3 weeks before the ball. Everyone was buckling down. All hands in.
Serenity was more focused on school than most of the other teens. She didn't want to think about the ball, Liam, or any of that. She had after all been avoiding him for the past few weeks. He kind of made that hard though.
He was at all workouts interacting with the teens. Jullianne of which was eating it up. He was always her sparring partner and they always seemed to be in close range of each other at these workouts.
Somehow she had managed to ignore them.
However, he seemed to be everywhere. In the kitchen talking to the pack mothers, or living room playing games with the kids. To which Serenity liked to wait outside the door and ponder in admiring how Liam would laugh and horseplay with the kids playing the PlayStation or Xbox. He even went so far as to buy some new games for them.
Today it wasn't so easy to avoid him. It was yet again Wednesday. Her duties didn't just evaporate after she got yelled at. In fact, he wouldn't even talk to her, but leave notes about certain things that needed to be done. A little premature, but he always seemed to be in his room whenever she got there but left as soon as he could.
Today seemed to be different. Whenever she got to the packhouse she immediately set down her stuff and went to get started on her chores. Walking up to his floor and into his living, she saw a bunch of kids. In the middle of them, all was Liam.
Just as she walked in he stood up cheering and a few of the kids jumped on him grabbing onto his arms. She couldn't help but smile. Did she really hate him and his hard exterior? His soft interior seemed to make her swoon at every possible moment.
"I didn't see you there, did you need something?"
Coming out of her thoughts she looks over to Liam who had previously addressed her, "it's Wednesday," She simply said, "I can come back later though if you're busy."
He looked around at the kids, "no, um, you can start in my office or room while we finish up here."
She simply nodded her head and went off.
Liam turned his attention back to the kids. They had been up here playing on his game system for the past few hours. These are the kids that are still too young to go to school and often go to daycare, but today they wanted to hang out with Liam and he obliged.
He claps his hands, "Okay guys, let's go downstairs, and have a snack! Too much Tv rots your brains."He makes a face at them.
"Snacks like candy!?" One of the six kids jumps up.
"Uhh, we'll talk about it downstairs."
The kids jump up and began going downstairs. Not before tugging Liam down with them.
"Thank you for entertain the kids today!" One of the pack moms says to Liam.
"Of course. It was all my pleasure."
She walks around the kitchen preparing the kid's snack, "I know you've been busy these last few weeks, it's just so generous of you to make time for, well everything."
"Of course. Anything for my pack."
Mateo takes this time to walk into the kitchen, "can we talk in your office?"
Liam nods his head, "have a wonderful day." and with that, he walks out with Mateo, "What seems to be the problem."
Mateo waits until they reach his office to speak, "renovations have been delayed a few days. One of the walls collapsed."
Cursing under his breathe Liam takes a seat at his desk, "How off course are we?"
"It threw us off by a week."
"Your plan?"
"Add a few more workers. If we stay on the clock for an hour longer, along with adding ten more working people, we can get it done three days before the ball."
Liam runs his hands through his hair, "An eight-hour working day? Do we have more people to spare?"
"I've crunched the numbers, and it just leaves our borders a little thin on defense during the day."
"Okay, " He sets his hands down on his desk, "I want the teens to stop normal training and begin learning how to patrol. That way defense shouldn't be that thin for at least a few hours we should be good. I'll take any extra patrol during the day and at night. "
Mateo nods his head, "I will do the same."
"If we rotate out between you, Aston, and I, we should be prepared for anything."
"Do you think anyone will try anything? An attack this close to the ball?"
Liam sighs, "hard to tell. We haven't had an attack in a while, but for all, we know they're waiting to attack the day at the ball."
"Run me through the measures we're going to take."
"Every pack attending is bringing guards, we should be all covered. Honestly, you worry too much," Liam smiles at his friend.
"I'm sorry." He says all of a sudden.
Leaning back in his chair he looks at him with a confused expression, "sorry?"
"Yes, These last few weeks you've buckled down and well, I had no right to tell you that you had neglected your pack. I was wrong for that, and you knew I was wrong. Instead of punishing me, you proved to me I was wrong. That just goes to show how much you've grown as a person."
Liam chuckles, "well maybe I should have you write my speeches from now on."
Mateo rolls his eyes, "don't make me take it back."
