Page 208 of Dream Girl
She quickly helped me use the tiny hooks sewn into the fabric to hook up the train.
“Thank you so much for helping,” I said.
“You must meet my daughter. She moved away to be with her pack as well. I love it when she visits. They are outstanding men. Established. Mature. Wealthy. Respected. Everything a mother could want for her baby girl,” she bragged.
“How nice for her,” I replied.
We went back out into the foyer, which was still full of people and music. Hopefully, dinner would be soon. I looked for Wes, but I didn’t see him. I spied Evan, Brennan, and Jett, looking very bored as a bunch of alphas talked at them.
“This is my daughter Cari and her pack. Cari, this is Grace, she’s new to town. I met her at the dress shop.” Evangeline beamed at a svelte brunette omega. Her dress was pink, ruffled,and stunning. It might be hiding a baby bump–it could also be the light.
“It’s so nice to meet you,” Cari simpered, wearing even more jewelry than Yui. She seemed like the popular girls in high school who pretended to be my friend until I truly needed them.
“It’s nice to meet you. You’re here alone?” one of her large alphas told me, voice accented.
“I’m here with my mates.” I still didn’t see Wes, though Spencer was speaking with a few people I recognized from the science dinner.
“Grace is a mathematician, she just moved here to be with her mate,” Evangeline added.
“What sort? Actuary?” an alpha that smelled of copper asked, his arm firmly around Cari’s waist. He wore a bunch of large rings and an expensive watch and had a Southern accent.
“The theoretical kind. I work mainly with qubits,” I replied, still searching the crowd for Wes.
“Oh. That sort. Do you work for Redstone or the Space Authority?” the first alpha asked.
“Compass BioTek, actually.”
“Oh no, you don’t want to work there,” Cari told me. “Surely your mates can find something better? Or Rolf, maybe you know? Rolf knows so many people. I’m in real estate development, so I can’t help you. But if you’re newly mated, you should come and see my latest property. It’s a vacation share, the classy kind. Just think, a chance to go on a special vacation every year with your mates, without having to be bothered with the upkeep of an additional home.” She dug a little card out of her purse and handed it to me.
“Oh, thank you.” I glanced at it and tucked it into my purse. Timeshare. I was in another world, and I was being sold a timeshare. She probably knew of some life-changing essential oils, too.
“Here, you should have something to eat,” the copper-scented alpha said, taking something off the tray and handing it to Cari.
“Do you need anything else to drink?” another asked.
“I’m fine, thank you.” She looked up, smiling.
“Is Compass BioTek really a terrible place to work?” I frowned.
Cari shrugged. “You could do better. Your mate is in real estate, finance?”
“Cybersecurity.” I wasn’t sure I liked these people and kept hoping to see Wes or Riley so I could escape without being rude.
The first alpha nodded. “Very nice. The Center matched you long-distance?”
“I’ve actually known him for a long time, it’s quite the story.”
“I do love a good love story. With my pack, it was love at first sniff. Even before I met them in person, I knew they were perfect. You met your alpha in the wild then? You saw him and just–knew? Like a love story?” Cari gushed, her head tilting so I got a good view of her bite marks.
“I first met him when I was ten. It is a bit like a love story,” I agreed.
It seemed like plenty of omegas met their alphas ‘in the wild’ so I wasn’t sure why she was gushing. But then again, what did I know?
“If he’s here, we might know him,” Cari pried.
I kept looking but didn’t see anyone I knew. “Maybe. His name’s Wes Lawson.”
“You liar.” Her voice and expression were playful, but her eyes weren’t.
