Saira~2

Sizzle…sizzle…

I threw the chopped onions into the sizzling pot, hot oil spluttering on me as vegetables and minced meat followed.

“Saira, you don’t have to do this, you know? There are Omegas for such chores.” Caira Mirza’s helpless sigh came from behind me, making me sick to my stomach.

“Thank you, Caira, but I like to earn my keep.” I said, grabbing an empty bowl and filling it with flour, salt, yeast, and eggs, before adding water and kneading the dough. Garlic bread with filling made for a great breakfast in the east. The strong flavors of their cuisines was what drove me to learn their recipes in high school.

I would’ve enjoyed crafting a few more dishes, but the patronage of the two hateful creatures in the kitchen with me dampened my spirit.

“You heard her, Einas. Saira wants to be our cook. I think we should let her use labor to cover their living expenses and stay, otherwise, she might not feel at ease living with us.”

I scoffed under my breath. This woman really knew how to turn black to white. If she hadn’t found me early in the morning to yap about us leeching off her mate without shame, why would I be forced to perform household chores to preserve my dignity?

“A pretentious bitch and a stupid dick. They deserve each other.” Zaria cackled.

“If only. Don’t forget we still need our mate to face what’s coming.”

I didn’t like owing others, and since my money was meant to be spent for a greater cause, it was actually a good idea to cook and clean in exchange for food and a roof over my head. After all, there was nothing shameful about performing the tasks of a maid. It was a respectable job with a handsome pay sought after by many. Everything else was meaningless.

“Saira…you…would it kill you to just listen? Why do you have to be so stubborn?” Einas Raed came to my side and narrowed his eyes on me. His nearness made my skin prickle. Not for the first time, I wondered why the Moon Goddess chose this brainless scoundrel for me as my fated mate.

There were better choices, like Idris Raed, for example. But no, she just had to choose the lousiest of all for me…

“Humph! That’s because he’s a dick with power, even if blinded to his mate’s toxicity by his lower half!” Zaria snorted with derision; no doubt put off at the fact that the wolf of such a male was her fated mate as well. As if to prove my assumption right, she wailed, “But this Princess deserves better!”

I rolled my eyes, stirring the pot, while thinking to myself I also deserved a better wolf than a narcissistic manic. Of course, I didn’t dare to let her catch wind of such a thought, or else, I would be in for an earful.

Before the Moon Dance, my relationship with Zaria could be described with two words; cold and resentful. We nearly destroyed each other fighting for control over our shared body. But after my 22^nd birthday, something changed, and our fractured bond showed signs of improvement.

However, that didn’t mean we became BFFs. There was still an invisible barrier between us, one that gave us the privacy to shield our thoughts from each other, and so far, neither I nor her suggested the idea of bringing it down.

After failing to get a reaction from me, Einas Raed made a move to grab my arm, but at this moment, Caira Mirza stepped forward and pulled him back. “Come on, Einas, let’s wait for Saira in the Dining Hall. She’ll work quicker that way. Right, Saira?” 

"Right." I nodded, and thought, anything to get you out of my hair.

Unconvinced, Einas Raed tried to argue. “But the kitchen…”

“No buts. Let’s go.” His Chosen Mate snapped, the finality in her tone making him back down. Throwing me a lingering hesitant glance, the Lycan Commander grunted and stormed out of the kitchen.

What the hell was his problem?

I shook my head, my entire attention focused on the task at hand as the two left me alone. I heard somewhere the way to a man’s heart was through his stomach. Maybe after this meal, I wouldn’t need to fry my brain brainstorming ways to attract the hateful bastard’s attention.

Who knows, he might even reconsider his rejection after tasting my cooking?

“If you manage to sway that dick with such a pathetic method, I’ll reject him on the spot!” Zaria suddenly declared and cut off the link between us.

I chuckled, amused at both her outburst and her action. Before the Moon Dance, the one to shut off the link used to be me. How fast situations change, I lamented, then sighed upon recalling my predicament.

Not everything changed. I was still the rejected mate of Einas Raed, while bound to Idris Raed in what could soon turn into a Chosen Mate bond if I didn’t take a decisive action.

