Things were back to stage one.

Just when I thought my wolf was waking up and Almec was beginning to show signs of opening up to my presence everything took three steps back.

Almost a week passed since he scented me and after that day I didn't even see him during dinner. The alpha became a ghost that inhabited the mansion silently. We knew he was there because of the visits he received but that was it.

What worried me most was that except for me and Faustina no one seemed to care about his absence, they continued with their routines as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

And maybe for them, it was. Perhaps the Almec of the last days was the real version of him. In that case it made sense that everyone would have been surprised to see him outside his mansion. But was he really like that or was something forcing him to stay isolated?

"Do you like it?" Faustina asked me, shaking my shoulder to get me to react.

I looked at the unfinished painting. "I love it," I replied with a smile. "It looks exactly like the mansion's garden."

"Do you think Almec would like it? If he's happy, maybe he'll come eat with us again."

"The painting is for him?"

Faustina nodded. "You always say that my paintings make you happy so I'm making his house so he can be happy."

"I bet he'll be very happy. I can help you give it to him when it's ready if you want."

The door opened, interrupting our conversation. The two of us turned to see the young woman who was entering the room with some snacks in her hands.

"What a beautiful painting," Khalia said and walked over to my sister to give her a hug. "Is that why you wanted me to come visit you? I love the details, where did you learn to paint so well?"

"I took art classes," Faustina said as if it were obvious. "I wanted you to come to be my assistant. I don't know the mansion very well, I tried to take a photo of the garden with Valen's new phone but it didn't turn out well, and since you probably know the garden almost by heart, you can help me with the rest of the details."

Khalia placed the food on the small table next to the shelf and sat in front of the painting. "I'm ready for my task boss, I promise you that I will use my memory to the fullest to help with the success of your task. I am not going to disappoint you."

Faustina began to laugh at the young woman's performance. They could be very similar in many ways, especially in their bubbly energy. There was not a single meeting between the two in which they did not spend time talking, singing, and laughing. Khalia was someone I could trust to take care of Faustina.

"I see you don't need me anymore," I said, rising from my seat.

"No, I don't," my sister said as she grabbed the paintbrush. "The truth is that you didn't help me much today, you just stayed silent as if you were asleep with your eyes open. Maybe it's better that you rest."

Kids' honesty can be brutal. If I had any doubt about how visible my concerns were, after Faustina's comment I already knew that they were easy to see.

"Can't you at least pretend it wasn't so obvious?" I asked.

"Why? I'm telling the truth."

Khalia started crying from laughter. "I'm never bored with you two. Please never leave the mansion."

"It's not up to us," I responded as I was about to leave the room.

"It is." Khalia winked at me. "If it were up to Almec you would stay here forever."

I walked away without saying a word, those kinds of comments always left me baffled. Demian and Khalia liked to talk about Almec's supposed big change and how much he enjoyed Faustina and me living in the mansion, still, he would disappear for days.

Actually, if it were just his coldness I wouldn't have any problems, it was his constantly changing attitude that irked me. He would ignore us for almost a week, and then he would show up to do something for us without asking for anything in return. I couldn't understand what he wanted, I didn't want to get used to his presence and then suffer his absence.

The feeling of emptiness was not going to leave me until Almec returned and that is why I decided to take action.

"You're back," Demian said as I approached the counter. "I don't say that as a negative thing, I like having company in the kitchen."

"Can I ask you a favor?" I asked him without wasting time.

"It depends on what it is, today I'm not in the mood to commit murder so if you're trying to kill someone I'm not the right person."

"Don't worry, I already know that in those cases Khalia is the best option. It has to do with cooking."

Demian washed his hands, took off his hat, and sat down by the table. "What's the special occasion?"

"None." I leaned against the table. "I wanted to know if you know what Almec's favorite food is."

"Lasagna. Not to be cocky but I would say that not just any lasagna is his favorite but my recipe."

"Can you show me how to make it for dinner?"

Demian raised an eyebrow. "Can I know why?"

I bit the inside of my cheek. "He's been locked up for the last few days, and since I see Geldra and Feinid all the time coming to talk to him and leaving with a worried face, I assume he might be stressed. I thought having his favorite meal for dinner might help him clear his head a little. Do you think I can get him to eat out of his room?"

"If you invite him, I'm sure you can convince him."

The kitchen was filled with a delicious aroma as I cooked according to Demian's instructions. He was a patient and very detailed teacher, he said that every small step was important to achieve the best result and he refused to let my gift to Almec be less than perfect.

Once the Lasagna was in the oven I ran to prepare the area for dinner. On the wooden floor of the patio, there was a small table that had a beautiful view of the garden. Despite the cold, I thought it would be the right place to have a quiet dinner. Something told me that Almec wasn't the kind of person who enjoyed flashy things so I preferred to keep it simple. A tablecloth and some flowers were enough to give it a nice touch without being too extra.

"You can go get him now if you want," Demian told me once I returned to the kitchen. "I'll take care of the rest of the preparations."

"Thanks, wish me luck."

"I don't think you need it."

The closer I got to the left wing, the more I regretted not having paid attention to my appearance. I was about to invite the alpha of the pack to a dinner and I didn't even make sure I was dressed for the occasion. Actually, I didn't have clothes worth being on the level of an alpha, but maybe I could have borrowed something from Khalia.

I still had time, maybe it was better to go out of my way for a few minutes to at least fix my hair.

Stop making excuses, I told myself and quickened my pace. If I hesitated at that moment, it was more than likely that I would never invite Almec to dinner.

