Chapter 3

After tripling the pay, I finally found an Omega willing to trial for a position at the pack house.​

I informed them ahead of time.​

"I've found a suitable servant. They'll be here soon. You'll both be home, so you can see if they're a good fit."​

Rio had been quieter since the clinic incident. He spoke in a small voice. "Momma… I thought… you didn't like outsiders in the house?"​

He hadn't called me Momma in a long time.​

Hearing it now sent a strange shiver down my spine, raising goosebumps on my arms.​

I pushed down the awkward feeling and forced a dry laugh. "Having a servant will make things much easier."​

Victor adjusted a pair of non-existent glasses on his nose, a telltale sign he was thinking.

"It would be good for you to rest. But…"​

He snorted. "Just don't drive this one away with accusations of them trying to seduce me."​

The mention of my past foolishness made my scalp tingle with embarrassment.​

The old me was a lunatic, blinded by jealousy. A maid once forgot to put her robe back on after cleaning the bathroom, and I, convinced she did it on purpose, had her exiled from the pack that very night.​

Thankfully, while the memory had returned, the intense emotion attached to it was gone, buried under a layer of ice that would never burn again.​

I was about to promise I wouldn't when the doorbell rang.​

Rio glanced at me, then, for once, ran to get the door himself.​

A commotion came from the entryway. I was wondering what was happening when a vibrant, youthful Clara walked in.​

"I can't believe this is the Alpha's pack house!" she said breathlessly. "I saw the recruitment notice and just knew... if I could do anything to help Alpha Victor, I had to apply."​

The calm mask on Victor's face shattered. He slammed his water glass down on the table, splashing water everywhere.​

"Elena! I told you there is nothing between Clara and me! Why would you bring her here as a servant just to humiliate her!"​

I was speechless.​

In my haste to find someone, I hadn't even looked at the applicant's name.​

How could I have known it would be Clara?​

It was useless to explain. I tried to salvage the situation. "I know I was too sensitive before. I misunderstood."​

"Seeing her willing to come, and since you two already spent three months together and know each other, isn't this the most suitable arrangement? Consider it my way of making up for my past mistakes."​

The words were magnanimous, but they made Victor choke. He stared at me, scrutinizing my expression.​

I looked relaxed, even a little cheerful, as if I'd finally shed a heavy burden.​

A strange tightness gripped his chest. Something important was slipping away, fast.​

While he was silent, Clara's eyes welled up with tears. "Did I cause a misunderstanding between the Alpha and Luna?"​

"I'm so sorry. Alpha Victor saved my life, he even took me to the Moon Spring himself to heal. I was just so grateful, I felt I had to do something to repay him."​

"I didn't know it would cause a fight. I'm sorry, I'll leave right now."​

…​

After a bit of back and forth, Clara, of course, stayed. Victor even gave me a special warning, telling me to remember my words and not cause any more trouble for her.​

Finished, he reached out and gently touched my cheek, his voice low and hoarse.​

"Elena, you don't have to pretend to be obedient to please me. I'm used to you being noisy. I had the master bedroom made up with your favorite moonflower sheets. Come back and sleep there tomorrow."​

I'd heard that… somewhere before.​

I vaguely recalled when I first became his Luna. I had thrown a public tantrum because another female wolf had flirted with him. It caused a lot of talk, with people calling me a shrew unworthy of an Alpha.​

Back then, he had held me just like this, whispering in my ear. "I love it when you're noisy. It means you love me fiercely."​

Too bad that in the years that followed, my "noise" had transformed from "love" into "trouble" and "unreasonable" in his eyes.​

I shivered, shaking the useless memories from my head.​

He probably wanted this spacious attic room for his Clara.​

The next day, I switched rooms with Clara and moved myself into the servant's quarters.

I saw a flash of hidden anger in Victor's eyes. He was so distracted he didn't even notice the hot coffee he was holding splash onto Clara's hand.​

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