Ava’s POV
I drop the black tank on top of the duffle bag and flop back against the bed.
I just cannot believe what is happening. How everything can change so fast! I woke up this morning still devastated by Alpha Caleb mating with my sister, but now I’m mated to a freaking beyond gorgeous Lycan king.
A smile plays on my lips as I remember the last hour with my new mate.
My phone pings. I lazily reach over to grab it, then bolt upright as I read it.
L: 911!!!!
It’s from Lily. My stomach does a flip and I quickly text back.
What’s wrong???
L: I need ur help!!!!!
What’s happened? Are you ok??
L: Dinner crisis!! Help!!
I roll my eyes and flop back on the bed. I don’t know why I ever assume it’s actually an emergency.
The phone pings two more times and, with a groan, I sit up and send a quick text that I’ll be down in 5 minutes.
I reach for new underwear from my bag. I see Lily has packed perfume and lotion in the bag. I take my time to rub the lotion everywhere, then spritz on the perfume. I grab my toothbrush and go the bathroom to run it under water and paste it so I can have the fresh breath the next time I see Cameron.
I walk back to my bag as I brush my teeth to see what else is in there. I laugh when I see a straightening iron next to my hairbrush.
Then I freeze in horror as I look at the dress that’s underneath it. Lily’s hot pink mini dress with the side cut-outs.
No.
No way. There is no way she packed that dress for me??
I hurry back to the bathroom to spit and rush back to dump the duffle bag’s contents on the bed.
Hair straightener, hairbrush, make-up bag, black tank, gray sleep shorts, lotion, perfume, ridiculously tall strappy nude high heels…and one hot pink mini dress.
I’m going to kill Lily.
I grab my phone, ignoring her last few texts to me, I text furiously back to Lily.
You packed me your dress! The one I told you NOT to wear today!! I need something more appropriate to wear, Lily!!!
L: That dress is amazing! I always get TONS of compliments on it. U will look great! Put it on and come help me!!
Ugh! I let out a frustrated groan and grab my makeup bag. I quickly put on some natural looking makeup and brush my hair. I decide at the last minute to use the straightening iron on my face framing pieces, pulling the rest back into a neat bun.
It’s been at least twenty minutes since I texted Lily that I’d be down in five, but I’m not in a hurry. I cannot seem to make myself get dressed.
I debate putting on my pajamas and making a dash to our house, but there’s no way I won’t be seen, perhaps even by Cameron and Caleb. Not to mention the only shoes Lily packed for me are these ridiculous high heels, which I have never been able to walk in. I wonder how long it would take to hand wash and dry my other dress…ugh…
I’m nervously bouncing on my feet, thinking hard.
Damnit!
With a huge sigh, I grab the dress and shimmy into it, tugging hard to get the dress over my hips, which are obviously a lot wider than my sister’s.
As I pull it up to my chest, I notice the built-in bra, and hesitantly take off my bra. I have never worn anything like this before. I’m worried my skin will pucker out of the cut-outs as I am leaning over and bending backward, trying to pull the zipper up on my back.
I finally get the zipper all the way up and breathing heavily, look in the mirror, my face red from the effort.
Oh my…the dress is much tighter on me than Lily. Luckily, there are not any bulges where there shouldn’t be, my skin isn’t rolling out of the cut-outs as I had feared, but my overly exposed breasts are literally almost to my chin and the dress barely covers my bottom.
I look ridiculous.
I go to sit on the bed, but the dress is so tight, it restricts my breathing, so I lay flat.
How does Lily dress like this all the time?
My phone pings. I ignore it, awkwardly setting up to put on the strappy high heels.
I stand up carefully and immediately turn a heel.
Shit! How do I walk in these?
I grab my phone and slowly, with my arms out at my sides and my knees slightly bent, make my way to the door.
Not sure how I’ll manage the stairs or the pavement to get back to my house, but I have to get home to change, this outfit is beyond ridiculous.
I open the door and look out, checking both ways, before I walk out into the hall, bracing myself with the door handle before making my way very slowly down the hall, keeping one hand along the wall to steady myself.
I’m cursing Lily the entire way. She totally did this on purpose. It has got to be some twisted jealous act for me mating with King Cameron.
I reach the stairs and swallow hard as I grasp tightly to the handrail.
I carefully take a wobbly step.
Then another.
My heel turns on the third step and I throw myself onto the rail to catch myself.
Ok. This is happening. I put my entire weight onto the handrail and slowly inch myself down the stairs, looking down into the foyer to make sure no one is watching.
It seems like an eternity, but I finally reach the bottom of the stairs. I steady myself on the nice flat floor and let out a huge sigh of relief, pulling my dress down and flipping the loose hair around my face back.
“Bravo!” Someone is clapping and cheering from the top of the stairs.
My stomach drops to the ground as I turn around.
A tall, black haired man is clapping with a huge smile on his face, slightly bent at the waist from laughing so hard.
It’s Ralph. Caleb’s beta.
I throw a rude hand gesture at him and turn back around.
I’ve taken three unsteady steps when he reaches my side, putting one arm around me to hold my shoulder and grabbing my elbow with his other hand.
I look up at his grinning face.
“Super impressive Ava.”
I make a face at him. Ralph is so annoying. I’d push him off of me, but I’d probably lose my balance and fall, and I’m able to move a lot quicker with his help now.
His laughing eyes look down appreciatively at my dress.
“I recognize this dress.” I’m sure he does. I’m mentally gagging as an image of Ralph and Lily together comes to my mind…
“Not your usual style, Ava.”
“Lily brought it to me.” I mumbled miserably.
“Why?” He looks confused. “What are you doing upstairs anyway?”
