A Lone Alpha?

Chapter 10 -MAYA

“Really?” I look to him.

He nods slowly, “yeah, because I don’t think I would have left your side then, I literally forced myself to walk away after we mindlinked last night” he admits.

Wow, so he didn’t want to leave me in the club last night? He wanted to spend the evening with me instead of drinking with his friend? He had fought with himself to make himself walk away thinking he was doing the right thing? Leaving me alone with my friends. Leaving me alone to meet Roman…..

“I didn’t realise” I say “I thought you changed your mind, thought you wanted to go on the pull with Jace”

He looks to me sadly “That was the last thing I wanted to do”

If only he hadn’t stopped himself doing what he wanted. Our night could have ended up so differently. I may not have been in so much pain. So much turmoil…..

“I wanted to spend time with you, watching you dance and have fun, I was desperate to be by your side. Maybe I could have stopped your pain today too” he sighs.

Seems he read my mind. Or maybe was just thinking along the same lines as me. He obviously thought if he had been with me then there was no way he would have let Roman near me. No way Roman would have caught my attention.

“ Hmmmm” I nod.

“It seems maybe we both messed up beaut” he sighs.

“Well I need to let the past go Levi, I am not seeing him again, he clearly does not want anything else to do with me” I begin,

“Well, that makes him a fool” Levi interrupts.

I smile, bless him trying to be kind, I continue “ I need to find a way to forget this, please will you help me keep this secret?”

“Cross my heart and hope to die Maya, if you are struggling with it, I’m only a phone call away.” He squeezes my hand.

“Well, it is time to try to move forward I guess. He clearly has. Now, do you even know where this cake shop is?” I ask him, realising we have been walking for quite some time now.

“Not a f*****g clue!” he grins at me.

“Levi!” I push his arm.

He laughs, wrapping his arms around my waist playfully. “I’ll buy you an extra cake to say sorry” he says.

“You got to find the bloody place first!” I tell him, “Let's look it up on maps on our phone”

I open maps on my phone and pass him the phone to type in the name. I look to my phone– ah ok, Hope’s Home bakes, cakes and cookies was a five minute walk from here so we hadn’t gone too far out, thankfully. How was this guy a warrior? He’d get lost in the forest!

“See I knew where I was going really” he grins at me, I notice his arm is still around my waist…..

“Oh yeah, I’m sure! I believe you, millions wouldn’t!” I roll my eyes at him as we follow the directions on the phone.

“We having cake and coffee here?” Levi asks “There is a coffee shop attached”

Coffee does sound good right about now. And this cake he keeps promising me, I am most definitely looking forward to! Actually, he owes me two cakes now doesn’t he?!

“Yeah sounds like a plan.” I smile at him. I have no plan to go out with him after last night, but he will definitely be good company and he is a good friend. He will be a good distraction from everything.

“See! Here it is, I hope they are ready for my Ma’s order, though I think she rang and placed it so I can collect it.” He says as he takes my hand and we walk into the bakery.

My nose is instantly hit with the scent of every cake and pastry imaginable. It smells amazing in here! I swear I think I died and went to cake heaven! I wonder if I can convince Levi the cake he owes me is a big birthday size cake? They smell that good I would certainly give it a try eating one of them!

We join the queue, it is obviously popular in here, though Levi did say it was the most popular bakery in the country I think, or that they sold the best cakes in the country I think he’d said.

“ Levi it smells amazing in here!” I look to him.

“Tell me about it! I think I died and went to cake heaven!” he grins. Wait. He had literally said what I had just thought. Though I imagine most people have that thought walking into here.

The queue is edging forward so I can now see the displays of cakes, plus there are pictures on the walls of the other cakes available. These cakes are like mini works of art! Cupcakes. Donuts. Muffins. Pastries. Cookies. Brownies. Cheesecake. Birthday cakes. Traybakes. Cakes of so many flavors! Cakes with icing of every colour imaginable. I am going to be spoilt for choice!

I look to Levi who is speaking to the girl behind the counter, I assume about the order his Ma placed with them. I see her nodding to him and signalling to the back of the store.

Levi looks to me “What you wanting beaut’? All of them I know, but pick a couple” he grins.

I look to the counter. Oooooohhhhh so many! “ A red velvet cupcake and a slice of pink candy stripe gateau please” I smile to him.

He winks to me, “ I knew that would catch your eye. A cappuccino too?” he smiles. See he even knows my coffee order. I find myself thinking.

I nod “please”

He turns back to the girl behind the counter to tell her what we want. She begins sorting our order out, placing it on a tray for us and once she has sorted it and Levi has paid we find an empty table in the corner of the busy coffee shop. This place must make a fortune!

We sit down, Levi grins at me “Enjoy beautiful”

“Thank you” I grin back, I seriously cannot wait to eat these! “Did you get your cakes for your Ma?” I ask.

