Claimed By The Billionaire Alpha (Gay Werewolf Shifter Mates - An M/M Mpreg Billionaire Romance) (2 page)

Ethan could see that the man's forearm was starting to tremble as he attacked the last few reps. He could feel himself counting along silently with the stranger.

Ethan watched as the man's face squinted in pain just a bit, and he surprised himself by cheering him on.

"Come on, pull, you can do it!" Ethan whispered softly.

Still, the man's eyes swung to fix on his face again, and a grin spread on his face once more as he pulled, clearing his twenty-fifth rep before dropping off the bar.

The crowd were all praising the man's performance as he shook out his exhausted arm before shaking hands with Tommy again.

"Dude, that was impressive," Tommy said, "but part of me feels like it was a setup."

The handsome man let out a chuckle, shaking his head. "No, it wasn't. I just came out here because I heard you guys were the best and I wanted a challenge. I can say you pushed me harder than anyone."

The stranger turned to Ethan and Ethan handed him his stack of money. The man gave Ethan a strange smile, before peeling off a couple of the bills and handing them back to him. "For your job hunt. Good luck."

“Thanks.”

Ethan took the money and deposited it in the pockets of his sweats. He knew he should turn the money down, but the expression in the stranger's eyes would have none of it.

The next morning Ethan awoke to the annoying beep of his alarm clock. For the first time in weeks, he was not awoken by hunger.

Using the money the handsome stranger had given him, Ethan had gone to the corner mart and bought himself some groceries, bread, sandwich meat, and some milk.

He went to sleep with a full belly, something he hadn't done in a while.

***

Yawning, Ethan swiped at his clock before rolling off the sofa.

He used his sink to wash up and brush his teeth before checking his e-mail. His heart did a jump when he opened his inbox and his eyes settled on the first unread result.

He had an interview!

He opened the email and qucikly scanned the contents. His heart jumped again. The email was from Morgan Investments, one of his most desired prospects.

They wanted him to come in that afternoon "to discuss potential opportunities for you at Morgan Investments."

When he had re-read the email over a couple of times, Ethan let out a whoop of joy.

Running to his closet, he checked on his one and only suit which still hung untouched since his graduation ceremony.

Everything was in order as he headed for the door of his apartment. Sure, he had to get ready for his interview. But, he still had sixty bucks of what the stranger had given him yesterday, and he needed to repay Jim for his kindness.

Jim would be in the park setting up for the lunch crowd, and Ethan knew he'd appreciate the news.

Several hours later, standing outside the twenty-five story Morgan Investments building, Ethan swallowed his nervousness.

Located at the center of the Financial District, it wasn't the largest or the nicest building, but Ethan knew it was one of few buildings fully owned by one firm. Most of the others shared office space and floors with other firms.

Smoothing his palms over his red tie, Ethan gathered himself before going inside. The lobby was enormous, lined in rich sandstone tile. Two guards behind the reception desk carefully watched him approach, while alongside them stood a kinder-looking brunette that gave him a small smile.

Ethan was surprised to see the lady had the same eyes as the stranger from the park yesterday. "Can I help you, sir?"

Ethan gave his best professional smile, nodding. "My name's Ethan Locke; I'm here for an interview at two."

The receptionist checked the schedule before looking up and nodding. "Yes sir, I have you right here, Mister Locke. Could you please show some identification?"

Surprised at the security check, Ethan dug his old student ID out of his wallet and handed it over awkwardly. "Is this okay?  I don't have a driver's license," he explained. "You don’t really need it when you walk or take the sub all the time."

"This is just fine, Mister Locke. You can wait right over there," the receptionist replied, pointing to a series of comfortable-looking chairs off to one side of the lobby. I'll get with you in just a minute.

Ethan walked over and sat down and then pulled his resume packet from his bag. It dawned on him that he should have brought something more professional than an NYU backpack.

It wasn't long before the receptionist came over, surprising Ethan with how tall she was. She held an ID badge, with a large "V" stamped on it.

"Thank you Mister Locke. Here's your visitor's badge and your student ID back. If you'd just follow me please, I'll take you up to the interviewing area."

On the twenty-first floor, the door opened to a quiet hallway.

Ethan could see offices of people working vigorously off to each side, the whole room buzzing with purpose. He was thrilled at seeing such energy again; it had been a while. The receptionist led him to a conference room and opened the door for him.

"Please have a seat. Someone will be with you in a moment."

"Thank you, Miss...."

The receptionist's smile grew, and Ethan knew he had impressed at least one person.

"Romanov, the woman replied, offering a handshake. "Karina Romanov." The two briefly shook hands, and Karina shut the door behind her.

Ethan took a moment to look around the small conference room, observing the security camera in the corner.

