Chapter 42

Almara

After my embarrassing break down at Noah’s, he had insisted on going to the gallery with me as well. He’d been glued to my side the entire time, never leaving me alone for even a second. What was it with the men in my life suddenly treating me like I was some fragile, delicate creature? I didn’t think being pregnant made me that vulnerable.

What’s even worse, is that he put himself in charge of escorting me home as well. I told him it wasn’t a good idea. I could only imagine what Arthur would do if I came back with Noah in tow. He barely tolerated me being around Noah at work.

Kaylee had broken her usual stoic silence to put her two cents in. She didn’t think it was a good idea either.

But Noah wouldn’t hear it. So here we were. Me, Kaylee and Noah, walking up the steps to Arthur’s estate. My eyes kept darting around, worried that he would jump out of the shadows in some sort of surprise attack.

“Thank you for escorting me back,” I said nervously as we reached the front door. Surely he didn’t mean to come inside. I mean, I had Kaylee and the rest of Arthur’s staff was inside. And potentially the alpha himself.

“Aren’t you going to invite your boss inside, Sweetness?” Noah asked, a glint of humor in his eyes. He could probably smell the anxiety rolling off of me.

I fought back a sigh. He wasn’t going to make this easy for me. Should I pull the pregnancy card? Would that even work or would it make it worse?

Just invite him in. What’s the worst that could happen? Lily asked and I rolled my eyes. Famous last words.

“Of course. Please come in,” I said as Kaylee walked in first. She always did, no matter where we were. As if bad guys were just waiting to pounce on me behind every door.

“Why thank you,” Noah said, flashing me a smirk that could rival Arthur’s. My heart did a weird somersault, but I ignored it. Now that I was pregnant, there was no way that Noah still felt the same way about me. Not that it would matter anyway.

When we were all inside, the lack of yelling and grandstanding let me know that Arthur wasn’t home. I led Noah to the sitting room where Arthur usually entertained unannounced guests. I asked the staff to bring us a cup of tea and sat down, playing with one of the throw blanket’s tasseled ends. This was so awkward.

“How are you being treated here? Has that one person made any more moves against you?” Noah asked suddenly and I startled, not expecting this topic of conversation.

“Oh yes. They treat me with all the respect that they would show a real luna. And no, she hasn’t. Not since Kaylee became my bodyguard,” I told him and his eyes narrowed. What had I said? I thought he would have been happy.

“What do you mean a real luna?”

I froze. I hadn’t meant to say it like that, but with all the emotions I’d gone through recently, it was getting harder to think through what I was saying. I was just so exhausted.

“I just meant since I’m not officially their luna yet. That’s all,” I answered quickly, not sure that it sounded all that convincing.

“Hmmm,” was all that he said.

We settled into a strained silence as we sipped on our tea. This usually didn’t happen with us. Typically, our conversations never ended unless one of us had to leave. This must be what torture felt like.

Luckily, Dana walked in, giving us something to focus on other than each other.

“Ms. Almara, could I talk to you about some of the wedding plans? Arthur just wants you to make some choices. For each category, we’ve narrowed it down to two picks. Do you think you’re up for that?” Dana asked, her tone of voice clearly saying that she did not think that I was up for it.

“Um, yeah, it’s no problem. Noah, do you mind if I -” my voice trailed off as I glanced over at Noah. Only he wasn’t there. He wasn’t even in the room anymore. Where had he gone?

“Who are you talking to?” Dana asked suspiciously, her eyes shimmering with malice. She knew all too well who Noah was. She also knew how much Arthur hated him. She probably couldn’t wait to tell Arthur that he was here.

“My boss. He was just here. Didn’t you see him?” I asked, confused. I really had to ask him how he did that disappearing act. It seemed pretty handy.

“No, there was no one here. Are you okay, Ms. Almara? Do you need to take a nap?” Dana asked, her voice sugary sweet. It made my teeth hurt.

“No, I’m fine, thank you,” I said tightly. “Now, what are the choices that I have to make?”

Dana made a hum that somehow sounded condescending. “Okay, to start: Arthur would like to know which flowers you would like: roses or wild peonies? What color linen would you like: white or ivory? What meal should be served: salmon or chicken?”

She asked the questions rapid fire. I could barely concentrate on them, still struggling to figure out where Noah had gone. Maybe he had just taken a trip to the bathroom?

“Um…wild peonies. It would be a great way to honor his grandmother. Could we make the color theme emerald green and gold? If we can, I’d like the linens to be emerald green with a gold napkin holder. And definitely salmon,” I answered slowly as I thought through my answers.

Don’t ask. Demand. It’s your wedding and you’re her future luna. Act the part, Lily griped and I shivered. I was definitely not that kind of person.

Dana scribbled the answers down on her tablet before asking me even more questions. It seemed like they were never ending. A headache had started between my eyes by the time she was finished. Maybe Dana was right. Maybe I couldn’t handle it.

She gave me a cold smile that looked more like a sneer before leaving the room. I rubbed my temples, trying to ease the headache. Kaylee barked at someone to go get me water and I offered her a weak smile.

Noah still wasn’t back though and I was getting worried. Maybe Arthur had come back and had run off with Noah and was now torturing him. That thought had me standing up and hurrying out of the room. The staff could find me later. They always did anyway.

I followed Noah’s scent trail and it went straight by the bathrooms that were right next door to the sitting room. If he hadn’t gone to the bathroom, where was he?

I had a bad feeling as the trail led to Arthur’s office and my fear was confirmed when Noah came strolling out like he owned the place. He had a cat-that-ate-the-canary grin on his face and a mischievous glint in his eyes. He exuded trouble.

“What were you doing in there?” I asked sharply, surprised at how high-pitched my voice sounded. I cleared it awkwardly, coughing into my hand.

“Nothing, sweetness. I got lost on my way to the bathroom. Since I knew where Arthur’s office was, I came here, hoping there would be a bathroom there. And wouldn’t you know it? There was,” Noah said smoothly, ruffling my hair playfully. He said it so confidently that I almost believed him. Almost.