Page 34 of Claimed By the Rival Alpha

Then again, it had been six days since I saw him last. The closest I’d been to him was last night, when I’d heard his deep voice in Violet’s kitchen.

I was surprised to find that I missed him so much I was willing to get on the floor and press my ear to the floorboards just to be that much closer to him.

But he had kidnapped me, hadn’t he? Yet he was avoiding me for reasons I didn’t understand.

Against my better judgment, I wanted to see him.

“Come onnn,” Tavi begged, her voice bringing me back into the present. “They’re serving meatloaf in the mess hall today. It’s so good.”

It was true. Violet usually brought food from the mess hall, and the meatloaf with mashed potatoes was my favorite because of how creamy the cooks made the potatoes, but could I really do this?

“Don’t worry, Bryn. You’re good to go,” Violet’s voice came from the staircase. She walked down the steps with a few pieces of clothing folded across her arms. “I thought it might be good to get you some cute clothes.”

My jaw dropped. “But you already let me have the ones in the dressers. You didn’t have to—”

Violet waved that away. “Yes, yes, but a lot of those pieces were still too big on you, Bryn. It’s time you have something cute, something you can meet people in.”

Tavi grinned. “You knew I was going to ask her, Violet?”

“Of course, dear. I know everything,” She winked. “Now come here, Bryn. We have to see which of these are good enough for you to officially meet the pack in.”

About half an hour later, I stood in the sitting room in the outfit Violet and Tavi had chosen for me—tight blue jeans, a baby-blue top that hugged my chest before puffing out, and a thin black jacket. The boots completed the outfit.

“You look amazing,” Tavi gushed.

“Th-thank you.” I pushed my hair behind my ears, my face warm.

Tavi had also brought over some makeup and hair supplies and had given me a full makeover.

My wild brown hair fell around my shoulders in soft, voluminous waves.

My lips were coated in a thin layer of pink gloss, my cheeks had a bit of blush, and my eyelids shimmered with silvery-blue powder.

It was the first time I’d ever worn makeup or had my hair done like this, and I felt like a princess.

“And it looks like your escort is here,” Violet said. “I’ll go and get him.”

“Um, Tavi?” I said gently. “Why would you go through all of this trouble when it’s your birthday?”

Tavi smiled, looking into my eyes. “Because you’re my friend, Bryn. And after I heard what happened to you on your birthday, well…” she shook her head. “Everyone deserves to feel beautiful on their special day, don’t you think?”

I was too emotional to speak, so I settled on a nod.

“Besides, girl,” she looped her arm through mine, “first impressions are everything, and we have to make sure that you make waves today.”

“Y-yeah!” I quickly dabbed away my tears with my fingertips before they could ruin my makeup. “Let’s go!”

At the front door, Dom and Violet laughed about something he’d said before Tavi and I arrived. He looked up as we approached, and his eyes widened slightly before settling into his usual easy smile. It was brief, but I noticed that his gaze lingered on Tavi.

“I can’t believe you two lovely ladies got all dressed up for me,” Dom said. “If I’d known, I would have worn better pants.” His were covered in old splotches of paint. No doubt they were the ones he wore when he repaired things around the compound.

“Oh, Dom, please,” Tavi said, lightly hitting his arm. “You say that to all the girls who’re just trying to enjoy their birthday with their friends.”

“But when I say it around you, I mean it, Tav.”

She snorted at that and walked past him, still holding me close. “Sure you do.”

I looked up at my friend and found Tavi’s cheeks slightly red.

I felt as though I’d just witnessed something private between the wolves, but I couldn’t be sure.

Female and male wolves paired off so quickly in the Kings’ pack that I wasn’t sure what the courting process was like for them.

Is there something there, or am I just reading into things?

“Either way, happy birthday, Tav,” Dom said, jogging to catch up with us.

“Why, thank you.” She turned to smile at him, and the blush I had caught had already disappeared. “I intend to ring it in with unreasonable amounts of meatloaf.”

“Really?” Dom looked at me. “Don’t you think she should do something more elaborate, Bryn?”

I laughed and looped my arm around Tavi’s waist. “Nope! I can’t think of a better way to celebrate.”

Tavi giggled. “Right? Good food is all that matters.”

Dom released a long, belabored sigh. “The two of you are peas in a pod, huh?”

“Of course! We were destined to find each other.”

