Chapter 11 #2
“Lord! That man is something else,” Hail said as she watched Titus leaving the outdoor kitchen with two plates of food. “And wouldn’t you know it? He’s got somebody he’s worried enough about to feed.”
“Doesn’t mean anything until it means something. He’s a nice male, always making sure everybody around him has whatever they need,” Alison said.
“True. But somebody’s a lucky lady, I think,” Hail answered.
Titus didn’t waiver in his path toward Hail and Alison. He walked straight toward them.
Hail focused on him, realizing he was moving toward them. “Something you’re not telling me?” she asked Alison.
Alison looked over at her, then in the direction she was looking. “Nope. I think it’s you he’s coming to see.”
Hail sat up a little straighter. “One can always hope,” she said, smiling as he got closer to them.
“Hail, Alison, how are y’all doing this evening?” Titus asked, as he came to a stop close to them.
“Hey, Titus,” Alison said.
He smiled at her.
“Titus,” Hail said, smiling up at him.
“I noticed you didn’t have a plate or even a drink beside you when I was on the way to the kitchen, so I made you a plate when I made mine,” he said, looking down at Hail.
“That’s for me?” she asked.
“It is,” Titus said, holding it out to her.
Hail took the plate from him, and looked up at him again. “Thank you, Titus. I don’t think anybody has ever made sure I ate before.”
“Then they’re idiots,” he said, looking around himself for a place to sit. “You mind holding this for a second?” he asked.
“Sure,” Hail said, reaching up for his plate. He laid the two bottles of water beside her on the lounge chair she was sitting on, then grabbed a black wrought iron chair from a nearby table and pulled it over to where she sat. “Mind if I join you for dinner?” he asked.
“Glad you thought of it,” Hail said, handing his plate back to him.
“Me, too.”
“Didn’t think you even knew who I was,” Hail said as she watched him take his first bite.
His gaze came up and he looked at her heatedly as he chewed and then swallowed his food. “Oh, I know who you are. Just didn’t have much of a chance to approach you until now.”
Hail looked him right in the eye. “Let’s hope you make more chances to approach after this one.”
He grinned at her, as he took another bite.
Feral walked over to where Titus had taken a seat beside Hail, but walked past them and straight to the black wrought iron table Titus had taken a chair from.
He set both plates on it, then both water bottles — one beside each plate, and several paper towels beneath each water bottle so they wouldn’t blow away.
He rearranged the two remaining chairs at the table to be one in front of each plate of food, then walked the few feet to where Alison still sat beside Hail. “Evening, everybody,” he said.
“Evening, Feral,” Hail said.
“Hi,” Alison said.
“Took you long enough,” Titus said.
All three looked at Titus.
Titus looked at them all as they waited for him to explain. “This is why I didn’t bring you a plate, too. I’m interested in Hail, but that doesn’t mean I’d let you starve. He was making your plate, so I didn’t,” Titus said to Alison.
“Oh, I didn’t even think about it. Thank you for thinking of me,” Alison said.
“You’re welcome,” Titus said. “But he’s the one feeding you.”
“And thank you, too,” Alison said, smiling shyly at Feral.
“You’re welcome. Would you come sit with me while we have dinner?” Feral asked, indicating the plates of food sitting on the table a few feet from them.
Alison looked over at the table, then up at Feral. “Are you sure?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you sure you want to eat with me?” she clarified.
“I made a plate particularly for you. I’m pretty sure I planned to share a meal with you.”
“Okay, then I, uh, yeah, I’d like that,” Alison said, swinging her legs over the edge of the low sitting lounge chair in preparation of standing up.
Feral extended his hand, and she looked up at him as he smiled down at her.
Alison hesitantly put her hand in his and held it as he steadied her while she stood. She looked back at her lounge chair to reach for her towel, but found him already picking it up for her.
Feral smiled as he held it out to her.
Alison took the towel from him and wrapped it around her waist, tucking it in at her hip to hold it in place. When she was done she looked at him, waiting for his cue to approach the table.
Feral gestured for her to walk ahead of him, and when she did, he placed one hand at the small of her back to guide her toward the table. He quickly moved in front of her to pull her chair out for her, then nudged it back in after she sat.
“Thank you, Feral,” she said, taking one of the paper towels and laying it on her lap.
He took his seat and smiled at her again. “Thank you for joining me.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, as she pushed the dirty rice around her plate a bit.
He took a big bite, then nodded and took two more. “I don’t know who made this, but it’s the best rice I’ve ever had.”
She smiled at him, blushing a bit. “I did.”
He looked up at her. “You did?”
“Mmhmm. I brought it over earlier because I knew they were going to make chicken this evening. There’s not much I’m good at, but I can cook. So, I decided to help by bringing over a side dish.”
“This is really good, Alison.”
“Thank you.”
“Do you usually bring food over to the Alpha’s house?”
“Not usually, unless it’s an occasion where the whole Pride gets together.
