Maya looks puzzled. "What is this about Alpha Josh?"
I gulp down, almost choking on my saliva. The swing dangles to and fro, the trees blow in rhythm with the wind. I stare at the weeds trying hard not to look at Maya.
"Miss. Zara, I will like to have a personal conversation regarding Alpha Josh. If you don't mind." He points at a stranded trunk on the far end of the vast field.
Maya interrupts. "What is he talking about Zara? What does this have to do with Alpha Josh? Did you break a rule? Is this about the preparation for the Annual Ceremony?"
I wish to God I could answer all her questions without stammering. But I couldn't, she had been with me from the beginning, and here I was, betraying her in the worst possible way.
"He is my mate," I mutter.
Maya's voice is small when she answers, wavering. "You found your mate, that's very exciting. Why didn't you say that earlier?" To the man before us, she says, "Nice meeting you, I'm her best friend. Why didn't you say you were her mate?"
"Maya, that's--"
He clenches his hands into a fist. "There seems to be a misunderstanding. I'm Alpha Josh's Gamma."
"Maya, he isn't my mate. Alpha Josh is." Just uttering his name sends shivers down my spine. My wolf leaps in the air, sniffing, and growling in excitement.
"What? You must be kidding me, Zara. Are you for real?" She adds when I don't budge.
"Yes, Maya. I'm sorry I didn't say that earlier. I swear I wanted to tell you. I just found out this morning." Maya doesn't smile and brush it away. She doesn't hug me in tumult, going on and on about the merits of being mated. She frowns, and stare at her dress in confusion.
"I can't believe you. I thought we were friends, Zara. You misled me. How dare you?" She yanks the edge of her dress that stuck in the seat of the swing. She furiously strolls through the meadows and to the direction of the Community Centre.
I follow suit, but the Gamma stands before me, blocking my view.
"I'm not here for the drama, Miss Zara.
Let's get down to business." He reaches for a package in the back pocket of his trouser.
"Here take." He hands me a thousand bills wrapped in a paperbag.
"What is this for?" I ask. He pushes it forward, urging me to take it.
"I want you to reject the Alpha. He doesn't need a mate even if the world thinks he does. Having an Omega as a mate is unheard of, and will only lead to his doom. This is just for formality." He scrunches his nose in disgust. My heart is beating so fast, it's audible in my ear. I have never been stood low like today, degraded and humiliated.
"I don't want any of that. And if you think I'm going to be bribed, you are very wrong." My wolf is so mad she is ready to transform and scratch his face until he bleeds.
I brace myself for a punishment, one could be ostracized for talking back to a Gamma. I twist my hair between my forefinger and thumb. "You've being very disrespectful Miss. Zara. This goes on your record."
I try to walk pass him, stomping my legs to show how angry I am.
From afar, a figure trudges towards us. Each step demanding power and authority. The Gamma shrinks back, smacking his lips together.
Alpha Josh folds his hands on his chest. "What are you doing here Roy?"
Roy, the Gamma, loosens his hold and retract. "I've found her Alpha."
I stare at the swing, breathing in and out.
"Are you okay Zara?" He ignores Roy, and caresses my arms.
"Yes," I rush out.
"You're dismissed." He orders. Roy walks away, clutching the bag of money.
"Look at me." He raises my face towards him. Warm fingers engulfing me. I don't look at him, afraid that I will submit to him.
"I came here to reject you, but seeing you. God--Zara." His Adam's Apple bubs when he speaks. His voice is so raspy, I clench my legs together.
"What was it all about?"
"It's nothing." Even if what Roy did was offending, he is his Gamma. I'm not about to badmouth one of the elites. Surely, he trusts him more than his mate. After all, he just found out I exist today.
"I'm going back to work." When I left the kitchen, there's mimunmin chores to tend to.
"Where do you think you're going?" He tightens his hand on my throat, squeezing gently. I whimper in pain, eyes darting from his forest-deep eyes to his pink plump lips.
"I--" My wolf is so happy to be intimate with her mate. I could feel her emotions are all over the place.
"Mine." His voice resonates in the silent night. Deep, raspy, and authoritative. He is more sexier than the maids or the magazine described him as. But I don't need to think of how handsome he is or how his muscles were restrained in the tight shirt he wears. I'm supposed to run for my life, yet I stay glued in place admiring the Greek God.
I'm his, there's no denying it now.