I needed to do something that would shift the entire game in my favor.

Yes, game. Because unlike other females, I wasn’t driven by the power of love to win back my mate. I needed him to take back his rejection and accept me as his soulmate and Luna for my own protection.

It was the only way I could stay. The only way I could fulfill my promise to her.

Releasing a deep sigh, I hummed a silent tone under my breath and turned off the stove.

I should make soup. It’ll go better with the bread.

Bouncing on my toes, I stretched my hand to grab the seasoning bottle from the cabinet. Just as my weight tilted to the side and the bottle slipped from my grip, a large presence loomed over me and an arm snaked around my waist, steadying me against a warm chest.

“Saira, what the hell are you doing in the kitchen?” Idris Raed’s strong heartbeat pounded beneath my ear. His gentle voice tickled my heart, doing something to my insides that unsettled my nerves. I turned to move out of his embrace, but it was at this moment that his lemongrass-minty scent buffeted my senses. My mind became a muddled mess. Fissions of sparks erupted in my veins, igniting the places our bodies touched.

Damn! Hell! Blazing heavens!

This cursed bond is growing stronger!

As if sensing my rising panic, the Lycan set down the bottle he caught in midair and turned to scan me from head to toe. “Saira, are you okay?” He asked. The palpable concern in his voice sent a shudder rocking through my body.

No, no, no! I can’t react to him! I can’t!

I sucked in a deep breath of air in an attempt to clear my mind, then forcefully removed his hands from my arms, before taking back a step to place distance between us. I couldn’t think straight with him so close, his warmth seeping into my skin and his scent filling my nostrils did something to my insides I didn’t feel comfortable with.

“I’m fine.” I lied dryly. “I thought you went on a business trip? Why are you back so fast?”

“Why? Aren’t you happy to see your husband?”

“Humph! What husband? I remember telling you I can only be your Luna, and nothing else.”

“And I remember telling you I’ll wait for the day you accept me as your husband.”

Talking to this man was like talking to air. Aside from wasting my breath, nothing I said seemed to enter his mind. I turned my back on him and began working on my soup dish.

“You didn’t answer my question. What are you doing in the kitchen?” He asked again, moving closer to my side. He was either oblivious or acting oblivious to my cold indifference. But with the knowledge I had of him so far, I gathered it was probably the latter.

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m cooking.”

“Why? Did Einas tell you to?” He snarled.

“I’m living in someone’s house. It’s common sense to pay rent. But my money is too precious to be spent so recklessly, so I decided to take over cleaning and cooking duties as a form of compensation to them for giving me shelter. What, you got a problem with that?” I wasn’t sure if it was just me, but there was a faint scent of iron in the air.

Was he hurt? I swept a cursory glance over him and immediately retracted my gaze when I realized what I was doing. The hell! What did it have to do with me if he was hurt or not? It wasn’t like we had a future together.

“Our house is gone, but that doesn’t mean we’re poor. Until the construction of our new mansion is complete, I’ll pay the rent for our stay here,” he said. How nice of him to group us together, when I made it clear on more occasion than one that I wanted nothing to do with him.

“If you have the money, give it to me instead. I promise to put it to a good use.”

“Oh? What use?”

“You don’t need to know.”

A frown crossed his face, but if he was dissatisfied with my answer, he didn't voice it. Smart choice. I would’ve ripped into him with the might of a banshee if he showed the slightest interest of digging into my private affairs.

A ding alerted me to the timer of the oven going off. I pulled down the tongs on the rack to the side, but before I could slip them on, Idris Raed snatched them out of my hands. With practiced ease that raised my brow, he put on the tongs and took out the tray from the oven.

The mouth-watering fragrance of freshly baked garlic bread swirled in the kitchen. Idris Raed took a deep waft of the golden loaves and gave me a goofy smile. His tantalizing scent, the handful of dark strands framing his eyes, the brilliance in his smiling dark orbs…

“Hmmm…smells good.” 

Instantly, heat pooled in my belly and my knees turned weak.