He had to assume he was being watched at all times, so he made his way to a chair and sat down, intent on making the best possible impression. He really needed this job.

***

Down the hall, Karina gazed at the monitor screen showing the video feed from the room. "You think this is the same boy you saw yesterday?" she asked, glancing at her brother.

Her brother nodded; his arms clasped behind his back as he studied Ethan’s every movement.

"Yes. He's the same age, same neighborhood, everything matching the application we received."

"Did you go out intentionally searching for him?" Karina asked, "Or was it just fate?"

"Fate, for sure," her brother chuckled. "I am not in the habit of looking for handsome young men in Central Park."

"I see. So what should I do?"

"Send Jasmine to interview him. I will watch from here."

Karina looked at her brother, then nodded her head once. "As you wish, Talen."

***

About five minutes later, the door to the conference room swung open, and Ethan stood up as a dark-haired woman entered the room. "Mister Locke, my name is Jasmine White," she said, sitting down at the other side of the table. "How are you today?"

The two exchanged pleasantries and Ethan relaxed as the interview continued, enjoying the pleasant tone of the woman's voice.

She was a bit older than Ethan, maybe thirty-four or thirty-five, but had a healthy sense of humor that quickly set his nerves at ease. His first surprise came when Jasmine told him what his position would entail.

"I know that you indicated on your resume that you were mainly interested in working with commodities trading, but we're really at capacity up there currently," she said, going through Ethan’s notes. "That's why we took a while to get back with you. Anyway, our CEO's executive assistant recently moved on to another role here at Morgan Investments. I think that you would do well filling that position."

"Don't you think I'm a little overqualified for that, Miss White?" Ethan commented, trying not to sound ungrateful. He was shocked, and a bit frustrated. He did need a job badly, but he also didn't want to get typecast as a secretary.

Our CEO has a very demanding schedule.  Many of his assistants go on to do very well in our company within only a couple of years. What do you think? Our CEO was impressed with your resume and expressly asked for you to be interviewed."

Ethan sat back, pretending to ponder the situation. He couldn't look too eager for the job, he knew that for sure, if he were going to have any possibility of getting decent pay or benefits. "How's the compensation package?" he asked.

***

Karina and Talen gazed at the screen as Ethan spoke with Jasmine. "He's spirited," Karina noted, her sharp eyes catching every nuance of Ethan's body language. "I'm surprised that someone in his position would have questions at all."

"That's why I want him," Talen said. "If I just needed someone who'd fill my coffee cup, I could have a million of those anytime I wanted. I want someone who is going to have some backbone.  Someone who can actually give some input if I want it."

"I see. Shall I buzz Jasmine now?" Karina asked, a bit of annoyance in her voice.

Talen turned to his sister and smiled at her.

"Karina, you’ll always be my most trusted consultant. Don't worry, I'd never dream of replacing my sister, especially not with a college graduate."

Karina stared at him wearily. "You better not. And I'm only your half sister. It's how I got the hair, remember? And should I buzz Jasmine?"

Tilting his head to the side, Talen studied the monitor before shaking his head. "No," he said gently. "I think I will go say hello."

***

Ethan was still trying to figure out if his ears were failing him. "Did you say a hundred-thousand a year?"

Jasmine nodded, her face expressionless. "Yes, Mister Locke. Do you find that to your liking?"

Ethan tried his best to keep his hands from shaking. "No! I mean yes! I mean.... the salary's great, Miss White," he said, a giddy grin breaking out on his handsome face. "I just.... one-hundred thousand. Wow."

"Mister Locke, the money is just part of it. Our CEO is very generous to employees who work hard for him, but he's also very demanding. Do you think you can put in the work?"

"I'm confident I can, Miss White," Ethan replied. "I guess the only question I have left is, how soon can I start?"

A knock at the door interrupted Jasmine's reply, and the door opened to leave Ethan slack-jawed.

Wearing a custom tailored suit, was the blue-eyed stranger from the 110th Street playground. His tall frame and broad shoulders filled the doorway, and Ethan could see he even had to turn slightly sideways to fit his shoulders through.

"Ah, Mr. Romanov, Mister Locke just was saying he wanted to accept our offer," Jasmine said, standing in respect.

Ethan scrambled to his feet. In his hastiness, he caused the chair to go sliding back and hit the wall. He felt embarrassed, but they didn't seem to notice.

"That's great, Jasmine. I suppose I should introduce myself. Mister Locke, I'm Talen Romanov, President and CEO of Morgan Investments. Starting next week, you and I will be working a lot together."

In the time between his interview and starting work at Morgan Investments, Ethan was very busy.

Jasmine White had spent much of the rest of that first day getting his personal information; his bank account numbers, student loan information, and even some stuff Ethan couldn't fathom why Morgan needed to know.

