said, “Look who made a friend. That’s sweet really, but just so you know, we don’t usually mingle with the domestics , especially that freak. She seems a little damaged if you know what I mean.”
Was the girl serious? Channeling my inner mean girl, I snapped back, “She doesn’t seem damaged to me, but I’ll keep that in mind, Kendall. You do realize that my dad is a domestic , right?” Not giving her the pleasure of waiting for a response, I chose a seat as far away from her as possible and then proceeded to dig in my bag for lunch money.
Seconds later, Cade, looking a bit stressed, dropped his backpack on the table near Kendall and let out a small huff. Kendall immediately stood behind him and started rubbing his shoulders. “What’s wrong with my baby?” she cooed in his ear.
Gag!
“Nothing, I’m fine. Let’s eat,” he said as he shrugged out of her grip and got up to head to the serving line, leaving Kendall behind standing there looking quite disappointed. I looked around, noticing everyone else at the table suddenly wore the same expression, the what’s-up-with-Cade face. And I had to hide my smile, thankful to not have to see Cade and Kendall hanging all over each other.
Chapter 14
Cade
I hurried off to the lunch line hoping that Kendall wouldn’t follow me. I needed to be alone. It was killing me being near Allison. Being close enough to smell her was almost physically painful. I hadn’t seen her all day, but I could smell her everywhere. This was not normal! How was I supposed to pretend like there’s nothing there? There was definitely something there. Something I couldn’t ignore. Something I definitely couldn’t explain.
And Kendall. Somehow, I was supposed to be with Kendall even though the mere sight of her suddenly repulsed me. Where the hell does she get off telling me what to do? I totally get that she wouldn’t want her boyfriend hanging out with another girl, but telling me that I have to stay away from Allison? Threatening to tell my father if I don’t? How could I pretend that nothing has changed between us?
But, I had to. I wasn’t exactly sure what my dad meant when he said, “And you know what that means,” but I knew it couldn’t be good. Would he keep me from being the next alpha? Kick me out of the pack? Disown me?
There was only one thing I could do. I didn’t have the same options that others had. There were rules that I was expected to follow, no matter what. No one really gave a damn about what I wanted. It has always been, and will always be, what’s best for the pack that matters.
Just as I was heading back toward the table, Sammy walked up and asked, “Hey man, you okay?”
I gave him as much of a smile as I could muster and lied, “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just a bad day.”
Chapter 15
Allison
The only thing that I could think about the rest of the day was the possibility of getting to sit next to Cade again on the way home. The hands on the clock of the classroom wall could not move fast enough.
During eighth period, I watched the clock intently for the first fifteen minutes and then decided that by staring at the hands go tick, tick, tick, it was making the time go by slower. So I tried to avoid looking at the clock all together, but when I couldn’t take it any longer, I looked back up, and it had only been four minutes. Then I proceeded to silently beg the time to move faster for the rest of the period. By the end of the class, I had taken absolutely no notes from the fifty-minute history lecture. Already off to a great start.
Yes, I knew Cade had a girlfriend. And no, he didn’t seem interested in me at all today. He didn’t even glance my way during lunch, though he didn’t pay much attention to Kendall either. Who knows what he was thinking? It was probably not about me, but that didn’t change the fact that my mind was on him. The worst part was that I was starting to believe that I would never be able to think of