Chapter 4

The silence of the hallway was disturbed by the click-clack of my heels as I approached the booth. I don't know what kind of power my boss had over me, but now I was feeling regret as soon as he left me earlier.

 I had stuffed my cash into my bag in the changing room. There was no need to change back to my casual attire since my 'services' would be needed. All I needed was to go back home and have a nice, warm bath to soothe my nerves. Was that too much to ask?

 My only prayer to the moon goddess was that whoever this so-called admirer was had better keep his hands to himself. Or herself. With the kind of mood I was in at the moment, it would be difficult to keep Celine in check if someone decided to be stupid.

As I approached the last booth on the left, my nose picked up the scent again. I paused in my steps, and my lips parted in silent surprise. The scent came from within the booth.

"Oh no," I muttered, looking up to the ceiling in despair. "Goddess no. Why does it have to be him of all people?"

There was no way I could do this. I tried to turn away, but Celine was not having it.

'And where do you think you're going?' She barked from within.

'Where else?' I answered. 'Back home. We're not doing this.'

'Yes, we are. There is someone waiting for us in there, and we have to see him.'

'Us?'

My wolf went silent again. Typical of her. And what did she mean to us? My eyes widened in realisation. She was intoxicated by the scent of this stranger. And she was going to fight me tooth and nail if I denied her request. I didn't even have enough strength for a fight at the moment. I sighed and moved towards the booth. The bouncer at the entrance nodded to me and parted the booth open.

Inside, the mysterious stranger relaxed on a sofa. He had taken off his shades, and as I approached him, I noticed the unique colour of his eyes. They were a dull shade of gold. Something I've never seen before in my life.

 I sent a silent complaint to the moon goddess. First my brother, now this man. Why were the male werewolves I've known and met so far blessed with beautiful eyes? It just wasn't fair.

"Well, well, well." He perked up and sat up straight as I approached. "Look who we have here."

"Did you set up this meeting as a way to gloat?" I folded my arms under my bust, inadvertently accentuating it. His gaze strayed to them for a few seconds before lifting back to my face.

"Not at all," he said. "I am just intrigued to see your other side."

"Well, there you have it." I spread my arms for emphasis, trying and failing to hide the blush on my cheeks at his gaze. "I'm a waitress by day and a stripper by night. Satisfied?"

"Far from it." The corner of his lips tilted upward. "And no, I'm not going to judge you."

At that moment, I noticed the space between us had reduced. I was so close to him that if he could reach out without stress and touch me if he wanted, for some strange reason, I would not have minded. I shook the thoughts away and scanned him properly. There was something unique about him. His scent, his appearance, and his demeanour. He oozed power. I had to know more.

"Who are you really?" I asked.

"A question that is many hours late, don't you think?" His smile widened. "I would have appreciated this when I wasn't snubbed earlier today."

I suddenly felt a wave of guilt wash through me. I rubbed my forearm and avoided his gaze.

"To answer your question." He cleared his throat. "I am Theo Baxter. The Alpha of Red Oak Pack."

"You're the Alpha?" I blinked slowly, taking it in. I barely knew the people who ruled my pack. My parents never told me. They never felt they should due to our low ranking status. To them, it was not important. Other wolves had looked down on them, and they felt the need to ignore the rest of the pack in return. Which made me wonder why they even participated in the war in the first place.

"Yes, I am." Theo was clearly enjoying my surprise.

"Then you should not be here," I said. "Why would the Alpha stoop so low to involve himself with the likes of me?"

I saw his eyes darken, and I shivered.

"Your status doesn't bother me," he said. "What matters is who you are on the inside."

I rolled my eyes. "You don't even know me. Don't act like you do."

"Don't I?" He smirked. "When I saw you earlier today, I didn't just see an omega wolf. I saw a woman. A woman who possesses integrity. A woman who is willing to do everything to survive. A woman who is willing to do everything to stand by what is right."

"And you saw all that just by looking at me?" I folded my arms again.

He nodded.

"This is ridiculous." I scoffed and turned around. "I'm sorry if you've wasted your time coming here. But I don't think we can proceed with this."

'Don't you dare!' Celine barked. 'You're not going anywhere.'

"You should listen to your wolf," Theo called behind me. I spun around to glare at him.

"She knows what is right," he added.

"Fine," I sighed. "What do you want?"

"I did pay for a private session." He put his hand under his chin in thought. "For starters, I want you to strip."

My mouth fell open. "Are you nuts? I'm already naked right now by my standards."

I spun around and began to walk away, ignoring the protests of Celine in my head. Alpha or not, I was not going to stoop down to that level. What did he take me for?

Before I reached the exit, I suddenly felt his arm around my waist, and I jolted. I felt his warm breath on my neck. It tickled and aroused my confusion and anger.

"You're defying me again?" His husky voice sent shivers down my spine. He traced the nape of my neck with his tongue. Against my will, I tilted my neck to give me more access.

"Big mistake, little wolf."

Before I could comprehend his sentence, I felt his fangs sink into my neck. I cried out and elbowed him. I turned around to glare at the grin on his face.

"What was that?" I snarled.

"A bit of a gift," he replied, unfazed by my anger. "And a punishment."

"I should have security throw you out!"

"Go ahead. Humour me."

I turned around to call security, but I couldn't find my voice. And this had nothing to do with Celine. She was even quiet at the moment. A wave of intense feelings washed through me. I could feel the sting of his bite on my neck, and it filled me with pleasure and pain. Weird. Turning around, I narrowed my eyes at the smug Alpha.

"Count yourself lucky that I'm in a lenient mood today." I pointed my perfectly manicured finger in his direction.

"Right," he said. "You can leave if you want. Have a goodnight."

He advanced and leaned towards me until our noses were almost touching. His gold eyes seemingly penetrated my soul, and I couldn't look away.

"But know this," he whispered. "You're going to crave me. Your body will yearn for me. You won't be able to stop it. The heat that comes next. And I will be happily waiting for you."

"In your dreams," I scoffed.

"We'll see." He sported a wicked grin.

To my surprise, he kissed my nose and walked out of the booth before I could speak. Blushing furiously, I touched the spot with my finger.

Meanwhile, in my head, Celine was barking with so much joy.

 I shook my head at my wolf's unexplainable happiness.