"Uh, Jasmine, no offense but why is my clothing size and measurements needed?"

Jasmine let out a chuckle; her serious demeanor abandoned once Ethan had signed his employment contract.

"Don't worry, while you were dressed nicely today, Mr. Romanov will want you in a more high-class wardrobe starting next Monday. I'm just going to forward the information to a tailor shop that our firm uses. They'll have your suits ready for fitting by Friday."

Ethan sat, stunned. "How much will that be?" he asked with trepidation. Jasmine looked at him sympathetically and gently patted him on the shoulder.

Jasmine smiled encouragingly. "These suits are complementary, they're part of your benefits. It's a company perk everyone gets. "

"Now, Mr. Romanov has approved you to take up to two weeks of salary in advance, which will be deducted from your first paycheck. So you can get two weeks up front today, and then half a paycheck at the normal pay period. If you want it, of course."

***

The rest of the afternoon seemed to be filled with paperwork, and when Ethan left at six in the evening, he was unsure if he was walking, floating, or flying.

In his wallet he had several hundred dollars, with the rest of his pay advance already transferred to his account effective the next morning.

Taking the subway back from the Financial District to his apartment, Ethan was so caught up in his thoughts that he almost missed his stop, something that hadn't happened since a night out drinking as an undergrad.

He stepped off the subway and was jolted back into reality when his shoulder collided with a stranger and he fell on his backside.

"I’m sorry," Ethan said, “I did not mean to…” his voice caught in his throat as his eyes fell onto the man that he’d run into.

The man was the epitome of masculinity, Ethan thought. He was only about six feet, but with a dancer's lithe body, wearing simple slacks and a dress shirt.

His face was the sort that Ethan imagined would have been sought after by art sculptors. With short blond hair above a wide forehead with soft eyebrows that hovered intelligently above crystal blue eyes, a noble nose, and lips that were full and luscious.

Overall, the handsome stud looked sensual and intelligent, and Ethan found himself awestruck.

"It was my fault, actually," the man said, holding out his hand to help Ethan up.

When their fingers touched, Ethan was convinced that he felt a crackle of electricity run down his arm. The man had to work out, because he hauled Ethan up, all one-hundred and seventy-five pounds of him, like he was barely more than a feather.

His power caused Ethan to gasp, and suddenly he was face to face with him, almost close enough to kiss.

"I am sorry for running into you like that," the stranger said. "I must have been moving faster than I thought in my quest to catch the train."

"I totally understand," Ethan replied, trying to make light of the situation. "I did that one time so I could make it to a Knicks game. By the way, my name's Ethan."

The sexy stud chuckled, sending a thrill down Ethan’s spine. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ethan. I'm Devin Grimes."

"Won’t you miss your train?" Ethan asked, suddenly realizing that he was still touching Devin’s hand.

Ethan pulled it back a little, bringing it down to hold his backpack strap.

"I already have, I’m afraid," Devin replied, glancing at his watch. "But there will be another along in just a few minutes. You sure I didn’t cause a tear in your suit?"

Ethan quickly ran his hands over the seat of his slacks, feeling for any tears or rough patches on the expensive fabric. "Nope, I think everything is in order," Ethan replied, grinning. "What about you?"

"I am feeling a bit out of it," Devin admitted, running his hand through his hair while giving Ethan a killer smile filled with gleaming white teeth. "I've never done this before, but I was wondering if you are free to join me tonight? I was supposed to be showing up to support a friend’s show, but I suddenly feel like delaying those plans."

Ethan almost immediately said yes, but then caution grabbed his tongue. While he was flattered that Devin would ask him out, and he was obviously gay and looking for a good time, Ethan did not know him though.

"I'm sorry Devin," he replied gently, smiling to make the denial sting less, "but I think I’m going to be busy tonight."

Devin paused, and for a moment, Ethan feared he had bruised his ego. But then his face split into a handsome grin.  “Alright. I’ll accept that. But can I at least give you a ring sometime? I know it's strange to go out with a guy who just knocked you flat on your ass in the middle of the subway station, but I want to get to know you.” He chuckled and nodded at Ethan.

Ethan chuckled at Devin’s gall. "Sure," he agreed finally. He dug out a pen from his back pocket and scribbled down his cell phone number. "But I’ll be honest, I just got a new job. My schedule looks like it will be very busy."

"That's fine," replied Devin, twitching his ears to the echo of an announcement from within the station. "Well that's my train, if I miss this one I'm not going to make it on time to my friend's performance. I hope you have a nice evening, Ethan." Devin turned and rushed down the stairs, taking them two at a time

"See you sexy," Ethan whispered as he watched Devin move with the speed of an athlete.

First a new job, now a hot stud in his life? Things were looking better by the minute.