Chapter 40 Hiding

Chapter 40 Hiding
Elsie’s pov
Lysca’s bright mischievous eyes narrowed slightly. Her lips were curled with playful curiosity.
I leaned against the doorframe keeping my calm like her question hadn’t just brushed dangerously close to the truth. “I’m having a Tryst with a Private fitting.”
She leisurely strolled inside anyway. Her hair bobbed on her head as she looked left and right to sweep the room with interest. “I figured. But where are the triplets? I'm guessing this is one of their new shops.”
I closed the door behind her steadily. “They helped me set things up and left. I was actually about to call you.”
A blatant lie. I wasn't proud of it but I completely forgot I was keeping her waiting. I wasn't doing a great job at being a friend and it made me ashamed.
Lysca glimpsed the back of the room for a second longer than I liked. “They just left you here alone?”
“Yeah,” I sounded easy. “It wasn’t something that required them to hover.”
She veered around back to me. Her expression had shifted into something akin to mild annoyance but she pouted so it was easy to tell it wasn't serious “You could’ve just texted me. I came all the way here believing something might have been wrong.”
I gave her a small apologetic smile. “I'm Sorry. I got heavily distracted.”
By three grown men wanting to play dress up with me.
“Clearly,” she laughed lightly. She was already by the racks. It reminded me of when we first met.
Her fingers slid across the clothes, lifting one piece, then another. “So, what are you trying on?”
“Just a few casual items,” I entered further in and placed myself without thinking between her and the back area. “I wanted a second opinion anyway.”
Her expression softened almost immediately. “That, I can do.”
Behind the racks, hidden from sight, I knew they hadn’t moved. I was straining my ears to make sure they hadn't. But in the middle, I wondered how they were feeling being there.
Lysca picked up a hanger and turned it around. “Okay this is hot hot. Are you planning on stepping on necks or something?”
I shrugged, reaching for another top. “I just felt like switching up the wardrobe.”
She gave me a look. “Ugh, I need that!”
Lysca and I continued going through the clothes deciding and matching until we entered some form of sync where styling came easy. I was enjoying myself as much as I could, especially knowing three men were hiding in the back.
I changed from one cloth to another without thinking. I did want them to have a good show.
Lysca didn’t suspect any other presence in the room. She was too focused on the clothes in her hands. “Try the cream one. It’ll suit your skin tone better.”
I reached for it. “This one?”
“Yeah, that one.”
I stepped in front of the mirror and slid it on slowly, adjusting it over my shoulders. My reflection stared back at me calmly but my eyes flicked briefly toward the far end of the room out of habit. I took my time with the buttons wearing a small smile.
“Turn around,” Lysca urged excitedly..
I did.
She nodded. “Okay, yeah. That’s nice. Simple, but it works.”
I smoothed the fabric down. “Too plain?”
“No,” she said. “It’s clean enough.”
“I’ll take it.”
“Obviously,” she muttered, setting something else aside. Then her tone shifted. “So I need to tell you something.”
I peeked at her through the mirror. “What?”
“Do you remember Trad? I mean of course you do, he's quite the looker.” She rambled, fluttering her eyes around but not my face. Was she nervous?
My fingers paused for the briefest moment before continuing. “What about him?”
“Don’t make this hard on me,” she dragged the words. “He was clearly into you.”
I turned slightly. “We talked twice. That's not enough to make it mean anything..”
“And both times he found you first,” she wiggled her brows to tease and I laughed at it.
I wasn't sure why this conversation was happening. When I saw her nervous, I assumed it was for something more serious. But Trad? No way.
“He was just friendly like your friends were. I can’t really go ahead to assume they liked me like that too,” I countered hoping it would end the discussion.
Lysca laughed under her breath. “Men like that are not just friendly.”
Weren’t they? Not that I was hoping they were. It was just odd. I had never navigated what it was like to be liked by the opposite gender. After all,No one wanted a weak maid omega.
My wolf whined at the thought of being called weak, trying to defend herself.
I smiled faintly as I turned away from the mirror and strode back to the rack. “You don’t even know him.”
“I know the type,” she said. “Confidence. Polished. Didn’t take his eyes off you.”
I picked another outfit, letting my fingers linger over the fabric to ground myself. “You’re trying to flatter me right now.”
“I’m not.” She crossed her arms. “And you didn’t seem bothered by his presence.”
I glanced at her. “He was kind. Should I have been?”
“No,” she answered quickly. “I’m just saying it's not a bad thing.”
“What isn’t?” I faced her to ask.
“Having options.” She pointed out.
I hummed and spun back toward the mirror. The room didn’t have its exciting ambiance anymore. I could feel the simmering distress in the air.
Behind the racks, hidden from sight, three very quiet Alphas remained exactly where I left them.
I knew somehow, perhaps from the pull, I was in quite the trouble.
And just like that, my excitement was back.