“Did she try anything?” Daphne asks shrewdly as I nearly fall into the room.
“Tried is a relative word,” I breathe, shaking out my hands as I move to a pair of pants I need to finish hemming.
“I keep hoping they’ll ban her,” she mutters. “She’s very influential in certain circles, and the owner doesn’t want to ruffle feathers.”
Nodding to show I understand how that goes, I lose myself to my work until it’s time to go. I grab my shit gratefully, and head to the front of the store where I can feel Cassidy’s energy.
It’s a different kind of bond than the one I have with Bellamy, but I like that I can feel when she’s close. She also feels a little anxious, and I raise my brow in surprise before her arms wrap around me.
I guess the cat is out of the bag. Oh well. I’ve proved I can do the work, it’s no longer considered nepotism, right?
“You walked out like your hair was on fire,” she whispers against my hair before glancing up to take in the surprised looks my coworkers have. “Did anything happen today that I need to know about as her alpha?”
Way to lay it on thick, Cass.
“No, Mrs. Tremaine,” Lena breathes. “We didn’t know… I mean…Mrs. Larson came in and I had to play interference. She’s?—”
“A predator,” Cassidy snarls, turning toward the owner of the boutique angrily. “Cordelia, really. I don’t know why you haven’t banned her.”
Turning in her arms, I watch as the owner links her hands together in front of her. It’s clear she’s nervous and trying not to show it.
“There have been reports, but she has a lot of power in the community,” Cordelia reminds her.
“She’s a hanger on who enjoys gossip and creating drama,” Cassidy snarls. “I’m entrusting you with my omega. Mrs. Larson can’t return here. I have the charity event in a few days for the arts, and I’m wearing the gown I bought from here last month. I’ll ensure you no longer need Mrs. Larson’s patronage by the end of it.”
“She always makes me uncomfortable,” Cordelia admits. “If you can make it so I can safely ban her from my store, then I can finally protect my employees.”
“If you’re worried about protecting people under your care, then that’s a problem,” Cassidy snarls. “I’ll let you know if I need any last minute assistance with the dress.”
I follow her out as she slams out of the boutique, watching as she breathes heavily in anger.
“You don’t have to go back to the store for me to fix your dress. I can do it at home,” I remind her gently as we walk.
“It was more a distraction to help me walk out without losing my shit, and a reminder of who I am,” she growls under her breath. “No one should be fucking touching you inappropriately.”
“She couldn’t stop touching my hair,” I sigh.
“You changed,” she notices, her eyes moving to glance at my pants. “Why?”
“The other alterations consultant suggested it,” I explain. “Apparently, this woman is inappropriate often.”
“Fucking bitch,” Cassidy breathes, her glare scaring more than a few people into moving out of the damn way as we walk. “Her reputation will be ruined by the time I’m done with her. Then, when she has an incident with us and disappears, no one will care. She made a big fucking mistake.”
I let her stew as we walk, the rain barely a drizzle as it sprinkles over us. The sun still shines through a cloud, givingthe illusion that it’s playing peekaboo with us, and I wait Cassidy out. I have a feeling there’s more to this.
“You know that Shi and I went to school together, right?” she asks finally.
“I do,” I say, shivering slightly. It has nothing to do with the weather, but more a sense of foreboding about what she’s going to tell me.
I can feel her anxiety, and it makes my stomach flip flop as I hold my bag closer to me.
“Our families have always been close, but when his father died, my mom started to worry that Shi was too unstable for me. I’ve always thought I’d present as an alpha. I’ve had the traits for it since I was little, but my mother was a beta who wanted me to be softer spoken and sweet,” she explains. “Men take care of the women, and they don’t want strong, outspoken females.”
“Obviously she’s wrong,” I mutter.
“True, but my mom has a way of making the world feel smaller than it should be. Shiloh was going through some shit when we were sixteen, and she told me to leave him alone, because no one wants to be bothered when they’re grieving. Especially, not by a whiny girlfriend,” Cassidy sighs. “I don’t think I’ve whined a day in my life.”
Pushing her hair off her shoulders, we turn onto a side street as we walk.
