TY
Iwanted her to stay with us, but I could tell by the look in her eyes it would be too overwhelming. She already looked like she was contemplating jumping out of the window. I was just thankful she hadn’t left after we admitted spying on her.
She straightened, giving me a tight smile that I could tell wasn’t genuine. She was putting on a mask to hide whatever was going on in her head. Maybe when she got back home, she would be able to really relax.
We had dinner back in the kitchen area, and I could hear the guys talking with some background music playing. They’d put out the best place settings, and Daniel had been cooking for hours. On the table, I could see that he had decided to cook several Korean dishes that were his favorites. There was Army stew, which was a mix of sausages, Spam, American cheese, instant noodles, tteok, and assorted vegetables. He also had savory pancakes called Haemul Pajeon, steamed pork, kimchi, a noodle dish called Japchae, rice, and a few other side dishes. I also knew he’d picked up mini chocolate torts from a bakery he worked with at his restaurants.
He had pulled out all the stops. We normally didn’t eat like this, outside of Lance. Especially me, being that I was a vampire. I could eat a limited amount due to my alpha ability, but mostly, I went without food. We rarely ate dinner together due to our schedules and interests. We got along like family, but we weren’t stuck together. I hoped that this didn’t set up a standard for Billie. I didn’t want to disappoint her, but I had a feeling the guys would come together for dinner every day if she asked.
She sat down in the seat she vacated earlier, and I moved to sit beside her, but Kai quickly took the seat. I held in a curse of disappointment. Hadn’t he had enough time with her? Kai wasn’t as possessive as Lance could be, but I knew he liked having an edge with her over us. I decided not to make a complaint about it. After all, I was going home with her. Although he would be able to hang out with her, it’d be a while before he’d get a chance to stay with her as we rotated.
Her eyes looked almost glazed over with happiness as she stared at the array of food. It made me smile to see her finally look content, even if it was over food. “This looks insanely good.” She looked over to Daniel. “You didn’t have to cook this much.”
He poured her a glass of red wine with a satisfied grin. Daniel didn’t suffer from low self-esteem, and he would be eating up these comments from her. “This is nothing. Anything you want, I can cook. Not just Korean dishes. I can make anything. What’s your favorite?”
She gave him a serious look, brows furrowed together. “Everything.”
He laughed, and then he moved to fill her plate to the brim with food.
She picked up her glass of wine and began to drink, peering at Daniel as he filled her plate. “I see what you’re doing. You’re trying to get me fat so I won’t fit through the door and leave.”
Daniel gave her a wink, setting her heavy plate down in front of her. “Smart woman.”
Despite whatever fear she must have been feeling, she still had the ability to crack a joke. It eased me to see that.
We began to eat, and the conversation was light. This wasn’t because we were putting on a front. Our days had become tame over the last couple of decades. It was a far cry from the time of our first omega. At just the thought of her, my breath trembled, and I pushed my plate away. I’d reached my limit of what I could eat anyway.
Kai glanced over at me. “All good, man?”
I gave him a curt nod. Kai was always good about checking in on me. I didn’t mind most times, but there were moments when it felt like he was hovering over me like a mother hen. They all tended to tiptoe around me. I didn’t blame them, considering my past. But if Billie saw that something was off, she wouldn’t feel comfortable around me, and I had worked hard to get to my old self.
Billie put down her chopsticks which she had expertly handled. “So, I’ve heard the Kai version, but I want to hear from you all. How did you all meet?”
“Daniel,” I replied, circling the rim of my glass of wine. I could have had blood, but you could never fool anyone into thinking it was wine. Blood left a trace on the lips, and I didn’t want to freak her out.
Daniel nodded, gazing over to Billie with that confident look of his. “I started out in a fae tribe. The fae aren’t very fond of the alpha concept. In some tribes, they even banish them. They find them too destructive and challenging to leadership. My tribe didn’t banish me at first, but when I voiced my interest in leadership, I started to get labeled as a troublemaker. Our king, my uncle, was an idiot, and even if I wasn’t an alpha, I certainly didn’t want to continue to follow him off a cliff. Then there was the fact that there were no omegas in my tribe. I was going to settle with a normal fae, many alphas have to. However, the king suggested I leave the tribe to search for my omega mate. It wasn’t a suggestion; it was an order to get me out without looking like a scared and threatened leader.”
Billie raised a brow, pursing her lips. “How classy of him.”
Daniel tilted his head back. “My thoughts exactly. So, I set out on my own, and I bounced around different towns and villages, trying to find a place I could respectfully settle in. Then one day, I saw this clown at a pub in England.” He waved a hand toward Kai.
Kai never seemed too bothered by Daniel’s digs at him. Even though Kai was the oldest of us, he never minded showing deference to Daniel. We understood now that during their time together, before Lance and I arrived, they’d saved each other’s lives countless times.
Kai shoveled a mouthful of Army Stew in his mouth before speaking. “Yeah, I was doing my seducing thing to make a living.”
Daniel pointed at him, giving him a disappointed look. “I’m going to cut you off there while you finish your food. Hundreds of years you’ve been alive and have somehow never learned table manners.”
Kai shrugged and opened his mouth wide.
Daniel looked away from him back to Billie with a grimace on his face. “He was a hustler.”
“So, you worked to stop him from doing crime,” Billie said matter-of-factly.
I gave a snort and looked away.
Daniel gave her a playful wink. “No, princess. I joined him.”
She dropped her mouth open in shock. I wasn’t so sure telling the truth was helping our cause, but hiding who we used to be wasn’t right either.
