Dahlia’s POV“Why don’t you get fat when you like the prime rib so much?”That’s the first words out of Damon half into a long, painful, quiet dinner. If I wasn't taught to have great manner, I would have thrown my fork at his head! But I was! So I just glared at him, chewing my mouthful as if it was him!Damon lets out a tired chuckle before he puts down his fork and stands up.I stop chewing, staring at him with nervousness.He has been acting really weird ever since he caught me red-handed--Of course now that he was back, Aiden would step aside from our dinner plan.Aiden put the ridiculously expensive wine in my arms before he excused himself. “Guarding the chief on cooking his deer right”. That was the excuse Aiden used, leaving me all alone to come up with some good lines for stealing the scary Alpha’s wine.But Damon seemed more distracted than mad.In fact, he just took the wine over from me and led me to the dining room. No word out of him. Not when we settled on the table.
Damon’s POVA month ago I thought giving Dahlia false hope would be the worst outcome, but now when I actually found something, I’d rather go back to the unknown, to where she comes to me all day long urging about the search for her father.I wanted to tell her straightforwardly, but fear took the better of me. At the dinner table, when I looked into Dahlia’s anticipating, innocent eyes, I couldn’t bring myself to break the news. So I backed off and averted the subject. I guess I deserve the fork. But at least that got Dahlia off me for the day so I can sleep on the news I just got.For the first time in my life, I retreated. I escaped from Dahlia and hid in my office, not sure what to do.A knock on the door rises, and instantly I clench the glass in my hand due to nervousness. How ridiculous. People would laugh if they knew that the infamous Alpha they rumor about gets nervous at a knock in his own office.[It’s just Aiden,] Lupus rolls his eyes at me.“Come in,” I raise my voice. I
Dahlia’s POV It turns out, taking care of scared Omega’s is not an easy job. Damon showed extreme patience when he came to explain about it, but still, I’m pretty sure that jerk just wanted to get me to be jealous so he could scold me about it! “Miss Dahlia...?” “Yes?” I instantly put on a smile as I turn to that timid voice by instinct. These Omegas are shaken to their core, to say the least. I thought I knew how hard a life an Omega has, but it turns out I still underestimated it. Omegas are the lowest rank in a pack. Their sin is not having a wolf in a werewolf pack, nothing else. They are dumped with the worst jobs and lamest resources. They get nothing, not even respect, or simply some appreciation for what they do for the pack when their job is actually essential. But that’s not their worst fate. I didn’t know there are people who kidnap Omegas for a living, to sell them to places far from their pack, and there are actually huge profits in it. So before in their own pack
Dahlia's POVI didn’t think I could meet another member of Mom’s pack again in my life!I thought they all died.The papers said so. When it just happened I seek out newspapers that covered our pack’s story out of some sick, twisted habit. As if it could stop being real if the newspapers said so, so I read the same story over and over again. Every day they bring drops of new information about it even though it’s the same story.Massacre at Scarlet CreekWhole building burnt, surrounded by a blood poolAs if their funny little word games matter more than the facts.In the end, Damon stopped ordering the papers and I lost my resources of self-tormenting, but not before I was assured by them multiple times:The whole pack is wiped out.And now a survivor appears in front of me in the most unexpected way!Dare not to scare him, I suppress my pounding heart and maintain my smile as I take Tom Sanders for a meal. He seems startled. I would be just like him if Damon didn’t save me out of the
Dahlia’s POV“Don’t say that ever again, to anyone!”I warn Tom as I glance at Aiden nervously. Luckily, Aiden was playing along well thinking it was Tom’s childish game like I did, and is now sitting on a thick branch of a tree far from us with a smile.Tom nods sneakily and purses his lips, crumbles of cookies dropping like rain with his nodding.I can’t smile anymore. This time it’s my heart that’s pounding hard for what I just heard.“How did you know?” I ask Tom with a low voice.“After they attacked the grand hotel, they started going through the whole pack and taking Omegas and kids,” Tom says with his eyes lowered as if about to cry, but though with a deep pout, he manages to hold the tears in. I can’t believe how much he had to suffer to feel necessary to teach himself to be so tough about this.“They wanted to take me but I escaped, and one of a high rank came after me. He was summoned when he just caught me, and that was why I was taken to their Alpha,” Tom pinches the cook
Dahlia’s POVI was changed that day.That day when Damon assured me over and over that he wasn’t holding a grudge against me for stabbing him, I felt like my whole world had color again.I could breathe under the sun again, even if he wasn’t around me.Life would have been the best, if Damon didn’t change that day, too.But something did.He is hiding something from me about the tragedy of my pack. I know. I didn’t ask him. I don’t want to create more misunderstanding between us about it, and I keep thinking he would come clean if I give him enough time, but he never does. He starts avoiding me again. Going out on trips nonstop, just so we don’t get to talk about the investigation on my pack.“My pack” became a taboo between us.Maybe out of guilt, Damon stopped banning me from leaving the mansion. That was quite a shock when he announced that to me--“Seriously?! You want me to go shopping?!” I shoot my head up to look at him, and Damon glares back with his lips pursed into a line. B
Dahlia’s POV“Can’t believe he would let you out but...” With a noble smile under the golden glasses, Justin sits down on Aiden’s seat, “Glad to see you out here, Dahlia.”He refers to the high rankings with their titles, just like everyone. As an Alpha, he never drops the politeness and he calls Damon “Alpha Damon”, always. But he never calls any Omega with that title. He would use their names, like they are just another person, not a low ranking.“Not without a price,” I stick my tongue at him, making a face. I got this much freedom only because Damon was feeling guilty hiding something from me. I just hope it’s because he found my father.“Speaking of,” I cock my eyebrows at Justin, teasing, “Aren’t you supposed to be in your own pack, ALPHA? I see you here more than Damon himself, seriously.”Mom used to travel a lot, too. When she was our Alpha. But that was mostly for the pack business. I don’t think she had ever stayed in another pack as if her second home.Justin blushes, lowe
Dahlia’s POVAiden did not suspect a thing, or so I thought.We get home peacefully, as usual. Damon is still out, as usual. Aiden wouldn’t paste himself on me when we are in the mansion, but I feel like it’s not just so I would feel freer. It feels like Aiden has his own thing. Something he doesn’t about.So I call after him: “Aiden, you can have the rest of the day to yourself. I want to cook for the Alpha myself today.”Aiden cocks an eyebrow, in his eyes there is more taunting than surprise. He is questioning more on my ability to cook than my motive.I throw a pillow into his face as a response before he leaves in laughter.He doesn’t appear in front of me again for the whole day. I like Aiden’s style. He makes me feel relaxed and trusted. He shouldn’t have today, though.When Damon came home I was already waiting by the dining table, with a perfect smile. Damon was told that I was the chef for the day and was waiting for him, and for the first time ever, he came to dinner withou