Chapter 7: Chapter 7

ELEANOR

After Marquez had completed the tour, I went back to Xavier’s house to grab lunch. There was a note on the kitchen countertop.

~We have to attend a formal event tonight. Be ready by six. ~

~Xavier. ~

He could have just said this in person this morning. I rolled my eyes and made my way to my room to get ready. As I walked into my temporary room, I frowned at the sight of cardboard boxes scattered across the floor.

I opened one of them and saw they were my clothes. I looked around the room and saw another note on my bedside table.

~Your father sent all your clothes.~

~Xavier. ~

I crushed the paper and threw it into the trash while I tore through the boxes to look for a suitable dress. After an hour of searching all the boxes, I finally settled on an A-line pink dress.

After taking a quick shower, I slipped on the dress and did my makeup.

Thankfully, I was ten minutes early when I reached the foyer. Though, there was no Xavier in sight.

“~Should we go looking for him?~” Erica asked me.

“~No. We’re not responsible for him. He’ll be here,~” I said.

“…arrange a meeting at eight, and we can discuss it.” Xavier’s voice grew closer, and when I turned around, I saw him coming down the stairs. His eyes met mine, and for a moment, I caught a flicker of emotion.

It almost looked like he was surprised and mesmerized to see me, and I was equally shocked to see him expressive. Xavier had been very good at hiding his emotions. I saw a slight crack in the indifferent look he’d worn since yesterday, a flicker of lust swirling in his eyes. This confused me. I thought he didn’t want me.

My eyes wandered down his body, and I felt my body heat up. He wore a black shirt with the top few buttons undone, revealing the tattoos on his chest, and paired it with black pants.

“Finalize it, and we will talk about it tomorrow,” he said before he disconnected the call. When his eyes looked back at me, a smile formed on my face. “We’re meeting with a neighboring pack tonight to try and form an alliance. Don’t ruin this deal for me,” he said.

“We have an agreement, Beta Costa. I will help you form the alliances you need, and you help me find my mom’s killer. I won’t ruin it,” I said.

I walked to the front door and opened it.

I felt his presence behind me, but I chose to ignore it and looked ahead. The sun had gone down, and in a few hours, it would be dark again. For some reason, I was eagerly waiting to see the moon again.

Right then, a Bentley arrived and parked in front of us. Beta Costa walked toward the car, opened the back door, and looked at me.

“Aren’t you coming, darling?” he asked me in a charming tone, paired with a smile. I walked toward the car and looked up at him with a fake smile of my own.

“Thank you,” I told him.

Just before I got in, Xavier held my hand, sending sparks through my body and bringing me close to his chest. I felt a strange feeling bubble within me as I felt our mate bond. He bent down so that his lips touched my ear, and this made me suck in my breath.

“What are you doing?” I whispered. My heart was beating so hard I was afraid it just jumped out of my chest.

“You look nervous. Relax, and act natural,” he said in a gentle tone.

I turned around to make eye contact with him. I gently placed my hand on his rock-hard chest and pushed him away from me. “Of course, love,” I told him in my best sweet voice before I got inside the car.

He quickly got in the other side, and soon we were off.

It took us a good fifteen to twenty minutes to cross the Full Moon Pack’s border and another thirty minutes on the road to reach the neighboring pack. When we arrived at the pack house, I saw that Alpha Derek had already arrived. Our car parked behind his, and Xavier got out and quickly walked to my side and opened the door for me.

I took his hand and got out. The alpha and luna of the pack were waiting for us on the porch, and they both looked like they were in their fifties. They had huge, welcoming smiles on their faces.

“Good evening, Alpha,” Xavier greeted, and the Alpha nodded his head.

“I’m sorry I had to call you two for dinner today, Beta Costa. I know how it must be for new mates like you,” the Alpha said.

“There are no issues, Alpha. Duty always comes first,” Xavier responded, and the Alpha nodded his head.

“Please come in. Let’s go and have dinner,” he said, and they led us inside the house.

Once we reached the dining area, Xavier and I took a seat right next to Alpha Derek, and their alpha and luna took a seat at the head of the table.

“Congratulations once again for finding your mate, Beta Costa,” the alpha said.

“Thank you, Alpha Lawrence. I was extremely delighted when I found her yesterday,” Xavier said, and I nodded my head to show how enthusiastic I was too.

“We’re glad you are all here, but it’s best we cut to the chase. Alpha Derek, the reason I called you for dinner is because I felt like it wouldn’t be proper to reject your offer through an email or a letter.”

“Reject our offer? I thought I reassured you that my pack would help you in building the infrastructure of your pack, Alpha Lawrence,” Alpha Derek said.

“Your proposal sounds tempting, Alpha Derek. But your pack has never worked with another pack before. And you have a reputation for destroying smaller packs to gain more land. Which suggests that you have a lot of enemies. What would I do if they came after my pack?” Alpha Lawerence questioned, and I could see Alpha Derek struggling to come with an answer.

“Is that your only reason?” Xavier asked.

“Well, that’s part of it. You may have found your mate, Beta Costa, but a pack without a luna will never be stable long-term.”

“Alpha Lawrence, we can offer more. The rogue situation is getting out of hand, and I know you are also affected by it. I can help you by training your warriors.”

“While that would be beneficial to us, I have a small pack. And I am not willing to take a risk here.”

“Can I speak?” I asked.

Alpha Lawrence turned his attention to me, and I caught Xavier eyeing me.

“I’m not part of the Full Moon Pack. So, I know what you’re feeling right now, Alpha Lawrence. I had the same thoughts as well. But after seeing how Alpha Derek runs his pack, I don’t think any pack—luna or not—could function the way his does. I wouldn’t have stayed if he were treating his pack members unfairly.”

“Alpha Derek has never formed an alliance before, Miss Amato. And with all due respect, you’ve been there for less than a day. How can we be certain that he will keep his promise?”

“Alpha Derek never backs down from a fight—but he also doesn’t raise a hand without cause,” I said, keeping my voice calm but confident as I addressed the room. “I know I haven’t been with his pack long. But sometimes, it doesn’t take long to see how a leader carries himself.”

I paused, letting that settle.

“I’ve watched how his pack treats him—with trust, not fear. And I’ve watched how he treats them with respect. That kind of balance doesn’t happen by accident. It comes from steady leadership, from someone who protects without controlling.”

Everyone was listening more closely now.

“I’m not asking you to blindly trust him because I do. I’m asking you to look at what he’s built, even from the outside. He’s not just strong. He’s smart, fair, and committed to the safety of his people. That’s the kind of ally worth having when things go wrong. And, quite frankly, it sounds like things are already headed in that direction.”

There was a moment of quiet before Alpha Lawrence looked at his luna.

“You may be new, Miss Amato,” he said, “but your instincts seem sharp. If you say Alpha Derek is worth standing with, then we’ll stand with him.”

“I will form an alliance with you, Alpha Derek. But that’s only because of your beta female,” he said. “I know a woman can change everything because I have seen and experienced it firsthand,” he asserted.

I smiled and noticed the shocked look on Alpha Derek and Beta Costa’s faces.

~Better sooner than later they learn that I’m not just a pretty face.~