Dinner date with cruel Alpha Elijah!

EMMA

Oh god, what should I do now? I'm stuck. I promised Mason I would meet him, but I can't ditch Elijah because of his position. Still, I don't want to hurt Mason. I think I have to go with Elijah. If he finds out I ditched him to go with Mason, it could cause problems for me.

I slip into the red dress, and it fits me perfectly. How does he know my measurements? I leave my hair loose, apply a little concealer, and swipe some nude lipstick on my lips. I don’t need to do much more. It's not like I’m going on a date with him, so I won’t bother going overboard.

I wait in my room until the clock strikes 11. Right on time, the door opens, and Elijah walks in without knocking. Typical. This man has no manners. He’s dressed in a dark blue suit with a black tie—handsome, no doubt. But is he dressing up for some business deal?

"It would be nice if you knocked first," I tell him as I stand up and walk toward him.

"This is my house. I don’t need permission," he says, extending his hand for me to take.

"Are you trying to be a gentleman? Because you're failing miserably," I reply sarcastically. He rolls his eyes.

"I don’t need to try, sweetheart. I am a gentleman, and you’re the same girl who begged me for your phone this morning," he taunts.

"Where are we going?" I ask, taking his hand.

I feel something with his touch, and he must feel it too, because I hear him mutter a curse under his breath.

"Do you feel that?" I ask him. He quickly looks away.

"What are you talking about? Let’s go," he says, and we head out of my room.

He’s still holding my hand, guiding me toward the front door. Outside, I see his car, but what catches my attention more is Mason standing right in front of me. His face is filled with shock, and I feel a pang of guilt. I’ve never felt so ashamed in my life. I’ve ditched him, and he looks betrayed.

"Mason, have you reserved a table at my favorite restaurant?" Elijah asks.

"Yes, Alpha," Mason responds, opening the door for me without looking at me.

"Mason, I’m sorry, but I can explain," I say in a soft tone.

"Am I missing something here, Mason?" Elijah asks, glancing between Mason and me.

"No, Alpha. Emma wanted me to teach her some wolf things, but now she’s going with you, so she’s apologizing," Mason lies, not revealing the real reason.

"You don’t need to worry, Mason. If she needs anything, I’m here for her. Stay away from her, though. I don’t like the closeness between you two," Elijah says, threatening Mason in front of me.

What is wrong with this man? Why is he acting like I’m his girlfriend?

"I’m sorry, Alpha. This won’t happen again," Mason says, bowing before Elijah.

"Now you can go. I’ll drive," Elijah commands, and Mason leaves without looking at me.

I feel terrible now.

"Are you upset that Mason isn’t joining us? What’s going on between you two?" Elijah asks, moving closer as we get into the car.

Again, his proximity is making my mind spin. This man doesn’t miss an opportunity to get closer to me, and it’s driving me crazy. I shouldn’t like it, but I do. His breath mingles with mine, and it affects me so much that I close my eyes. His lips are only inches away from mine when I realize I didn’t know he was my sister's mate.

I turn my face to the side, and his lips brush my cheek. He steps back, looking frustrated.

I decide not to address it further, so I change the topic to ease the tension.

"There’s a thing called friendship, and I would appreciate it if you didn’t threaten my friends or control my life," I say, clearly angry. What he did with Mason wasn’t okay.

"Okay, so now you’re developing a soft spot for him? Well, stay away from my pack members. You and your mother are bad news," he replies, looking at me with a piercing gaze.

Does this man have a PhD in hurting people? He has no right to talk about my mother, especially when I don’t even know why she cursed his pack house.

"If I’m bad news, why did you invite me to dinner?" I retort, crossing my arms. "Maybe I should just go back to my room, since you don’t want to talk or walk with bad news."

I push him lightly, but he doesn’t move. It’s like my actions have no effect on him.

