Breaking the Wolf's Rules: Howls Romance (Wolf Mated Book 1) Read online

  Breaking the Wolf's Rules

  Howls Romance (Wolf Mated)

  Amber Ella Monroe

  Breaking the Wolf's Rules: Howls Romance (Wolf Mated)

  Copyright © April 2018 by Amber Ella Monroe

  Cover Design by RAN Designs

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author.

  This is a work of fiction. The characters, places, incidents, and dialogues in this book are of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or person, living or dead, is completely coincidental.

  Contents

  Newsletter

  Other Paranormal Romance Titles

  Breaking the Wolf's Rules: a Howls Romance

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Message from Amber Ella Monroe

  Newsletter

  About the Author

  SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER

  If you enjoy romance with an edgier side, subscribe to Amber Ella’s newsletter HERE, and be one of the first to be notified of new releases, current contests, giveaways, and book-related news.

  For paranormal romance novels, visit Amber Ella Monroe on the web at http://amberellabooks.com

  * * *

  For contemporary romance novels, visit Ambrielle Kirk on the web at http://booksbyambrielle.com

  Other Paranormal Romance Titles

  CAEDMON WOLVES

  Wolf’s Haven

  Wolf’s Promise

  Wolf’s Touch

  Wolf’s Desire

  Wolf’s Strength

  Wolf’s Honor

  Wolf’s Temptation

  Wolf’s Kingdom (COBRA Coalition)

  Mate & Kingdom (COBRA Coalition)

  * * *

  DRESDAN COVEN

  Prelude

  Donor

  Requiem

  The Dresdan Coven Trilogy

  * * *

  WOLF IN EXILE

  Captured

  Unchained

  Ascend

  Reclaimed

  Bound

  Wolf in Exile: The Complete Edition

  * * *

  ASPEN VALLEY WOLF PACK

  Shifter Untamed

  Wolf Unbound

  Outlaw Unleashed

  Omega Unmasked

  Rebel Unveiled

  Mountain Wolf

  Rogue Wolf

  Bad Wolf

  * * *

  SHIFTERS OF TIMBER ROCK

  Jayce

  Treyton

  Draven

  * * *

  WOLF MATED

  Breaking the Wolf's Rules

  * * *

  If you enjoy romance with an edgier side, subscribe to Amber Ella’s newsletter, http://smarturl.it/amberellas-list, and be one of the first to be notified of new releases, current contests, giveaways, and book-related news.

  * * *

  For paranormal romance novels, visit Amber Ella Monroe on the web at http://amberellabooks.com

  * * *

  For contemporary romance novels, visit Ambrielle Kirk on the web at http://booksbyambrielle.com

  Breaking the Wolf's Rules: a Howls Romance

  (Wolf Mated 1)

  She was supposed to be my personal assistant—a temporary aide to help me work through an unrelenting agenda. After a few days with her, I know she's not the best fit for the job…but she is the right woman for me.

  * * *

  I crave her curves. Even when I make demands, I take one look at her and lose control under her seductive stare. She has become a permanent distraction. All I can think about is taking her on my desk and keeping her for myself.

  * * *

  There's one other issue—the animal inside me lusts for more than a temporary fling. I want to make the little office vixen mine forever.

  Chapter One

  Jada

  I took a sip of my cocktail as I watched my friend, Kennedy, thumb through a listing of jobs on her iPad. We worked for the same temp agency but we were both in the market for new jobs.

  We got laid off after the firm we worked for downsized and move headquarters to a different city. They had offered very few people job transfers and neither me nor my boss made the cut. They handed me a pink slip, gave me one month’s worth of severance pay, and sent me on my merry way. Since I’d gotten hired on temporary gigs here and there but none of the jobs had really stood out for me. Although I wasn’t in any position to be choosy, most of them only wanted temporary help to begin with which wasn’t a big motivator.

  Kennedy scrambled something down on a notepad. I wished that I was as enthusiastic as her about job hunting, but I had given up hope on ever finding the perfect personal assistant position again. Maybe it was time I applied in other fields or weigh the advantages and disadvantages of moving back home to the country.

  Kennedy had received her pink slip from the same firm right about the same time I did. Except for the CFO and a few other finance executives, the entire accounting department had been laid off. Like myself, Kennedy had taken on some temporary positions hoping to find a permanent one. The job market in the city wasn’t what it used to be, and we were competing with a slew of recent college graduates.

  “Oh, Jada…look. Here’s one for you…corporate secretary at BossUp Entertainment,” she said, sliding her iPad across the table and pointed to the job listing she found.

  “BossUp Entertainment…hmmm, that sounds familiar,” I said, reading through the job requirements. I opened up another browser and did a search on the company. “Oh…I know why it sounds familiar. This is a shell for a company that owns a handful of strip clubs.”

