Mother of Alpha - Burgov Series III

7. Vanya

"Are you seriously going to spend eight hours in a car just to eat lunch at her restaurant?" - Grisha's tone indicated he thought I had gone mad, and if not mad, then at least slightly off balanced. His knitted brows and wrinkled nose only made that statement so much clearer.

"And what would you have me do?! Give up on her because she lives four hours away?" - I asked, shoving my computer into the bag I was planning to take with me on a ride. As Alpha, I can ask one of my men to drive while I'm catching up with some work. Not that I ever overused this right before, but now seems like a perfect time for it.

"No, of course not. But maybe stay there for a few days, focus on wooing her, instead of trying to do everything at the same time."

I stopped what I was doing and turned to face him. Grisha was leaning over the wall, looking nonchalant as ever, but there was no smirk or any other sign he was making fun of me.

"I can't move there, I have Pack to run."

"And you have me, Ilia, Ottie and the VanWoerts an hour away in case some real s**t goes down. Just get our Luna. That's what's most important now." - he stated matter-of-factly with a slight shrug.

"I thought you guys were put off by the idea of my human Mate?"

"Are you f*****g kidding me?! We all want to see you happy. We would support you even if she was a cat, and I don't mean a cat-shifter, but a regular tomcat."

That made me chuckle. Probably not because it was extremely funny, because it wasn't, but this was one of the few times Grisha made an effort and I appreciate his good spirit more than a lousy metaphor.

"I'll think about it when she's actually ready to meet me outside of her work. But for now I need this distance. I don't trust myself enough and I know I would stalk her, even two days ago at her restaurant I started growling when a bunch of assholes made a move on her." - I said.

Grisha smirked and crossed his arms, giving me a side glance.

"I always knew you had an inner creeper in you."

"f**k you."

"And f**k you right back, my friend." - he said amused - "And let's hope it's a self-fulfilling prophecy." - he added, backing away until he was completely out of my office.

I snorted at his childish behavior and went about my things. I was in a way better mood today than in a long time. We had a breakthrough on Saturday, and she finally noticed me. It wasn't a lot, but I know she will remember me now. Baby steps, that's exactly how I need to proceed with Diana.

The first step was to be noticed, and that went rather well. Probably some of the credit should go to those three jackasses, because not only compared to them I was a perfect customer, but she also probably noticed I had a little chat with them. Not that I wanted her to, but maybe that would play out in my favor.

Step two is to spike her interest. And after that one is achieved and she will be equally curious of me as I am of her, then I will ask her out.

It would be a slow process but if it works out, worth every second.

She's exquisite. The way she handled those guys was something to admire. Not only did she remain stoic through the whole encounter, but she also showed a sharp wit and class. Smart and collected, not to mention out-of-this-world beautiful. Diana Eccleston is my perfect woman in every inch.

I smiled at myself and went to the elevator and from there to the underground parking lot, where one of my warriors waited by the Pack's SUV.

"Dan." - I greeted him with a single nod.

"Alpha." - he answered with a polite bow.

"Has my brother told you it's an absolutely top secret job, and you aren't to speak about it even with your Mate?" - I asked, reaching for the handle.

"Yes, he did. But I was also instructed to dress casually. Shouldn't I at least have a gun on me?" - he asked, and I couldn't keep chuckling in.

"That won't be necessary, my friend. I assure you we won't be in any danger. We're just going to the restaurant I have my eyes on." - he frowned, but nodded, accepting my explanation.

I was purposely vague. I trust Dan won't talk about it with anyone, but if I am wrong, I don't want all the Pack to know my personal business. And if it doesn't work out, my people will be none the wiser.

We climbed into the car and, with Dan driving, I tried to catch up with some correspondence. But it turned out to be a lot more difficult than I initially thought. My mind kept on wandering to Diana. I couldn't stop thinking about how the last days went for her. Did she have another unpleasant encounter and I wasn't there to watch over her? How did she react when she noticed how much I tipped her? Was she mad? Was she laughing? What did she do on her day off? Would it be too much to wish she would blush for me again?

The four hours of driving couldn't go any slower. I was so eager to see her again, that I almost asked Dan to break all the possible laws to just get to Meatology faster. But I didn't.

Instead, I kept on thinking of ways to subtly flirt with her, but that was a tricky one. It's not so easy to maintain the conversation with just the right amount of innuendos and showing just a hint of interest, before it all turns into s****l harassment in the workplace. I even asked Google for advice and it was surprisingly educational. And by that, I realized how little I actually know about dating.

