Chapter 5: A date for Enzo

“Get out! Get out! GET OUT!” Haley screams from her room as slave after slave hurries out with red cheeks and fear in their eyes. Bella stands outside of the door, trying to control her tears as she breathes in and out deeply. 

“Fucking idiots, every single one of you! No fashion sense, no brains, nothing! Everyone here is dense and drab! AHHH!” Haley yells, slamming the door. 

I blink and then move past the door, heading down to the kitchen to set up Haleys’s lavish lunch. Cucumber sandwiches with scones and jelly. And don’t forget the fresh flowers. Oh, and heaven forbid I forget to use the fancy tea kettle for the tea she won’t drink because she hates it. Nothing like a werewolf in America being obsessed with British tv series.

“Ivy, you have to help me,” Bella whispers, following behind me. “Please!” Her eyes are wide as she begs.

“No way! She hates me.” I shoot back at her, continuing my way to the stairs.

“IVY!” Haley’s voice calls from behind me and I stop, close my eyes to collect myself before turning around and plastering on a fake ass smile.

“You better make sure her ridiculous fucking lunch is perfect, Bella.” I hiss before heading to Haley’s door. It swings open and a hysterical-looking Haley focuses her puffy eyes on me and relaxes a little. 

“There you are. I have been calling you for hours.” She says, roughly taking my arm and pulling me through the door.

Her gaudy over-the-top room is a lavender color with a shimmery eggplant accent wall where all her makeup, and a large vanity sit. To the left is what I assume is her walk-in closet and behind me is her California king-size bed that has tufts of purple tulle cascading down the side.

It’s a literal princess room for a high school cheerleader. Her white plush carpet sinks in as I step further into her room, feeling like I’m walking on a damn cloud. And damn it, I kinda wanna lay down on it. Now that I have seen her room, how she acts suddenly makes so much sense. She literally thinks she is royalty.

“How can I help you, Haley?” I ask her, dropping my head.

“I have nothing to wear!” Her voice is shrill and nearly makes my ears bleed. I scan around her room and see clothes strewn about haphazardly.

“Well, maybe I can help?”

“No shit. I didn’t call you in here to fucking be my best friend.” She snaps.

“Of course. What is the event?” I ask her, stepping over a pair of glitter jeans and moving toward her closet. I gawk at the amount of clothes still hanging untouched in the seemingly never-ending closet.

“A date!” She says, rushing past me and pulling down a full sequined jumpsuit and spinning it before stopping and frowning. “Too much?”

“It depends who you are going with and what you are doing, I guess.” I offer, and she grins. 

“Your slave trader. Enzo.” She sighs dreamily and clutches the sequined outfit to her chest.

A stab twists in my stomach, and I quickly turn to look at the clothes to my right. It’s all a part of the plan. He doesn’t actually like the ice queen of the Silvermoon pack. I take a deep breath and grab out a little black dress and hold it up and then shove it back. When I see a beautiful icy blue sundress, I grin to myself and grab it.

“This one,” I say, smiling. Hailey frowns at me, and then she meets my gaze. 

“Why that one?”

“Blue is his favorite color.” I shrug. 

Haley narrows her eyes and stalks toward me. “And how would a slave know what her slave trader’s favorite color is? Hmm?”

“We were stuck with him for some time,” I frown at her. When she still scowls at me, I roll my eyes. “He told a lady he was trying to fuck one of the nights on the way here.” I shrug.

She sneers and gives me a disgusted look. 

“Ew. And I bet you enjoyed watching him fuck her, too. I think you have a thing for the slave trader. What? Was he nice to you once and now you are all starry-eyed? It doesn’t matter because he is mine and you can never have him.” She snatches the dress from me, dropping her robe and pulling it on. Then she runs to the mirror and giggles at her reflection, smoothing the dress and spinning to make sure it fits right.

“Now. Come tell me the kind of makeup his trysts wear.” and she darts out for her vanity. I groan in annoyance but follow, dragging my feet.

“He likes party girls,” I lie. If she is going to try to make Enzo hers, she can do it looking like a sleaze. “Night club style makeup, or at least that’s usually what he went for the few times he took someone while we were around.”

“Hmmm… smokey eyes. My favorite,” Haley says, giving a girlish little giggle and starting her makeup.

By the time dinner rolls around, Haley looks like a lady of the night, and her spirits are annoyingly high. She is so convinced that Enzo will want to take her the moment dinner is over that she convinced him to do it here in her house. And as punishment for me having a crush on him (even though I clearly don’t), I get to serve them. Yay, me. 

They are seated on the porch with a canopy and twinkly lights, a true fairy tale setting that makes me long for home as I carry the wine out. I see Enzo smiling at Haley as he reaches out and takes her hand in his. I stiffen at witnessing the ease of his movements and my heart races. When I get to their side, my hands are shaking as I set their glasses down, and Haley glares at me for interrupting their moment. 

“Sorry,” I mutter, before pouring them their wine.

“You look breathtaking,” Enzo says, like a true gentleman.

