“Are we going with a theme?” Taylor asked, with a flash of excitement in her eyes. Party planning and décor was her calling in life. Captain of the cheer squad, Student Council, and head events coordinator in high school had given her quite the resume for setting events up. Personal stylist and shopper for Giselle was the way she practiced and honed her skills on a daily basis. Pen at the ready and a notebook in front of her, Taylor practically vibrated in her seat with energy.
Di, whose talents lay in the finishing touches like makeup and accessories, looked equally excited and eager to get started. “Oooh, yes. I’m thinking something rough and rugged, given the setting.”
“Right. We’re going to be in the desert, so maybe we play that up.” Taylor squealed with delight.
Martina cleared her throat. “I appreciate your enthusiasm, ladies, but let’s do remember that we are hosting heads of all the powerful Alpha families in North America, not the glee club at school.”
Martina’s words hit Taylor with the intensity of a smack across the face. Her jaw dropped slack as her eyes widened, glistening with tears. “But...”
Di placed a consoling hand on Taylor’s back. “Of course we’ll keep it classy.” Her tone betrayed her wounded feelings, though Di’s face remained a mask of calm.
For all a wolf’s touted abilities to read between the lines with body language, Martina didn’t seem to see how her sharp tone and quick dismissal of Di and Taylor’s idea had hurt them. To Giselle it was plain as day, but she didn’t dare speak up for either side, though she thought Martina’s quickness to put down her sisters’ idea a little rude. If nothing else, those girls were good at making anything or anyone look their best.
Christina set down a few spiral notebooks on the table and shoved one in Giselle’s direction. “Maybe we could all sit and brainstorm for a little bit before we jump into what ideas are good or bad.”
Thankfully someone was playing peacekeeper. It wasn’t like Martina to be so judgy, but then again, it wasn’t every day that they were under such scrutiny. Part of the reason, Giselle felt, that she had been rejected as Alpha was that her family was so unknown. This was a good way for them to show just how capable the Hernandez pack was at diplomacy and spectacle.
“I’m fine with whatever the group decides. Really. Just tell me what and when. I’m easy like that,” Giselle said, to maintain neutrality.
Taylor snorted. “You? Easy?”
“I can be. If given the right circumstances.” Giselle bit her lip to avoid smiling.
“Ladies. Focus!” Martina sat heavily in her seat. “We have a short while until this city fills up with wolves. We must look and act our best during the time they’re here.”
“Are they staying with us?” Giselle asked.
All eyes around the room settled on her. She hadn’t thought it was a bad question, but the minute the words left her lips, she realized how silly it was of her to ask. It was hard enough getting the Hernandez pack and the Thrace pack to get along. Why ever would she expect foreign wolves, Alphas in their own right, to be any easier to deal with?
“Sorry,” Giselle said sheepishly. “What I meant was, are they staying close, and will we be responsible for their entertainment the entire time they’re here in this city?”
Lines in Martina’s face softened. She nodded to herself and consulted the paper in her hand before answering. “We’ve booked the hotel at Bonnie Springs for guests since we’ll be handling the event in the desert. The place will be ours for the week. Our responsibility, though, is to the event, not to the attending Alphas and contenders for the role. What they do in Vegas is up to them, so long as they keep to the golden rule and stay secret.”
Giselle snorted. “Like anyone would break that rule. Especially if they were trying to be the next Alpha.”
“You’d be surprised,” Martina said sternly. “But I expect no less than perfect behavior from you all.”
Giselle, Taylor, and Di exchanged looks that promised innocence, though below the surface a little mischief simmered. Beyond the stress of foreign visitors, there was that edge of anticipation. What did wolves get up to when they got together for a party? Because, after all, when the dust settled and an Alpha was chosen, there would be a party.
“I mean it. One toe out of line...” Martina channeled her full power as pack Alpha with that command.
“Scout’s honor.” Giselle hoped a joke might lighten the overpowering tone of seriousness in the room.