Then we all contribute. But Jessica came to get a few of us this morning when the ladies from the Gamieyon Pride showed up in need, so I emptied my fridge and brought it all over along with some blankets and clothes and all.
And I knew they’d be feeding a lot of people later, too.
So, I went home and made this to bring over.
I was just going to go home again, but then you guys showed up and their Reigna got sick, so, I’m still here,” she said, her voice rising playfully at the end of her sentence, before taking a bite of rice.
“I’m glad you’re still here.”
She looked up at Feral. “You are?”
“I am.”
She gave a soft little laugh and crossed her legs as she picked up a piece of her chicken and took a bite. “I love the crispies on fried chicken. If there’s not a lot of batter and it’s not crunchy, it’s just not as good,” she said, taking another bite and chewing appreciatively.
“Somehow, I knew that. I chose the crispiest pieces I could find for your plate.”
“Really?”
“Really. A male should always give the best of anything he has to his female.”
Her eyes shot up to his.
He canted his head slightly as he regarded her. “I want to ask you something, but I don’t want to offend you or make you leave here.”
“I won’t leave… if you don’t want me to,” she said softly peeking at him through her lashes.
“If you don’t want to answer me, just don’t.”
“Okay.”
“I don’t know how else to say this, so I’m just going to say it.
I’m sure that you have met your share of males who are interested in you, and I’m sure you’re accustomed to strong males with Alpha traits making no secret of what their thoughts are, so I’m trying to figure out why you’re so uncomfortable with me.
Is it that you’re not interested? If so, just say so and I won’t bother you anymore. ”
She opened her mouth to answer, then closed it, then repeated the action two more times before she actually managed to find the words.
“It’s not that I’m not interested, I just never had anyone interested in me before and I’m not quite sure what to say, or how to behave.
I don’t know what I did to attract you, and I’m afraid if I do anything too much, I’ll mess it up. ”
Feral sat back in his chair and looked closer at her. “You’re kidding.”
“No, I’m not.”
“No, she’s not, Feral,” Hail said from a few feet over. “Think Shauna, only more naive and less social.”
“I’m not naive,” Alison said.
“Okay, poor choice of words. Less than confident. Shy. Quiet. Loner. Lonely.”
“Invisible,” Alison corrected.
Feral’s attention jerked back to her from Hail.
“Just invisible, but she’s right about the lonely, and maybe the quiet, too.
It’s no one else’s fault but mine. I’m just not very good at social anything,” she said.
“I’m not vivacious, or bold, or funny, and I’m not gorgeous or attract males like most females.
I’m perfectly fine sitting home and having my dinner alone watching a favorite show.
Until I’m not, but then there’s no cure for it because I don’t put myself out there.
And nobody notices anyway, but I think they’ve just gotten used to seeing me on the outskirts of everything so they don’t even realize it when I’m not there.
But I’m okay. It’s just how I am. And I’m not really comfortable considering being any other way. I’m just me and I’m alright with that.”
“And if I may intrude on your conversation once more…” Hail said, “she’s also honest, trustworthy, funny, and my first real friend, so don’t fuck with her or you and I will have a problem.”
Alison smiled at Hail, proud that she considered her a friend.
Feral grinned, but didn’t look back at Hail. Instead, he focused on Alison.
“I like ‘just you’. In fact, I know I’ve never liked anybody any more than I like you.
I saw you in the house when we first got here, but so much was happening that I quickly had to focus on saving the female that was in need.
But I sent Valid to watch over you when you left to go after the soldering irons, and when you stepped outside with Hail and said that you were just plain old you, I wanted to run after you and kiss you so hard you’d lose your breath, just to prove to you that there is nothing plain about you.
You say that you’re invisible, but I’m here to tell you that you are anything but. You are all I see.”
Alison’s eyes were wide with surprise as she sat there, watching Feral as he spoke to her.
“If no other male has ever taken notice of you, then it’s fate making sure that no one else claimed you before I finally made my way here. You’re not invisible, you are mine, and you were being saved for me.”
“Maybe I should intrude one more time,” Hail said, leaning toward them and waving her hand to get Alison’s attention.
“Variant males are kind of blunt and in your face and ridiculously ‘mine’ when they meet their female. They’ve been denied everything during their creation, so when they find a female that resonates with their souls, they tend to latch on and the world be damned.
This is Feral latching on. But he’s also a good male and if you don’t want him latching on, he’ll take a step back.
May not go away, but he won’t force you, he’ll just keep working to convince you he’s worthy.
Females are treasured not forced, where we come from. ”
Alison brought her gaze back to Feral. She shook her head a little, indicating that she wasn’t quite sure of what to make of the whole thing. “I’m a little off balance here, a little nervous, but I don’t want you to go away.”
Feral smiled at her. “Good. Because I lied when I said I would if you wanted me to. I plan to win you over.”
Alison smiled at him, looking at him with a bit of side-eye as she picked up her chicken and took another bite. “The best pieces?”
“Only the best,” he said.