I feel myself blush so hard that I imagine the skin showing through the side cut-outs must match my pink dress.
“Umm…I…”
“Ava?”
Oh no. Please no.
I look away from Ralph’s face and see Alpha Caleb and King Cameron a few feet away.
Caleb’s face looks shocked and confused, looking up and down, taking in my high heels and his eyes lingering on my massive cleavage.
Cameron’s face is impassive, his eyes are doing the up and down, the same as Caleb’s, but his eyes linger on Ralph’s hands on my shoulder and holding my elbow.
I want to run away. Damn high heels.
“Oooh Ava!” Lily’s high voice comes from behind Caleb, her heels clicking as she walks beside Caleb and comes to a stop beside him, her hands up to her mouth.
“You look amazing! You should wear heels more often!” Her eyes also zero in on Ralph’s hands and her eyes go wide before she meets mine, cocking her head to the side as if to say, ‘oh, now you want to be with Ralph?’
So, this is how I die. Embarrassment.
I shrug Ralphs\'s arm off my shoulder and pull my other arm away to make Ralph let go, too embarrassed to look at anyone, I speak to a painting on the wall.
“This is all that Lily put in my duffle bag. I was heading home to change into something else.”
There’s a brief silence and I glance over to see Caleb looking confused and Cameron glaring at Ralph.
Lily whispers in Caleb’s ear. He looks shocked again.
I see Cameron glance curiously at Caleb before walking over to me, wrapping his arm around me, and practically lifting me off the floor as he pulled me against him, away from Ralph.
“I’ll walk you home.” He nods to Caleb. “We can meet again after I have had a chance to talk with some of my men.”
Caleb still hasn’t moved. He closes his mouth and nods, watching as Cameron starts to practically carry me away.
“Oh, but Ava, I needed help…” Lily is cut off and I glance around to look at her, a frown on her face as she rubs her skinny arm, I’m guessing where Caleb had just nudged her to be quiet.
“I’ll be back to help after I change.” I say over my shoulder.
Cameron grunts.
I glance up at his face and give a little shiver. He doesn’t look happy. He actually looks pretty scary right now.
We reach the font door and he looks expectantly at me.
“Oh! Uh, this way.” I point to the right and we continue towards my house, my feet barely skimming the ground, trying my best not to blush as everyone looks at me in shock.
This must look really weird. I’m dressed like Lily in a ridiculously slutty dress and being practically carried by a Lycan king down the main village road. I would think it was pretty funny, if I wasn’t so mortified.
When we arrive at my house, I feel another blush coming on. With our parents being out of town, Lily and I have not exactly been keeping the house super clean. King Cameron must be used to an immaculate mansion, and our modest house is anything but.
I open the door and stand aside for him to go in first. He looks frustrated at me as he stands back and waves for me to go ahead of him.
I bite my lip and waddle inside, keeping a tight grip on the door handle.
He follows me inside and shuts the door behind him, staring down at me.
He closes the gap between us in one step, bends over, puts me over his shoulder, and climbs the stairs.
So, this is a thing that Lycans do apparently.
Somehow, by the smell I guess, Cameron walks straight to my room and puts me down on my bed, where I try not to show my struggle to set up in my super tight dress.
He looks down at me and shakes his head before bending to take my shoes off.
“Thank you.” I can’t help a sigh of relief as my toes escape the squeeze of the straps.
Cameron says nothing as he helps stand me back up and quickly unzips my dress. It doesn’t just fall off of me as the one did earlier in his bedroom.
Ok. He needs to leave, now. He cannot watch me shimmy out of this dress.
I turn and stand awkwardly in front of him, biting my lip.
“You say so much with your face, but I don’t know how to interpret it yet.” Cameron is looking at me, his head tilted to the side.
Guilty. Caleb always said the same thing, I can’t hide what I’m feeling. Caleb always could tell exactly what was on my mind. The only person who can’t is my twin sister.
Guess I might as well tell him what I’m feeling…
“Well, right now I’m feeling super embarrassed about this ridiculous dress and the fact that I’m going to have to put in a lot of reeeally unflattering effort into pulling it off that I reeeeally don’t want you to see.”
Cameron’s face looks shocked, then he throws his head back and lets out a loud laugh. It’s a genuine laugh. It’s the first time I’ve heard it and it makes my knees go weak. He has on a big smile now that spreads to his eyes and I think for the thousandth time today how incredibly gorgeous this man is.
“I can step out if you want, but I might be able to help your effort if you could handle it.”
I close my mouth that I didn’t realize was open, hoping there wasn’t any drool on my chin, vaguely rubbing it just in case.
“No…I mean, yes…oh…” I couldn’t make up my mind, but I didn’t need to. Cameron turns me around, takes both sides of the dress and pulls, making the dress literally rip in half down the back, then discards it onto the floor.
I’m left standing in just my underwear. In my bedroom. With my new mate. The thought that Lily was going to be upset about her dress was a fleeting one.
I turn to face Cameron, tilting my head back to look up at him.
“Thank you.” I whisper, placing my hands on his rippling torso.
“I’m willing and happy to help you remove your clothes anytime.” He smiles and leans down to pick me up, I wrap my legs around him and put my arms around his neck, eager for a repeat of earlier.
He brushes his lips lightly against mine before sighing and pulling back.
“I really do have things I need to do and discuss with others today, Ava.” He lifts one hand to caress my cheek. “You are a distraction.”
I bite my lip. I’m not sure how to take that.
He pulls me close again with his hand, firmly kisses me, then releases me to slide down his hard body back onto my feet.
“Go ahead and get dressed while I wait.” He waves me on then whips out his cell, frowning at the screen.
I hesitate for only a second, disappointment flooding through me. Is he tired of me already?