“Yeah, she is bringing them over in a minute when the line quietens down” he tells me as I take my first bite of the pink candy stripe gateau I picked.

Mmmmmmm, the cake is beyond delicious! It is so soft, and fluffy! It tastes of a mixture of vanilla and raspberry.

I see Levi watching me with an affectionate smile. I can’t help but smile back. “Good?” he asks.

“Heaven in a cake” I grin.

He laughs as he takes a bite from the triple chocolate vanilla cream cupcake he had chosen. I see a similar look of heaven on his face. I guess his is just as nice!

“You were laughing at me, yet you just look like you met your mate in a cake” I teased him.

He laughed “Interesting description, it is good though. I’m not sure those cakes my Ma ordered will make it home” he grins at me.

“Well, if they do, I may be visiting your house for a while until they have all gone” I laugh.

He nods “Fine by me, welcome anytime beaut” he says.

“Levi, can I ask you something?” I couldn’t help but say.

He nods as he continues to eat.

“Why did you tell Jace about what you thought about me?” I ask.

He looks up suddenly, his eyes meeting mine, “I didn’t need to, he is my best friend beaut’ he knows me, he had seen me acting differently around you before I even noticed myself” he openly admits.

I look at him, confused. Acting different around me? I hadn’t noticed anything! Was I completely oblivious?

“What do you mean” I ask, wanting to know more and making the most of the opportunity of it just being the two of us.

“He said I was talking about you a lot, asking if you were going to be over at the house. Said when you were there I was spending more time with you, being more affectionate with you, making more reasons to spend time with you” he pauses with an embarrassed sigh.

He looks at me and smiles before continuing “ I didn’t notice it to start with but, over time I had, but thought I was hiding it, obviously not very well. Then he said he caught be checking you out a lot too. Again I thought I had hidden that. I am obviously bad at hiding stuff” he shrugs.

I don’t know, I hadn’t noticed……

“I didn’t notice” I admit.

“Maybe it is because Jace knows me so well. He asked me one night when we were drinking. I told him it was nothing I’d act on, that I knew you were a friend, that you wouldn’t look at me like that. He sees you like a sister so I know he is protective of you. But weirdly he said it wouldn’t hurt to ask you out for a drink, Said it would do us both good” he smiles.

I can’t help but smile, he has a lovely smile, friendly and welcoming, though obviously he is my friend so he is going to be both of those things to me. I know he is a strong and dominant warrior and doesn’t take no crap on the fighting field.

“So when you mentioned that last night to him he told me to speak to you while we were away from pack. And obviously I messed that up” he says quietly.

“To be fair he creeped me out as he was looking at me funny too” I tell him.

“Haha, yeah he said, he told me, you had shocked him was all, that he couldn’t stop looking at you because of how different you looked. That he was struggling to believe it was you. Was nothing creepy in it. He had said much the same about the other two” he tells me.

“The power of make-up” I grin at him before drinking my cappuccino.

He laughs “Hmm maybe, but you don’t need make-up to be beautiful you know” he says taking my hand.

“Mr Madlock?” a waitress interrupts us “Your order?”

We turn to look at her, she was standing with three large bags. Wow! It looks like his Ma went all out with her order, not that I can blame her!

“ Ah thank you.” Levi smiles at her.

I see the waitress blush at his smile. Hmmmm seems like he has an admirer! She places the bags on the two empty chairs at our table. Nods at us and walks away.

“You done?” Levi asks me, “because I think Jace was hoping to set off pretty soon, I know he understood me wanting to spend time with you, but running off with you for the day he may be slightly less understanding of” he grins.

I quickly finish off the remaining bit of my cappuccino. I had eaten half of my red velvet cupcake and it had been as light and fluffy as the gateau. The buttercream icing had been so creamy and delicious. But I was too full to eat anymore so it laid left on my plate.

“Yeah I can’t eat anymore” I smile at him with a shrug.

Levi grabs the rest of the cake and shoves it in his mouth, eating it.

“Ewww! Levi, I’d eaten that!” I say to him.

He finishes chewing the cake and swallows it. “So?” he grins “ I have known you forever Maya, we have drunk from the same bottle before, and actually I am pretty sure we used to share gum if I remember rightly when we were younger” he raises his eyebrow at me.

Ewwwww yeah, I think he is right. I vaguely remember doing that actually - that is disgusting!

“So I think I am good sharing a cake with you that you took a bite out of” he laughs.

I roll my eyes at him. Clearly he finds my reaction funny.

“And anyway, hopefully one day I hope to be able to kiss you, so then it definitely wont matter” he says with a wink.

I laugh and shake my head at him. Well, you can’t say he isn’t forever hopeful!

“Come on you, let’s get going, get back so we can get back to the hell hole of our pack” he says with a sigh, picking up the bags.

He isn’t wrong, I had a fun night. While it left me feeling crappy. But now I have to go back to the mess that is our pack…….