Her Revenge Contract
Chapter 9

Xavier's

POV

I chuckled under my breath as my gaze moved over the news headline...

"Family serves cold food to King Group Heiress..."

I had been busy in board meetings the whole morning and at one stage Greyson's face pulled into a smile and he had to get up and leave the meeting, in case he would burst out laughing...

I tried to mind-link him, but he kept his link close, which made me even more curious about what was going on.

The second I had a break, I called Greyson and he came and showed me the article...

Kate was creating another wave of heat in the King's home, and to top it all, her total followers had tripled in the last two days.

My gaze moved down to the picture she had taken, and I shivered thinking that she had taken a bit of that lumpy cold oatmeal.

Who does that? Who serves cold food?

It seemed like Kate wasn't bothered at all and wasn't as useless as she made herself out to be.

Now the tables have turned and everyone could see that Kate was just as much a fierce fighter as her father... just in a different kind of way.

"I have to give that to her, she has guts!" Ray commented.

"She does..." I agreed, "The flower is starting to bloom..."

"And isn't she such a pretty flower..." Ray howled, appreciating my mind.

"She is..."

"When are you going to ask her out on a date," Ray yapped, "she is human after all..."

I hadn't seen Kate for almost a day and Ray was slowly getting annoyed at not being close to his mate. He tried to connect with Kate's wolf, but he couldn't... yet, I still believed there was more to this girl than meets the eye... maybe she was just a late bloomer... I shook the thought off, knowing wolves shifted for the first time at 17, and Kate was already close to 21.

I grabbed my phone, using the cold food as an excuse to take her out to lunch...

"Kate, join me for lunch so that I can feed you a decent warm meal..."

I sat back and pinned my gaze on the phone, waiting for her answer.

My nerves started to play up, and at one stage I felt like a teenage boy asking the popular girl out...

"Come on Kate, answer!" I yelled out loud.

That pulled attention and Greyson stalked toward my office.

"Are you alright?" He asked, moving his gaze over my face.

"I'm fine," I growled, annoyed, "stop reading me!"

Greyson ignored my anger, entered my office, and closed the door behind him.

"What's going on?" He asked and placed his hands on his hips.

I sighed defeated, knowing that Greyson would replace a way to drag out the truth from me.

"I sent Kate a message and she hasn't replied yet..." I answered and crossed my arms around my chest, sulking like a little boy.

"What kind of message?" He asked, walked to the counter, and poured himself a coffee, "want some?"

"No, I need something stronger than just a cup of coffee..." I answered and Greyson shook his head, walked back to my desk, and took a seat.

"Do you want me to repeat the question?" He asked and raised an eyebrow.

"No..." I answered, dropping my gaze and shaking my head, "I asked Kate on a date... and she didn't reply yet... and it's..."

"Making you worried..." Greyson completed my thoughts.

"Yes..." I answered and lifted my gaze to replace Greyson.

"It's normal to worry," Greyson said.

"Huh?"

"My dear Alpha, you are so into this new mate of yours, that you can't even think straight..." Greyson said, "And because you are not marked and mated, the bond makes you worry about your other half..." "How do I fix that?" I asked, annoyed. "For starters, grow some patience..." he said sternly and took a sip of his coffee, "Kate might be busy uploading some more photos for our entertainment... and two, if she doesn't reply, why don't you just give her a call..." Call her? Was it so easy? Would she answer?

"Okay, I will," I said, and Greyson got up.

"Then it is settled..." he said and placed the cup of coffee back on the tray, "Call her..."

With that, he left, and I stared at my phone...

"Just call her," Ray mused.

"And then what?" I asked, "What will I say to her?"

I got up, paced up and down my office, and then stopped and rubbed my face... things were surely less complicated before I found her...

"Just ask her out!" Ray growled under his breath, annoyed, "Or should I do it?"

"No!" I said, shaking my head, "I will..."

I stalked back to my desk and grabbed the phone, and in that very second the phone vibrated in my hand and, startled, I dropped the phone. "Goddess, really?" Ray huffed, "Are you now even afraid of your phone?"

