Page 3 of UNAwere

I groan in agreement. ‘Honestly.’

‘Sybil.’ We both look up and see our boss, Darla, in the doorway. She taps her long, lacquered fingernails on the doorframe, her thin brows arched high. ‘Can you come with me?’

‘I’ll see you later,’ I tell Ollie, and follow Darla out into the office.

We wind through the cubicles, and I keep my head down, feeling my coworkers’ eyes following me as Darla leads me into the meeting room. She lets me go in first, and I duck through, pausing when I see two men in suits sitting at the table. And another man – Nolan.

‘Oh,’ I say. ‘Hello.’

‘Sybbie,’ he says with a nod.

Darla closes the door behind us and ushers me into a chair across from Nolan. She sits at the head of the table with a grunt, and her perfume washes over me. I force back a sneeze, eyes watering. As one of the few humans in the office, she still doesn’t realise how strong her perfume is to Were noses, and we’ve all been too polite to mention it.

‘So,’ she starts, tapping her nails on the table. ‘We understand, Sybil, that you are leaving the company.’

I nod, glancing at Nolan. Handing in my resignation had been hard, but I hadn’t expected this kind of fuss.

‘You’re really good at your job, Sybil,’ Darla says, meeting my eye. ‘The way you sympathise with humans and Weres when consulting is something the company holds at high standard.’

‘Oh. Thanks.’ I smile awkwardly, dipping my chin.

‘We’d like to offer you a raise, to keep you on,’ one of the suited men says suddenly. He’s clean-shaven, with slicked-back hair and a predatory gaze that tells me he’s Were, through and through.

I look at him, brows shooting up.

‘Sybil, this is Mr Hasan. The CEO of WEREHu,’ Darla says. ‘When I sent him an email to tell him one of our best was leaving, he was quick to catch a flight here.’

‘Oh…’ I glance at Nolan, my spine breaking out in sweat under my blouse.

My alpha sighs. ‘We really appreciate the gesture,’ he says, turning his head to make eye contact with Mr Hasan. ‘But Sybbie being bonded to Alpha Warner is in everyone’s best interests, not just ours. I’m sure you can understand this, being a Luminaire Were?’

‘Of course, Alpha,’ Mr Hasan says. His gaze hasn’t left me, and I think he’s expecting me to add my two cents, but I’ve never really been the type of person who’s had the spare change to throw into conversations. ‘What about a raise and a promotion to regional manager?’

I let out a breathy laugh. The sweat is really sticking to my blouse now. My head spins, and I throw a helpless look at Darla, but she’s smiling over at Mr Hasan, completely oblivious.

I pick up the lanyard hanging around my neck and twirl it around my fingers, needing to keep myself centred. My heart’s racing, and it feels like at any minute, I’m going to start floating off like a helium balloon.

‘Um…’

I love this job. I love helping Weres and humans find harmony within our society: in workplaces, schools, councils, and the general public. Vallis is a big city, being the capital of Luminaire, and this sort of organisation is needed. But I know how much this alliance means to the Luminaire pack. I know Nolan can’t do this without me. And I know that if I stay, Maeve takes my place.

‘I can’t,’ I say. My tongue clicks, wafer-like, and I cringe, trying to swallow. ‘I’m really sorry. I… Thank you for everything.’

Mr Hasan’s expression falters, but he’s quick to resume it and nods. ‘I respect your choice.’

He stands, and the man sitting beside him stands, too. Mr Hasan buttons up his suit jacket and nods at us again.

‘Best of luck,’ he says.

Darla lets out a small squeak and quickly rushes to see him out.

I fall back into my chair when they’re gone, and Nolan lets out a breath.

‘Thanks, Sybbie,’ he says softly. ‘And I’m really sorry.’

‘Eh,’ I say half-heartedly. ‘It’s just a job.’

He gives me a look that tells me he doesn’t believe me, and I can’t blame him. I don’t believe me either.