Holding up his hands in defense he smiles, "I deserve to have a life too and I think that's one thing you have failed to see. Sure I was born to be alpha, made to be alpha, and it's my whole life, but I need an actual life and I think that's what I'm just now realizing." He looks up to read his friend's expression.
"I see. It's just these past few weeks have put stress on all of us. I was being inconsiderate to you and Serenity, and for that, I can't help but apologize."
"What?"
Mateo rolls his eyes, "I saw her in your room wearing your shirt. I put two and two together, and if she makes you happy, it's none of my business."
Liam couldn't help but stare at him, "There is no Serenity and I. Don't use our names in the same sentence that's disrespectful."
"Come on, don't be like tha-"
Outside the door, they heard a crash. Like glass falling to the floor. They both stood up, Liam jumped to his feet faster than Mateo. He threw open the door and saw her, there on the floor picking up the big chunks of glass.
She looks up, "I apologize. I was going to put some fresh flowers in your office. I thought it'd brighten up the room. The vase slipped out of my hands and shattered."
"It's fine." He bent down and took the glass out of her hand. As he did so she jerked away from him making the glass slide across her hand making a big gash, "fuck."
"I'll pick this up, while you two take care of that." Mateo stepped in.
"I'm fine, it's just a small cut." Serenity eyes welled with tears. She was going to blame them on the cut that was gushing out blood.
"I have a first aid in my office come on," Liam grabs her wrist pulling her up.
She shakes her head, but he doesn't listen to her as he pulls her into his office closing the door behind him.
"I said I'm fine!" Serenity tries to tug her wrist out of his grip.
Liam ignores her and continues to pull her over to his desk where he examines her hand that was dripping with blood. Not letting her out of his grip he reaches over his desk and grabs the first aid. He pulls out some cloth and wipes up all the blood.
"That's pretty deep." he looks up at her.
"If your done, Id' like to leave please."
He shakes his head, "I owe you an apology."
"I don't think you do. I am below you so why apologize to me."
Liam sighs. She heard what he said about her. Without warning, he brings her wounded hand up to his mouth and licks over the wound. His eyes flash a color and Serenity softens in his touch. A sign of submission. He submitted to her. An alpha submitting to an Omega.
"Why did you do that?" She asked as he dropped her hand.
"It'll heal faster now." He turned his back to her and braced him self setting his palms on the edge of the desk and holding onto it.
She knew what his action meant. She also knew his dominant demeanor made it hard for him to submit to anyone else. Serenity needed to submit to him and she knew that.
She put her hand on his shoulder. He slowly turned around his eyes still flashing between colors. His wolf was not happy that he submitted to her.
"I don't understand." He groughly speaks.
Serenity shakes her head, "I don't understand."
He growls making Serenity remove her hand from his shoulder and back up a few steps.
"I'm never free to do as I please. Someone or something always has to stay in my way!" he grabs the mahogany box on his desk and chucks it at the door. It barely misses Serenity, flying right past her ear and hitting the door with a 'clank'.
She stands perfectly still watching his every move. To her he was completely unpredictable she didn't know what his next move would be. She watched as he huffed and puffed and made his way around his desk to take a seat. His eyes still flashing between colors.
Liam puts his head in his hands. Everything was spinning. He's losing control, but the more he tried to get a grip on things the worse it seemed to get. The pounding in his head was telling him one thing while he wanted to do the complete opposite.
Why wouldn't it all just, go away?
Why couldn't he be left at peace?
That must've been too much to ask.
"Hey," she came around his desk and stood in front of him, "It's okay." She grabs his wrist almost hoping it would calm him down.
He put his hands down and looks at her, his eyes start flashing more rapidly. He was having an internal battle. Inside his wolf was pissed that he submitted to someone. Outside he was glad to have submitted to someone. Never in his life had he done that before. He secretly liked it. He liked submitting to this girl, but why?
Why her?
Her. All of his problems circulated around her.
"Liam. It's okay." she now stood in front of him.
"It's not." his eyes stopped flashing, "all of my problems begin and end with you. It's suffocating."
It's late I know. But I wanted to update. This is a long long long chapter. Probably one of the longest I've written. I hope for all the future chapters to be this long.
Feedback?
Thoughts?
What's going on?
Is Liam blaming her?
Why does his wolf side not like Serenity?