Chapter 21

Noah watched as the servants transformed his dining room into an elegant hall for the family banquet. With the most elite werewolves of the Pack and their families coming to this intimate gathering, he wanted to ensure that everything was perfect. Besides, anything that kept him away from Hannah at the moment seemed like a blessing.

Ever since he had seen Hannah at that party, dancing with that man, Noah had been constantly irritated with her. He had been finding fault with everything she did and being overly critical overall. He had even snapped at her that morning just for wearing a dress that he thought was the wrong color for this event.

Noah had told himself that it was just because she was his Luna and he was not used to seeing her with other—admittedly handsome—young men like that. Yet something deep inside him told him that there was something more, something that he did not want to admit. Something that he did not even want to think about.

“You there!” he yelled to a servant hanging up a blue banner. “We agreed on red and gold, not blue and gold!”

I stood by Zoe’s side as she prepared the dinner for the family banquet. Adam sat in the middle of the kitchen, playing with his Transformer toy while the adults worked and talked.

“Could you chop up the garlic for me?” Zoe asked as she stirred an enormous pot simmering on a burner.

“Of course.”

I cut into my first clove of garlic, my nose crinkling as the smell wafted up into my face. I had never liked the smell of garlic in the first place, and I liked it even less now that I was struggling with an eating disorder. Nevertheless, I persisted.

“You know, I was surprised when you and Noah invited me to this banquet,” Zoe said as she added some sort of spice to the pot. I supposed that I should pay closer attention to what she was doing if I wanted to learn how to cook.

“Oh?”

“Yes, especially after…well…”

I knew what she was talking about. I wasn’t sure how much of the argument between Noah and me that Zoe had overheard at the charity ball, but I was sure that it was enough. I waved my hand dismissively before I returned to chopping the garlic.

“Bygones,” I said. “Really, I appreciate the help with the cooking. I don’t spend much time in the kitchen.”

Zoe smiled slightly.

“It’s no trouble at all. I love it.”

She paused.

“I’m grateful for the company, honestly,” she continued. “It seems that Drake is planning to visit the Nightcrest Pack soon.”

Zoe said that with such disdain that I hesitated.

“He is, is he?” I asked.

Zoe nodded, a scowl spreading across her delicate features.

“It worries me.” She glanced over at my small pile of garlic on the cutting board. “Go ahead and pour that into the stew.”

I followed her instructions, my hands trembling a little as I tried to ensure that nothing fell onto the floor or into the burner. Zoe smiled approvingly as I backed away, and she began to stir the stew. She took a sip and exhaled contentedly.

“Delicious.” She held a small spoonful out to me. “Want a taste?”

My stomach knotted. I shook my head.

“No, thank you.”

Zoe shrugged, though she looked disappointed.

“You know,” she said as she moved to the opposite end of the kitchen, “one of the best things about cooking is that you get to sample your creations while you’re working.”

My stomach tended to disagree with that.

“I’ll have to take your word for that.”

Zoe frowned at me as she took a pie tin out of a cupboard.

“Would you mind getting out the mason jars of peach slices that I brought for the peach pies? There should be three in my tote bag on the counter.”

I walked over to the counter and dug out the mason jars. One of the jars was sticky on the side, and I found that the lid was loose with juice leaking down the side. Fortunately, none of it had gotten on Zoe’s bag.

I tried to tighten the lid but had to open it for realignment. Looking into the jar at the fruit, I couldn’t help my mouth watering at the juiciness of the plump peach slices. Before I knew what I was doing, my fingers reached into the jar, pulled out a slice, and popped it into my mouth.

To my surprise, my body savored the sweetness of the peach slice. Instead of being revolted, I chewed slowly and swallowed the treat with relish. My stomach did not sting but sang in relief at the small piece of food.

Was my appetite improving? Could this be a blessing from the life blossoming inside of me?

Quickly, I screwed the lid back on the mason jar. I turned to take them over to where Zoe was preparing the dessert. Her eyes met mine, and she smiled slyly at me before returning her attention to the crust.

As Zoe watched over the pies, I took out the first course of niçoise salad to the dining hall. Noah waited in his seat at the head of the table, chatting with their guests while they waited for the food to be served. When I set his salad in front of him, Noah’s eyes widened in surprise.

As he turned his head towards me, I cocked my brow, daring him to say something.

“Is something wrong?” I finally asked.

“I’m just wondering if this food is really edible,” he replied, stabbing at one of the hard-boiled eggs with his fork.

I placed my hands on my hips.

“What do you mean by that?”

“You never cooked before and you hardly eat anything,” Noah remarked. “How could you possibly prepare this meal?”

“Can’t I try something new?”

My eyes glanced up at Zoe poked her head out of the door, presumably to deliver the stew, but I did not give away that she was standing there.

Noah stabbed his fork into the salad and shoveled it into his mouth. He made a production of chewing slowly, as though contemplating the quality of the food, but I knew that he had already made up his mind about it before he had even swallowed.

“Well, it isn’t delicious,” he said sarcastically. “Did you really think that you could fool people with this kind of meal? This is an important family banquet, after all.”

The entire room fell silent—silent, that is, except for Zoe’s sobs.

I knew that everyone expected me to explode on Noah, have a breakdown, or do something else along those lines. Instead, I shrugged.

“It was Zoe’s cooking,” I said. “I’m just helping to serve it.”

I walked over to where Zoe stood and gathered her in my arms.

“It’s okay,” I told her. “He didn’t mean it that way.”

As Zoe buried her face in my shoulder, I glanced back at Noah. He glared at me, and I held his gaze defiantly.

He wanted to mock me in front of Zoe, but it backfired. Teach him to pick at me in public.

Noah speared a hard-boiled egg with his fork and turned his ire on it, as though it had been the cause of all his woes.

“Well, since the two of you seem so close suddenly,” he said loudly for the entire hall to hear, “you might want to know that Drake is coming as a member of the Alpha Council.”

Adam, who had popped his head in to see what his mother was doing, smiled broadly at the sound of this news.

“Dad!” he exclaimed.

Zoe pulled away from me. Her face paled.

“Drake…he’s really coming.”