I never had to do those kinds of things before . I don't want to brag and say that women were lying down by my feet whenever I wanted them too, because that wasn't exactly true. But when the time and mood were right and two parties were set on the same, it just happened. With no wooing, with no dating, with no winning over or promises of future relationships. It was just emotionless s*x, meant to let out some steam, nothing more. And it's both a blessing and a curse in my current situation, because I have no crazy exes in my past, but at the same time, I have way less experience than the guy my age should have.

Dan parked right around the corner and I told him to go grab lunch too, and started walking towards the entrance. Just by one peek through the window I noticed how busy Diana's section was. There was no free table available and I was not going in there to just watch her from across the room.

So if I thought that asking Google how to impress a woman that was literally born for me, was low, pacing back and forth in front of her workplace, waiting for one of the tables to get empty, was even worse. Maybe Grisha was right and my inner creep really was doing quite well.

After twenty minutes of window shopping, a couple finally left one of the tables in Diana's section and I swooped right in, before someone could beat me to it. I think I could successfully compete with a mother of four at the diaper sale at Costco.

I took my seat and waited for her to arrive. And then there she was, my ginger angel floating in that signature robe she always wears for work. She gave me a big toothy grin before she was even by my table and it was so different from our two previous encounters that I had a hard time keeping my hands to myself. It would be so wonderful to just take her in my arms, totally weird given I'm a complete stranger, but fantastic nonetheless.

She stopped by me and pushed one hip to the side, pretending to give me a glare.

"Are you the newest fan of our kitchen or is there some other reason why you're here again?" - Diana asked playfully.

It would be so easy and natural to say that I was here for her, but once again, baby steps. And I can't come off too strong.

"It's your fault." - I answered with a smirk, deciding to play the teasing game.

"My fault?! " - she asked, taken aback. - "What could I possibly do?"

"Your whipped cream tip rocked Ottie's world, so you're looking at her personal cake guy." - I said, pointing two thumbs at myself.

Her perplexed expression broke into a broad smile and she started giggling.

"Oh right, I probably should have told you that was a possibility." - she joked, but then she knitted her brows in the most adorable way as if she was thinking really hard about something. - "Wait a second, doesn't she have a husband to be at her beck and call?"

"Apparently my brother is performing other favors, I'm not carved for."

I enjoyed myself more than I probably should when her cheeks folded with a crimson blush, understanding exactly what I meant.

"Oh, right."- she said awkwardly.

"Yeah, so I'm expecting to be my niece's favorite Uncle, otherwise I will be forced to take my revenge on Christmas gifts."

"I'm sure you will. You sound like a tight-knitted family." - this was a statement, and I knew I didn't have to answer, a simple nod would be enough. But she looked curious and I loved seeing her curious about me. So, like an attention-seeking w***e, I took the bait.

"I suppose we are. It happens when you have no one else, and for most of my adult life it was just me, Ilia and our sister, Sasha."

"And what about your parents?" - she asked. But her question must've surprised even herself, because she quickly covered her mouth with a hand and looked embarrassed. - "Oh, my God, I'm sorry, I didn't want to pry. So please don't answer that."

"That's okay." - I said with a light chuckle. - "It was a long time ago, but they both passed away. Our Mom over ten years ago and Dad seven."

"Oh, my God, I'm so sorry. I seem to say that a lot today, but I really am." - she said with a genuinely comforting expression, and I had never noticed before how warm and caring she was underneath her polite, but distant work mask. Even more reasons to admire her and feel like the king of the world that she showed me this side of her.

"Thank you, but as I said, it was a long time ago and all three of us turned out alright. At least that's what I think."

She nodded, looked away and cleared her throat. Yeah, this was probably too much too soon.

"So are you ready to order or have you come only for cake?" - Diana asked, breaking the moment.

"I'll take the chef's special and the cake to go."

"Don't you want to hear what it is first?" - she raised her brows in disbelief.

"He hasn't failed me so far, so I trust his opinion."

She giggled and nodded, writing it down.

"Then you're in for a surprise." - she said with a cheeky grin before she sauntered away. That sounded like a warning, but as long as she doesn't bring back a kale salad, I should be fine. I didn't really care about the food, that was just an excuse to see her.

As I sat there like a sore thumb waiting for another few seconds alone with Diana, I noticed a faintly familiar blonde coming in and sitting by the bar. I know I saw her somewhere before, but I couldn't put my finger on it. That was until Diana approached her and the two started laughing together, and it clicked. It was the same girl that was in her apartment the night I watched her home. So she's probably her sister or a friend. Although, sister was rather unlikely, as they looked nothing alike.

