“Where are you taking me?” Selena asked as Cayden walked through the pack grounds.
“I am hungry. Did you eat?” He asked casually.
Her stomach growled. She had eaten nothing since breakfast, and it was past dinnertime now.
“No,” she mumbled.
“Good, then let’s eat something.”
Selena followed him towards the kitchen. An omega was cleaning the kitchen, and she shrieked in shock as the Alpha walked in.
“Where’s the pantry?” Cayden asked casually as he passed her.
“Do you want something, my Alpha?” She stammered.
Jean was an omega, a low-ranking but valuable wolf in our Pack. She worked hard and rarely needed my discipline, so we got along well. She knew her place in human or wolf form, having learned the lessons of the Pack hierarchy well.
“I feel like cooking today,” Cayden said again.
He went to the fridge and opened the door. He picked out an array of vegetables, knowing exactly what he wanted to make.
Selena and a perplexed Jean looked on while Cayden chopped the vegetables and rummaged through the cupboards for everything. He’d need to make a delicious sauce. Jean fussed over him, turning on the gas. Collecting and throwing away the vegetable peels.
He suddenly smirked. “Jean, you think I can’t boil water?”
“Uh no my alpha?” She stammered.
“You may leave.” He commanded.
Jean almost ran out of the kitchen. Selena smiled.
“Why did you scare that poor girl? “Selena remarked, wondering what had got into him.
“Nah, she’ll be fine."
He gathered his ingredients and prepared them for a wok. He then went in search of a wok, which he easily found. With the noodles already cooked and ready to go, he added the vegetables to the pan, giving them a quick toss. When it was time for the noodles, he flicked them up in a continuous motion. He drizzled over the sauce as soon as everything was combined, and the aroma was intoxicating. He continued to move the ingredients around in the pan while the sauce bubbled.
“Sit. What are you waiting for?” He quirked an eyebrow.
She followed his command and took a seat at the nearest table. He served
“I did not know you could cook.” She said as the aroma of freshly cooked noodles assailed her senses.
“I have been learning to cook for a long time. I actually enjoy being in the kitchen and see no harm in it.”
He divided the food into bowls. Being this close to him, Selena hated how he filled out the crisp white shirt he wore. It felt like a date, though Selena wouldn’t know. She had never been on a date. As she sat across from him, she couldn’t help but wonder if he was trying to play with her again?
Rather than speak her thoughts, she avoided looking at his impressive, muscular arms, covered in the tattoo of his family crest.
Cayden picked up the bowls and carried them to her. They sat at opposite ends of the table. Cayden looked at her and smiled, trying to ease the tension between them.
“I am not a terrible cook," he commented.
She looked up. “Excuse me?”
“Try them,” he prompted her.
She slurped up her noodles, chewing on the mouthful that she couldn’t deny was exquisite. So damn delicious. Her stomach chose that minute to rumble loudly.
“They are very good," She mumbled.
“Thanks.” he smiled brightly.
“So tell me more about Max’s mate?” She asked, trying to dispel the tension.
“Well, she is a human. Who was living with a few rogue wolves?”
“You mean those boys I saw earlier?”
“Yeah, I haven’t talked to her yet. Because she is still knocked out. Alpha Michael’s men kidnapped her.”
Selena shivered recalling her ordeal at the auction.
“Is she…. OK?” she said with concern.
“She is fine. Max is looking after her.” Cayden said while eating a forkful of noodles.
“So, what are you going to do now?” She prodded further.
“It’s going to be a full-fledged war, Selena,” he said grimly.
He told her his plans, how he was going to decimate the slave camps, and finally Hawk.
“When are you going to attack?” Selena asked with trepidation.
“I cannot disclose the exact time, but I assure you we have a well-planned strategy in place and we will strike within a month,” he replied calmly.
Selena nodded; her hands felt clammy. He had told her everything.
“After that, if I survive this, you will become my Lune. And if I don’t……” he trailed off.
“We are not mates.” She spoke plainly, detesting the sharp pain that shot through her. She couldn’t understand this. She didn’t want to be mated with him at all.
“I apologise for everything I did to you. For the suffering I induced.”
She couldn’t help it. She laughed.
Cayden combed his hair with his fingers. “I understand that no matter how many times I apologise, nothing will change.”
“Its like we are going around in circles. You hurt me, then you apologise. Then you hurt me again…” she said through hiccups of laughter.
“Selena…” Cayden said helplessly.
She raised her hand. “Perhaps we shouldn’t discuss that right now.” She focused on her bowl and shoved a spoonful of noodles. Damm! Why did he make it so good?
“So you won’t even give us a chance, then?” He grumbled.
“What’s wrong with you, Cayden?” She said. “You hate me. Why do you want me as your mate?”
“I don’t hate you, Selena,” he whispered. “Instead, I love you.”
She stopped eating and looked up at him in horror.
“Don’t make it harder for me, Cayden. Already, I am struggling with everything.”
“You really despise me.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement. His green eyes were full of pain.
Selena briefly closed her eyes, her wolf in the happiest state ever. He loved her. She ought to have been delighted by it. Instead, she was torn because she couldn’t decide because of her conflicting emotions.
“Exactly what kind of future do we have, Cayden?”
He grabbed her hand from the other side of the table. She didn’t have time to retreat because the movement happened so quickly, but even that single touch set her body on fire. Her nipples tightened intolerably as moisture flooded her pussy.
He held her hand, but she yanked it away.
“Your body desires it too.”
“Cayden, this means nothing. A strange twist of fate has tied us together. I am, however, your enemy’s daughter. And you handle my mom’s…..” She paused for a moment.” Death. If we stay together, we will just hate each other and suffer.”
She got to her feet and prepared to walk away so she wouldn’t see the hurt and pain in his eyes.
“Good night Cayden,” Selena said before leaving. He didn’t see her tears as she ran towards the manor.
*******************************
Kylie gasped when she suddenly woke up and sat up. Her memories of fending off the wolves, getting hit and grabbed, and being imprisoned in that awful place flooded her mind. She was on the verge of hyperventilating from fear. She was brought back to the present by a sharp pain in her side. She looked around, taking care to slow her breathing and gather herself. She was lying in the centre of an enormous bed in a room that was even larger and decorated in cream and stone colours.
It appeared as though it were taken right out of a home magazine. She slowly stood up and steadied her wobbly feet. She was horrified to discover that all she was wearing was a man’s shirt and her scanty underwear. The window was locked with a missing key and had steel bars attached on the outside when she went to it and opened it wide. She had never seen a landscape like the one she could see out the window. She didn’t know where she was and wasn’t in the city. She scanned the space, trying to determine which of the many doors might lead outside.
Kylie walked to her preferred door after a brief and childish game of “eeny, meeny, miny, moe.” She inhaled deeply, turned the knob, and dove headfirst into the sizable closet. She cast a shocked glance around. She felt like she was in a dangerous situation after another and just couldn’t seem to get out of it. Then, across the bed, she heard a movement behind a door to her left. As soon as she could, Kylie snatched up a pillow and a tie as weapons. As the door handle turned and opened, she moved in front of it. A man who was over a head taller than her came out. Having already swung, she abruptly changed angles to force the pillow firmly against his back. He grabbed the other end of the tie with a lightning-fast reaction. The wind was knocked out of his lungs as she pulled it up and over her shoulder, taking his arm and the rest of him. She used his momentum to carry him in an impressive arc before he crashed to the ground. As they rolled until he was on top, his ripped arms flexed around her. He smiled in amusement as she fixed her gaze on him.
“It’s you.” She spoke.