The Dinner Novels & Stories

“You shouldn't have but this will be a good addition to our dinner. Now, come before your father loses his cool and fetch us himself.” Dinner consisted of rice, a Mediterranean chicken traybake, and a small bowl of salad. It's simple but it's hearty besides it has been a long time since the three of us eat together. “How long have you known?” My dad opened up the moment the three of us polished the food on the table. I saw mom gestured at Gemma, our house help, in dismissal. I immediately understand that it will be no ordinary talk. A tremor passed through me as my mind works a hundred different scenarios on how our night would end.

*** ‎The Night of the Dinner ‎I sat in the dimly lit dining room of an upscale restaurant, my fingers lightly tracing the rim of my wine glass. The soft hum of conversation and the clinking of silverware filled the air, but my attention was fixed on the door. I was waiting for my guests—Jonah’s parents, Susan and Gregory Hartfield. ‎

*** ~~ZARA~~ *** The maids had finished setting the long dining table, and the warm lights glowed above it. Soft clinks of cutlery drifted through the room. It looked peaceful. Everyone had already settled down. Dante’s mom and dad took their seats at the far end, while my mom sat close to Mrs Wright. Dante pulled a chair out for me and immediately sat beside me. I didn't expect much from dinner. I genuinely thought it would just be us eating quietly, like normal civilised people do when they sit down for a meal together.

he said. "Mr. Calder," I replied, my breath catching slightly. "Shall we eat?" Daniel announced loudly, clapping his hands. "I have a toast to make!" We moved to the dining room. I sat at the foot of the table, opposite Daniel. To my right sat a board member, and to my left sat Ethan. Elena was seated across from him, next to Daniel, cementing her place as his right hand. The dinner started with the usual corporate self-congratulation. Daniel bragged about the stock price, the board members nodded, and ate the expensive steak.

Peace, finally. “Dinner’s in an hour,” Anna called from the hall. “Come down when you’re ready. Your father and Alec will be waiting.” I groaned. I didn’t need waiting. I needed a personal force field. But apparently, life was cruel. Dinner was in the main dining room. Long table, polished wood, candles lit. Dad sat at the head. Anna on one side, me on the other. And across from me… Alec. He didn’t look up from his plate nor say a word.

Giselle Dinner was beef stroganoff paired with mashed potatoes and a glass of expensive red wine. It’d been days, and I still couldn’t get used to the fancy dinners. They were delicious, but after watching the chef put so much time and effort into making it, I would honestly prefer a burger and fries from McDonalds. It was nearly nine p.m. when I finished. Most days, I had dinner by six or seven at the latest, but I had slept through most of the evening, and when my growling stomach finally forced me to wake up, it was already eight p.m.

The dinner was Adrian’s idea. It was not really about family or friendship. Adrian never did things just for show. If you looked at the guest list, the real purpose was clear. Dominic was there, two board members whose votes would matter in the coming fight. A lawyer who was supposed to look like he was there by chance, but he was not. It was the kind of dinner that looked warm and casual on the surface but worked like a strategy meeting underneath. The important talk happened in the quiet spaces between the words.

But enough. The sound startled her. It startled Daniel too. He did not smile fully, but something in his face changed before he controlled it. A quiet surprise, almost wonder, as if he had not expected the house to contain that sound from her and did not quite know what to do with it. Leah looked away first. Mrs. Turner took the paper bag from her hand. “Dinner will be at seven.” Leah blinked. “Dinner?” “Yes. A traditional activity in which people sit at a table and consume food instead of surviving on coffee, suspicion, and male stubbornness.”

"Don't worry, Principal. I think I can manage to keep pace with our star rookie without embarrassing the family name." "Excellent!" my mother-in-law-to-be clapped her hands together, her elegant emerald rings catching the light. "It's settled then. I’ll have my office send over the official itinerary first thing in the morning. Now, let us move into the dining room. I had the chef prepare something spectacular." The dinner was a blur of surprisingly warm conversation, a stark contrast to the bitter warfare that had defined our season. But reality had a brutal way of crashing back in the moment we left the estate.

"You know what, let's go." They both made their way into the private dining room. Zander didn't want Hazel eating with the other wolves until they were fully mated and officially became their Luna. Allen, Declan, Topher, Talon, Cleo, Gerry, Carson and Gabz were going to be sharing dinner with them in the private dining hall. Aaron was on patrol manning the gates. Zander was always a kind hostess, so he invited Isis and Ingrid to join him for dinner, but Isis said she had a little errand to run in town, so she wouldn't make it back in time for dinner.