Chapter 63
“It will befine as long as you don’t take a deep breath,” Talia advised.
The blouse was made of a stiff chiffon in a medium shade of purple. The sleeves were sheer, and the round neckline did not dip too low. My boobs were smooshed, and I prayed they would not shift and overflow during dinner. Luckily, Talia had found a navy skirt in a stretchy fabric with an elastic waist that brushed the floor in the heels I’d borrowed.
Talia had suggested that I leave my hair long, and she had twisted strands around my face and pulled them back in jeweled clips so they didn’t fall into my eyes. My make-up was light, with a sheer gloss on my lips.
I took one last look in the mirror. “I guess I’m ready.”
“We need to go. We cannot be late.” Bredon leaned against the doorway, wearing a dark grey suit and snow-white shirt.
“It will be fine,” Talia assured me. “Anton prefers females to be silent, so he will not expect sparkling wit.”
“Silence I can do.” I tried to sound confident.
Bredon took my arm, and as we passed through the living room, Sig joined us, looking handsome in a navy suit with a gray shirt.
Not a word was spoken as we walked to the wing the Redds used for Pack activities.
Bredon had explained that I was being summoned by the Packleader, not Bredon’s half-brother. There was a difference, and it should not be overlooked.
After taking a left to travel down another damned hall, two slender males in breeches stood at attention. “Second,” one acknowledged Bredon.
“Good evening. We are expected.” Bredon barely slowed during the exchange of words.
As we neared a wide doorway, I saw more footmen, and their uniforms were something straight from a Disney fairy tale—breeches with a gold silk jacket and white wigs.
I felt underdressed and that I had traveled through time.
I noticed that neither Sig nor Bredon glanced at them.
The room was warm, and the lighting was low. In the middle was a long table with multiple candelabras.
Bredon led me into the room. We stopped in front of a male and a female that were my height. The male was very round, and the female wore lipstick that was more orange than red. “Sage, this is Vasilov and Maura Keene. He is a close advisor to Anton, and Maura attends Dagmar.” Bredon paused as if I needed time to absorb the information. “May I present Sage Isaacs, my mate?”
“Good evening.” I dipped my chin and looked downward as I’d been schooled.
“A human?” Maura playfully slapped Bredon’s forearm. “If you were lonely, any number of females could have been arranged, Second.”
I slowly lifted my gaze but said nothing, although my blood boiled. Talia, Sig, and Bredon had prepared me for such comments.
The male stared boldly at my chest. “Human? I detect no such stink.” He sniffed twice loudly, then took a step closer to me. “What is she, Bredon?”
I knew that I could not move. I could not show fear or weakness. Glancing at Bredon allowed me to relax my facial muscles before ensuring I kept a pleasant expression.
I should have rewatched The Stepford Wives.
“Sage is an original. That is what makes her so special.” Bredon took my arm and, with a nod, led me to another couple.
After the third introduction, I realized he was greeting all of Anton’s close advisers. They were much different from Sig and Bredon, who were fit and always seemed to be a little on edge.
These males and their females seemed past their prime. They were soft in physique, and if their rude questions and comments were anything to go by, they were neither intelligent nor polite.
They might be part of Anton’s intimate circle, but Bredon was the Second and a force. That they demonstrated disregard and disrespect to his chosen mate was just plain rude. Sig’s flashing gaze told me they would be made to pay if he had any say.
A bugle sounded, and we turned to the entranceway.
“Anton Redd, Leader of the Redd Pack, and his mate, Dagmar.”
Many dipped their chins while awaiting Anton’s entrance.
I was lucky to be positioned behind two couples so I could look at the flooring while Anton’s footsteps tapped the now silent room.
The scrape of chair legs sliding away from the table and repositioning sounded. Finally, a voice said, “Be seated.”
Sig had procured a copy of the seating chart. Bredon was seated at the far end of the table opposite Anton. I was placed on his right and Sig on his left.
Bredon assisted me with my chair, and once I was comfortable, I glanced to my right.
“Miss Isaacs, how do you find our way of life?” The male seated next to me inquired.
“Very interesting, Mr. Greenly.” I gave a closed-lip smile. “There is much to learn.”
The female sitting on his other side joined the conversation. “I understand that you were brought here to work.”
“I was commissioned to catalog the artist’s work,” I answered calmly. “I also curated a collection of photographs for an art gallery in L.A.”
“Artist?” She tittered cruelly. “I suppose humans find enjoyment in her work.”
“They must. She brings in gold for the Pack,” Mr. Greenly told his mate.
“A fad,” the female scoffed. “You will learn that it takes a great deal more to impress Lycans.”
I nodded before taking a sip of wine, which tasted like vinegar. I glanced at Sig, who was listening to a female wearing blue eyeshadow who punctuated her sentences by leaning into his side.
“Bredon, remind me of your mate’s name,” Anton demanded.
Bredon took my hand and placed our joined hands on the table. “My mate, Sage Isaacs.”
Talia decided I was not to smile at the table like a deranged woman from a bad horror movie. I allowed my gaze to sweep over my tablemates and rest on Anton. Then, I dropped my gaze and my chin. “Leader.”
I had been told that his focus would only last a moment or two if Anton expressed interest in me.
It felt much longer.
