“This is the best store in Navarre,” she responds with her nose in the air. “And we don’t allow—"
“The bonded mate of the future Council Leader?” I ask smoothly, my eyebrows raising. “You must have quite the criteria.”
I see the moment she puts two and two together, her face leeching of color as she glances frantically between Sienna and me. “My apologies, Mr. Cohen, I didn’t recognise—"
“I’m sure it was all just a terrible misunderstanding,” I respond smoothly. I’m tempted to leave and go elsewhere, but this place is the best. And I want Sienna to have the best.
“I’m sure… Marcia, is it? I’m sure that you didn’t mean any harm, and you’ll take superb care of Sienna here. I want her to have absolutely everything.”
Marcia’s eyes round. I can almost see the moneybags dancing through them as I slide my black card from my wallet and gently close Sienna’s fingers around it. She glances down and back to me, her blue eyes wide.
“Tristan,” she whispers, and I shake my head.
“Whatever she wants,” I say firmly. “No limit.”
Marcia damn near wets herself with delight. “Of course, Sir. If you’ll follow me, Ms Sienna, we’ll get you all set up in no time. We’ve just had a beautiful selection of lingerie in that I’d be delighted to show you.”
She gestures to Sienna, who follows her with her face flaming scarlet.
Not bothering to hide my grin, I take a seat on a tiny little couch and wait.
29
SIENNA
Humiliation curdles my stomach as Marcia leads me happily to the back of the store, babbling away in high-pitched terror that we might take a huge order away from her.
She pauses to look me up and down, pursing her lips as she looks away.
“You’ll definitely need the works,” she mutters. “Lucky your alpha has that black card handy, huh?”
I stare at her. “I don’t want the works.”
She scoffs. “Don’t be silly. A male like that needs someone well-groomed on his arm. You’ll hardly do in your current state.”
She pats my arm condescendingly. “But not to worry! We’ll fix you right up.”
Tempting as it is to blow Tristan’s credit card limit on everything and then some, I refuse to bow to the pressure. “I need two pairs of pants, some underwear, one dress and a couple of tops. That’s it.”
Marcia scowls before her face smooths back into position. “That’s not what the alpha said.”
I give her a plastic smile back, gritting my teeth. “That’s whatI’msaying.”
After some to-ing and fro-ing, I end up with two small bags filled with a few essentials. At my insistence and much to Marcia’s horror, I yank the tags off a few pieces and put them straight on, sighing with relief at the feel of actual clothes.
Tristan stands when I walk out, the bags clutched tightly in my hand. He cranes his head to look behind me.
“Where’s the rest of it?”
Shaking my head, I brush past him. “I’ve got everything I need, thank you.”
Tristan calls my name, but I exit the store and wait by the car, wrapping my hands around that constant throb in my stomach. He storms out after me.
“What was that?” he growls, caging me against the car. His hands come up on either side of me as he leans in. “I thought omegas wanted to be pampered?”
“I guess I’m defective,” I snap. “I just wanted a change of clothes.”
He throws his hands up, shaking his head. “I don’t understand.”