“Already on the wrong foot, young lady. Might I remind you that your past and proclivity for trouble is part of the reason your claim was rejected?”
Not even a week ago, Martina had consoled her and told her to return to the wolf she had always been; and now she was throwing her failure back in her face? “Why am I being attacked here?” Giselle’s stress level jumped to eleven, and she was on her feet. “What have I done to deserve such treatment? I made a joke. That’s it.”
“No one is attacking you, but if that’s how you feel, maybe you should examine why it is we have such ammunition to lob your way.” Martina’s voice carried a growl at the edge Giselle was not accustomed to hearing. “You don’t take anything seriously. This is nothing but a joke for you. A job you didn’t want. And one you’ll never have. That’s your choice. This event puts our pack in the spotlight. We will work as a pack. We will all take our jobs seriously. I have no time for joking. And you will not bring any embarrassment on this pack.”
Part of her, the teenager who’d rather not be bothered by any of this shit and felt life had dealt her enough crap, wanted to retort in kind. But another part of her felt Martina’s stress. The pressure to perform. Feeling the weight of all eyes, unwanted, on her. This she knew intimately. Though she was loathe to admit it, Martina’s hurtful words came from a place of truth, and though the fault should not rest on either of their shoulders, Giselle understood its effect. She allowed the calmer part of her to take control, and chose the path of peace rather than retaliation.
After tense moments of silence passed, Giselle retook her seat.
“As I said. Best behavior! All of you.” Martina sighed and continued. “The hotel will handle sleeping arrangements. Our job will be to locate and set up a suitable place for the reception, trials, and end of ceremony.”
Christina spoke up. “I’ve already put in an order for some special gates and barriers to be created to make an arena. The Thrace boys will be setting that up as soon as we’ve scouted the best place to locate it.”
Martina checked something off on her sheet of paper. “Good. They’ll need to come up with some kind of seating space as well. Do we have a head count yet?”
“No, but let’s say an even hundred to be safe,” Christina replied.
That would be more wolves than Giselle had ever met in her entire life. “Do we have the witches casting protection spells on the area to keep it secret?” she asked, suddenly realizing just how big an event this would be.
“Of course, dear.” Martina’s tone had lightened, thankfully.
“I’m guessing we can’t just hire a human catering company to run the event?” Giselle asked, wondering how all those wolves were going to be fed.
“We do have a trusted company who will run the event, and their secrecy comes at a high price,” Martina said.
Giselle thought about asking who’d be paying for all of this, but money was not her responsibility, so she kept her mouth shut. The less she spoke at this point the better, she figured. Martina was on a hair trigger as it was.
“So what exactly do you need us to do?” Di asked timidly, though her eyes begged for something important to be handed down to her. “Sounds like you have everything taken care of.”
“Ideas. Themes. And once we’ve settled, I’ll send you all out to gather supplies,” Martina said.
“I’m thinking white tents. With a little bit of UV lighting, they’ll glow like the moon,” Taylor said, waving a hand in the air as she envisioned it. “Everything line
n should be crisp and white. Accented with silver to really pick up that glow. And maybe pewter-colored plates to provide that lovely roundness and remind everyone of the moon.”
Martina smiled. “That sounds lovely dear.”
“And very classy,” Christina approved.
Di nudged Taylor and winked.
“Okay, girls.” Martina pointed a pen at Di. “You will manage the table décor. Let’s say ten tables seating ten a piece. Napkins, plates, silverware, centerpieces.”
Taylor quickly scrawled down the list as Martina called out the items.
“The catering company will provide the table and cloth as well as seats. Christina, can you coordinate with them on the details? Tents, accents, and what lights did you say?”
Taylor responded. “Like a backlight. If we set the lights to shine on the tent walls, they’ll have a glow to them. But we will need regular lights for the rest of the space, so people can see.”
“And candles,” Di chimed in. “Lots of lovely candles on the tables.”
