4. Chapter 4 #3
“Well, at least have a bite. I insist.” He said, using his small spoon to cut into the brulee top and scoop a spoonful for me.
He held his hand out, offering me the treat.
I froze. This was risky territory. On one hand, this would make Arabella fume like a damn house fire.
An alpha at her table, offering dessert to the lesser omega?
Yet, if I refused, it might be seen as insulting.
In the end, instinct won over. There was no way I could look at this dark, handsome, powerful alpha and refuse his offer. I opened my mouth, and he placed the spoonful inside.
The dessert was delicious. It must have shown on my face, because he gave a full smile for the first time tonight.
“There,” Hunter said, satisfied that he’d fed me.
“Now we all get to have a little dessert.” He turned to finish the rest of his creme brulee, and before I could relish it too much, I felt something deep inside me.
A trembling rush of hormones, brought on partially from my weakening suppressants, and partially because the way these men were treating me was doing something to me. Oh no.
I could feel my body start to warm, the perfume itching at my glands to come out. Panic surged through me. I needed to get out of here immediately.
“If you’ll excuse me,” I said quickly, pushing out my chair and making a beeline for the back of the ballroom. I ignored the confused faces of the pack.
“Are you alright?” Elias asked, and I rushed by without looking back.
“I’m fine!” I called out, and before anyone else could speak, I heard Arabella sigh.
“I told you, she hates eating with others. Please don’t take it personally, she doesn’t realize how rude it is.” She said, and for once, I was glad for her distraction. Because I needed to get somewhere safe - my perfume was ready to burst out.
I reached the doors to the staffing area, and once I was through them, I ran down the hallway, flinging open random doors as I went.
I tried a few until I found a storage closet.
Luckily, no one was around, and I cordoned myself in the room, finally letting out a sigh of relief when I knew I was truly alone.
My body relaxed, and my glands overpowered the descenter and opened up, the suppressants no longer working as I perfumed excessively.
I let out a sigh of relief as the pent-up hormones were finally released from me in a way that felt phenomenal after being suppressed for so long.
My scent filled the room, stronger than it had been in a long time due to the excessive time I’d held it back.
I usually didn’t ever perfume like this, and I knew why I was - I really, really liked Pack Vale.
I felt like a schoolgirl with a crush, but this was way more intense.
My glands were nearly hurting with how much I was perfuming in the closet, with my mind and heart racing at the thought of the pack that treated me like I was someone worth having around.
I gasped softly, bracing a hand against the wall as the pheromones continued to spill from me, my body responding to emotions I’d kept buried for far too long.
I don’t know how long I stayed like that, barricading myself in the room until my hormones subsided.
Once I was sure that my body had calmed down, I reached into my purse and pulled out several scent absorbing wipes and a can of descenter, wiping down my body and spraying myself and the air as much as I possibly could.
Once I was sure that no one was around and my scent was cleaned up enough, I crept out of the door into the hallway.
The gala had died down, and I peeked out to see what was going on.
The dinner tables had been cleared out, the crowd had dwindled, and my family was nowhere in sight.
I stepped back toward the kitchen and finally found our family driver waiting in the staff break room. “Ah, there you are,” Alec said when he saw me. “Your family has already left. I was wondering where you’d slipped off to.”
Of course they left without me. I didn’t expect anything less from them.
I was secretly glad that I didn’t have to deal with anyone else after my embarrassing exit from the dinner table, though, so I quickly followed Alec through the hall and into the waiting SUV.
For the entire drive back, I couldn't keep my mind off Elias, Hunter, and Ronan. These men affected me so much that it broke through my suppressant use. I’d have to be very diligent about my doses going forward, especially since I’d be seeing a lot more of them in the next few months.
Just the thought of it made my scent glands start tingling again, and I knew I needed to take a higher dose of suppressant when I got home.
“Alec, let’s take the fastest route possible, if you don’t mind,” I asked, and he nodded.
I sank back into the leather seats, a smile on my face even though I’d almost perfumed in public.
Despite the snafu, tonight was honestly one of the best nights in recent memory.