12. Nolan

12

Nolan

I n one of the two offices located on the fifth floor of the Sullivan Mansion was Nolan, leaning back on the leather chair. Fuck, he couldn’t believe Adam was going all out this time in destroying the institute. But of course, it wasn’t like bringing down that massive corporation was going to ruin the institute completely, since it had the backup of the government, but it’d at least put a dent in their operation.

“Adam, I wish you luck, bro,” he said, chuckling.

Just as suddenly though, that chuckling died and a frown appeared.

Life essence, eh?

“Fuck,” he said under his breath. Now, he’d have to increase the security around their territory. Because Adam’s life essence had gone down, this meant his supernatural power as an alpha wolf would also be reduced. This also meant the other alphas would soon find out, and they’d come barging in demanding a duel. If they won, obviously, they’d take over the clan, which was expected in their world. A pretty fucked-up world, really.

A few minutes later, Lan turned up, and the moment the boy walked in through the door of his office, Nolan felt his dick respond in the most inappropriate way. And it was so fucking early in the morning, too.

“Peter said you wanted to see me?” Lan asked once he was in the middle of the room and standing a few steps away from Nolan’s desk. “Are we going somewhere?”

“Not we,” Nolan said, his gaze drifting over the boy from head to toe. In that t-shirt, leather jacket, and ripped jeans with boots, Lan looked like a punk kid, a fucking cute one. Not to mention that gold earring in his left ear. The tight jeans did nothing to hide the boy’s slender legs and firm butt, which made Nolan’s cock ache for some reason.

Fuck, stop looking at the boy like you want to eat him up, for fuck’s sake.

He cleared his throat and shifted his gaze to the drawer, which his hand was currently opening. He took out a folder, laid it on the desk, and opened it.

“You have a new job today,” he said, sliding the folder across. “Keep an eye on him.”

Lan leaned forward and glanced briefly at it, not bothering to look at the photo attached. “So…” He tilted his head to one side, his wolf ears twitching in that agitated manner Nolan knew too well. “I’m... not guarding you today?”

“I’m not going anywhere particularly dangerous,” Nolan said. “I’ll have Jeff and the others do that today. ”

Lan’s face fell. “Jeff is no good. He’s too slow.”

“He’s big,” Nolan said. “And he’s tough.”

“But he’s slow,” Lan said. “And he’s dumb.”

“He’s loyal,” Nolan said. “I don’t need a shrewd kid with a smart mouth like you with me all the time.”

“A smart kid with a shrewd mouth can think on his feet and save lives, like I saved your life that time.”

It was just like the boy to go switching his words around, the little punk, which was why Nolan liked him so much.

“That one time,” Nolan said, referring to the time when he had been shot by a silver bullet during a business operation and Lan had protected him from the second heading toward his heart. “Are you planning on just standing there and coming up with a hundred and one reasons as to why you and only you can protect me?”

Lan nodded his head furiously, and Nolan burst out laughing. Fuck, if he could, he’d take the boy into his arms and kiss the life out of him and then…

And then fuck him until he was so fucking breathless and dazed and wanted more.

He cleared his throat again. “Adam asked specifically for you.”

Lan widened his eyes. “Oh…”

“Don’t just oh me; take the damn folder and leave,” Nolan snapped. Because really, the longer the boy stayed, the more torturous it’d be for him. Fuck, his crotch felt so fucking tight suddenly.

“All right,” Lan said, stepping forward. Standing there right in front of Nolan, he planted both palms on the top of the desk as he leaned down, reading the file. There wasn’t much there, just a name, a little description, and a photo.

Lan in that position did nothing to ease Nolan’s discomfort. For fuck’s sake, he could see the boy’s pale chest and nipples through the low-hanging collar of his t-shirt. He sighed in exasperation.

Lan raised his head and asked, “Is something the matter, sir?”

Nolan was about to growl that he should just leave and stop teasing him with that cute look of his, but Lan had already returned his attention to the photo as he mumbled, “Shiro…” Then he lifted his head again, his eyes wide in shocked surprise. “Shiro!”

“What?” Nolan asked. “Someone you know?”

“It’s Shiro, the fox kid I knew back at the institute,” Lan said, chuckling. “We used to stay in the same dorm room—him, his adopted brothers Kuro and Aka, and me.”

“Oh?” Nolan raised a brow with interest.

“Wow! So Shiro is the boy Master Adam likes?” Lan looked completely dazed. “Wow! Well, I’m not surprised cause he’s really beautiful, but wow!” Suddenly, he burst out laughing. “I can’t believe he got out of the institute. We got separated when we turned thirteen and I was put in a different department—you know the black one, the department where they put beastkin to work in the mine—but I ran away, cause, you know, the mine is shit, but Shiro and his brothers, they got put into that department and…” His face fell again.

“By that department, you mean?” Nolan asked .

Lan nodded. “Yeah, the one where they rent beastkin teens out as prostitutes.”

The heavy oak desk would have broken if Nolan didn’t control the shock and anger that suddenly erupted within him at hearing those words from Lan.

Fuck! Holy fuck!

He said, “Since he’s your childhood friend, I’m sure you won’t let Adam down?”

Lan nodded his head furiously. “I definitely won’t, sir.” He was bright again suddenly, just like a ray of sunshine after a storm. Leaning even farther across the desk with his face close to Nolan, he asked, “Doesn’t that mean Shiro is super safe from the institute if he’s with Master Adam?”

Nolan, distracted for a moment by that pretty face and the sensual lips inches away from his, said, “Huh? Oh, yeah. Of course.”

Lan pulled back then, his eyes bright. “Then they won’t be able to touch Shiro and they can go fuck themselves.” He laughed. Picking up the folder, he swiftly turned and then marched to the door. “All right, I’m off to see my childhood friend and protect him.”

Nolan waved, chuckling as the door shut. That boy took the meaning of protection very seriously, didn’t he?

Now then, he thought, how should I relay that new information to Adam without making him go berserk and kill a bunch of filthy rich guys?

He picked up the telephone and said, “Mark, get me intel on the red department, the lists of beastkin orphans there for the last five years, and the clients. I want the report by noon. ”

“Yes, sir,” Mark replied.

After hanging up, Nolan said under his breath, “Damn, it looks like Adam is going to be very busy. Wonder if he’d let me deal with some of those filthy rich bastards.” Not that they weren’t ones themselves, of course.