“And I took a look through your closet last night while I was waiting and noticed you don’t have a swimsuit,” Taffy continued. “You willdefinitelyneed one of those. Oh! This is cute!”
I followed her wordlessly through the store, watching her pick out things I never would’ve even considered for myself. A warm feeling started to bloom in my chest as she held them up and complimented how they brought out my eyes or hair.
Is this what having a friend is like?
***
“I can’t let you do this, Taffy,” I begged. “It’s too much. Let’s put it back.”
“Shade, why is this such a big deal?” she asked, handing over a stack of clothes once we reached the register.
“I’m an omega. I don’t deserve—”
“Stop,” Taffy interrupted. “Regardless of rank, you deserve to be happy and enjoy yourself. Whatever your alpha ordered you to do back home doesn’t count here. Caelan is in charge, and you are his guest. Do you really want to reject the hospitality of an alpha?”
She had me there and she knew it. I respected pack hierarchy too much to ever go against a high-ranking wolf like Caelan.
My status as an omega had been beaten into me since I was young, and I’d been trained to treat every wolf with the respect that their station required. I had never questioned that until Taffy came along and started suggesting that things didn’t always have to be that strict.
“I would never.” The words tumbled out of my mouth as my fear of disrespecting an alpha rose to the surface.
“Then it’s settled,” she said with a triumphant grin. “We’re going to buy everything you need and some things you don’t just because we can. No more arguments. Alpha’s orders.”
I sighed as I relented. *** After an exhausting day of shopping, we finally returned to the pack house.
We unloaded all of my bags, and then Taffy hung around to help me unpack and put my new clothes away. It was nice having her there. Her endless chatter kept my mind busy.
She was good at that. She rambled on about whatever while I simply nodded along. It seemed she could keep talking even if her partner was bringing nothing to the conversation, which was kind of perfect. She was the ideal friend for someone like me.
“I don’t know if anyone’s told you yet,” she said hesitantly. “But dinner is going to be a little bit smaller tonight. We won’t be eating with the entire pack. It’ll just be us with some of the higher-ranking wolves and the other candidates.”
“What? Why?” I questioned, spinning to face her.
My mind had gone into panic mode when she mentioned higher-ranking wolves. I mean, I was happy to hear that I wasn’t expected to eat with the pack. The crowd at breakfast had been overwhelming.
But I wasn’t comfortable eating with higher-ranked wolves either. I didn’t belong in the same room as them unless I was acting as Sunny’s guard.
“It’s customary during the choosing,” she assured. “It allows higher-ranked members to get to know the candidates. And it lets Caelan observe how each of the she-wolves interacts with his most trusted pack members.”
I gulped. I really wasn’t prepared for this.Well, thank the Goddess she told me now. This way I have a few hours to process and get myself ready.
“W-who is going to…to be th-there?” I stuttered, cursing myself for my nerves.
“Well, the other females in the choosing,” she said, listing them off on her fingers. “Sunny. Caelan, obviously. Me and Dillon. The gamma, Oliver. Our former gamma, Verrill and his mate, Phoebe. The former beta, Truman and his mate, Alicia. And of course, Caelan’s parents, Alpha Leal and Luna Maty.”
As she finished, I felt like I was going to be sick. It may not have been a lot of people, but they were very important ones.
How am I going to navigate a room with that many high-ranking wolves in it?
Unfortunately, there was nothing I could do to get out of it either. This was tradition, and if we didn’t follow it, others would start asking questions.
“Don’t worry, Shade,” Taffy said. “I’ll be there with you the whole time. I’ll even sit right next to you, so you don’t have to feel alone,” she promised.
I can do this. Just take all those nerves and fears and shove them down deep. Emotion is a luxury I can’t afford. I feel nothing because I don’t need to feel anything.
“I can’t sit,” I stated flatly, easily slipping back into my training.
“Why can’t you sit?” she questioned.