My chest warmed at Tavi’s words. The three of us continued to chat as we walked, and I was surprised at how normal and right I felt. It was so fulfilling to laugh and joke like this. If having friends was this sweet, I never wanted to be alone again.

Though I was in high spirits on the walk leading up to the mess hall, my mood changed as we stood at the entrance.

The moment we arrived, Dom left us to speak to another wolf.

As we stepped inside, every head turned to take in the new human.

My gaze immediately dropped to the ground.

I didn’t want to risk reading disgust in their eyes.

“It’s okay,” Tavi whispered. “You’re okay.”

I wanted to trust her, but I couldn’t be sure that she was right.

As we walked toward the buffet, I fought with myself about whether to keep my eyes on the ground or attempt to read the Wargs’ expressions.

I decided to avoid looking directly at individual wolves in favor of taking in the overall room.

The Wargs’ mess hall was smaller than the Kings’, but that gave it a warmer, more intimate feel than what I was used to.

Families were practically piled on top of each other, but no one seemed to mind.

Aside from the glances thrown my way, laughter and lively conversation filled the space.

At the buffet, I felt a shiver down my spine. I risked another glance at the dining hall until I found a table with far fewer wolves sitting at it. Two individuals stood out to me—one was Dom, and the other…was Night Shepherd. He was looking right at me, but I couldn’t read the emotion in his eyes.

I licked my lips, taking in his handsome face, those broad shoulders, and the way his biceps strained in his short-sleeved shirt.

I started feeling things I knew I shouldn’t, and I tried to subtly rub my thighs together to quell the tingling in my core.

His nostrils flared, and his hands curled into fists on the table.

I licked my lips again, more slowly this time.

I wasn’t sure what I was doing, but I knew it felt right.

Movement just over Night’s shoulder drew my attention. Dom had lifted his hand to wave at me, beaming at me from across the room. Night turned to him, shoving his shoulder. Dom laughed even as he regained his balance on the bench.

I tore my eyes away from the intense, broody Alpha and his goofy beta to take in the room again.

Other than a few mutterings, no one attacked me or bullied me, and I started to relax a bit.

The Wargs were nothing like the terrifying beasts I’d grown up hearing about.

All I saw were happy faces, families, young pups, and community.

How could my instructors and my own mother have gotten these wolves so wrong?

At our table, Tavi and I enjoyed the food and chatted amongst ourselves. Toward the end of the meal, a few other wolves joined us. Tavi introduced her friends as Jasper, Mark, Preston, Brent, Hallie, Lora, and Vanessa. I recognized Jasper—he had been with Night the day that I was kidnapped.

“It’s um, nice to meet all of you,” I said gently, glancing at Jasper.

I wished I didn’t feel so awkward, but it was the first time I’d been surrounded by wolves my own age who didn’t immediately want to hurt me.

In my experience, the wolves my age were the cruelest in the pack, and I was preemptively on guard.

“It’s nice to meet you too,” Lora said. She was blonde with chin-length hair. “We’ve all been so curious about you since you arrived.”

“Oh really?” I tried not to squirm.

“Yeah. We heard you were part of the Kings’ pack. What was that like?”

“Oh, um...” My heartbeat spiked, and for a few moments, I wasn’t sure how to respond to the question.

“Lora, it’s like I was telling you,” Tavi said, swooping in to save me, “she was adopted by them, but she’s not pack really. She hates them just as much as we do.”

I stuffed my mouth full of mashed potatoes to collect my thoughts. On the one hand, my mom was part of the Kings’ pack, and I could never abandon her, but on the other…it wouldn’t feel right to defend the entirety of the Kings’ pack—especially when the Wargs loathed them as much as they did.

After I swallowed, I nodded. “I never fit in with the Kings, and I don’t consider them family.”

“That’s a relief,” said Hallie, a wolf with curly, auburn hair tied up into a bun. She leaned forward on her elbows, her dark brown eyes full of genuine concern. “We’d heard a rumor that the Kings either kill any human they came across or keep them as slaves.”

“O-oh. Really?” I tried not to let the words affect me, but I was immediately reminded of Troy and what he’d planned to do to me.

“We’re just glad that that’s not your situation,” Lora nodded. “That would be awful.

As the wolves talked around me, I couldn’t help but let my mind be dragged back into the darkness of those moments. I’d thought for sure that I would live the rest of my life as Troy’s sex slave.

I felt a gentle hand on the back of mine and fought my way out of those memories. The hand was Tavi’s.