Giselle shook her head. “Fake candles. Lots of rowdy wolves... and linen. No fire.”
Martina nodded. “Good point. Get the flameless flickering ones.”
Di sighed. “They’ll have to be pillars to put off enough light. Tea lights will be too small.”
Taylor continued to write things in her notebook. Giselle looked over her shoulder. She wasn’t just writing, she was sketching out what she thought the setting should look like.
Martina’s initial apprehension that they would not impress the wolves was well off the mark. By the looks of Taylor’s drawing, they would have a space to rival any celebrity wedding.
“Sounds like we’re well on our way here. The initial reception will be for all attending to meet and greet.” Martina read from her notebook. “No battles will be held that day. It will be a full moon, so we’ll have quite a few in the partying mood. Dress code will be high class.”
Di nudged Taylor, and both girls exchanged excited glances. This was like crack to them.
Giselle smiled and nodded, knowing she’d be outfitted by the best, with no need to even consider what she’d wear.
Martina continued. “Night two will be the start of the trials. They’ll last until there are no wolves left to challenge. Ideally only one night, but this can spill over to a second night if the battles take too long. Sundown to sunup. We’ll be providing refreshments only for this event. A small tent with open bar, and finger foods. Nothing fancy.”
Christina held up a hand. “Are we going to set up any first aid station, and have we arranged for the bodies?”
“Thrace is handling that,” Martina said, quickly moving on to the next topic. “And once the trials are over, we’ll have a final night to crown the victorious and celebrate.”
“Same style party as the initial reception?” Taylor asked, flipping to the next page in her notebook.”
“I’d say so. Dinner, dancing, and the ceremony to crown the victors. Yes.” Martina nodded. “If we can, re-use anything from before.”
Taylor set her notebook down. “We’ll find what we can to reuse.”
Martina looked at Giselle. “You are still a contender for this event, so your presence is mandatory for the receptions; however, if you don’t wish to be part of the trials, you may stay home. In fact, all of you girls may stay home for that.”
“What if we want to go?” Taylor asked.
“This will not be a place to ogle boys. Alpha battles are to the death. Only one person leaves the ring alive,” Martina said. “But I will not stop you from going. You’re wolves. This is part of who you are.”
Giselle sighed. “I have no desire to go.”
Martina said, “I respect that choice. I, however, must go.”
“I don’t want anyone fighting for me,” Giselle said, as if she needed to remind everyone of her choice. “So I’ll stay home with father while the others do battle.”
“Your choice has been made. And it will be honored,” Martina said.
“Thank you,” Giselle said. “I’ll do whatever else is needed of me, but I’d like to have as little involvement as possible beyond duty. I hope that’s acceptable.”
“Quite.” Martina nodded. “Then let’s get your duty out of the way, so you can leave the unpleasantness behind.”
Chapter 23
Lunch was the only time Giselle had free now that Martina had set them on their tasks. She’d tried to meet with Damien before school that morning, but the girls had barely pulled into the parking lot by the time the first bell had run. That left her scrambling for her worst class of the day, and between classes was a four-minute dash that left her little time to pee, let alone hunt down her absentee boyfriend.
Between bites of the sawdust-flavored burger she’d waited more than ten minutes to get in the lunch line, Giselle searched the cafeteria for Damien.
For a boy who’d been looking for her, according to Di, he’d been surprisingly absent in the usual places, and equally unresponsive via text message as well.
The cafeteria had proven a dead end. Giselle tried the library and even took a walk around the parking lot before heading back inside to find him at his locker.
“Long time no see,” she teased with a smile.
He returned the greeting, but his eyes lacked their usual glint of joy at seeing her.
Bad news. She knew it before even bringing up the subject of her father. It had been the last thing they discussed, the topic Giselle had been too eager to push. Magic had caused his condition, and magic had to be the key to correcting it. And in that line of thinking, Giselle had beat herself up for the last day and a half over how pushy she’d been with Damien over it.