After fighting my desire to escape I managed to reach the left wing hallway. To avoid breaking the rules, I sent Almec a message with my cell phone asking him to come to my location.

I didn't have to wait long before the alpha showed up. He crossed the hallway walking as if he were running.

"Is everything okay? Do you need anything?" he asked me immediately.

I looked up at him and smiled. "Yes, everything is perfect, don't worry. It's just that we haven't seen you at dinner for several nights and if I remember correctly you promised me that you would have dinner with us every day."

Almec sighed. "I'm very busy with some important pack matters, I don't have much free time."

"I noticed it and that's exactly why I think you should take a break. You'll be able to work better with a fresh mind. And you owe me several dinners, so you're coming with me now."

"Right now?"

"Yes, you have no choice." I held his hand. "Let's go before the food gets cold."

"I really can't say no to you," he whispered and began to keep up with me.

I guided us with firm steps, however, I was about to explode with nerves inside. I couldn't even glance at Almec without my stomach turning. He followed me in complete silence without putting up any resistance, and yet, I didn't feel like I was in control, rather it was like Almec was letting me play boss for a while.

"Aren't we going to the dining room?" he asked when we were at the patio door.

"No, today I prepared something different just for the two of us," I said and opened the door.

The scenario that I had prepared was revealed, I did not pay attention to the fine result, instead, I preferred to observe Almec's face under the string lights. His small smile took my breath away and my heart skipped a beat when his eyes took the shape of two waning moons.

He looked beautiful when he smiled.

"You made all of this?" Almec asked as he walked to the table.

"I thought it would cheer you up," I answered quietly, letting my shyness get the better of me.

"It's fantastic, thank you." He pulled out one of the chairs and motioned for me to sit down.

"Don't say anything yet before trying the food, maybe my cooking skills aren't that good."

Almec walked around the table and took the other seat. "I'm sure it must be delicious."

I uncovered the food tray looking down at the table to hide my blush. "I hope you like lasagna."

"It's my favorite, but knowing Demian I'd say you already knew that. He likes to talk too much."

"This time it's my fault, I asked him." I took the cutlery to serve the portions before Almec did. "I will take responsibility for any complaints you have."

"In that case I have no complaints." He took the first bite. "I was right, it's delicious."

"You're not lying to avoid making me feel bad, are you?"

"Why would I lie when you're going to eat too? It would be very obvious if I were lying." Almec stabbed a portion with his fork and stretched out his hand toward me. "Here. Open up."

He spoke with a sweet voice and yet it sounded like an order. I did what he asked, our eyes met for a moment while he put the food in my mouth. I blinked twice and moved away immediately.

"How is it?" Almec asked, lowering the tone of his voice.

"Good." I looked down to hide from his smirk.

Almec continued eating as if nothing had happened, I, on the contrary, could barely swallow because of my nerves.

From time to time Almec made a comment about the food, after the fourth time I concluded that he was perhaps trying to start the conversation so I decided to help him.

"I was thinking that if we're going to live together it would be good for us to get to know each other," I told him. "So, tell me something about yourself."

"There aren't many interesting things to know about me." He took a sip of wine. "As you already know, I am the alpha of the pack and I spend most of my time taking charge of my job."

"Yes, but I want to meet Almec, not the big scary alpha. There has to be something you enjoy doing that isn't related to your rank."

He seemed surprised. "It's the first time I've heard that," Almec said and leaned his body over the back of the chair.

"Hear what?"

"Nothing. I trained to be a blacksmith when I was a teenager, I never got to do that for obvious reasons but sometimes I like to visit the blacksmith shop to clear my mind. That's all I can think about for now." Almec grimaced. "Why don't you tell me something about yourself in return?"

I stretched my arm across the table and opened my hand. Almec looked at me confused for a moment but eventually he understood and placed his hand on mine.

"That's more than enough for now, thanks for trying." I gave him a squeeze. "I like to read. Even before I lost the connection with my wolf I was not the most athletic of the bunch, I always preferred to live my adventures through the pages than in real life."

"What do you like to read?" he sounded genuinely curious.

"Fantasy and romance are definitely my favorites, sometimes I also enjoy reading suspense and horror. What about you, do you like to read?"

"I don't read much, to be honest. I used to like it when my dad told me stories, I guess I'm a better listener than a reader."

I smiled. "If you have time I could read you something."

I didn't know why I said that, the words seemed ridiculous to me after they escaped my mouth. He had already made it clear that he didn't have much free time.

"I'd love to," Almec replied, erasing my insecurities.

He leaned over the table, with his free hand he tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear and then caressed my cheek with his thumb.

"Who wants some dessert?"

Demian's voice interrupted the moment. Almec straightened his body and moved his hands away from me. I looked at the cook who was carrying two cups of ice cream in his hands and I bit the inside of my lips.

"Am I interrupting something?" Demian asked.

"No, it's fine," Almec answered. "We were almost done."

The good atmosphere had disappeared and in its place appeared an awkward silence. Even after Demian left us alone we remained quiet, using the ice cream as an excuse not to say a word.

It became obvious that there was no longer a way to break the tension, the only solution was to finish dinner.

Almec offered to take me to my room, an offer that I could not deny. We walked side by side, enjoying the warmth that came from each other's bodies.

Despite the anticlimactic ending, the dinner had been a success, the smile on my face when we said goodbye was proof of that.

"I'll be waiting for the reading session," Almec said before leaving.

"Me too," I whispered although I doubted he heard me.