Page 34 of Red's Beast

As I wait for Corbin to fix his plate, he does the unexpected. He grabs my plate and shoves it into my hands. “Here, fill your plate. You don’t have to wait on me.”

“Oh? Wait, that isn’t right.”

When he nods for me to go on, my hand trembles as I hold the plate out and start to fill it with my other hand. Of course, his eyes never leave my hands as he watches me.

“I hope you realize that you will never be treated like that again as my mate. I know what most did to you before, but that I will ensure it ends. This much I can promise you.”

I settle on my heels as I sit on my knees with my plate on my lap. “Well, I never planned to take a mate.”

It’s a lie that I tell myself. Deep down, I’ve always wanted to belong and have someone, but I gave up years ago after I turned eighteen and came back here. Now I’m twenty-four years old and never had a prospect.

Getting a mate in another pack is impossible when we can’t leave through the woods to see any of them. We just have to make do with who is here, which is hard since it has been two hundred years since the beast first appeared.

A sigh escapes me as I glance over at Corbin. His eyes glow, jarring another thought to the forefront of my mind.

His family hasn’t always been here. They had to get in somehow, so surely there is a way, right?

His gaze warms and turns curious. “Why wouldn’t a woman such as yourself crave a mate?”

I fall to the side, still keeping my legs tucked close to me. Once the plate is on the blanket, I shake my head. “Are you sure you want to ask me that right now? Who would I have mated with, Corbin? Who would your father allow to get near me? I’ve been nothing but your family’s slave for years. You have tormented me and now you expect me to just fawn all over you after what you have done. Do you even have a brain?”

“That is no way to speak to me,” he says firmly.

“I think this date is done. Honestly, I don’t know why I even tried to pretend. I’m still the same person, alpha gene or not.”

I quickly stand, but not before snatching the cheesecake from the blanket. “And I’m taking this with me for putting up with you as long as I have.”

I take the side gate and leave the small attached yard, but not before looking back over my shoulder at him. He’s in complete shock and actually looks sad, but I don’t care.

This farce is ridiculous, and I shouldn’t have to mate with him.

I get to my house and slip inside a few seconds later, still clutching the cheesecake in my hands. Everything hits me hard.

Sure, I got a cheesecake and temporary satisfaction, but what will the consequences be later?

Instead of dwelling on it, I sit at the old wooden table with the cheesecake, then dig into it with my hands. I really don’t care if I make a mess because it’s my house and I clean it, anyway.

Sometime later, I crash from all the sugar and lay there, hoping it’ll pass soon. It’s not like my metabolism works like the others, so I am indeed suffering from my decision.

When I finally wake, the sun’s morning rays are streaming through the window, casting an eerie glow as dust floats through the air. I rise from the couch and hobble toward my bedroom before I realize that I didn’t dream last night.

It’s rather odd, but I dismiss it quickly.

After getting dressed, I move to the bathroom and splash water on my face to finish waking myself up.

Then it hits me. I don’t have the alpha’s house to clean today, or any house, for that matter. “What am I supposed to do now?”

My thoughts are interrupted as someone knocks on the door. I slowly make my way back to the living room before I catch the scent of the alpha as the breeze blows it through a small crack at the bottom of the door.

"How can I be of service, Alpha?"

The doorknob makes a horrible sound as he squeezes it from the other side and breaks it. It swings open, and he takes one large imposing step inside.

I lower my gaze immediately. This is about what I did to Corbin yesterday, and my consequences have finally caught up with me.

"I hear you made a fool of my son on that date. How stupid are you, girl?"

I take in a shaky breath and force myself to calmly look up. “His behavior was a little overwhelming, but I assure you that it won’t happen again. It was in the backyard, so it isn’t like anyone saw it.”

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