The Alpha's Expectations

Split Pot

Ace stood at the door to the ballroom staring down at her phone. 6:05pm. The offending time screamed of her failure. Her father was going to be furious. She reached for the door knob but could not seem to force herself to turn it. She sighed and rested her forehead on the wooden door. Walking into that room the way she was, all dressed up, screamed of even more failure. Sure, her father would be elated. He had only been trying to get her to be more feminine for as long as she could remember. But everyone else in that room would see the dress as a matter of weakness. She smoothed the black satin fabric over her stomach once more and took a deep breath. Everyone in that room knew she would never choose to wear something like that. Everyone would know that she had been forced, by some manor or another, to obey. Luckily, they would not know exactly to what extent she had truly been forced. She had spent years trying to build respect in the male-authority driven pack and she had been pretty successful at it, at least she thought so. She hoped that this one moment would not be enough to tear that down. Ace glanced at the phone once again. 6:07pm. She sighed once more, lifted her head as high as she could manage, and turned the knob, entering the room in, what felt like, a grand display.

Even though the whole room did not stop, the music did continue to play, and all eyes did not immediately snap to her attention. That is what it felt like. Her cheeks began to radiate a light warmth, indicating her embarrassment, but she shook it off and put on a big smile. The eyes that darted in her direction did exactly as she assumed. They began chatting with their neighbors and pointing. Her eyes finally met her father's at the far end of the room. He had the biggest smile on his face. The King sat in the middle of the head table with her father to his left and her step-mother to his left. There were two seats next to the king on the right. She swallowed hard and forced a smile at her father. A large smile greeted her in response. He stood and began walking in her direction.

"Holy-s**t!" A bellowing voice approached her from behind. Ace snapped around with a sheepish smile on her face. Bruno held his beer glass up apprasingly and mocked a clap. "I had no idea you cleaned up so well," he joked. He and a a few other warriors gathered around her.

"Well, you know..." her voice trailed off as she motioned to her dress. "Just trying something new." She crossed her arms.

“There’s my girl!” Her father exclaimedz ace spun around to meet him, the false smile still sticking to her cheeks like glue. “Stunning.” He stared simply. “Your mother always knew how to wow a room with her feminine charm.” The admiration in his eyes was genuine. But the statement caught Ace off guard. “She understood the true power a woman could weld.” There was a longing in his eyes.

“Right.” Ace replied curtly. “Im sure all that feminine charm went a long way in the kitchen. “I need a drink." As luck would have it a server was passing by with a tray full of champagne glasses. Ace took two, immediately downed one and placed the flute back on the tray with a nod. She then sipped slowly at the second and tried to look the picture of sophistication.

Her father seemed to snap out of the trance he was in and cleared his throat. “Ahh yes. I see your friends hovering - I’ll leave you to it.” He wrapped his arms around her in a solid embrace. “I appreciate that you took my advice and wore the dress. I’ll forgive you for being late.” His words were warm but also firm. He smiled one last time and retreated to his seat next to the Talon.

"Sooooo, did your father make you wear it?" Sophia asked spinning back around while sipping on her beer. Sophia was another warrior. She was also wearing a black dress, but hers lacked the ornate detail that made Ace feel like a Christmas ball on display. The room was full of fluffy ball gowns and sleek suits and its true, her leather getup would have been an outlier. And yet, somehow, she still felt more out of place in this shiny black prison.

Ace sighed, relieved to be back in comfortable company. “No, no one made me wear it," she snapped quickly finishing her second glass. She discarded it on a near by table and scanned the room for the server. Her eyes settled on her brother and his crew who were shrewdly pointing and laughing. Ace faked a smile and a wave for pleasantries which only made them laugh harder.

Then her eye settled on her father who was still brimming with joy. He was engaged in a conversation with the king, or at least he thought he was. He seemed to be doing most of the talking. The King's eyes were fixated on her. His finger running the full length of his ample lower lip. His green eyes smoldered. She swallowed hard struggling to break his gaze.

"Damn it." She whispered under her breath. "Where's that waitress?"

**************************

The air in the room changed the moment Ace walked in. It was exactly 6:07pm. The King knew because he had been furiously waiting for her to make that entrance, and she was notably late. There was a sense of relief when she finally walked through that door. He was still getting use to all of the odd senses he felt about her. Worry. Concern. It was all he could do not to stand by her side every waking moment. She was so small, so fragile, and her ego was sure to get her into trouble. It didn't make sense, he thought, that the moon goddess would make such a meek individual an Alpha. How on earth could she protect her pack? He shook off the feeling but couldn't seem to remove his eyes from her direction completely. The dress really did fit her exquisitely. And the heals that gave her modist 5'2 stature a noted boost make her look a little more capable accentuating her athletically toned legs. The hip to floor slit had her left leg entering and exiting the dress in a shameful game of s****l peekaboo. The warrior from the field approached her with a smile. There was a clear comradery between them and Talon found himself growing quite jealous. He tried to shake that feeling too. But he could smell the man from across the room and all he could think about was the robe. It was strange, she looked fierce in that dress. She commanded the attention of everyone in the room, and yet he could tell this was the most unsure she had ever felt. She kept wrapping one arm around her waist nervously, and she was downing the champagne like a fish. It was when she reached for her fifth glass, and the party had barely started that Talon decided he had to intervene.