered again, a sick feeling in her stomach.

            “I will have to question your motives and to an extent, Moretti’s as well.”

            Rebecca’s eyes widened. “Mr. Cavalier --”

            “He has nothing to do with this,” Misty protested at the same time.

            “It’s protocol. We come from different clans. I have no choice. I must call for a council meeting between pack leaders.”

            As Matteo drove the car into the driveway leading to the lobby of Lyccan Hall, he asked, “Is this still part of the plan, sir?”

            “No, but I thought this could happen.’

            “Will everything be all right for Ms. Misty?”

            Domenico frowned. “When have I ever been wrong?”

            Matteo sighed. “You have a point, but Ms. Wall is different, sir.”

            “I know that. I wouldn’t have picked her if she wasn't.”

            “But sir, do you truly understand what her being different would mean? She would
never
react the way the women in your past had.”

            Domenico strode inside the hall, coldly scanning the crowd until he found Misty, standing at the corner of the platform, isolated from the rest. Even from that far away, he could scent her fear and worry – for
him.
Even though he kept his face expressionless, Domenico willed her to look at him so she could see that he had never lost faith in her.

            When Misty relaxed, Domenico resumed walking and stood at her side.

            Filippo’s face was grave. “I hope you understand I had no choice about this.”

            “Of course,” Domenico replied swiftly, sincerely.

            The other man nodded. “Let us begin.”

            Rebecca presented the facts clearly and concisely and it was so wonderfully worded that even Misty was tempted to question her memory and sanity. Maybe it was really her fault?

            With the note mysteriously gone, there was really no way to prove that what she said was true.

            “As it is against Lyccan laws to harbor individuals, especially non-Lyccans, with questionable loyalties, Misty Wall must therefore be banished permanently from --”

            “Rebecca.”

            The woman’s face became suffused with pleasure.

            Misty was dismayed. They were truly personally acquainted then?

            Domenico asked gently, “Are you not forgetting something?”

            Rebecca’s smile faded. “Excuse me?”

            “The vote to vouch for her loyalty.”

            Rebecca’s face became inscrutable. “I simply assumed it was irrelevant, considering --"

            “For the sake of protocol, mmm?” Domenico’s smile was devastatingly sexy.

            “Of course. I apologize. I only thought of saving everyone time regarding this matter.” She tossed Misty a look that blamed her for her very existence, but Misty was too depressed to care.

            Domenico and Rebecca
knew
each other. Rebecca hadn’t been lying all this time. Maybe they were even lovers? She had been confident that Domenico would believe in her no matter what, but what if he chose to believe Rebecca over her? What if he felt Rebecca was more trustworthy because she was Lyccan as well, and he probably knew her longer than he had known Misty?

            “Per Lyccan law, this woman may be awarded with clemency if her innocence is vouched for by a minimum of two representatives who are at least directly related to their pack leaders.” Rebecca sent Domenico a look of sham sympathy. “I’m sorry, Domenico. You do understand that you cannot be one of those who will vouch for her, right?”

            Domenico’s eyes became icy. “That isn’t stated in the law.”

            “If you have the utmost confidence in her, surely you would not need to lend your support?”

Bitch
, Domenico thought, striving to keep his expression cool even though a sliver of panic sliced his chest.

            He would exact his vengeance on Rebecca for this, Domenico vowed to himself even as he scanned the faces of the people around him. What he saw was enough to tell him that no one would vouch for Misty. The evidence weighed too heavily against her. He was counting on one man, but who else would vouch for Misty if Domenico was out of the picture? Worse, the man he was counting on was not even present.

            “Then I will vouch for her,” a small voice from the back said.

            Domenico stiffened. This was unexpected, and he hated surprises. Could this be a trap?

            Rebecca straightened. “Present yourself.”

            The crowd parted, revealing a young meek-looking girl. The crowd buzzed with anticipation as she ascended the stage with small measured steps.

            Misty gasped. “Penny?”

            Rebecca glared at the girl. “You are?”

            “Penelope from the Buenaventura pack,” Penny answered. “Granddaughter to the pack leader.”

            Misty couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Penny was a
princess
?

            Rebecca’s lips tightened. A silent threat in her voice, she asked, “You are absolutely sure that you would like to risk everything to vouch for this woman?” The words ‘that you barely know’ were apparent on Rebecca’s face.

            “I may not have known her for long, but I know her well enough to know with all my heart that she is the victim here,” Penny mumbled.

            Although it did not show on his face, Domenico was quietly amazed at the young woman’s decision to vouch for Misty. He had never expected Misty to befriend the famously introverted princess of the Buenaventura pack. She was so shy that few people even knew what she looked like, in spite of her royal status.

            The doors at the back burst open again, this time with much fanfare when a voice asked, “Am I too late?”

            Heads swiveled to the doorway, and Domenico finally let himself relax at the sound of a familiar voice. Misty was
safe.
He would never have forgiven himself if there was even the slightest chance that Misty would come to harm. There should never even have been the slightest chance of it, and he would not commit the same mistake again.

He was beginning to understand Matteo’s concern over the risks he was taking with Misty and despised the fact that it took almost losing Misty to make him realize it.

            “Jayme?” Filippo choked as a tall guy swiftly made his way to the stage.

            Misty’s eyes widened when she saw who it was.

            It was the guy from the rooftop!

            People around her appeared shocked at his presence, which confused her. Why? Was he human like her?

            She blushed when the man winked at her. “I heard through the grapevine and came here as fast as I could.” Then he looked at Mr. Cavalier. “Hello, Father.”

            Father?

            He was a prince like Domenico then?

            Filippo was still shaking his head. “You
never
participate in such matters.”

            So that was why they were all surprised
, Misty realized and blushed harder when Jayme’s gaze returned to her.

            Domenico’s fists clenched at his sides. The pup better not try anything if he did not want to have every bone in his body broken. Misty was his. He willed Misty to look at him even though he could not yet afford to look at her. To do so would mean he doubted her, and he did not want anyone thinking that.

            Misty didn’t look. She was too entranced at the exchange of words between Jayme and Rebecca.

            “Rebecca, Rebecca,” Jayme was murmuring, wagging a finger at the other woman. “This is beyond you.”

            Rebecca’s face hardened and her body became poker stiff underneath her black lace dress. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Jayme shrugged. “We’ll see. But in case you’re wondering, I vouch for her loyalty as part of the Cavalier pack.”