Chapter 101

The next evening, Victor and I were on our way to a cocktail party at the home of a wealthy widow with an electronics company she wanted to sell.

No matter what happened last night, I was responsible enough to follow the decided schedule.

Victor’s family wanted to acquire the company, and he warned me before he would need to spend a lot of time talking to the older woman at the party.

“I’ll try not to leave you alone as much as possible,” he said. “But I need her promise to give me the first bid on the company.”

“I understand,” I replied. “Maybe I'll try to do some networking for the charity while you’re busy.” Being successful was time-consuming. The opportunity to make a deal was everywhere in an Alpha’s life.

Victor sighed. “Thanks for being here… and I really am sorry about how I acted yesterday. I should have listened to you and let you vent. And I have no excuse for not being able to control Adam.”

“Forget about it,” I told him. “Diana says his aggression is due to the strong mate bond they feel. Are you and Adam speaking again yet?”

“We had a brief conversation this afternoon,” he replied. “He’s been such a guiding force in my life that it makes me feel terrible to argue with him.”

“I know what you mean,” I said. “I often rely on Diana’s advice, and I enjoy her company when no one else is around.”

My anger toward Victor and his wolf melted away when I saw how genuinely remorseful he felt and the effort he put into being friends with William again.

Victor pulled in front of an elaborate townhouse and turned the Lamborghini over to a valet.

We went inside, and the butler announced our arrival.

Victor spotted our hostess, Mrs. Daley, and we walked to her side.

Victor squeezed my hand before introducing us. “Mrs. Daley, may I introduce my fiancé, Daisy Wilson.”

“Ah, yes, the lost heiress,” she said. “You’re not what the gossips say you are. It’s nice to meet you, my dear.”

I gave her my best, practiced smile. “And it’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Daley.”

Victor and Mrs. Daley began to speak about the electronics company that her deceased husband left her while I looked around for someone I knew.

Mrs. Daley felt very sentimental about the company and wanted reassurance that the person who bought it would take care of it as well as her husband had done.

The way Victor handled Mrs. Daley was a good lesson for me in the future if I were ever in a similar situation with my father’s company.

But I was hungry and felt like an eavesdropper as I listened to their conversation.

A moment later, the butler announced William’s name. I looked toward the entrance as he waved and walked over to us.

William greeted Victor and Mrs. Daley before standing on my other side. Our wolves stirred as they were brought close together, but there was little tension.

After the three of us returned to the mansion the previous evening, things went well at dinner, and the two Alpha males were back to being good friends.

Mrs. Daley realized she was neglecting her other guests and excused herself to greet them.

Victor turned to us after she departed. “William, it’s good to see you.” I was pleased that he seemed to mean it.

“It’s good to see you, too,” William said. “Mom and Dad sent me to see if there were many bidders for Daley’s Electronics. But since you’re interested, I will tell them to forget about it.”

William knew his family’s company didn’t have the funds to compete against Victor’s family in a bidding war, but he was making a friendly gesture toward Victor.

“Thank you,” Victor said. “And I’m glad you’re here, William. I may have to leave Daisy alone much of the evening. I would appreciate it if you would keep her company.”

“I’d be glad to,” William replied. He took glasses of juice from a tray being circulated by a waiter and handed one to me and one to Victor.

“Do you see any food for us guests?” I asked. “I’m hungry enough to eat a bunny.”

The men chuckled at my joke and looked around the room.

William pointed across the room, “There’s a small buffet in that corner,” he said.

“Let’s go check it out,” I said.

We went to the small buffet table and waited for a few other guests to get what they wanted.

“There are no bunnies,” Victor teased. “But there are bacon-wrapped scallops, steak tartare bites, and crab puffs.”

“That all sounds good,” I said and grabbed a plate. I piled a few of each on the plate and snuck a steak tartare bite into my mouth while I waited for the guys to choose their food.

We returned to our spot at the far side of the room to eat our food and observe the other guests.

When we were finished eating, we gave our plates to a passing waiter and accepted more glasses of juice.

I was glad the hostess was considerate of us, who didn’t care for alcohol. I couldn’t stand the taste of it. But the fruit juices mixed with carbonated water was delicious.

“There’s Jake Morgan.” Victor grimaced. “He wants to buy the company too, but he doesn’t want to pay anywhere near a fair price.”

“He’s closing in on Mrs. Daley,” William warned.

“Yeah, I had better go over there,” Victor said. “Please stay with Daisy.”

“Sure,” William agreed. “Take your time.”

Victor looked at me, and I nodded.

“Go ahead. Don’t let your competition take advantage of a widow.”

Victor started to walk away, but I grabbed his sleeve.

“I forgot to ask you something. Who will most likely give me some of their time and money?”

“Try the couple by the window, Mr. and Mrs. Clark, and those two women near the buffet,” Victor replied. “They are friends of my mother.”

“Thanks, and good luck,” I told him

“You too.” Victor smiled and walked away

“What is going on with you?” William said. He seemed dazed. “Since when do you rub elbows with the business people of the Alpha world? I never thought you’d want to talk to them.”

“It’s for charity, William,” I said. “I thought I told you I am taking over my mother’s charity foundation.”

“Yeah, but….” He shook his head in disbelief. “I can’t believe all these earth-shattering changes in you. You aren’t the same person, Daisy.”

“I think it’s a good thing I’ve changed,” I argued. “I have responsibilities now that I never dreamed would be mine. I’m learning to survive in business and the Alpha world, but I’m still me inside.”

“I didn’t say the changes were bad,” William said. “But you’re completely different from the shy, quiet girl who sat next to me in werewolf history class and couldn’t speak to anyone without stuttering.”

I studied his face momentarily and saw admiration in his blue eyes. It gave me chills of pride.

“Would you like to accompany me to speak to the people Victor pointed out?” I asked. “The foundation needs a lot more donations this quarter.” I sure sounded like I knew what I was doing.

William gave me a grin. “I’d be delighted.”

After I had done some successful networking, Victor was still deep in conversation with Mrs. Daley and another man.

William and I returned to the buffet for another bite or two while discussing the possibility of investing some of the foundation’s donations to increase revenue.

It was William’s suggestion, and he knew of several low-risk opportunities. I was surprised he was so knowledgeable. There were many things I could learn from him too.

“Do you ever take a break from working?” William asked. “You need to go to a real party just to have fun.”

I laughed. “I’ve never been thought of as a workaholic before.”

“Seriously, what are you doing tomorrow night?” William asked.

“Nothing,” I replied.“Why?”

I could tell by the look on Williams's face that he had something fun in mind.