Fire of a Wounded Bond (Now available on Kindle Unlimited)

Chapter 5 | PHASE ONE: Work

RAIDEN ||

Taking things slow.

It'd seemed like the best scenario for my situation with Dylan, seeing how he didn't seem like the kind of man that was secure enough in himself to be mated to a man like me.

Our conversation earlier proved just how right I was when he said that he just couldn't accept a man but we both knew that he would never reject me — if he'd wanted to, he would have done so the very first day that he laid eyes on me.

Yet he hadn't, so there was something in Dylan's heart, something in his soul that wanted me.

I would be lying to myself if I said I didn't actually look forward to the time that we somehow did make this work.

But for now, this would do because I was correct in what I said before — I would not accept a mate that couldn't accept me, so until that time comes, we will do what's best for the both of us and take things slow.

_____

Walking into work, I wasn't exactly thrilled about the job that I was doing today — or rather the place that I was working in today.

Club CLAW — a nightclub owned and operated by the Blackstone pack in the large, boisterous and obnoxiously busy werewolf city, Ethos.

The last three years of regaining my freedom, I started investing into myself. Trying to find things that made me happy, relearning what brought me joy in life and one of those things was painting.

It was perfect for a man like me — for a feline like me, someone who didn't have much tolerance when it came to crowded places or loud noises.

It was something that I could do whenever my anxiety became too much — when it threatened to take over my life and pull me under.

Painting was a beautiful way to escape for me, to get lost in my brush strokes and enjoy the tranquility of it all.

My hobby turned business has brought in some serious cash for me over the years. I was able to purchase my condo outright, to buy my very first car with no monthly payments, to support myself like I've never been able to do before.

I've become extremely proud of my life and my confidence has spiked since learning to love myself again, since I've learned what makes me happy and what makes me tick, since I've grown into the man that my family would be proud of, that my brother and sisters would be proud of — that I would be proud of.

My business is based on word of mouth — my previous clients speak to the people that they know who are looking for work and then they send them to me.

I wasn't too thrilled to be working in this large, werewolf city but the guys that was seeking my help in recreating the atmosphere of their nightclub, seemed desperate on the phone about a week ago as they weren't bringing in enough money to sustain their pack and they needed a whole new look to their club.

One that would bring creatures in and make them spend money — an atmosphere that you spent so much time having fun in, you didn't even realize how much money you were actually spending.

And today was supposed to be like any other place that has reached out to me for my services.

Unfortunately the guys that hired me, Dean and Jake Harris of the Blackstone pack were upset about the color they chose for the outside of their nightclub and now wanted me to repaint the entire exterior before moving to the interior.

"So let me get this straight," I chuckle, shaking my head a little as I look between the two. "You chose this color, you paid for this color, I painted a sample and told you that the color would dry a lot darker than it looked originally, you two gave me the good ahead, I painted it and now you're unhappy and want me to repaint the entire exterior but you don't want to be charged for the extra time and labor that goes into that?"