For Seo Tae-kyung, simply existing was an act of violent endurance.

He sat at the head of the obsidian conference table in the Orbit Tech boardroom. His spine was stiff against the expensive leather chair. To the twelve board members sitting around him, the room was quiet. They only heard the low hum of the air conditioner and the rustle of papers.

To Tae-kyung, it was a cacophony.

He could hear the heartbeat of the CFO. It was a rapid, jagged thump-thump-thump that betrayed the man was lying about the quarterly budget.

He could hear the scratch of a stylus on a tablet three seats down. It sounded like nails dragging across a chalkboard. The sound vibrated right into his molars.

And the smells. God, the smells.

Someone was wearing a cologne that smelled of burnt musk and cheap ambition. Another board member had eaten garlic for lunch. The scent was a thick, oily fog that coated the back of Tae-kyung’s throat. It made his inner beast snarl in disgust.

"Sir?"

A low voice murmured beside him. It was Cha Min-ho. He was Tae-kyung's secretary and the only person in the building who didn't make Tae-kyung want to jump out the window.

Min-ho slid a glass of ice water toward him.

"Your eyes are flashing," Min-ho whispered. He barely moved his lips. "The gold is bleeding through. Dial it back, or you’re going to scare the prey."

Tae-kyung closed his eyes for a fraction of a second. He forced the Wolf inside him to heel. The beast was pacing. It was agitated by the sensory assault. It wanted to roar. It wanted to flip the table and tear the throat out of the man smelling of garlic just to make the stench stop.

"I am fine," Tae-kyung breathed out.

It was a lie. He felt like his skull was being crushed in a hydraulic press.

"Wrap this up, Min-ho. Two minutes."

Min-ho nodded and adjusted his glasses. He turned to the room with a polite but dismissing smile. "The CEO has heard enough regarding the Quarter 3 projections. We will move to the final item on the agenda. The catering contract for the upcoming charity gala."

Tae-kyung suppressed a sigh. Food. More smells. More noise.

"We have narrowed it down to three vendors," the Director of Operations announced. He stood up and wiped sweat from his forehead. He was a Badger shifter, sweaty and nervous. "However, there has been a slight delay with the final presentation."

As if on cue, the double doors at the end of the boardroom burst open.

It wasn't a graceful entrance. It was a catastrophe.

"Coming through! Excuse me! Heavy load! Very heavy!"

A woman stumbled into the room. She was small. She was struggling under the weight of a massive, three-tiered white box. She was moving too fast. Her momentum carried her forward like a runaway train with cut brakes.

Tae-kyung flinched. The sound of her boots hitting the marble floor echoed like gunshots in his sensitive ears.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

"Watch out!" Min-ho barked. He half-rose from his chair.

But it was too late.

The woman’s foot caught on the edge of the plush carpet.

Time seemed to slow down. Tae-kyung watched with a detached sort of horror as the woman pitched forward. The massive box left her hands. It sailed through the air in a perfect, terrifying arc.

Logic dictated that Tae-kyung should move. He was an Alpha Prime. He had reflexes faster than any other shifter. He could have dodged. He could have caught it.

But as the woman fell, a strange sensation washed over him.

Or rather, a lack of sensation.

Usually, a new person entering the room brought a fresh tsunami of noise and odor. He expected perfume, sweat, laundry detergent, or fear.

But this woman…

She smelled of nothing.

No. Not nothing. She smelled like the empty space between stars. She smelled like a winter morning before the world woke up. It was a cool, clean silence that cut through the garlic and the cologne and the scratching styluses.

For the first time in ten years, the noise in Tae-kyung’s head simply… stopped.

Splat.

The reality of the situation crashed back in.

The cake—a monstrosity of vanilla sponge, buttercream, and fresh strawberries—collided squarely with Tae-kyung’s chest.

The impact knocked the wind out of him. Cold, wet icing soaked instantly through his five-thousand-dollar Italian suit. It seeped onto his skin. A strawberry rolled down his lapel and landed on the table with a wet plop.

Silence descended on the boardroom. Absolute, terrified silence.

The CFO looked like he was about to have a heart attack. Min-ho’s jaw was unhinged.

The woman was on her hands and knees. She gasped for breath. She looked up, her eyes wide and horrified. She had messy brown hair that was escaping from a hairnet, and a smear of flour on her cheek.

"Oh my god," she whispered. Her voice trembled. "Oh my god. I am so dead."

Tae-kyung looked down at his chest. He was covered in white cream. He looked ridiculous. He should be furious. He should be shredding this woman for her incompetence. His wolf usually demanded blood for such disrespect.