“Been busy?” Damien asked, though his focus was on the locker and the books he rifled through inside.
“If you only knew.” Giselle laughed nervously, hoping that a change of subject might alter the current awkwardness between them. “I’m not even part of this whole Alpha event, but I’ve been drafted into slavery to make sure it goes off without a hitch.”
“Slavery? I seriously doubt it’s like that.” Damien’s tone hinted at boredom, or perhaps exhaustion. She couldn’t really tell. His whole vibe was weary, as if he’d pulled an all-nighter and seriously needed caffeine.
Giselle kept her tone light and friendly. “Well, if you asked Di or Taylor, they’d say they were in heaven. Party planning is their crack.”
Damien closed his locker and shouldered his backpack. “Sure. I can see that.”
“Colors and lights and fashion... blah, blah, blah.” Giselle waved a hand flippantly. “They’re all my family is talking about.”
“Really? The wolves care for all that?” Damien asked with genuine curiosity. He nodded his head toward the end of the hall and started walking.
Giselle walked with him, matching his pace. “The spectacle, sure. Mostly they’ll be there for the battles, but between those are the parties.”
Damien nodded. “Parties are the fun part. Are you going to enjoy any of it?”
“I may.” Giselle shrugged. “The pressure is off of me as an Alpha, so I’ll get to go as a guest.”
“That’s the spirit, I think,” Damien said.
“Hard to really get into the spirit when you’re watching people fight to the death.”
“You wolves...” Damien grimaced.
Giselle sighed. “Yeah.”
“Well. Besides the killing, what else does Martina have you planning? Wait... that didn’t come out right.” He cracked a smile, and she could see some of his personality shining through the fog of exhaustion.
“I’ll just check killing off my list.” Giselle snorted. “Next.”
“You know what I meant,” he chuckled.
“Yeah. There’s a big... moonlight revelry, I think that’s what it’s called it. As part of the closing ceremonies. I’m supposed to be gathering materials for that. Service for one hundred or something. Gavin is scouting locations out near Bo
nnie Springs. They have a hotel, and it’s close enough to the mountains for our kind to get lost in for the real event.”
“Too bad you couldn’t just book a hotel on the Strip.”
“Oh, yeah, and charge for tickets like a prize fight,” Giselle said.
“Wouldn’t be the worst show on the Strip.”
“Too true.” Giselle sighed. “But it would break the golden rule of secrecy.”
“Rules be damned.” Damien stopped walking and pulled Giselle close. He planted a kiss on her before she could push him away.
Happy for the little distraction, she welcomed the kiss. Enjoyed it, even, lingering a little closer in the hopes their lips might touch again; and when they did, she finished with a little nip.
“Sorry,” he sighed. “I had to get one last kiss in while I could.” The weariness returned to Damien’s eyes as they separated.
“What do you mean?” The moment broken, she was slammed back into reality and her heart nearly stopped in anticipation of what his next words would be.
“Since...well... Cassandra showed up, you’ve been more than distant.” Damien’s eyes dropped to the ground. “Like we’ve moved into the friend zone, but you hadn’t said as much in words.”
He was right. She’d been holding him at arm’s length for the last few weeks. Duty as a wolf demanded it. The truth of what their future would be had played out in her father’s condition. They were doomed as a couple, though she did feel strongly for him.
Love? She couldn’t quite call it that... yet. They were still so young, and that was a concept she had yet to understand. She knew she would never be the same if he were removed from her life, but as a friend, she’d still have him there. She had no answers to say out loud. But in her heart, she knew she wasn’t ready to let go of him. And that had played a huge part in why she’d been so odd about their relationship. Giselle opened her mouth to put a voice to those thoughts. She wanted to let him know that she had no desire to break things off right now, but Damien cut her off.
“And...you were right to do so. Your return from Washington only added more clarification to our positions as witch and wolf.”
Fearless Little Werewolf Page 14
