Oops… I Went Into Heat and My Alpha Daddies Claimed Me

KEISHA’S POV

The woman looked up when I stopped beside the counter.

"What’s the problem?" I asked, looking between the both of them.

The snobbish looking woman looked me over once with the expression of someone who had not invited me to participate. "This doesn’t concern you."

"I’m asking anyway." I looked at the dress on the counter, then at the stain. "How much?"

The attendant looked at me with wide eyes.

The woman glared at me, clearly not liking that I was interrupting her tirade. She let out a disgruntled sound and named a price that made me wince internally.

Fuck.

That was a lot of money for a dress.

"It’s a coffee stain." I looked at the dress in awe. How was it that expensive?

"It’s an expensive dress."

"Coffee comes out." I frowned. "With the right treatment, it comes out completely. I can tell you exactly what to use if—"

"I don’t want it treated." The woman said flatly. "I want the value of what was ruined."

I looked at her for a moment and she looked back at me with a flat expression.

Slowly, I turned to the attendant. "How much do you have?"

The girl’s face twisted into one of guilt and fear. "I— you don’t have to—"

"How much?" I asked again.

She told me and I sighed. It was about a third of what the woman was asking for.

I opened my bag, searching for money.

Nadia appeared at my elbow out of nowhere. "Keisha." Her voice was low and warning.

"I know." I said.

"That’s a lot of—"

"I know." I counted it out and set it on the counter before I looked at the woman. "That covers the full amount."

The woman looked at the money, then at me. She clearly wasn’t grateful, her expression twisted into one of irritation. She picked up the money and the dress and her bag and walked out without another word.

Finally.

The attendant stared at me. "I— you didn’t have to do that." Her voice was shaky. "I’ll pay you back. I promise I will, I’ll figure out—"

"Don’t worry about it." I smiled.

"No but I—"

"Really." I looked at her. "Just don’t let people do that to you. You’re allowed to direct them to the store manager. That’s what the manager is for."

She nodded and her eyes were bright. "Thank you." She said it quietly, her voice filled with gratitude.

I picked up my bag and turned back to Nadia who was looking at me with a blank expression.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing." She handed me my share of the dresses. "Come on. I need fresh air and something cold to drink."

****************

We found a spot a short walk from the store, an open air place with wooden tables and cold drinks with a view of the pack’s outer gardens that was genuinely pretty in the afternoon.

Nadia ordered for both of us and we sat across from each other.

"Okay." She propped her chin in her hand. "Remember when we were in school and you convinced me to sneak out to that gathering in the south grounds."

I put my drink down. "You convinced yourself. I said it was a bad idea."

"You said it was a bad idea and then put your shoes on." She pointed at me. "Which means you were coming."

"I was coming to stop you from doing something stupid."

"And yet." She raised her brows. "We both ended up hiding in that bush for two hours because Elder Sen was walking his dog on the exact path we needed to take back."

I pressed my lips together. "That dog would not stop barking."

"It could smell us." She was already laughing. "We were in that bush for two hours, Keisha. Two hours. My knees felt like hell."

A laugh found its way out my throat. "Your dress was destroyed."

"My dress." She covered her face with one hand. "I told my dad I sat in something."

"You did sit in something." I pointed out with a laugh. "You sat in a bush."

This felt nice. Just sitting here and talking about our childhood like the good old times when we would stay in my former apartment in Coldridge pack, talking about everything and nothing at the same time.

By the time we stood to leave the sun had dipped lower and I felt lighter than I had in days.

We walked back to the mansion with our shopping bags and Becca’s groceries while Nadia talked about nothing important the whole way and I listened and felt something I hadn’t felt in a while.

Like myself.

Almost entirely like myself.

****************

The next day passed without much. Work, home, dinner alone, early bed. I didn’t even catch a glimpse of Callum nor Dane.

The day after that I walked into the communications office to find it buzzing with energy.

Uh— what was happening?

I stood in the doorway for a second, looking around at everything.

Well, if it was important, it would get to me.

I went to the kitchen, made two coffees and brought one to my colleague Sera who was typing so fast her fingers were almost blurring.

"Thank you." She grabbed it without looking up.

"What happened?" I set my own cup down and looked at the queue on my screen.

"Visitors." She said simply. "Important ones. Arrived this morning apparently and staying a week at least." She finally looked up. "Half the correspondence is theirs, the other half is us preparing briefing logs for the Alpha’s council." She shook her head. "It’s going to be a long week."

I looked at my screen with a frown.

Visitors staying a week?

I thought about the note in my coat pocket that I had not thrown away and probably should have.

Something uneasy settled in my chest the more I thought about who they could be.

I didn’t bother to ask who they were because a part of me dreaded the answer.

Please, don’t it be them. Not now.