Finally, I heard a chuckle. “Very good, Bredon. She appears most docile.”
My gaze went to my mate.
“Indeed.” Bredon acted as if he was fighting a grin.
“Dinner is served.”
The food was not horrible. It didn’t matter. I was nervous and ate very little. Currently, the females had adjourned to a smaller sitting room like in the movies. At the same time, the males gathered wherever males went to smoke cigars, burp, and fart if historical romances were to be believed.
I had been directed to an uncomfortable chair by a female with a kind smile.
“Now, dear, who has been horrible to you?” Mrs. Singridson asked.
“A boy in fourth grade pulled my hair during math class.”
Her mouth pressed into a smile. “I knew Bredon would never be happy with an insipid female.” She looked around the room slowly. “You have a brain.”
“And you might be a troublemaker,” I teased.
“Life can be boring here. I fear you will find it to be a great change.”
“Bredon explained much before I agreed. I did not join with him recklessly.”
“Who is being reckless?” Anton’s mate and another female joined us. Two footmen appeared to push a padded settee nearby.
“I do not believe that to be Sage’s temperament,” Mrs. Singridson answered.
My inner alarm told me to be careful, and my wolf woke to watch.
“How are you finding your rooms?” Dagmar asked stiffly.
“Very comfortable, thank you.”
“I’m sure you have great plans,” Mrs. Keene said with a sniff. Dagmar’s attendant did not give me the warm and fuzzies.
“I have been quite busy with a project,” I told them vaguely.
The attendant made a sniffing noise.
I assumed that Mrs. Keene held an important position if her husband was a close advisor to Anton and she attended his mate. Therefore, I would overlook her rudeness. “Everyone is being patient. I have many questions as I settle.” I hoped that I didn’t need to speak more about my plans.
“Of course, you would know nothing,” Mrs. Keene scoffed.
For some reason, Mrs. Singridson became my protector. “I would imagine she knows a thing or two. Bredon is quite taken with her.” She then shared, “Maura Keene is bitter. Your mate showed no interest in her daughter.”
Mrs. Keene’s eyes turned cold. “That is no matter. My Celeste is content with the match her father arranged.”
Dagmar glanced at me and then looked away. “Anton was quite put out. He had plans to mate Bredon to a daughter of a family in France.”
Mrs. Singridson made a “pfft” sound. “That has been rumored for two centuries. Bredon would never agree, and as you see, he was right to wait.”
“He could lose his standing.” Mrs. Keene did not do a good job covering up her excitement at the thought. “You see, we view mating with humans as demeaning. It weakens the bloodline. Bredon could have had a successful future, but now…” She shook her head and frowned.
“The boy will do fine,” Mrs. Singridson disagreed. “The bloodlines need freshening if you ask me. Far too few babes are being born. We might need more like her to keep us going.”
“Have you asked to be blessed?” Mrs. Keene’s voice boomed. “I could see Bredon getting you with child to secure his position.”
I blinked hard twice, no, three times. I had no idea how to respond.
“Maura, you are being very forward,” Dagmar said softly.
The female patted Dagmar’s arm. “We all understand our duty.” She then turned her attention to me. “It is to give our mates sons.”
For a second, I wanted to laugh and ask, Have I fallen into an Austen novel? However, I kept my lips closed.
“Your time will come, dear,” Mrs. Singridson said softly to Anton’s mate. “I know the delay is troubling, but The Lady has a plan.”
“I tell her that she only needs to relax during his…attentions, but I fear she cannot find enjoyment,” Maura confided.
I wanted to shout T.M.I. or disappear. Anton and Dagmar’s sex life was something I did not want to know about.
The sound of footfalls in the hallway signaled that the males were approaching.
Dagmar stood. “I should retire.” She looked toward the door as if to calculate if she could leave without passing the males.
“Of course.” I got to my feet and stepped closer to Anton’s mate. Even though Lycans had fantastic hearing, I wanted to speak softly. “I enjoyed talking with you.” I wanted her to know that I appreciated the effort.
She gave me her hand. “Perhaps, we will…again.”
I took her palm in mine and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I loo….” Suddenly, the pounding of a drum thundered in my head. The rhythm was a fast beat.
“Sage?” She stared at me with concerned eyes.
I tried to block out the noise as I slowly released her hand. “It was lovely meeting you.” I attempted to smile to cover up my confusion about what had happened.
“What we discussed…about having a baby…” Her gaze communicated unease.
The vision of Dagmar holding a baby to her breast flooded my brain.
“We should not have burdened you with my…worries during our first meeting.” She dropped her gaze, and her cheeks pinkened.
“Sometimes, it is easier to share with a stranger than a close friend,” I tried to reassure her.
What the hell was happening, and why wouldn’t she take her leave?
“Anton, he…he is becoming impatient with me…that I have not conceived.”
My heart went out to this female. Her pain was radiating from her body.
Suddenly, the noise and the vision made sense.
I said her name softly and waited until our gazes met. “Your wish has come true.”
“What?” Her eyebrows lowered as if she were curious.
“You are pregnant.”
“What?” Her voice carried.
“You are.” I smiled and walked away to Bredon and Sig, standing just inside the door.
“That looked interesting,” Bredon observed.
“It wasn’t horrible.”
He took my hand and led me back to our wing.