Shining Through Shadows

Dinner Is Served

Lydia

Time passed by quickly, and before I knew it, I was pushing a small cart down the hall. Its wheels were screeching as they turned, probably to alert the Alpha that dinner was on its way.

The entire way from the kitchen the smell of his food was steaming directly up and into my nostrils. It was mouthwatering and painful at the same time to smell his food.

Once again, I stopped in front of his office. I used a second to look over my notes to make sure I was doing what was expected of me. Today, his dinner was to be served in his office, but tomorrow I had to serve him in his private dining room as he expected guests.

I gulped down, not wanting to think about what awaited me tomorrow. With two quick knocks on the door, I alerted him that dinner was ready.

After giving him a few seconds, I carefully opened the door, expecting to see him waiting by his desk. Once the cart was in, I closed the door behind me and glanced around his office.

He wasn’t there. Just as I had expected.

“Hmpf.” I scoffed to myself, feeling somewhat offended that he was never there when I brought him his food. Was it always like this? Louisa had told me that the Alpha had some kind of sixth sense about food, but seriously, this was just strange.

At the desk, I placed the dinner plate along with his utensils. Then I added a cup of water along with a glass of dark red wine. Lastly, I added the perfectly folded napkin next to his bread plate.

I glanced down at the serving, making sure everything was in the right place before pushing the cart to the side.

Once satisfied, I turned to leave, but when I tried to pull the door open, it wouldn’t budge. Strange. I searched for a lock, but couldn’t find one. Strange…

And then I heard it. The familiar sounds of silverware being used, clanking together and scraping against the fine porcelain. It made my skin crawl.

I spun around as quickly as I possibly could, and I almost screamed when I noticed him sitting in his chair and eating as if he hadn’t just appeared out of nowhere.

“What…? I…” I began at a loss for words as dread settled in the pit of my stomach. Once I had found my voice again, I quickly apologized. “I’m terribly sorry for bothering your meal, Alpha, but I cannot seem to open the door.”

The Alpha chewed on his bite of food and took a gulp of wine before raising his gaze to mine. He looked completely unbothered by my presence. In fact, he looked almost amused.

“I can see why that is a problem for you, Lydia.” A shiver went down my spine as my name left his lips and I gulped down as my heart thundered inside me.

He paid no attention to his meal as his dark blue eyes were locked on me, the thin white line across his eye almost glowed in the sparse light coming from the chandelier.

“So, can I—“

“Take a seat.” He said, probably as an offer, but it sounded more like a command. I glanced around me, noticing a chair in the corner, and went to sit in it, but he stopped me before I could even move out of the place I was standing.

“Not there,” he said and gestured to another chair right in front of his massive desk. “Here.”

I let out a shaky, hesitant breath before walking to the chair and plopped down into it with my hands placed in my lap and my head down.

I heard him resume his meal, the silverware clinking together again while the smell of wine occasionally appeared.

“How’s your nose?” His question caught me off-guard, and I glanced up at him in surprise. Our eyes met for the briefest moment until I tore my gaze away as a blush covered my cheeks.

“It’s fine.” I whispered as I stared into my lap.

“And your forehead?” He inquired, making my cheeks burn more as the memory of us in the pantry entered my mind.

“Fine as well, thank you.” I quickly replied. God, how I wanted to get out of here. I would gladly take a week’s worth of bathroom cleaning instead of being this close to him. His dominating presence was uncomfortable, suffocating even.

“You can look at me, Lydia.” He then said with a soft voice. I heard the sound of him pushing his chair back, its feet screeching over the wooden floor covering the entire office.

“I prefer not to.” I replied honestly and then immediately regretted my bold answer.

“And why is that, m’sahni?” He asked as the sound of his heavy footsteps appeared. “Do I frighten you?”

I was baffled as I realized he didn’t scare me, but rather that I feared the way he was making me feel.

Then, a light breeze tickled the skin on my neck again, leaving a trail of goosebumps and tingles behind. My hand snapped up, finding nothing but air, and as I turned around, expecting to find the Alpha behind me, I realized I was completely alone in his office. Again…