Chapter 2  Man Of Little Words

LUCIANO GREY, upon disembarking from his private aircraft, Damien Bennett welcomed him. The professional bodyguard engaged in a polite conversation with the Sicilian billionaire. Luciano seemed to stalk like a lion that had already picked up the scent of prey in the air as he walked, impatience and innate aggression girding every step.

He had tracked her down...at last! His runaway bride. There were no adequate words to convey his loathing for the woman who had stolen his heart and then tried to run away with it on the day that they were to tie the knot. Who does that these days? And to a powerful billionaire no less...

It irritated him even more that he would not be able to use the full force of the law against Ariel and deal with her for continually toying with him. He gave her everything any woman could ever ask for. Not only did he not want his private life exposed to the world's media once again, but he was also all too aware of the likely long-term repercussions of such a vengeful act. Had he not suffered enough at the hands of the press when his female personal assistant went on air, claiming they had an affair and adding more to her stories claiming that he maltreated his workers and immediately sacked any lady employee who will not do his bidding and when she said bidding the said hateful female meant office sex requests. Who the hell lies like that? And why the damn fuck is the media so stupid to just believe anything that sells? Especially when it's gossip about a prominent figure like himself.

Luciano now preferred the shadows of anonymity then to the full glare of daylight, and he has learned to despise the never-ending libellous headlines that had followed his every move throughout his ordeal with his wicked and devious ex-assistant.

Now its just him and his trusted personal bodyguard. He has no need for any assistance to be aware and close to his office. Anything related to his billion-dollar business stays within the walls of his company, and all messages from his employees are passed to him only through the office internet. He doesn't even have face-to-face worker exchanges anymore.

Despite all of these troublesome conflicts, Luciano still walked tall and every female head within his proximity continues to turn and appreciate his speedy passing. He stood six feet four inches tall, with the build of a natural athlete, not to mention the stunning good looks he had been born with. There were no flaws on his tanned golden skin, straight nose, or high cheekbones and muscular sinews combined to lend him the haunting beauty of a fallen angel.

However, he cared nothing about his beautiful face, though, indeed he had learned to see it as a consistently unwanted flaw that attracted unwelcome attention from many. As it was, it's already intolerable for him that despite his taking every precaution he had for a person he cared so much about, his wife to be has still managed to leave him and without letting him know where she was, as well. Instantly, he reprimanded himself for making that assumption that she ran from him. After all, he could not know for certain that his wife was not kidnapped. He really wants to believe that after making him this promise sincerely with her and planning to spend the rest of his life with her, that it's unthinkable that she would have the nerve to even think of running away from him. It was perfectly impossible that that's the case, or so he thought...

He reminded himself that on paper his fiancé had appeared immensely respectable and totally dependable. The only child of elderly, financially-stable parents, she had presented herself as an Information Technology student who walked into his office to do a short interview on him for her final school project. Then from there onwards, he had fallen bad and hard into her erroneous beliefs of their differences in status, social life and sexual aspects.

Unfortunately she had been too naive and a virgin at that. It was too difficult bringing her into his life with his different view on sex and how it should be enjoyed.

He is a man of little words and his sexual fantasy's huge and erotic appetite, massive . He made sure all his romantic conquests and bedded partners had signed a non disclosure document before he will have anything passionate to do with them.

He refuses to have his entire life and focus exposed by the media. After all, no woman of his have ever lacked for anything. He had always made sure they have all they could ever dream of but with a clause attached to these. His relationship never lead to marriage, nor do they last more than three weeks before he abandons them.

Time and time again he blamed himself for his decision not to sign any non-disclosure form with his wife to be.

What was essentially a business arrangement with his other women has been very real with Ariel. Would he have recognized her true nature if he had done so? He had not expected her to run away from him but in the event he had arrived there to learn that she had already vanished, leaving behind only a note that spelt out her financial demands, he realized that he still wanted her. And if he was really honest with himself, absolutely needed her However by then, she had already found out how rich he really was compared to what the media thinks. It was unfortunate that it seems only greed had motivated her to contact him again.

'I must ask,' Damien murmured in the tense silence within the limousine, bringing their attention back to present.

"What?" the silent business owner asked him pointedly.

"Do you intend to tip off the police about this lady's whereabouts?"

Luciano tensed, his wide sensual mouth tightening firmly while his square jaw noticeably hardened, 'Nein, I will not,'

The light brown-haired bodyguard and solicitor continued his queries with a quick hesitating look at his boss, 'May I ask...' choosing tact over frank frustration, Damien left the question hanging, wishing that his wealthy superior would be a little more forthcoming.

But Luciano Grey, the only child of Sicily's once most petrifying werewolf pack had always been a male of forbidding reserve. A billionaire at the age of twenty-four, he was a hugely successful businessman and, to the best of Damien's knowledge, resolutely legitimate in all his dealings. And yet his name still struck fear into those who surrounded him and they paled and trembled in the face of his great displeasure. At least to those who knows his true form, Damien corrected himself, immediately remembering his employer's issues with his latest personal assistant and the press. His loathing for the paparazzi, and the ever lingering danger of his criminal ancestry making him the target of a hit, ensured that he was encircled by expert and experienced highly paid bodyguards like him, who kept the rest of the world at bay.

In so many ways, Luciano Grey remained a complete mystery and it was quite obvious that he intends to keep it that way. Although, Damien would have given much to know why a man with so many more appealing options had chosen to pick a mere human with no power at all to be his mate and Luna.

"I will not be responsible for sending my wife to be to jail, do you understand?" Luciano said without any expression at all. "There is no doubt in my mind that Ariel does deserve to go to a human prison but I do not wish to be instrumental in placing her there."

"Quite understandable," Damien agreed, although it was a polite lie because he did not understand his boss' decision about his now-scarce fiancé at all. "However, the police are already looking for her since she was reported missing and notifying them of her location could be done most discreetly, if you choose to, Sir."

"And then what?" Luciano snapped, now becoming annoyed at what his underling was suggesting. "Her unaware parents will then receive news of me jailing their human daughter and my wife to be? And the local authorities will be forced to enter the picture to consider my personal opinions and reasons for my wife running away when questioned which would eventually cause them to continue and not desist from looking into my life and activities? You have already warned me regarding how the police system is, remember? I will not take any risk that could entail losing my freedom from doing my normal daily activities with the pack house and then make the other packs aware of her being human. You know of this already, Damien," the feared and highly-respected Alpha clarified. " Don't worry, I will find some acceptable and legal way to bring this matter to a satisfactory outcome and conclusion,' Luciano breathed softly, his lean brown fingers flexing impatiently on his thighs. "And all without any damaging publicity, a court case or sending her to prison."

Warily searching his Alpha's cold dark eyes, Damien suppressed a shiver and tried not to think about how Luciano's forefathers had preferred to clear their paths of human obstacles before. Which was usually with cold-blooded murder and mayhem and yet now, their latest generational offspring is mated to a mere human!

He told himself off for that imaginative flight of fancy but he could not forget that chilling look in Luciano's gaze or his notorious ruthlessness in business.

He might not have put all his competitors to death but he had never been a man to cross and was known to exact harsh punishment and retribution on those who have offended him. He doubted very much that Ariel had the slightest comprehension of the very dangerous consequences that she had invited when she decided to run away from Luciano Grey.

With a sigh, Luciano continued to brood. He would always achieve his goals because he always intensely focused on getting what he wanted and anything less was totally unthinkable, particularly when it came to his mate. If this particular little lady thinks that she can be free of him that easily, he would remind her exactly of who she is and take her back, whatever the cost because he could not possibly live without his mate and Luna.