Do you ever shut up?"
The words sliced through the quiet conference room like a blade.
Dozens of executives and judges froze so that only the humming of the projector remained.
On the screen, the government project plan glowed with bullet points worth billions, but no one was looking at the numbers anymore. Every gaze was shifted toward Seo Jun-ha
… and the man across from him that had spoken.
His rival. Alpha Kang Min-jae
No one intervened. They were already used to the two heirs butting heads any chance they got. It has been this way since high school.
Jae leaned back in his chair, smirking, dark eyes gleaming with the satisfaction of someone who lived to humiliate him. His suit was flawless, his tie perfect, and his entire presence screamed confidence and power.
Jun's jaw tightened as he turned away from the man he was networking with beside him. He met his gaze with a dark glare.
Gods, he hated his smug, pompous ass.
"You've been yapping ever since you entered the room," Jae continued, his voice lazy but sneering. "It's not like you have anything to contribute. I saw your proposal when you presented. It was shallow and would definitely collapse before the ink on the contract dries." He leaned forward, smirking. "Tell me, do you actually think before you open your mouth, or is arrogance the only thing keeping your company afloat?"
Some people chuckled, while others just nervously watched.
Jun forced a cold smile, though heat was already prickling across the back of his neck. "You must be projecting, Mr Kang. No one in this boardroom can beat you in the game of arrogance. If arrogance were currency, you'd be the richest man alive."
A ripple of laughter broke the tension.
"Well, give it a few years, and soon, that richest man's statement will be true." Jae said, grinning. Then his eyes narrowed, his voice softening to fake concern. "But I can't say that about you, can I? You should worry about holding on to what little you have left."
Jun's stomach tightened, but his expression stayed cool and aloof. He couldn't afford a crack in his mask in front of these vultures.
He adjusted his tie, ignoring the uncomfortable warmth spreading through his chest. Jae was right; this government project meant the survival of his family's company. If he lost the bid, his family would fall.
If he won, he could keep the empire in his grip.
He had fought too hard to let it slip away.
"Well, not everyone was handed the keys to the country after being born with a golden spoon in their mouth, Jae," Jun replied coldly. "Some of us have to deal with the luck we were given."
Jae frowned at him, finally annoyed. He hated when people brought up his family's vast wealth, as if he had not also worked hard to sit at the table.
Jun stiffened when the faintest trace of alpha pheromones reached him, and the warmth in his chest spiked violently into a pulse of heat. It seems like the mood spike in Jae caused him to release some alpha pheromones.
His breath caught before he could stop it.
Shibal, not now. Please, not now.
Min-jae's brow furrowed as he noticed the sweat breaking out on Jun's face. "Something wrong?" he asked with a low, almost intimate voice.
Jun smirked, regaining his cold, unflappable composure even as sweat beaded at his blond hairline. "Just bored. Listening to you always makes me sleepy."
The alpha's eyes narrowed, but he said nothing more, turning with the rest to look at the screen as an executive started speaking.
As the meeting dragged on, Jun's head swam, words blurring as heat climbed higher under his skin.
He barely registered when an executive asked him a question.
He looked around when he noticed everyone staring at him. God, could they smell him??
"Alpha Seo? You were asked a question," an executive said.
"Sorry about that, sir. Please repeat the question."
The man frowned a little but repeated the question, and Jun answered correctly, hiding the tremor in his voice.
"Are you alright, Mr Seo? You're looking very pale. Should we take a short break?"
Jun's hands pressed hard against the edge of the table, nails biting into the polished surface. He didn't dare glance at Yoon Tae-hyun, the government board member who had asked the question.
The man's concerned eyes lingered on him all the same, as if he could see through Jun's perfect mask.
"Thank you for your concern but I'm fine." His voice came out clipped, colder than he intended.
Alpha Hyun's brows furrowed deeper. He was about to insist when Jae chuckled, low and mocking. "If Director Seo can't handle one meeting, perhaps he isn't fit to handle a multi-billion-dollar project either."
Jun forced a sharp smirk. "Spare me your theatrics. Some of us focus on results, not noise."
Jae's gaze lingered on his face. He was watching too closely, too intently.
Jun avoided his gaze, focusing on the screen.
His pulse thundered as heat coiled tightly in his belly.
Suppress it. Just suppress it. The meeting would soon be over.
Finally, the session ended but as people filed out of the room, Jun stayed seated, gripping the table until his knuckles whitened as he waited till the room was almost empty.
He could not let anyone see.
He rose, walking briskly down the hall to the private restroom. His heartbeat thundered as the heat became a burning furnace spreading all over his body.
He needed his suppressant. Now.
He rushed in and headed straight to a stall, closing the door behind him, hands trembling violently as he pulled the glass vial and syringe from his briefcase.
He carelessly dropped the case in the water closet and rolled up his sleeve, clenching his fist as he tried to stabilize his shaking hands.
Just one injection and he would be back to normal. No one would ever know.
The restroom door opened and closed. And before Jun could think, his stall door was suddenly yanked open.
Jun froze.
"Interesting," a voice drawled.
He turned sharply to see Kang Min-jae standing in the doorway, one hand on the frame, his gaze fixed on the vial in Jun's trembling hand.
"Jinjja!" Jun hissed under his breath. "Get out," he snapped at Jae. "Now."
Jae raised a brow, smirking as he stepped into the stall and shut the door behind him with a soft click.
"You're shaking," the alpha murmured, his gaze dropping to the syringe in his hand, then back to Jun.
His smirk widened into a gleeful grin. "Funny. Last I checked, alphas don't need suppressants."