They talked in hushed voices and the blonde even turned to glance at me. Was I the subject of their conversation? As flattering as that could sound, the mean stare the blonde shot me was far from being a good omen. It lasted not even a second, but I felt as if she already knew my agenda here.

Diana then placed a tall glass of some yellowish beverage in front of her friend and went to tend to her other customers.

When the blonde turned around on her bar stool and locked eyes with me, I felt like I fell into a trap. But when she lowered herself from a high seat and started walking towards me with her drink in hand, I knew just by the slow walk and watching me as if I wronged her, that she could cause problems.

"Is this seat taken?" - she asked, pointing at the empty chair in front of me.

"No."

I barely finished speaking and she was already sitting on it. M-hmm, so she's Cerberus. Good to know.

"So what's your deal, Mister…" - she trailed off, obviously waiting for me to introduce myself.

"Burgov. Ivan Burgov. And I am not sure I understand, Miss…" - I answered with the same trick at which she smirked.

"Lionel. Chelsea Lionel. And I think you understand me quite nicely, but let me put it in a more accessible way. What the hell do you want from my Cousin?"

I leaned back in my chair and regarded her with a curious stare. She wasn't sugar-coating, that's for sure. She was protective and most importantly, she was Diana's family. It may be in my best interest to stay on good terms with her.

"I'm assuming you're talking about Diana?"

"Oh, so she's Diana to you. Interesting." - she crossed her arms and her smirk morphed into a full Cheshire Cat grin.

"I believe we are on a first-name basis, yes."

She rocked her head from side to side, inspecting me closely. If I had even the smallest stain on my suit she would most likely notice it. Her green eyes were taxing me inch by inch, and I have met many intimidating people in my life. Hell, the Orlovs, my Mother's side of the family, are the fiercest motherfuckers I know, yet this skinny human made me want to squirm in my seat, and I had to fight really hard to not do it.

"I'm gonna be straight with you here, Ivan. I can call you that, right?" - I nodded, but I'm not sure she even registered it. - "Dee-Dee is my closest family and I care about my family dearly. So if you even think about screwing her over, expect something nasty to happen to you. You get what I'm saying, right?"

Now I was fighting a chuckle, by biting on the insides of my cheeks. This girl is good. She probably doesn't know she has just threatened a werewolf. An Alpha at that. But even crossing that fact out, I'm still double her size and probably weigh too, but she's telling me all this as if she was certain she could take me. Diana surely has some interesting people in her life.

"There would be no screwing over, I can assure you of that." - I said.

"You better keep that promise. I'm not coaching Little League just for the fun of it, but for easy access to baseball bats, keep that…"

"What's going on?" - Diana's panicked voice interrupted her, and just then I noticed my Mate coming towards us at a fast pace and when she reached the table she kept on looking from me to her cousin and back for an answer.

"Oh, nothing. I was just asking for the salt shaker." - Chelsea said, waving her hand.

That I couldn't handle. I started chuckling, not even trying to hold it in. I think that's the exact same excuse I used after my chat with the three obnoxious boys who were bothering Diana.

Both women looked at me and I bit my lips to not compromise myself any further. Diana reluctantly settled her glare back at her Cousin and looked from her to the still full glass before her.

"A salt shaker?! For your lemonade?"

"Of course." - Chelsea confirmed nonchalantly with a proud nod.

They seemed to have a private conversation with their stares, but after a while Diana gave up and with a sigh placed my plate in front of me.

"If she bothers you, just flag the security. They know what to do with her." - Diana said to me, loud enough for Chelsea to hear, and her Cousin, if anything, looked damn proud about that. Before I got to assure her it was no big deal, she had been called by a different customer and she rushed away.

I heard Chelsea giggling as I watched my future Luna go and when I turned to her she wasn't looking at me, but at my plate. I followed her gaze and only then noticed a burger with delicious-looking fries on the side. But not just any burger, a nice piece of beef with caramelized apple and, judging by the smell, a salted caramel sauce.

"You must be really desperate if you ordered THAT." - Chelsea said, locking eyes with me, and I think she saw the misery in my eyes and decided to be merciful for the poor bastard. - "Just for the record, Mondays are usually for Alejandro to test new things." - she tilted her head towards the kitchen entrance giving me a hint who Alejandro is. - "And as to my Cousin, you better back down before someone gets hurt."

Then she stood up and returned to the bar. She's definitely one interesting woman, but that's where she's wrong. There would be no backing down. This wolf is on the hunt. Even if he has to eat a lunch and dessert all in one.