Chapter 14: Chapter 14 I-m Still Mad At Her
SOPHIA’S POV
The mont my eyes t Damien’s across the crowded gym, I felt everything inside
halt at once - my wolf, my breath, even the words forming on my tongue. It felt as if the entire room tilted a bit.
I had to force myself to beco steady before the children around
noticed that their school nurse suddenly felt like she had been yanked out of her own body.
I hadn’t expected him.
He looked the sa. Tall, handso and powerful.
His eyes stayed on
too long, and I hated that my chest tightened with a strange rush of heat that I imdiately forced down.
I looked away quickly, trying to pretend nothing inside
reacted, but the pull of his aura affected .
When the children began clapping for him on stage, their cheers brought
back to reality.
I bent down and pretended to tie a shoelace simply to avoid eting his eyes again but fate wasn’t kind enough to let
hide for long.
After the event ended, the teachers began cleaning up the tables and guiding the children back to their classrooms. I was sorting out leftover craft supplies, placing brushes into a plastic box, when I sensed soone standing close.
His scent hit
before I turned.
Damien.
He cleared his throat quietly "Sophia."
For a mont, I considered pretending I didn’t hear him. But that would have been childish, and I refused to let him see even a crack in the composure I had worked so hard to build. I turned slowly.
"Alpha Damien."
His jaw tightened at the formality. "Don’t call
that," he said.
I ignored him.
He looked away for a second before facing
again. "I didn’t know you worked here."
"I do."I went back to packing the supplies. "It’s not sothing anyone in your family ever cared about."
My voice slipped before I could stop it. I regretted the sting imdiately but didn’t correct myself.
"I’m not here to cause problems."
"You don’t need to be here at all," I responded.
He raised an eyebrow "It’s a charity event, Sophia."
"And you’ve never cared about any events I was part of before," I said, looking directly at him. "Don’t act surprised that I’m surprised."
He inhaled "I didn’t co because of you."
I nodded slowly. "Good."
He blinked, caught off guard, as if that wasn’t the answer he expected.
"You don’t have to be so cold," he murmured.
"And you don’t have to pretend we’re anything more than strangers," I replied with a polite, finished smile. "So we’re even."
He stared at
for a long ti before nodding then stepping back. But even as he left, I sensed him glancing over his shoulder, watching , confused, like my distance offended him more than anything I had said.
I didn’t give him the satisfaction of looking back.
*
Principal Chelley called for a eting imdiately after, and by the ti we gathered in the conference room, she looked overly excited, even glowing.
"Everyone," she announced, "to express our gratitude to Alpha Damien Stone for sponsoring the event, we will be having a small staff dinner this evening. Attendance is mandatory for all staff involved in the program."
My stomach dropped.
I wanted to object, to say I had things to do, or that I needed to pick sothing up from my parents’ place, or simply lie but she looked at us in a way that made refusal impossible.
"Sophia," she added warmly, "you especially. Your departnt played a vital role today."
Of course it did.
I smiled and nodded. Inside, my wolf groaned.
*
The dinner took place in a quiet restaurant in town. Everyone dressed a little nicer. Everyone except .
Damien sat near the head of the table.
I chose the seat farthest from his, right beside Nick, one of the young teachers from second grade.
Nick smiled brightly. "Sophia! Thank God you ca. I was hoping soone fun would sit near ."
I laughed. "I didn’t know I was fun."
"You’re fun compared to everyone else," he whispered as he leaned in. "Especially compared to our scary donor at the top of the table."
My lips twitched. "Don’t call him scary. He can hear everything even from there."
Nick raised a brow. "No, he can’t."
Oh, if only he knew.
As we chatted, ordered food, and joked about the students, I felt my shoulders relax.
Nick had that easy charm, the kind that made conversations flow naturally. He told
about his plans for the weekend, asked about the health office, and teased
for being "the school’s most popular nurse." I laughed more than I thought I would. And the more I relaxed, the more I felt Damien’s eyes.
Every ti I looked up, I caught him staring.
He was watching .
I ignored him.
When dinner arrived, roasted chicken, stead vegetables, fried rice, and warm bread, I thanked the waiter and began eating.
Nick nudged
playfully about my small appetite. I nudged him back. I heard a growl and it was from Damien.
I ignored it and him again.
Then his phone vibrated across the table.
He picked it up and answered the call, putting it on speaker.
"Hello?"
"Daddy! Look! I drew a wolf today!" she squealed.
"That’s great," Damien said with a genuine smile.
"Daddy... where are you?"
"I’m at dinner," he told her. And then without hesitation, without thinking, he added, "Mom is here too."
My fork paused midair.
The entire table went silent. Heads turned. Nick blinked at , confused. Who was his wife, they wondered.
I didn’t react. I kept eating as if I heard nothing.
"Mom is there? With you?"
"Yes," Damien said, still watching
from across the table.
"Well, you can tell her I’m still mad at her."
The words stabbed deeper than I expected. My throat ached, but I forced my face to remain neutral.
Nick whispered beside , "Sophia, are you okay?"
I smiled softly. "I’m fine."
But inside, my wolf curled painfully in my chest.
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