Chapter 17
FAYE
After breakfast, I returned to my room even though Irene had insisted I come with her to the eastern wing right away so she could show me around.
She had that bubbly enthusiasm that made it almost impossible to say no without sounding rude, but I needed space. And more importantly, I needed a bath and time to get properly dressed.
I wasn’t about to step in front of an entire pack looking like a last–minute addition to their hierarchy–which, let’s be honest, I kind of was. Still, being called a “replacement Luna” was already bad enough. I wasn’t going to give anyone the satisfaction of whispering that I also looked like a charity case.
Steam fogged the mirror by the time I stepped out of the shower, towel wrapped around my body, water still dripping from my hair. I was halfway across the room when a knock came at
the door.
“Who is it?” I called out, slightly annoyed at the interruption.
A female voice answered, “It’s Maya, Luna. The Alpha sent me.”
I had no idea who Maya was, but I opened the door anyway, keeping the towel firmly wrapped. She stood there, wide–eyed and slightly flushed, with a dress draped elegantly over one arm. In her other hand, she held a pair of nude heels and a small, decorative jewelry container that sparkled even under the hallway lighting.
“Good morning, Luna,” she said with a smile that made her cheeks look permanently pink. “Alpha Alexander sent these for you. He asked that you wear them this morning. He’ll be summoning you shortly to meet the rest of the pack.”
I blinked at her, taking in the soft lilac fabric of the dress–expensive, clearly well tailored, and probably picked out without a single thought about what I might actually like. I smirked.
“How considerate of Alpha Alexander,” I said dryly.
She smiled even wider, clearly mistaking my sarcasm for admiration.
“He really thinks of everything, doesn’t he?” she giggled, eyes shining like she was imagining herself in my shoes.
Oh, how wrong she was.
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I took a step back and gestured politely. “Why don’t you go ahead and return them? I already have something in mind for today.”
Her smile faltered instantly.
“I–I’m sorry, Luna. Did you say return them?”
“Yes,” I said calmly, walking over to my closet. “I appreciate the gesture, but I’ll be wearing my own outfit.”
She stood frozen, blinking as if I had just informed her I planned to walk into the meeting
stark naked.
“But Alpha Alexander said–I mean, he specifically requested that you wear this. It would make him very unhappy if… if I took them back.”
Of course I know that, I don’t care.
I turned around to face her again, tilting my head slightly. “I’m sure he’ll survive the disappointment.”
She looked so conflicted, I almost felt bad for her. Almost.
“He won’t be angry at you,” I added, softening my tone a bit. “Just tell him I already had plans for what I wanted to wear. No big deal.”
“But…” she hesitated, glancing down at the dress like it might disappear if she held onto it any longer. “You don’t want to at least see how it looks?”
I gave her a tight–lipped smile. “No, thank you.”
She stared at me like she was trying to solve a puzzle that didn’t make sense. I didn’t blame her. To her, this was probably the fantasy: being the Luna, receiving gifts from the Alpha, being pampered like a queen.
To me, it was just a chain disguised as a ribbon.
And I wasn’t interested in wearing chains–not today, not ever… especially not one designed by my so called mate.
Eventually, she nodded, though her face was still twisted in confusion. “Alright, Luna. I’ll let
him know,”
“Thank
you, Maya,” I said with a gentle smile.
She lingered a second longer, then turned and walked away, her footsteps light but hesitant.
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As the door clicked shut behind her, I exhaled slowly.
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Alexander must have thought he was being generous. Or maybe he thought he could control every part of this arrangement–including my wardrobe.
I didn’t know which was more insulting: the assumption that I didn’t own anything suitable to wear or the arrogance of choosing something for me without asking… especially after he ignored my existence in his pack house since yesterday.
Either way, it was funny.
I turned back to my closet, my fingers brushing over a deep blue dress with and a simple neckline. It wasn’t too flashy, but it made me feel like myself–strong, poised, beautiful.
Exactly how I intended to look when I stood in front of the Blood Crescent pack.
I slipped the soft material of my dress over my head, fingers smoothing it down with more force than necessary.
My reflection in the mirror stared back at me…sharp–eyed, guarded, unimpressed. My jaw tightened as I adjusted the neckline and reached for one of the pairs of earrings I’d packed myself.
“You’re being dramatic,” Nova piped up from the recesses of my mind, her voice calm and maddeningly reasonable. “He probably didn’t mean anything bad by it.”
I rolled my eyes…not at my reflection, but at her. “You mean Alpha Alexander?” I said aloud, deliberately putting a chill in the title. “The same Alpha who hasn’t so much as acknowledged my presence since I got here yesterday?”
“He’s busy,” she offered, but it sounded half–hearted even to her. “Pack leaders always are…. you know that already.”
I scoffed, fastening my earrings. “He’s not the only pack leader in existence.”
There was a beat of silence. I could feel her pacing now, the way she always did when she didn’t have a comeback but didn’t want to let me win either.
“Maybe the clothes were his way of reaching out,” she tried again, “a peace offering.”
“Peace?” I gave a short, humorless laugh as I slid my feet into my shoes. “He hasn’t said a single word to me. Didn’t check to see if I’d arrived safely…didn’t offer to explain anything. And then suddenly, this morning, an outfit appears at my door step.”
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“He could’ve sent anything. Hell, he could’ve come himself if it really meant something…he
would’ve.”
“You don’t know that,” Nova replied gently. “You didn’t even give him a chance.”
I turned away from the mirror. “Well, it doesn’t matter now. I already sent it back.”
Nova sighed. A long, drawn–out, wolfy sigh full of disappointment. “You’re so stubborn sometimes.”
“I learned from the best,” I muttered under my breath.
ALEXANDER
I was in my office, mid–conversation with Cole, when a knock came on the door. I already knew who it was immediately the scent hit–Maya. I gave a nod, and she stepped in, still holding the outfit I’d asked her to deliver to Faye.
I didn’t say a word. Just waited.
“Alpha Alexander, Luna Faye said she already had plans to wear something else,” Maya said, her voice careful, like she knew she was walking on thin ice. “So she asked me to…she asked
me to return it.”
For a moment, I just stared at her. Cole did too. Then he turned to look at me, and I didn’t miss the flicker in his eyes–equal parts disbelief and amusement.
Faye really had the audacity to send the outfit back.
I clenched my jaw and gave Maya a stiff nod. “You can go.”
She gave a quick bow and left. The door clicked shut behind her, but the silence that followed was louder than anything. I turned to Cole. His expression said it all–he was impressed.
“She really sent it back,” I muttered. “How does she just… defy me like that? In front of Maya? Like my authority means nothing to her.”
Cole leaned back slightly in the chair. “I don’t think it means nothing to her, Alexander. But she’s Luna, and that gives her a kind of authority too. It’s not strange that she’d want to choose what she wears. And frankly… everyone would understand that.”
I turned, narrowing my eyes at him. He wasn’t even trying to hide the smirk that was tugging at the corner of his mouth. The bastard was enjoying this.
Of course, I was pissed. But more than that, I felt something else…unsettled, off–balance. I
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wasn’t used to being told no. Especially not like this.
“She needs to learn her place,” I said sharply.
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Cole arched a brow but said nothing. He didn’t have to, I already knew what he was thinking.
He liked that she had a spine.
Well, I’d be damned if I let her get comfortable thinking she could toss my commands aside like that. Luna or not, I’m still Alpha. And she was going to learn that, one way or another.
I’ll tame her eventually.
She just doesn’t know it yet.
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