Page 39 of Escaping Wildfire
She led me into the dining room where Alpha Marek, Rory, and Larkin were already waiting for me. My parents were not in the room this time as I had hoped they would be.
“There is my beautiful future daughter-in-law. Come sit, Beta Griffin is on his way, he’ll be joining us today.
I sat to the right of Larkin, and he greeted me politely. “Did you enjoy your swim with Rory this afternoon?”
“Yes,” I answered Larkin before turning to Alpha Marek, “Thank you for allowing us to join her.” Alpha Marek smiled his fake smile at me that didn’t reach his eyes. Everything about this dinner was a facade, starting with his false kindness.
Beta Griffin arrived, and he sat across from me and next to Rory. She looked uncomfortable and shifted slightly towards her father, making sure to avoid looking Beta Griffin’s way.
I glanced over at him at the same time that he looked up, and he winked at me. The action made my stomach turn as I remembered Alpha Marek’s threat to me about the Beta if I didn’t go along with marrying Larkin.
Luckily, dinner was brought out to us soon after the Beta’s arrival, which meant we could hurry this meal along.
“Larkin told me you found a ring you liked. I’ll make sure it’s resized and ready for your party next week. I also have a boutique delivering dresses for you to try on this Monday.”
“Thank you,” I said knowing I had to feign politeness and play his game.
“The wedding is nearly all planned out. It’s going so well that I was contemplating moving the date up.”
Larkin was mid-drink when Alpha Marek said this and choked on his water.
“Don’t you think that’s a good idea, son?” He said with a hint of malice in his tone.
Larkin cleared his throat loudly before answering. “It seems a bit rushed as we have only just met…but I’m good with whatever you want, Father.”
“Good,” He said emotionlessly. “I also have a surprise for you two tonight. I wanted to wait until after the party, but the decorator finished up yesterday, and I was just so excited to give you the surprise that I couldn’t wait until next weekend.”
Larkin looked at his father expectantly but with an undercurrent of concern as we waited for him to tell us what the surprise was.
“I have set up a new suite for the two of you to share here on the Alpha floor. I brought in a decorator to completely redo one of the suites up here, and you two can move in together as soon as Gema has officially turned 18.” Alpha Larkin gave us a smug look. “After all, you two are going to be engaged now, so you shouldn’t be apart.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. He wanted us to share a room. I felt sick, but I also knew that if Larkin was remaining quiet, it would do no good for me to say anything against Alpha Marek.
“Gema, why don’t you start moving in tomorrow, and then Larkin can join you after your birthday? I’ll have Nora bring your things up.”
“Thank you, Alpha.”
He narrowed his eyes at me as he took a drink. “You’ve been behaving so well these last few weeks Gema, I’ve actually contemplated giving you some pack work to get you ready for your future role as Luna. Come to my office in the morning, and I’ll see what I can find you.”
I simply nodded, feeling disgusted with the game we were all playing, and wondering how this man could get away with so much.
“You’ve been great at following orders, so I might be able to start letting you wander about the pack house on your own…maybe even let you get some time with your parents.” Alpha Marek took a bite and chewed slowly as he looked at me. I said nothing in return, but he knew he had me trapped with his previous threats.
We finished our meal and Alpha Marek left quickly, not waiting for anyone else. I looked over at Rory, and she looked uncomfortable as Beta Griffin stretched out and brushed against her arm.
“I’m heading back downstairs, how about I show you back to your room.” Beta Griffin directed his words my way.
I wanted to say no, but you could cut the tension in the room with a knife, so I simply stood up and followed him as Larkin and Rory remained in the dining room. “Good night,” I said to them both, and they politely replied the same.
As I stepped out into the hallway, Beta Griffin put his hand on the small of my back and led me towards the stairs. I tried to walk ahead of him, but he kept up with my pace.
“Come,” He stopped at the landing to the next floor down. “I have to get something from my room before I drop you off.”
I had a bad feeling about this and stepped away from him as he continued down the hall. “What? You don’t like me touching you?” He grabbed onto my waist and roughly pushed me up against the wall. I wasn’t expecting the move and bumped my head on the wall.
“I know you don’t like Larkin, you and I could have some fun together.” He trailed the back of his hand over my cheek and leaned further into me.
“I’m not interested.” I shoved at his chest trying to sound strong but still hearing a slight quiver in my voice.