76

Omar and Tate looked unsure, but they’d stopped trying to intimidate me. Omar looked the more wary of the two. Tate looked less certain of what I’d said.

His face twisted into a scowl. “Bro, you had one fucking date with Kira. You’re sitting here acting like you know so much about her. Like you actually know what she’d do. Get the fuck outta here.”

I couldn’t tell them that I did know what Kira would do. There was no doubt in my mind that Kira would do all the things I’d said. If one thing about her was true, it was that she could hold a grudge. If any of these guys crossed her or did something awful to a contestant she liked, she’d cut ties and not bat an eye as they screamed for help. It was as simple as that.

Rather than give away my secret, I shrugged and grinned at him. “I got a pretty good read on her during our date last night. All I can say is you should try not to be assholes if you can avoid it.”

Before either of them could retort, our bracelets started blinking. Several floating cameras came careening around the corner, followed by the rest of the alphas. J.D. was in the lead and smiled when he saw us.

“Damn, there you guys are. Come on, I’m freaking starving. Let’s grab some chow.”

Omar, Tate, and I exchanged a few more dark looks as we followed the group dining area. A hellacious feast awaited us. My stomach grumbled as I smelled the food. I wanted to wait for Kira. I couldn’t get her out of my head. Especially not after last night.

Not knowing when she’d join us, I went ahead and piled food onto my plate. There was no way of knowing what they had planned for us in the Fight for Survival, but either way, my body needed fuel.

As I began eating, I felt I was being watched. Popping a piece of cantaloupe in my mouth, I looked up and found the person who’d been eyeballing me. Leif. He quickly lowered his eyes. Throughout breakfast, I kept catching him looking at me. It seemed like he was sizing me up, and that sent a spike of anxiety through me. I wasn’t completely sure Kira didn’t have a thing for him. I didn’t want him to believe I thought he was a threat, so when I was done eating, I waved to get his attention.

“How are you?” I asked. “Fully recovered yet?”

Leif looked surprised I’d asked. “Um, pretty much, yeah.” He laughed to himself. “The healers here have a lot of experience in bringing people back from the brink of death. The fae acted like it was silly that I was even in the medical room in the first place. Like I should have brushed it off and kept going.” He shook his head in disgust.

“Well, I, for one, am glad you’re okay,” J.D. said from farther down the table, jumping into our conversation. “Kira was amazing yesterday. I mean, she saved you while in human form. That was after defeating that feral tiger the same way.” He looked around at everyone else at the table. “This girl really is something. I’m not sure about you guys, but I feel pretty lucky to be here. If she chose me as her mate, I don’t know if I could imagine anything better.”

Several of the others nodded and mumbled their agreement, but Leif grumbled quietly to himself and stabbed at his food. Was he upset that Kira had saved him? Was it some sort of macho bullshit that made him feel like less of a man? If that was the case, it pissed me off a little. If anything, he should be singing her praises even more than J.D. was.

I was about to lean over and question him about it, but Nathaniel joined the conversation.

He tossed his fork down with a clatter. “You know, that’s the second time she’s done something dangerous and didn’t shift. That’s weird. I wonder why she doesn’t shift. Like, is her wolf deformed and ugly or something? Maybe she’s embarrassed to show it.” Nathaniel threw his head back and groaned. “Gods, I hope her wolf isn’t ugly. I don’t want to spend the rest of my days with some fugly wolf.”

A moment later, Kira strode into the dining room. Everyone leaped to attention and stood to greet her. Nathaniel’s face was blazing red. I wasn’t sure if Kira had heard him, but she was smiling easily at the group. She was perfect for the cameras that followed her. Zoe must have spent extra time on her that morning because she was absolutely glowing. Try as I might, the little boy part of my mind tried to tell me it was because of last night, but the adult part of me scoffed.

Nathaniel fell all over himself, trying to get Kira a plate of food. A few other guys grabbed her juice, water, napkins, and silverware. Gods, they were all so pathetic.

Tate took a seat next to Kira, and as she tried to stab at a piece of sausage, he deftly slipped her fork out of her hand and speared it himself.

“A lady as lovely as you shouldn’t have to feed herself,” he said, raising the fork to her lips.

I had to bite my lip to stop myself from snorting in laughter at the irritation that flashed across Kira’s face. She leaned her head away from the fork, looking for all the world like she wanted to be anywhere but here.

“Maybe you should worry about stuffing your own face, Tate,” I said.

Tate dropped the fork and turned to me. His neck was scarlet, the flush of anger creeping upward to his cheeks. He pointed at me and had barely opened his mouth to tell me what he thought of me when Von walked in.

“Good morning, everyone. I trust we had a great night,” Von said as he swept his gaze across the room.

“I know the lovely Kira and sexy Wyatt had a great evening, hmm?” Von looked at me expectantly. For a moment, I wondered whether he knew what had gone down after dinner.