Chapter 725 You’re X?
Steven’s POV:
I was convinced that with this meeting, as long as we joined forces, launching a new financial empire would be a breeze.
Soon, a small, slender figure in a baseball cap walked in.
X looked nothing like the imposing figure I’d imagined. And why did my wolf senses pick up such a familiar scent from X?
I quickly reassured myself that physical appearance was secondary–ability was what truly mattered. With enough talent, one’s presence could be more commanding than a majestic mountain range.
But the next moment, the slight figure pulled off the cap, letting a cascade of thick hair tumble down. When she lifted her face to look at me, I was so stunned I couldn’t even form words.
“Hayley?!”
“What’s this–some kind of joke?”
I felt completely duped.
“Who’s joking with you?” Hayley tossed her cap onto the sofa, spreading her hands in an easy, unapologetic gesture. “Didn’t you want to see me? Well, here I am–take a good look.”
This was nothing like the X I’d pictured! How could she possibly be the mysterious, powerful, high-ranking werewolf known as X?
I stared at her, taking in her laid-back, almost roguish air, and just couldn’t believe it.
Ignoring her, I strode quickly to the doorway, craning my neck to look outside. But after a thorough scan, there wasn’t a soul in sight.
Frustrated, I turned back, hands on my hips, and stood there for a few seconds, dumbfounded, before returning to stand across from Hayley, eyeing her up and down with open suspicion.
“You’re X?” I raised an eyebrow.
“That’s right.” Hayley folded her arms across her chest.
My face fell, irritation clear in my voice. “Look, if you couldn’t get X to show, you didn’t need to play a trick on me. Don’t tell me you’ve never even met X in person.”
“If I’m not X, then tell me–what do you think X should look like?” Hayley asked coolly.
“Definitely not like you,” I shot back, glancing away–just in time to see Benjamin reaching for the Romanée-Conti Grand Cru I’d saved for X.
I didn’t care that he outranked me as an Alpha; I rushed over to stop him, snapping, “Hands off! That’s for X! If you drink it now, what will I serve when I finally meet the real X?!”
Behind me, Hayley’s soft, teasing voice drifted over.
“Six, you really are stingy!”
The nickname made my back go rigid. Disbelief in my eyes, I turned to stare at her.
“How do you know that name?” I demanded, completely thrown. “Did X actually tell you?”
“Six” wasn’t really a nickname–just something X had tossed out during our early days working together.
Back then, even as a rising star in the investment world, none of my peers dared to call me that. Only X ever challenged my authority so boldly, calling me by that name as if it were nothing.
I hadn’t heard it in years.
Hayley plopped down on the sofa with a sigh. “Do I really need to remind you? Remember your arrogant, irresponsible Alpha father who let his pack fall apart while he obsessed over the stock market? Our first hedge fund battle–how did we ride the momentum, how did we set the whole field ablaze, leaving him with nothing?”
Hearing her mention those long-buried secrets, I finally had to face the truth.
X was always low-key, never one to brag about those thrilling victories in the market. And no one but X could possibly know that the man we defeated together was my father–or that my father was an Alpha. My mother was abandoned before I was born. Even at the end, he never came to see her one last time.
I spent years building my strength, determined to face him as an equal in the financial world.
I thought I was ready, but the old wolf was craftier than I’d imagined. Halfway through, he almost wiped me out completely.
When I was at my lowest–realizing I couldn’t beat him as a wolf or a trader–it was X who turned the tide, dragging him down from his pedestal.
To me, X was more than an idol–X was my savior.
Without X, I never could have avenged my mother or reclaimed my dignity.
“Still don’t believe me?” Hayley asked, frowning in annoyance.