Chapter 3 I'm Very, Very Scared
Vivian examined Alicia's face, neck, and legs as if searching for some intriguing marks, but to her disappointment, she found nothing.
"I was telling Ellis that you might be late today. Glad to see you're on time!" Vivian remarked, pulling Alicia in for a warm hug.
"Late? Did you think I'd be hungover from the wine?" Alicia asked, wary of Vivian's intentions. She wanted to push away this dangerous she-wolf who reeked of strong perfume. Who knew if Vivian was putting some sinister chemicals in the perfume to hurt her?
"It seems like the new product's side effects didn't affect you at all. You were lucky to escape last night," Vivian said with a sigh. "Otherwise, do you think you would still be talking to me today as a member of the Wilton Family?"
Alicia realized that Vivian was unaware of what happened to her last night. So it wasn't Vivian who had arranged for Alpha Damian Howard to show up.
"I won't let you hurt me again," Alicia said, her voice low.
"We'll see you try! Sooner or later I'll kick you out of the pack and turn you into a rogue," Vivian threatened her, still wearing her perfect smile.
"If you threaten me after you become Luna of the Golden Moon Pack, I might actually feel scared." With that, Alicia turned and walked briskly toward the meeting room. Only the moon god knew how worried Alicia was that Vivian would not be able to resist tearing her apart as she turned around.
Luna Ceremony was a forbidden term for Vivian, as everyone in the pack knew.
Vivian was Alpha Ellis' mate as well as his fiancée. However, it was said that there was no mate pull between Alpha Ellis and Vivian, which meant that Alpha Ellis had no feelings for his mate. Despite their two-year engagement, Alpha Ellis hadn't specified when the Luna Ceremony would take place.
Alicia wondered if Vivian was targeting her because of her suspicion that something was going on between her and Alpha Ellis. They were just friends, but Vivian seemed to be imagining things.
Regardless of the reason, Alicia couldn't let the pack know what had happened to her last night. Her father worked hard for his company and the Scarlett Pack. He couldn't afford the consequences of her affair.
As Alicia stepped into the meeting room, the scent of lavender instantly captivated her senses.
Her eyes widened as she recognized the source to her right - Damian Howard? What was he doing here? He wasn't from the Golden Moon Pack. Was he a friend of Alpha Ellis? Did he come to divulge what had occurred last night after learning she was with the Golden Moon Pack? Alicia wondered as her heart began to race.
Carefully stepping behind a marble column about 25 feet away, she attempted to eavesdrop on their conversation to find out what they were discussing.
"It's a little rushed. I've only been back in L.A. a short while and I'm here to discuss our cooperation. I didn't know you were having a pack meeting today," Damian said, as Alicia tried to keep her breathing steady.
"Mr. Howard, you're too kind. I'm delighted to have the chance to work with you. If you have some free time, why don't you stay for lunch and try the chef's braised beef?" Alpha Ellis invited, causing Alicia's heartbeat to return to normal.
She realized that Damian was probably unaware that she was related to Alpha Ellis.
But Damian had caught a whiff of red wine as soon as Alicia had entered the room. While he spoke to Alpha Ellis about their cooperation, his gaze was fixed on his mate's direction. Eventually, he noticed Alicia standing behind the pillar to their left. Ellis also noticed Damian's lack of attention and followed his gaze to see Alicia.
"Alicia, there you are," Ellis said, calling out to her.
As she stepped out from behind the column, Damian surprisingly greeted her with a smile, apparently not taken aback by her appearance.
"Mr. Howard, this is Alicia, my sister-in-law," Ellis introduced, watching Damian's expression with a complicated look before turning to Alicia. "Alicia, this is Mr. Howard, Alpha of the Moon Halo Pack."
"Pleasure to meet you, Alicia," Damian smiled as he extended his right hand.
"Alicia Wilton, nice to meet you too, Mr. Howard," Alicia replied by extending her own hand to shake his, but she pulled it back as soon as their palms touched. She didn't want any more physical contact with him, but as he was a guest of the Golden Moon Pack, she had to tolerate his presence.
"Alicia, if you're free, why don't you take Mr. Howard to the rose garden in the courtyard? He's looking for a landscaper, and since you work in landscaping, perhaps you could chat," Ellis suggested.
Oh! No! Alicia's heart sank.
Although her job involved landscaping, she was just a junior designer in the company and wasn't allowed to handle the entire project on her own. Furthermore, she didn't want to stay with Damian.
"Thanks, Ellis, I'd love to. But I am really sorry. But I can't handle the client independently yet. So..." Alicia said with a smile that had absolutely nothing to be sorry for.
"That's okay, you guys talk first. You can listen to Mr. Howard's ideas and give some opinions." Ellis said and turned towards other guests, not giving Alicia a chance to refuse.
Alicia put on a smile, but her heart sank. She wished Ellis hadn't pushed her into this conversation. She didn't want to talk to Damian, let alone listen to his ideas. As she took a step back, her mind raced, trying to come up with a way to get out of this situation.
But Damian beat her to it. "I didn't expect to see you so soon, Mrs. Wilton," he said with a smile that sounded like a deep cello.
Alicia tensed up at the sound of his voice. She turned to face him, her expression guarded. "I don't think it's anything to be happy about. What do you want?" she asked.
"Are you still angry about last night? Or..." Damian took a step forward, lowering his voice to a whisper, "Because I left in such a hurry this morning and didn't have sex with you again, so you think I'm no good? You want to dump me?"
Alicia recoiled, taking a step back. Her cheeks burned with anger and embarrassment. "How dare you say that to me!" she hissed.
Damian smirked, looking unconcerned. "What? Are you worried the others will know what happened last night? I'd be interested to see their reaction," he said with a wry smile. Alicia sensed the threat in his words and her heart pounded in her chest.
"Please don't say another word about what happened last night! You know if I get in trouble, you won't have a smooth day either," Alicia warned, turning to leave the room.
But Damian wasn't done. "Emm... I'm very, very scared!" he said sarcastically, deliberately crossing his arms and pretending to be scared as he caught up with her.
When they reached the front patio, Alicia held out her finger and pointed to a spot ten feet away from them. "There is a rose garden. Please make yourself comfortable. I have things to do, bye." She hadn't planned to visit the rose garden with this man who smelled of her favorite lavender.
"You've married Tobias Wilton if I remember correctly. " Damian said. His words managed to stop Alicia in her tracks.
"So what?" Alicia asked.