“Sit in the car,” he ordered. I figured it wasn’t worth standing there arguing with him because, in the end, I’d have to do what he wanted. I slid into the car, wishing the dinner would be over as quickly as possible. Elijah took the driver's seat and smoothly drove us down a narrow path through the woods, eventually merging onto the main road. He drove skillfully, but I was sulking in the car, my mood completely ruined. I had hoped we could have a conversation, but he managed to ruin the night.

“I didn’t mean to bring up your mother,” he said, as if apologizing, “I was angry, and it just slipped out.” So, now we were in ‘apology mode.’

“Are you really apologizing?” I taunted. “It doesn’t sound like it.”

“Sweetheart, I don’t apologize because I’m the alpha,” he said arrogantly, “but I do admit that what I said about your mother was rude.”

“I’m used to it,” I replied, not caring. “Let’s just get this dinner over with and focus on how to break the curse.”

Elijah accelerated the car, and I flinched, startled by his sudden speed. “What’s wrong with you?” I asked, feeling a rush of fear from his erratic driving. This man definitely had a bipolar personality.

“I’m just driving and heading to dinner. We’ll get there soon,” he said, dismissively.

I relaxed in my seat, reassuring myself that he wouldn’t let anything happen to me until the curse was broken. Soon, we arrived at The Ancestor Restaurant. Elijah opened my door, handed the valet his keys, and linked his arm with mine as we walked inside. It felt so good to be around humans again; I was exhausted by the wolves and their rules.

We were seated on the rooftop, with only a few people scattered around. I was relieved to be out of the pack house, even if it was with this man.

The waiter approached, asking, “What would you like to order?”

Elijah glanced at me, then said, “I’ll have a strong drink, and she’ll have orange juice.” He ordered for me, which I found frustrating. I rolled my eyes at his authoritative behavior.

As the waiter turned to leave, I asked Elijah, “Why is he looking at me like that?”

“Because you haven’t shifted into a wolf yet,” he replied with a knowing smile.

Confused, I asked, “But this is a human restaurant. How does he know about wolves?”

Elijah smirked, leaning in slightly. “This is a wolf-exclusive restaurant. Hardly any humans work here. We disguise ourselves as humans when needed.”

“So, how did the waiter know I haven’t shifted?” I asked.

“We have supernatural abilities that let us know these things,” he explained. “But don’t worry, you’re safe here.”

The drinks arrived, and the waiter cast another glance at me. Elijah’s eyes narrowed. “If you look at her one more time, I’ll rip your heart out,” he threatened. The waiter immediately looked away and scurried off.

I changed the topic, trying to focus on the reason we were here. “So, what do we need to talk about the curse?”

Elijah scoffed. “Aren’t you eager to leave this dinner?”

“I just want to go home. Your pack house isn’t my place, and I feel out of place there,” I said, my voice full of frustration.

His expression softened. “You need to accept us. We’re not dangerous to you. I run a business in the human world, and I haven’t harmed anyone.”

“You run a business?” I asked, surprised.

“Yeah, sweetheart. I’m a billionaire,” he said, his arrogance evident.

“Then I’m sure you’re pretty arrogant with your workers,” I teased.

Elijah raised an eyebrow. “I’m kidding. You need to loosen up a bit,” I said with a lighthearted tone.

I should be angry with him for ruining my time with Mason, but for some reason, I wasn’t. I tried to hate him, but it just wasn’t working.

“Okay, do you like Mason?” Elijah asked casually, sipping his drink.

“He’s my friend, and you told me it’s good to have friends,” I replied nonchalantly.

“Yeah, right,” Elijah said. “Mason’s good at being friends, but you’re the daughter of an alpha. He’s just a beta. You’re not meant to get close to him.”

I didn’t agree with this ranking system, but I chose not to argue about it.

Then, he surprised me with another question. “Are you a virgin, Emma?”

I blinked, taken aback. “What do you mean by that?”

“To break the curse, you need to be a virgin,” he explained bluntly.

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. “I am a virgin,” I replied, not wanting to discuss something so personal with him.