Chapter 5: The Only People I Have

Lilac’s P.O.V:

The tension in the atmosphere was thick as people around him noticed who he was looking at and tried to distract him. It didn’t take much effort though.

Alpha Krimson was the only man in his mid-thirties in the pack without a mate, which meant that he was a certified hoe for any and every vagina that was available. Only, he didn’t do high school girls, which was why, Serena and her slut-squad were fanning their pheromones his way as best they could.

“Do the guys not own shirts?” Dani whispered under her breath, still looking away.

She was a submissive wolf, a lot lower in dominance and the kind that didn’t do well near high ranking wolves, especially Alphas. She was also super shy, so she preferred to keep her head down even though nudity wasn’t a big deal to werewolves as the transition from our wolf form to human form left us naked.

From what I could tell, the entire upper ranking wolves had just come back from their trekking up in the hills, hence the shirtless chests, and were now here to have lunch. Which meant that I had to serve them food since most of the serving staff were already in the dining room themselves, having their own lunch.

“I’ll go clean up their tables,” I told Dani. “Stay put. And eat your vegetables!”

I pointed to the garlic sautéed French beans that the head chef had made this morning while complaining about how the ‘kids’ were the only ones throwing away vegetables these days. I knew just how awful it was to go to bed on an empty stomach, so I tried not to waste food and seeing someone else do the same made me mad. However, I couldn’t change everyone’s opinions.

I took a clean cloth from the cleaning area on the other side of the room and the trash can that where there was a separate room for all the plates and another where the uneaten food was initially dumped before they were separated into another garbage bag.

Going to the section at the side where there was an elevated area for the VIP members of the pack, I began wiping down two of the tables after having counted how many people there were. After that I began cleaning any specks of food or dirt from the tables next to them as well.

Setting aside the garbage trays, I washed my hands and put on disposable gloves before collecting new plates and cups and heading to the VIP section once again so I could lay them out onto the tables.

By now, Alpha Krimson, Beta Luca, Gamma Somchai and Beta Luca’s son, Liam Hunter, along with Somchai’s little brother Tawin, had all taken their seats, the adults on one side and the teens on the other…surrounded by the girls who were interested in whoever would take them.

Serena gave me a smirk as she sat next to Alpha Krimson, which I choose to ignore. I must have some quality that seemed threatening to her, otherwise, why would she try so hard to one-up me at every turn she got? She wanted Krimson? Why didn’t she just fuck him already? Why did she think I was her competition when I was clearly not? Krimson hated my guts and even though he was really my mate, he hated to acknowledge it even in private.

So I had decided a long time ago that I wouldn’t accept the mating. At least if I didn’t want to die of humiliation.

But as I placed the placed in front of the men, starting with the Alpha first because he was the first in rank, I felt his gaze on me all the while I was serving them. I wanted to sneak a peek at him badly, because no matter how much I trained myself to have self-restraint, my stupid heart held out hope and not to mention this ‘voice’ in my head that kept telling me that Krimson was mine…and that he’ll return to me, once his anger was gone.

However, I did turn to face Beta Luca, the man who gave me his surname and unknowingly helped protect me from the worst of the bullies because they did fear his wrath. Now, he gave me a worried smile and I realized that it must be because of my busted lip.

Quickly, I tried to move tables, so that I could serve up the plates to the boys, who were my classmates. But before I could turn, I felt someone reach out and grab my hand.

A jolt of electricity moved up my arm, startling me into dropping the plate I had in my hand. Thankfully, they were made of recyclable hard paper and not ceramic or glass…otherwise, I would be in huge trouble.

My eyes snapped up to meet eyes of blood red filled with hate, and yet he hauled me closer to the table, so close that I was now bent over from the waist, our faces mere inches apart from each other.

My heart thrashed against my ribcage, both in fear and in some kind of an unknown emotion that I wasn’t familiar with. For a second, he was all I could focus on, the rest of world turning grayscale as he was the only one I saw in color. I could hear my heart beat in my ears…the sound of my own breathing seeming like the loudest noise in the world.

Krimson’s eyes fixated on mine for just long enough…before they narrowed on my face. His skin was a honeyed gold that spoke of long hours in the sun. His wolf was as black as midnight, just like the long strands of his magnificent hair that now brushed past his shoulders. He usually kept it in a ponytail, but today, he had it down…and it made me want to-

“How did you get hurt?” There was anger in his rough voice and just like that…the spell was broken.

He lifted his hand to grab my chin, making my skin tingle and then he tilted my head back to inspect at the red bruise on my cheek, the cut on my lip.

I felt stupid all over again, for assuming that he was even remotely interested in whatever happened to me…and for falling under his spell. Ha! He was probably angry that whoever had hit me hadn't done it hard enough.

From the corner of my eyes, I saw Serena stiffen in her seat, her head lowered as she bit her bottom lip, her hands clenched on her lap. Wouldn’t this be a great opportunity to bring her down? It would have…if I wanted to get kicked out of the pack this very instant.

“I fell…Alpha.” I lied through my teeth, looking him straight in the eyes. “It was because of my carelessness. I’m sorry.”

“But Lilac, that doesn’t look like a fall.” Beta Luca protested immediately, however, Krimson turned to face him right then, his eyes on fire.

“Let it be, Luca. The girl admits it was because she fell.” He let go of my hand immediately. “Get a new plate for the boys and tie your hair. It’s unhygienic.”

“Forgive me, Alpha.” I spoke through gritted teeth, lowering my head so my hair covered my face. I looked at him through my lashes, found him engaging in a conversation with Gamma Somchai like none of this ever happened.

Turning around, I headed back to the kitchen area to get more plates and took out my hair tie to put up my hair in a messy bun once again.

“Lily,” one of the other female servers came up to me with a generous smile. “Go have your lunch, I’ll take over your duty.”

“Of course. Thank you so much.” I returned her honey-dipped fake smile before grabbing my own lunch and returning back to the table where Dani was waiting for me.

“What was that about?” She asked me as soon as I sat down, her eyes wide with curiosity.

“God, if I knew.” I shook my head. Because Krimson had never done that before…ever.

Four years. Four fucking years I’ve been suffering in silence, getting abused and being tormented by those who were hoping for a boon from the Moon Goddess because they let a poor, little orphan girl stay in their pack. I’ve had multiple cuts and bruises before, but he had never acted the way he did today.

Something was wrong. It had to be. Because the only people I had on my side in this entire pack were Dani and Beta Luca and his wife.

Alpha Krimson? No…he didn’t even let others breathe out of place unless it was for his own gain.