  “Wait? How do you know that?” She leaned over and glanced at the tablet. “All it says is food and beverage industry.”

  “Of course that’s all it says. You don’t even want to know how I know this.”

  She nudged my shoulder. “Oh, come on. Have you worked there or something? Are you a stripper on the side?”

  “No. I handled my old boss’s personal credit card bills. The charges showed up often, and he wasn’t exactly shy about his visits there. In fact, he took potential clients with him to close on some of his contracts.”

  “Really?” Kennedy squealed in laughter. “But…I wouldn’t put it past him. I snuck in on a company owner’s meeting once and they repeatedly pitched to executives on doing whatever it takes to earn the sale.”

  I nodded. “Exactly. But at this point, I’m not in a position to be picky. I’ve got a couple months to search around before I go broke.”

  “Didn’t you say you were invited to interview with a petroleum company here in the city tomorrow?”

  “The interview at the petroleum was on Monday. They wanted me back for a follow-up meeting, but that position was put on hold. The one you’re talking about is for an imports and exports firm and it’s tomorrow afternoon.”

  “Really? What for?”

  “A temporary PA. It’s not even temp to hire. I only agreed to interview because of the pay. It’s almost double what I’ve been offered in the past.”

  “What company?”

 
“Vetrov Corporation.”

  Kennedy’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open. “Do you know how hard it is to get an interview with that company?”

  I shrugged. “Must not be too hard. I got one, and I wasn’t exactly trying.”

  “No, seriously. My recruiter tried to push my resume to someone in HR and they told her flat out that they only hire directly. They don’t work with agencies or third-party recruiters. So I submitted my resume directly to them three weeks ago and I haven’t heard anything back.”

  “Maybe they changed their policies. You should follow-up,” I told her.

  “You know what they are, right?”

  I frowned. “What do you mean…what they are?”

  “The owners. The two brothers. You know about them, right?”

  I glanced at her and there was an awkward moment of silence between us. “I didn’t even know the owners were brothers. I’ll be interviewing with one of them though.”

  Kennedy glanced around us suspiciously and then whispered, “They’re not like you and me.”

  “They’re rich as fuck and they’re bachelors. Of course, they’re not like us,” I exclaimed.

  “Yes, they’re millionaires, but that’s not what I meant,” she said.

  “So…what did you mean?”

  Kennedy rolled her eyes. “I forgot that you don’t get out much.”

  I nudged her playfully. “What is that supposed to mean? I get out. And I go places. I even met you for lunch.”

  “That’s only because I came to your apartment and dragged you out here,” she said.

  “So…about these two brothers…what do you mean?”

  She toggled through some pages on the internet and slid the iPad closer to me once again. She’d opened it to a website of the local newspaper. The headline read: Do we have our very own shapeshifter pack here in Red Beach Valley?

  “Shapeshifters,” I mumbled, scanning the article and reading about how a wolf pack had apparently just taken up residence somewhere in our town.

  “We had two wolf shifter packs in Montana where I grew up,” Kennedy said. “Their existence was already out by the time I was born.”

  “How do you know the owners of Vetrov Corporation are shapeshifters?”

  “Wolf shifters, to be exact. My dad has worked at the property appraisers office for over thirty years, so he knows just about every family in this county that owns large tracts of land. And I’m not just talking small lots and fields, I’m talking mega acreage like neighborhoods, farm lands, and isolated woods. Woods that were deemed uninhabitable a long time ago, but folks already knew people live out there. A while back, the County was able to link a few of those properties to prominent families who had already identified themselves as primarily shifters. Among them was the family name Vetrov.”

  “Sounds like myths and legends,” I said, not sure what to make of it. Was it just a story or was I about to be interview to be a PA to a known shifter?

  “Yeah, of course, but that’s how they stay so low key. A small portion of our city believe they're here but many of us don’t, which means the Vetrovs and the rest of the shifter families are left alone and unbothered most of the time. But I know the difference.”

  “But what makes you think that these two owners are shifters? Maybe they were adopted or something. Maybe they're only related by marriage not blood.”

  Kennedy shook her head. “I don’t think so, but I could be wrong.”

  “I’ll have to take your word for it. Either way, it doesn’t make much of a difference to me. If shapeshifters are here in Red Beach Valley, they could literally be everywhere. Our neighbors. Our hair stylists. Our politicians.”

  “Or that sexy ass guy sitting by himself,” Kennedy added.

  I started to turn around, but then Kennedy hissed, “Don’t turn around. I think he’s looking at us.”

  I giggled. “Maybe you should go talk to him.”

  Kennedy grinned. “Maybe I should. I haven’t had good sex in ages.”