I ignored him and picked up my phone, then clicked on the notification, opening the message.

"Hi, Xavier, that will be great. Where do you want to meet?"

My heart pounded uncontrollably in my chest, butterflies erupted in my stomach and my body shook...

What the f*ck was wrong with me!?

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves, then clicked the reply button.

"I'll have my driver pick you up in 30 minutes..." I texted back.

This time the reply was almost instant...

"Can't wait..."

I stared at the message for a while until Ray had to break it to me...

"Uhm..." he said, breaking my attention, "Shouldn't you call the driver and get ready?"

I turned my wrists and my eyes widened seeing the time.

"Sh*t!"

I quickly dialed my driver, explaining to him where to go, and ran into my ensuite washroom, getting ready.

Ten minutes later, I felt like a new man, and excited.

I grabbed my wallet and jacket and bolted towards the door.

"I'm going out," I warned my secretary. "Don't disturb me!"

"Mister Black," the fragile, dark-headed secretary stopped me as I set foot into the elevator.

"What now!" I growled.

"Your appointment with Mister King is set for tonight at 7 pm..." she said out of breath, dropping her gaze.

"Sh*t!" I internally swore I had forgotten about the appointment and I wasn't in the mood for John.

I sighed.

"Send me the details," I answered.

"Will do, sir..." she answered, nodded, and turned to leave.

I pressed the correct button for the elevator to go down to the lobby and a few seconds later, the doors opened into a modern spacious area.

I headed toward the parking area, retrieved my keys from my left pocket, unlocked my black SUV, jumped in, and started the vehicle.

The drive to the small Italian restaurant didn't take long. I parked the SUV, spotted that Kate hadn't arrived yet, and made my way toward the reception. The second I walked through the door, I was greeted by a big wolf with a broad smile.

"Xavier, my boy!" Carlo's deep husky voice echoed in my ears, and a smile followed on my lips.

The big wolf didn't hesitate and took three major steps and grabbed me into a bear hug, crushing my ribs and squeezing the air right out of my lungs.

Yet, I didn't fight it... I welcomed it... This was my home, away from home...

Carlo was my father's best friend and Beta in the day. He was the closest thing I could still call family.

My insides burned for a second, as my mind wandered off to my parents... they, including Carlo's mate, were killed in a rogue attack a couple of years back... we still didn't bring the one responsible for their deaths to justice... I shook the grey thought off... and turned my attention to Carlo, who had set me back down on my feet.

A smile played at the corners of my lips... as my heart warmed seeing Carlo.

He was still the same happy, big, personality wolf that I had known my whole life.

His light blue shirt complimented his grey eyes, and laughing wrinkles were engraved under his eyes.... his jet-black hair had winter streaks in them, yet he looked as healthy as a horse... well, as a wolf... My mind raced back to my younger years...

I lived in Carlo's restaurant. I wanted to become a famous chef, and Carlo was eager to teach me the ins and outsides of a restaurant.

Not that it helped, my dreams were scattered at the age of 19 when my parents were suddenly taken from me... I took over all the Alpha and business responsibilities... and I became what I am today... "Carlo!" I greeted him back. "It's good to see you!"

"What brings the big bad Alpha to Lainto's?" He asked seriously, "Did you miss us?"

I threw my head back and laughed.

"I was here last week," I reminded him.

"I am arguing that statement," he said laughing, and pulled me toward my table, "I believe it's been almost two weeks..."

I crossed my eyebrows together, thinking about when last I sat down with the big man. Carlo came to a stop at my dedicated table and waited for me to sit down...

"You're right," I said, I haven't been here due to Kate being in a coma, "I'm sorry... it's been..."

"No worries, boy..." he said, laughing, "I have followed the news, I know about your lady friend..."

Heat crept over my cheeks, and I dropped my gaze, hoping Carlo wouldn't notice.

"So?" I suddenly asked, "What will we have today?"

"Uhm..." I said, unsure how to tell Carlo that I was waiting for someone. This was so embarrassing...

The doorbell signaled that someone had entered the restaurant and Carlo moved his gaze toward the door...