The Supreme Alpha

Author's note: This is from Seraphina's point of view

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"What are you thinking about, princess?", Lazarus asked, and I realized that I'm scooping air from an already empty bowl.

I was super distracted.

The waiter approached us, and I quickly canceled the sound barrier. If he passed through it, he wouldn't notice anything other than the absence of the sound. How do I explain that?

The waiter took empty plates and put the next one in front of us. Scallops, pasta, and some greens on the side, drizzled in rosemary-infused citrusy sauce. It looked good but I was not in the mood to eat.

Lazarus's request about becoming an Elder didn't sound like too much, but at the same time, it was preposterous.

If Duke awakens his wolf successfully, he will be the Supreme Alpha, the king of all werewolves, and Lazarus wanted to be someone who can restrict him. Isn't that like he wanted to be above the king?

The line between an advisor and controller was in the details that will be clearly defined, assuming that we reach that point.

"I will need to talk about this with Mateo.", I said when the waiter left. "Do you think that Mateo will be willing to share power?"

"Not with me, but with you… maybe.", Lazarus said with a smile. "Assuming that you are his mate."

My stomach fell at those words, and I hoped that my expression didn't show it.

"What does that have to do with anything?", I asked.

Lazarus's expression turned serious. "I saw Damiano with many women, more than one at the same time. Tall, short, curvy, alluring, smart, talented, fierce… but when Isabella showed up, a weak human girl without any special skills, Damiano pushed all those ambitious she-wolves away regardless of what status they held until then."

He made a dramatic pause, and I had a feeling that he was getting to the important part.

"If you are not Mateo's mate, I hope that you will leave him as soon as you can, to prevent yourself from the pain that will come when his wolf influences him to believe you are not enough."

"He will not cheat on me.", I said with all the confidence I could muster. Duke wouldn't do that to me.

"Maybe. But even if he manages to resist the urge to sleep around, he will abandon you when he finds his mate."

"Thank you for the advice.", I said stiffly and looked down at the food on my plate.

It was difficult to admit that his words were like a slap in my face as my insecurities scratched at the back of my mind, threatening to escape the cage I locked them in… threatening to consume me.

Yes, there was the attraction and the scent and the Soul Echo and everything that made it look I am Duke's mate, but there was also the possibility all those are just coincidences and once his wolf wakes up, I will get the bitter truth how I'm not the one.

"What the fuck!?", Lazarus screamed, and I whipped my head up to see him standing with a big wine stain on his shirt which was expanding lower toward his crotch area.

After patting his shirt with a napkin (which didn't do anything other than stain the napkin), Lazarus glared at the waiter who was holding onto the bottle of wine with his back facing me.

"It was an accident.", the waiter said, and I gaped at him.

His back was familiar, but I could definitely recognize that voice… Duke.

"Accident? You did it on purpose!", Lazarus hissed. "Why the fuck are you here?"

"The deal was that the two of you have dinner. As you can see, I'm not eating with you, so I'm not breaking that deal.", Duke said matter-of-factly.

I bit my lower lip harshly in an attempt to suppress the laughter that bubbled inside me.

How much did Duke plan for this?

No wonder he asked Lazarus to give him twenty-four hours heads-up about the location. Lazarus booked the restaurant, but Duke paid extra to come here sneakily, and I wouldn't be surprised if all the staff is on his payroll. Duke didn't escort me from home because he was already here. And those scented candles served the purpose of concealing his scent.

He is outrageous. Shameless. 

Lazarus's words were still stinging and I wanted to hug Duke and ask him to remind me that I'm his but due to our current situation, I pushed that urge down. It will need to wait.

…

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"You will pay for this.", Lazarus said angrily to Duke while gesturing toward his ruined shirt.

"I will. How much?", Duke asked like it's not a big deal. Well, for him, it's not. My man is rich. He proved that by buying me replacements for numerous gowns which he ruined by ripping them into shreds.

"I see you are upset. Does that mean the dinner is over?" Duke asked Lazarus and then he turned to me. "Are you done with negotiating?"

Lazarus was fuming. "In your dreams! We only started talking."

Duke didn't pay him any heed and he was still focused on me. "Do you really have so many topics to discuss with him?"

Seeing that Duke is here, I thought that this is a good opportunity to finalize this nonsense. "Can you get a chair and join us? It will be faster if we discuss his conditions now."

Duke grinned like he was waiting for it, and he swiftly pulled a chair from the side for him to sit, right next to me.

"You are kidding!", Lazarus exclaimed.

Duke waved at him to sit. "We all know that this is not about the food and any romancing of my woman you planned is ruined, so we might as well use this to talk about your conditions."

Duke put his arm around my shoulders and looked at me earnestly. "Tell me, love. What does this big bad wolf want in exchange for his assistance? You did the sound magic and I didn't hear a thing."

I reinstated the sound barrier around us and told Duke that Lazarus wants to be an Elder in Duke's non-existent pack.

When I was done, Duke turned to Lazarus.

"There are few things I don't understand.", Duke said to Lazarus irritably. "You are a loner. Why do you make it sound like you want to be part of my pack? Just admit that you are set on sticking to my Serina. Don't you see that she is taken? Do you have a hobby of splitting happy couples, or is this specific to me and Serina? Why her? It's not like she is your mate."

Lazarus smirked. "Last time I checked, she was not your mate either."

Duke's hold on my shoulder tightened. "What do you know?"

"You can't confirm if she is your mate until your wolf awakens.", Lazarus said smugly. "And if you think that Serina being your mate is a good thing, then you are the most selfish asshole in the universe."

"What do you mean?", I asked before Duke could.

Lazarus turned to me. "You are hoping that his wolf will awaken, so let's assume that will happen. You will confirm that you are his mate or maybe not. In case you are not his mate… we discussed that already. He will either cheat on you or abandon you when he finds his mate and probably both will happen because our wolves have needs and unless one is restricted by the mate bond, it is extremely difficult to stay monogamous."

Lazarus made a dramatic pause before continuing. "If you ARE his mate, he will bring you so much disaster that you won't know what killed you. Do you think that his aura of the Supreme Alpha will protect you? What can a boy who grew up ignorant among werewolves know about dangers of our world?"

Lazarus glanced at Duke, assessing him condescendingly. "Mateo Testa. The young master of the Testa family, son of the Supreme Alpha, known for his easygoing lifestyle. Parties, fast cars, noted accomplishments in sports when compared to humans, above average when compared to werewolves of his age. The only truly amazing thing was your ability to win over a girl. How old were you when you got frisky the first time? Thirteen, fourteen? That must be some record even for a werewolf. Did you pick them up by using your looks, status, or money? I'm sure it was not your technique because you still didn't grow all your hair down…"

'BAM!'

Duke slammed his fist on the table, making all plates and cutlery clatter.

Lazarus smirked victoriously, obviously pleased that he got to rile up Duke.

I didn't care what Duke did before we met, but this proved that Lazarus investigated Duke's past. It was unsettling, but not unexpected. After all, Lazarus didn't survive as a loner by staying passive and waiting for others to inform him about important things.

"Is there a point somewhere?", Duke squeezed through his teeth.

"This is the point.", Lazarus said with a smile, but his eyes were stirring with danger. "You are ignorant, incompetent, a ticking bomb that is about to blow up, and if you care for Serina how much you think you do, why are you tying her to yourself? She is not a werewolf. She doesn't feel the bond. Or are you set on keeping her with you all the way to your grave?"

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