  “Um…you told me you had sex a couple weeks ago. Your mechanic? Remember?”

  “It wasn’t good sex. It was awful. He doesn’t count.” She cringed. “Awful sex. No job. I don’t know about you but that’s just a recipe for one super disgruntled bitch.”

  I shrugged. “You don’t seem disgruntled to me. If anyone should be disgruntled, it should be me.”

  “I don’t know how you do it. You were married for years and then—boom—you’re divorced just like that. It’s been what…a year since you dated anyone?”

  “Well, I’ve had friends…”

  “Friends? With benefits, right?”

  I shook my head.

  “No sex for over a year?” Her eyes widened. “Noooooo.”

  “It’s not that hard. Sex is overrated anyway.”

  “Oh, honey. Poor girl.” She frowned. “Tell you what…why don’t you go talk to the hottie in the corner?”

  “I agree. He’s hot, but I don’t need any attachments right now.”

  “Okay…suit yourself. Let’s do lunch tomorrow. Maybe after your interview. And you can tell me all about that Vetrov brother. I hear he’s eye candy.”

  Chapter Two

  Jada

  “We’re glad you were able to meet with us on such short notice, Ms. Lincoln,” Pam Donovan, the human resources manager of Vetrov Corporation as she pressed a button on the elevator control panel. “Did you have any trouble finding us?”

  “No, not at all.” I smiled, relieved that Ms. Donovan had been so welcoming when I arrived. “I used to run errands in this area all the time for my former boss, so I’m very familiar with the city layout.”

  “That’s a plus. The traffic tends to get horrible with all the one-way streets, but I’m glad you were able to find us with no major hiccups. We usually conduct two separate interviews on two different days, but Mr. Vetrov had an opening in his schedule and he’ll be joining us.”

  “Great.”

  I nodded and silently hoping that Ms. Donovan couldn’t hear my heart pounding loudly in the elevator cab. My employment agency had already sent me out on three interviews this week, but out of all of them, this one seemed to bring the most anxiety. I didn't understand why. I had researched the company prior to accepting the interview and felt like I knew the background information on the company really well. I had even gone as far as researching the owners and the man I’d be working for if I got hired.

  Ivan Vetrov. Co-Owner and President of Operations. His title said it all. He was a man of great importance within the company.

  Last night while preparing for the interview, I had found several pictures of Ivan Vetrov online from the various public business events, but most all of them were of his profile. But I didn’t have to see his full face to conclude that he was attractive as hell.

  Ivan Vetrov and a younger sibling had been running the place for a little over a decade. According to some older press releases, Vetrov Corporation was a successful family business that started nearly fifty years ago.

  “Right this way, Ms. Lincoln. We’ll be meeting in the conference room,” Ms. Donovan said, gesturing toward the lobby area.

  There was a woman seated at the receptionists desk answering the phone. She waved as Ms. Donovan and I walked past.

  “Rachel is the full time receptionist for the executives working on the tenth floor. That would be both owners, several business partners, and a few managers from our other divisions. She doesn’t handle a lot of workload but she’s usually the first point of contact for both operations and accounting. The ninth floor is where all the human resources people—like myself—work out of. The bottom floors are for lower-level execs and other employees. The position you’re interviewing for would work on the tenth floor directly with Mr. Vetrov. All of our tenth floor executives have their own secretaries or PAs.”

  I nodded as Ms. Donovan spoke, grateful to learn as much as I could before the interview. I definitely didn’t want to make a fool out of
myself in front of the owner of a multi-billion dollar corporation.

  When we reached the conference room, it was empty. Ms. Donovan turned on some lights and set up some chairs on the far-left side of the conference room.

  She pulled out a chair for me to sit in and then asked, “Can I get you anything before we get started? Coffee? Or water?”

  “No. I’m fine. Thanks.”

  Ms. Donovan smiled. “I’ll be right back.”

  As she disappeared down the hallway, I took a moment to gather myself, straightening my blouse, skirt, and pushing a few strands of hair back behind my ears. The center console on the long table was made of glass and I caught my attention briefly, hoping that I didn’t have lipstick on my teeth or something. I had spent nearly an hour on my makeup this morning, making sure that everything was perfect. I didn’t want to look too painted, and I didn’t want to look like I hadn’t put up much of an effort either.

  For ten years, I’d been employed in the same field as a secretary or personal assistant to some of the pickiest executives in the city. I’d even had the privilege of conducting some interviews for them. I knew exactly what they looked for in an employee. Of all of them, my last boss had been the most laid back. But for the most part, if I followed the job description and agendas to the “T”, I found that the days went by much smoother. I was cut out for this work. I enjoyed doing it, but why was I so nervous?