Alpha Ruby

First Impression

Max

"Dude, hurry up! It's the grand re-opening and I want to get there early to make sure everything runs smoothly." I groan as I get out of the shower and yell back to Travis that I'll be out in 5 minutes. Drying my body off, I toss on my uniform, brush my teeth, and run a comb through my hair. Satisfied with how I look, I make my way into the living room where Travis is waiting for me. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Travis sighs before answering my question that I've asked him a million times now. This pub was his dream since I've met him, and now he's going to sell it like it's no big deal. He claims that nothing is going to change, that everyone still gets to keep their job. The only thing is that now he won't have to stress with all the bills and paperwork that come with owning a business.

"Max. You know I wouldn't be doing this if it would put my employees out of a job. It's part of the contract, so don't worry." How could I not worry? Yeah, I'm a waiter, but the tips I make from this place is HUGE. Truth is, I don't need the money, but I choose to live like this. I want to experience human life, and what screams human more than being a waiter/waitress?

Once we pull up to the pub, my jaw drops. Everything looks the same except the name of it. "You changed the name?!" Travis slumps in the drivers seat. "It's the only change to the place, okay? Everything else remains the same." I stare at the name in bold red letters, Ruby's.

Since we're early, Travis and I are the only people here. We get to work with turning the lights and everything on. I head straight to the speakers and put on an up beat playlist. Singing along to the music, I take the chairs off the tables and place them correctly on the floor. After a few hours, the other employees start to walk in and the place begins to smell delicious as the cooks get prepping.

Before we know it, it's time to open up for our grand re-opening. Being located in the center city, we always get a ton of people, especially during the lunch rush. Using a bit of inhumane speed, I'm always quick to take orders, chat for a minute with my customers, and remove dirty dishes. Not to toot my own horn, but I'm a good looking man and the ladies notice. I may or may not flirt with them, which contributes to my larger tips and phone numbers. Not that I ever call them. I'm waiting for my mate. These humans are mostly friendly, but sometimes I get some complete asshole customers and wish I could just tear their heads off, literally.

Later that night, Travis begins to get anxious as he waits for his buyer to come in and discuss business. My wolf begins to stir and jump around in my head. "You okay?" I ask my wolf, a little concerned since I've never felt him act like this before. He decides to be rude and not answer my question. Okay then.

I was waiting on a table when a delicious smell hits my nose. Mmm, the pub begins to smell like...honey? That's strange. How could one smell overpower everything else? "Mate is here, i***t!" No f*****g way. I turned my head so quick, I'm surprised it didn't snap off. Talking with Travis is a man and two women. I turn my attention back to my customers, scribble down their order and rush to the kitchen.

"s**t. Come on, man. Get yourself together. Act normal, like a human." I tell myself this and my wolf laughs. "I still don't understand why you do this." I internally roll my eyes. "I want my mate to love me for me, not because of a silly bond. Especially with my status." I reply back to him. He simply groans and lays down. Good, now I can get back to work.

"MAX!" I practically jump out of my skin when Travis barges into the kitchen. "What?!" He looks so nervous, I kind of feel bad for him. "I'm going to be in my office with my buyer. In the meantime, I want you to wait on his two friends. I have them seated at table one." My heart begins to thump. "Okay, best of luck man. No need to be a sweaty mess, he already signed the contract. Remember? This is just to finish up loose ends." I remind my best friend to try to calm him. "Yeah, yeah, you're right. Thanks Max. Now, don't make them wait any longer. Go." I grab the tray of food I originally came in here for to take to one of my tables.

Making my way to the table, I feel eyes on me and look up to see a beautiful red head staring at me. "MATE! MATE!" Not paying attention to where I was walking due to the distraction of this beauty, I tripped right over my own feet and landed on the floor with shattering plates of hot food and beverages. "Oh my goddess, you're so f*****g embarrassing." My wolf mutters in my head, not helping the situation. When I look back up at my mate, she has a look of disgust on her face. My heart feels like shattering at the thought of her rejecting me. She probably thinks I'm some clumsy human who doesn't deserve to be with an alpha like that. No, I don't know her, but her aura screams alpha.

"Are you okay?" The customers at the table I was serving asked as the bent down to help clean up the mess. "Yes, thank you. Please don't touch, I'll clean this up. I don't want you guys to cut yourself." One of the other employees came over to me with a broom and pan to sweep up the mess. Ugh. Way to make a first impression. I apologize to my customers and tell them I will place their order immediately to be made. "I got it, Max. Go serve table one before Travis shits himself." Anne whispers to me. She was in the kitchen when Travis talked to me and could probably tell how important these people were based off of the way he talked about them.