Haley blushes and looks at her lap and I steal a look at Enzo, finding his eyes locked on me as I stand behind Haley. I suck in a breath and hurry off to get their first course. And situate myself in front of the kitchen window. I watch as Haley laughs and giggles while Enzo nods his head and fury runs through me. I slam a towel down and spin, grabbing the stupid weeds on the plate that are pretending to be a salad, and stalk outside.

“Ivy.” Haley smiles, and the bile rises in my throat. Nice Haley is vicious Haley. “I need more wine. Now” 

“Would you like some, too?” I ask Enzo, and he looks at me, his eyes soft.

“Yes, thank you, Ivy.”

Haley scoffs and leans back in her chair. I fill her glass and she grunts and then I take Enzo’s and fill it, handing it back to him. When he takes it, his rough fingers brush mine and we make eye contact. My heart rate quickens, and I step back and turn to see Haley standing next to me in time for her hand to connect hard across my face. My eyes widen in shock and Enzo jumps up. 

“That’s what you get for being a little slut.” Haley sneers. I look at her in utter confusion, clutching my cheek as she turns to look at Enzo. “She got nice and friendly with Garrett, my ex yesterday. And guess what she was doing this morning? Giving him a fun little ride, isn’t that right, Ivy?”

“What? No!” I retort. Shaking my head. She slaps me again, and I gasp at the impact. For an uppity bitch, she sure packs a wallop.

“Get out of my sight! And make Bella serve the next courses. I’m sick of looking at a slut who is eyeballing my date.” Haley says before lifting her drink to her lips and taking a sip while successfully ignoring my presence. 

I spin and enter the house, blazing with anger and hating the whole fucking plan. Fuck it, screw this plan. I spin around to go put Haley in place but find Enzo behind me. His stern look paralyzes me and he backs me into a closet and shuts the door. Darkness encases us as his chest heaves against mine and he presses into my body, his arms braced on either side of my head, heat radiating from every part of him.

“You need to get back out there,” I demand, and I can feel his head shake as it falls to my shoulder.

“Is it true?” he murmurs, sounding like he is hurting and I realize just how much I hate that though.

“What? No! When would I have time to fuck somebody, Enzo?” I ask with a scoff.

His hot breath dances along my exposed neck, tickling my insides, and I gulp. “Fucking doesn’t take very long, Ivyana.” I close my eyes tight, biting hard on my lip. 

“I am a virgin, you fucking asshole,” I grit out, and try to shove him, but there is nowhere for him to go in the tiny space we are invading.

“Shh. You are going to get us caught,” he warns, his lips now brushing against my ear. I struggle to breathe. Enzo’s closeness feels overwhelming for the first time and my stomach is in knots, knowing his lips are fanning my skin.

“Why did you come in here?” I ask. 

“I have something I need you to sneak in her food.” He whispers.

“What?”

Enzo runs his hands down my arm, sliding across my lower abdomen, sending shivers through me as he moves his hand lower. I gulp, a fire igniting low in my stomach, and then his hand moves to my pocket, placing something small and cool in the fabric notch, and moves away from me, as much as he can.

“Slip this in her food before you disappear for the night.” Then he drops a kiss on the top of my head. The closet door opens, light filters in and Enzo looks back at me and I swear I see him adjusting his pants on the way out.

I wait a few minutes before leaving the closet and rushing to the kitchen and adding the little blue powder to her soup and mixing it before handing it off to Bella. I hang out in the kitchen, making sure it goes to the right person. Then I rush up the stairs, anxiously peeking out my window and watching from my room. After Bella clears the dishes out from in front of them, I notice Haley holding her stomach and bending over. Enzo reaches out to help her, but she refuses it, and then she is up and rushing into the house, calling out an apology and a promise of a redo date soon.

Moments later, Enzo is crawling through my window with a victorious smirk on his face.

“What was it?” I ask him.

“Wolfsbane powder. Only enough to cause her a pretty severe belly ache. And some serious gas problems. She is rather embarrassed.”

I giggle and they turn into a full-blown laugh as I fall into Enzo’s chest and arms, feeling relieved that the date went terribly.

“I miss seeing you during the day,” I breathe out, shocked at my admission. 

He sighs heavily.

“Me too,” he admits. “Let me help you with your cheek. It’s still red.” 

“It’s fine, Enz,” I say, moving from his arms and heading to the bathroom to change into my pajamas. When I’m dressed, I crawl into bed, getting under my flimsy blanket. Enzo shucks his shoes and his shirt before crawling in beside me. It doesn’t take long for me to drift into a restless sleep. I’m brought back to the cusp of awareness by a soft feeling on my cheek, and I realize Enzo is putting cream on my injured face. I choose to remain still, too tired to wake up and too engrossed in his touch to fall asleep.

Then, ever so lightly, I feel soft lips press to mine, melding perfectly and my heart beats faster, my brain not sure how to react and before I can decide, the feeling is gone.

“Rest well, mea causa,” he whispers and tugs me closer.