Filed To Story: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
“Where did you lose her? Did she say something?”
Both Dawn and Zina shook their heads at Dayson’s questions.
A second later, Dawn froze. “The bag.”
“What bag?”, Dayson asked.
“The bag you were holding. Talia wanted to go and get it, but we told her to leave it behind.”
Dayson chided himself internally. How could he forget about that bag?
He remembered how Talia hugged the wolf plushie, and he also remembered the worn-out Cinderella book that Talia brought with her from the Red Moon pack. Talia didn’t have many things, but she cherished each and every one of them.
Dayson was confident that Talia would jeopardize her safety for those trinkets. Damn it!
He was running all the way to the clearing where the bonfire was.
The bonfire was subsiding, but there were still a few dozen women dancing, and another group of giggling females joined in the fun.
The festival was ongoing without a hitch.
Dayson went to the spot where he left the bag, and he was disappointed to see that the bag was missing.
Did Talia take the bag?
If she did, or if she didn’t, that didn’t change the fact that Dayson was out of clues on where to find Talia.
‘Steph? Are you in the packhouse?’, Dayson mind-linked Stephanie.
‘Yes.’
‘Did Talia come back from the festival?’
‘I don’t know. Why?’
‘I took her to the bonfire. She wanted to dance for the Moon Goddess. We had a safety drill and I lost her.’, Dayson explained.
‘How can you lose her?’
Dayson didn’t feel like explaining everything so he went with a short version, ‘I told two Omegas to take her to the safe house, but she was not there. Can you check her room?’
‘There is no need to check.’, Stephanie said.
‘You know where she is?’
‘No. But you should.’
Dayson didn’t get it. ‘What?’
‘Talia is a responsible girl. If she was with you, she wouldn’t leave without telling you. Think. Where could she be? Is there any place where you would look for her that she knows about it?’
Dayson frowned. What place? The playing fields? Keith’s screwing hideout? The ring toss game? The…
And then it hit him.
‘Steph! You are brilliant!’
‘I know. I know…’, Stephanie grumbled, but Dayson could hear that she was smiling.
Dayson was back to running, this time toward the town square.
The town square was still packed with people. Music and scents of food filled the air, and the mood was merry.
Dayson weaved his way between people and then he stopped to look at a lone figure standing below the clocktower.
Talia was holding the bag in front of her and twisting the handle nervously with both hands. Her eyes would dart over the faces of people just long enough to confirm that it’s not Dayson, but not too long to attract attention.
She was thinking about the security issue. If it was serious, how come all these people are still having fun like nothing is happening? And she was worried if Dawn and Zina will dislike her for giving them a slip, but Talia was worried the most about Dayson.
What if something happened to him? What if he got hurt? What if he forgot about her?
A small breeze caressed Talia’s cheeks, bringing to her the familiar scent of the forest and the dark chocolate, and she looked in that direction expectantly.
And there she saw him, standing unmovingly, unbothered by the people around him, looking back at her, like it’s just the two of them in the world.
Talia stared as possessed while Dayson walked toward her without breaking eye contact until he stood only half a step away from Talia and towered above her.
“Hi, kitten…”, he murmured. “I’m sorry I left without notice. Something came up.”
Talia’s lips lifted into a smile as relief replaced her anxiety. It was Dayson. It really was him. He came to find her, just how he said he will.
“You said that if we separate, I should wait here.”
Dayson nodded faintly. “Thank you for waiting.”
“Thank you for coming to get me.”
Talia inhaled sharply when Dayson engulfed her in his embrace. She didn’t expect that, not with all the people milling all around them.
Reluctantly, her hands moved around Dayson, and she hugged him back.
“I will always come to get you, kitten, no matter where you are.”, Dayson whispered close to her ear and Talia smiled a little.
Dayson drove to the packhouse without letting go of Talia’s hand.
He knew that by hugging Talia in the town square, some people might have seen them, but he didn’t want to dwell on it. People will find out about Talia one way or another, and it’s not like he was not seen in the company of women.
The only thing that puts Talia in danger is the fact that she is his mate, and at this point, only Maya and Jaeden know about it. Dayson trusts that they will keep that information for themselves until they come up with the right way to announce it to everyone.
As long as his enemies see Talia as any other woman who caught his eye briefly, they won’t bother to make a move against her, no matter what Alpha Richard offers them. By the time they figure out that Talia is much more than a temporary entertainment, Dayson will figure out something.
He didn’t want to lock Talia in her room (or in his) and staying away from her was impossible.
An additional good thing coming out of this is that guys like Keith, Liam, and Pierce will know to stay away from Talia or risk invoking Dayson’s wrath because no Alpha would share a woman.
Talia was staring at the road ahead blankly and her mind was floating in fuzzy memories from the festival. Dayson came to get her, and he hugged her right there. It was a warm reunion that made her heart flutter.
The sight of the packhouse made Talia press her lips into a line. The date was over.
She told herself not to be greedy. It was a wonderful evening, and she should be grateful that Dayson brought her to the Shadow Fang pack and Talia got to attend the festival and experience food, music, and games that were filled with laughter and good mood. And she also got two plush toys.
Talia touched the garland of flowers that was around her neck, and she remembered Zina’s words, “After you are done dancing for the Moon Goddess, you should give the garland to the man you fancy. It will let him know that you are interested, and he might return your feelings.” The way Zina waggled her eyebrows told Talia that she was not talking about emotions, but more about feeling each other out. Well, werewolves are promiscuous.
There was no way Talia would be so bold to give it to Dayson. Talia decided to let it dry and preserve it as another memento of the evening, as proof that it really happened.