But his wolf was… purring.

It was the most bizarre feeling. The beast that usually paced and snarled was currently curled up in his chest. It was practically wagging its tail.

She is quiet, the wolf seemed to say. Keep her.

"Security!" The Director of Operations shrieked. He reached for his phone. "Get security up here immediately! This is an assault!"

"Wait," Tae-kyung said.

His voice was rough. He wasn't used to the sudden lack of pain.

He stood up. A chunk of cake slid off his shoulder and hit the floor with a soft squelch.

He walked around the table toward the woman. The board members scrambled back. They pressed themselves against the wall, terrified of what the Alpha was about to do. They expected violence. They expected a lawsuit.

The woman flinched as his shadow fell over her. She squeezed her eyes shut. She braced for impact. "I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I’ll pay for the suit! I mean, I can’t afford the suit, but I’ll pay for the dry cleaning! Please don't sue me. I have a cat to feed!"

Tae-kyung stopped in front of her.

He didn't look at the mess. He looked at her.

He inhaled deeply.

There it was again. That profound, beautiful silence. It radiated off her like a shield. When he was close to her, the smell of the garlic faded away. The sound of the heartbeats dulled to a rhythmic lullaby. It was like standing in the eye of a hurricane.

"What is your name?" Tae-kyung asked.

The woman opened one eye. She peered up at him like a startled kitten ready to bolt. "Yeo-reum. Han Yeo-reum."

"Han Yeo-reum," he tested the name on his tongue. It tasted sweet. Cleaner than the cake.

"I own Summer Bakery," she rushed to explain. Her hands trembled as she pointed to the ruined box. "I was just supposed to deliver the sample for the gala. I didn't mean to tackle you with a wedding cake. I swear, my feet just... they hate me today."

Min-ho was at Tae-kyung’s side now. He held a stack of napkins and looked thoroughly confused. "Boss? Why aren't you yelling? You’re covered in... is that fondant?"

Tae-kyung ignored his secretary. He crouched down. He brought his face level with hers.

The board members gasped. The Alpha never crouched.

"Stand up," Tae-kyung commanded softly.

Yeo-reum scrambled to her feet. She dusted off her apron. She looked at the door. She was calculating her escape route.

"Min-ho," Tae-kyung said. He didn't take his eyes off the girl.

"Yes, Sir?"

"Cancel the rest of the meetings for the day."

"Sir?" Min-ho blinked. He adjusted his glasses. "But the investors from the Tiger Clan are arriving in twenty minutes. And your cousin Do-jin is coming for lunch."

"Cancel them."

Tae-kyung reached out. He hesitated for a moment. Then, he grabbed Yeo-reum’s wrist.

Her skin was warm. Usually, touching another shifter felt like touching a live wire. There was usually too much heat, too much pulse. But touching her felt cool. Calming. It was like dipping a fevered hand into cool water.

"You," Tae-kyung said to Yeo-reum. "You are coming with me."

Yeo-reum’s eyes bulged. "Where? Jail? Is there a special cake jail? Because I’m claustrophobic!"

"My office," Tae-kyung said. He pulled her toward the private elevator. "And bring the rest of the cake."

"The... the floor cake?" she stammered. She looked at the mess.

"Yes," Tae-kyung said. The corner of his lip twitched upward. It was a microscopic movement that nobody else noticed. "I suddenly have an appetite."

He dragged the bewildered baker into the elevator. The doors slid shut. They cut off the stunned faces of the board members and his very confused secretary.

As the elevator began to rise to the penthouse level, Tae-kyung leaned back against the wall. The silence washed over him.

For the first time in years, he could breathe.

He didn't care that he was covered in frosting. He didn't care that he had just kidnapped a delivery girl.

He had found the cure. And he wasn't letting her go.

AUTHOR’S NOTE

OH MY GOD HELLO EVERYONE! Welcome to Contract with the Alpha!

First of all... THE CAKE. Can we just appreciate the accuracy of Yeo-reum's clumsiness? "Is there a special cake jail?" Girl, I felt that in my soul. I would absolutely be the one to trip over invisible air.

And Tae-kyung! Our poor suffering Alpha. Imagine hearing someone blink too loudly? No wonder he's grumpy. The "garlic breath" struggle is real!

But did you see the switch? The moment the cake hit him? He inhaled her. Sir, that is harassment, but since you are hot, we will allow it.

Also, shoutout to Min-ho. He is the only secretary brave enough to tell an Alpha to calm down. "Your eyes are flashing." We love a supportive bestie!

But wait... why does Yeo-reum smell like "Nothing"? Could it be because cats are stealthy hunters?