Page 20 of The Forbidden Alpha

She was stunned for a few seconds; a hint of amusement was visible in her eyes. She cleared her throat. “You were really serious about that?” she asked, confused. I heaved a sigh and nodded.

“Yes. I badly want to learn how to fight. I need to be strong, Leila. Please.”

She didn’t answer immediately. Her eyes stared blankly at me like she was wondering if I was serious. I let out a sigh.

“Please…” I begged again.

It was Leila’s turn to sigh. “I’m sorry, Celine, but training is beyond my job here as an Omega. Maybe you can try to convince the Alpha to let the warriors include you in their training. I’m sorry,” she said regrettably.

She gave me a weak smile before finally standing. “Get ready. The warriors may be here in a few hours. We need to prepare what to cook for dinner,” she added before walking away to proceed with our chores.

I was left in the room alone, mindlessly staring at the wall while pressing the cold compress on my cheek. I stayed there for a few minutes before finally deciding to join my fellow Omegas outside. When I got out, the horns were blown, indicating that the Blood Moon soldiers had already returned.

“Double time! The Alpha wants his dinner to be served earlier than usual,” Leila said and then turned to us. “He also wants as many dishes as we can. So please, prepare your best dishes.”

I swallowed hard. She pointed me along with others to be the ones to prepare the dishes. We all nodded silently. Leila left the room after that. Everyone in the room immediately went to the kitchen to prepare the meals. I took a deep breath before getting my ingredients as well. I tried to brush my conversation with Leila off my mind.

This is not the time to get distracted. What I need to do right now is to prove my worth as an Omega and eventually convince the Alpha to let me join the training. I proceeded with my task with renewed fervor.

It took us almost two hours to finish the eight dishes we prepared. After that, we were already prepared to bring it to the dinner table. Alpha Lucas wasn’t alone because he was joined by the company of the pack warriors who went to battle earlier. There were around more than twenty people in the dining room, including the Gamma and the Beta.

“Alpha Lucas, here are the dishes,” Leila announced and pointed to the different dishes on the table. We were standing beside the table and were just waiting for them to eat. I kept my watch on my dish.

I almost held my breath when I saw that Lucas was about to taste my dish. It felt like my chest was going to burst because of nervousness. The world suddenly slowed down as I watched him taste my dish. He raised his eyebrow, and an incomprehensible sound escaped his lips as he chewed the food.

“Who cooked this?”

Chapter Ten

“It’s Celine’s dish, Alpha,” Leila answered.

Lucas’ eyes darted toward me. I shuddered under his usual cold gaze. My heart beat wildly as I awaited his comment.

Did he not like it?

I swallowed hard, waiting for any reactions from him. But a few seconds passed, and nothing came. He just stared at me and went back to eating again.

“Let’s eat,” he said instead, urging the warriors to enjoy the meal.

That’s when I was able to breathe correctly. I didn’t realize that I was holding my breath earlier. It felt like a rock was just lifted from my chest. Leila looked at me and gave me a small thumbs up secretly.

I let out a sigh of relief. I was one of the servants who were asked to leave in the middle of the dinner, so I went out with the others. We headed back to the kitchen and started fixing our mess there. I didn’t know how long the dinner lasted. I was already in the middle of throwing the trash outside when Leila came up to me.

“Celine,” she called.

“Yes?” I asked, my brows furrowed.

“Alpha Lucas is calling for you.”

I almost dropped the garbage bin that I was holding.

Why did he call for me?

My mind was suddenly filled with anxious thoughts. I took a deep breath to calm myself, even though I could already feel my legs shaking. Damn it.

“Why?” I asked in a small voice. Leila just shrugged and got the garbage bin away from me. I closed my eyes tight and heaved a sigh.

I walked towards the dining room. The warriors and the Beta and Gamma are already leaving one by one, so I let them all exit first before entering the room.