Chapter 53

My body felt sore in the sweetest way imaginable. After my initial climax had washed over me like a sensual wave of unyielding pleasure that kept giving and giving. Just when I thought it was over, James stroked his length in his hand and pulled me forward till I felt the hard tip of his cock press into my slicked entrance.

It took a solid miniature till he was buried fully inside of me.

Holy hell. I never felt so full. My eyes rolled to the back of my head and gave myself over to the earth-shattering feeling that rocked through me with every purposeful thrust of his hips.

Before either of us knew it, we were both racing toward that glorious, euphoric peek.

James wrapped his arms around me and held me close against his chest. His hand lingered toward the growing bump of my stomach.

Beyond that point, there was nothing but darkness. Sweet, sweet—comforting darkness.

I was grateful for the rest and managed to sleep through most of the night and into the morning when suddenly a hair-raising sound echoed through the room.

RINNNGGG!!

I was yanked out of my deep sleep and struggled to comprehend what was going on. James threw back the covers in a loud huff and cursed under his breath. “What the fuck?” he groaned.

He reached for his phone and practically yelled at it.

“This had better be good if you’re calling me at five in the morning, Daniel,” he snapped.

“Put it on speakerphone,” I told him.

Daniel’s voice came streaming through the phone a second later, sounding distressed and horribly shaken. “Sir, apologies for the early call but I couldn’t waste another moment without trying to get ahold of you.”

“Just tell us what’s going on,” James insisted.

“The Alpha Gathering...Whatever happened last night, it turned Crescent Moon’s credibility with its clients upside down and caused a complete PR nightmare! I’m sending some of them through right now.”

I watched James’ eyes darken as he glared down at the screen of his phone. “Son of a bitch.”

I swiftly climbed over the bed to catch a glimpse at what Daniel sent. My heart dropped to the floor when I saw several different photos of James fighting with Rudolf during the gathering.

Along with some of the pictures, there were headlines attached.

‘Alpha Gathering Ending In an Alpha War!’

‘Derek Possesses a Dark Side!’

‘Derek vs. Lawrence!’

“Oh my God,” I hissed under my breath.

Daniel went on to explain the true severity of the situation with a heavy tone. “Sir, normally I’d be able to resolve this sort of problem with a mere reach out to the press, explaining this to be all a misunderstanding. But...”

“Tell me, Daniel.”

“The thing is, sir. Even though the story hasn’t been out long, many of our clients have caught wind of it and are looking to cut ties with the company. They want to break their contacts and leave.”

I share a startled look with James and nod my head. “Daniel, it’s Mia. James and I are headed to the office right now.”

...

Oh my God. James and I arrived at Crescent Moon to find the place consumed in pure chaos.

People were rushing around and the phones were ringing off the hooks nonstop. I felt terrible. I genuinely believed that I was somehow to blame for all this madness.

‘Had I not left the table, then Rudolf would have never followed me, and that damn fight would have never happened,’ I thought.

What upset me all the more was that I specifically tried to avoid this exact situation when I originally scheduled that meeting between Rudolf and James.

“Has anyone tried reaching out to Mr. Lawrence?” I asked. “Maybe there’s still a chance to clear up at least part of this misunderstanding.”

Daniel regretfully shook his head. “I’ve been trying all morning to get a hold of his team, but nothing. And the issue with the media has only been making matters worse.”

Goddamnit. I felt truly stumped. Was there nothing that could be done to alleviate the problem?

Suddenly, I felt my phone go off in my bag. I took it out to find that David was trying to call me.

Reluctantly, I answered it. “Hello?”

“Mia, I wanted to check in and see how you were doing, given all that’s happened.”

My brows drew together. “Oh, that’s very nice of you.”

“I can only imagine the kind of financial backlash this must be causing for Derek. You know, Michael happens to be one of his clients as well.”

My stomach dropped. “Is that right?”

“Yes, and I’ve been trying to convince the man all morning to keep the contract he has with Crescent Moon; however, he’s having a difficult time trying to reason as to why he should.”

“Is this because of what happened last night?” I questioned, disbelievingly. “David, what happened between James and Rudolf Lawerence, should have no effect on Crescent Moon’s contracts.”

“Easy now, I completely understand. You see, I mainly called because perhaps there’s a chance that you’d be able to talk some sense into Michael.”

“Me? But...Wouldn’t he prefer to talk to James?”

“Not at all. I’m going to set up a meeting with the two of you tomorrow. Shall we say, ten o’clock? I’ll send the address.”

Before I got a chance to respond, David ended the call. James came to my side and asked what was going on.

“That was my Uncle David. Apparently, Michael is one of Crescent Moon’s working clients and he’s also thinking about cutting ties with the company,” I explained. “David called to tell me that he’s setting up a meeting with him and me for tomorrow.”

James’ expression twisted with displeasure. “I’m coming with you.”