Chapter 161
Cecilia’s pov
I blinked, swallowed, and tried to remember how to form sentences.
Okay. Deep breath.
I was already at this surprise dinner-slash-ambush. There was no backing out now.
Straightening my spine, I turned to him with the most polite, professional tone I could muster. “Okay, well… you make yourself comfortable, Alpha. I’ll just give Harper a hand in the kitchen p>
It was formal. Safe. The kind of thing you’d say to your boss at a mandatory team-building barbecue.
But Sebastian – damn him – just smiled that slow, knowing smile that always spelled trouble.
“Cece,”he said softly, “we’re off the clock p>
Time stopped.
Seriously, I think the universe itself held its breath.
There was a beat of silence so thick you could cut it with a dull butter knife.
Then –
THUD.
A potato slipped from Harper’s shocked grip and rolled dramatically across the floor like a prop in a bad sitcom.
Sawyer, still red-eyed from onion duty, stared with such wide-eyed horror that a fresh tear leaked out on pure emotional confusion alone.
Tang, mid-prep with an Australian lobster, tightened his grip so hard the poor crustacean cracked in half.
No one moved. No one spoke.
I could actually hear the sound of my own blood rushing in my ears.
The air felt like it had been vacuum-sealed – tense, awkward, and weirdly humid.
My face burned. I was pretty sure I was glowing like an overheated stove coil.
I forced a laugh – loud, exaggerated, completely fake. “Ha ha! Alpha, you really are… so approachable after hours p>
Everyone seemed to snap out of their trance.
Harper scrambled to retrieve the potato. Sawyer wiped his tears.
Tang bared his teeth in what was supposed to be a smile but looked more like a grimace.
Sawyer jumped to my rescue. “Our Alpha gets like this when he’s in a good mood. He likes to joke around p>
“So casual,” Harper agreed with forced enthusiasm. “Very down-to-earth p>
“Actually, I think – ” Tang began, but before he could finish, Harper slapped a hand over his mouth.
She and Sawyer grabbed Tang’s arms and started dragging him back into the kitchen.
“Mmmphhh!” Tang protested as they hauled him away.
Levan stood there looking utterly bewildered, but seeing his sister and Sawyer struggling, he ran to help them.
In the living room, my face muscles had cramped from my fake smile.
Sebastian stretched languidly on the sofa, looking immensely pleased with himself as he changed the TV channel.
I was internally screaming.
He’d done that deliberately! I knew better than to provoke him.
The man was pure poison, a master of mind games and psychological warfare.
How had I ever thought I could treat him like some casual dessert?
With my heart full of regret, I retreated to the kitchen.
I shooed the men out and quietly began cooking, trying to numb my thoughts with the routine of food preparation.
“Sebastian’s moving pretty aggressively, huh?” Harper whispered with a mischievous grin.
I pretended not to hear.
“Cece? Hello, Cece p>
When I didn’t respond, Harper nudged me with her elbow.
“Don’t call me that!” I snapped, nearly dropping the knife I was holding.
I was having a full-blown triggered response to that nickname now.
Harper stared at me for a moment before breaking into laughter.
“Oh my god. He called you that, didn’t he?” she said, eyes narrowing with glee.
“And now it’s ruined forever. I get it. He probably said it all sultry, like, ’Cece, don’t call me Alpha when we’re off the clock. Call me baby.’”She fluttered her lashes in exaggerated mock-romance.
I leveled her with a death glare sharp enough to cut glass.
If looks could kill, Harper would’ve been halfway through her own funeral playlist.
Dinner was finally ready.
The table was loaded with dishes – eighty percent of which I’d prepared myself.
I’d barricaded myself in the kitchen the entire time, afraid to step out lest Sebastian pull another stunt or say something that would make my heart race inappropriately.
But now that the food was served, I couldn’t hide anymore.
As I shuttled back and forth between the dining room and kitchen, I scanned the seating arrangement.
To my horror, they’d left the seat next to Sebastian empty – clearly meant for me.
The three traitors and Harper’s innocent brother gave me pitiful looks.
I sat down with resignation.Harper, as the hostess, invited everyone to dig in.
Thankfully, Sebastian had reverted to his cold, distant demeanor and didn’t call me by that nickname again.
Halfway through the meal, Harper brought up the Cici situation.
“I heard from Cecilia that the Shadow Pack found some powerful help. I called Nicole’s mother yesterday to warn them to be careful p>
Tang jumped in at the mention. “You don’t need to worry. I just got back from Boulder. That so-called ’powerful help’ didn’t do anything useful. Cici has already confessed and is being held in detention p>
“What do you mean by ’didn’t do anything useful’? Did she not try to help, or did she try and fail?” Harper pressed.
“That woman met with Cici once and then left.
My guess is she couldn’t help – the evidence is irrefutable. Short of breaking Cici out of jail, what else could she do p>
“So she’s not as formidable as we thought,” Harper mused.
Tang shrugged. “I didn’t see anything impressive about her. Oh, and she came to Denver the same day we did p>
I frowned. “She told you she’s in Denver p>
“Yes, she’s staying at a hotel right now p>
“Why would she come to Denver? Could she be planning something to help Cici? What about Alpha Gavin? Has he returned too p>
“No, he’s still in Boulder. He seems to have given up on Cici and is focusing all his efforts on saving Luna White now p>
Hearing this, Harper and I both sighed with relief.
It seemed we had worried unnecessarily.
Everything was under control.
Alpha Gavin was smart enough to know that the only thing he could do for Cici was to work within the legal system during her trial.
Other underhanded tactics wouldn’t help.
For his mother, though, there might still be room to maneuver.
And that supposedly terrifying woman Cassian had mentioned?
So far, she seemed rather ineffectual.
I grabbed a cold can from the cooler and casually slid it across the table toward Tang.
“For the fieldwork,”I said. “Appreciate you p>
Tang caught it with a grin, snapping the tab open. “Credit goes to Alpha Sebastian. He’s the one who sent me p>
Of course he did.
I reached back into the cooler and fished out another can, the condensation slick against my fingers.
This time, I hesitated just a beat before placing it on the table in front of him.
“Here, Se,,,Alpha,”I corrected quickly, voice catching mid-syllable like I’d nearly tripped over my own tongue.
His eyes flicked up to mine – just a flash, quick and unreadable.
Then, he pushed the beer back toward me with two fingers. “I don’t drink beer p>
Of course he didn’t.
He probably sipped hundred-dollar Scotch and intimidated it into aging faster.
“I’ll take it then,”I blurted, snatching it back like I’d just tried to hand a crucifix to Dracula.
Moon Goddess, I almost called him Seba. In front of everyone. In front of Sawyer.
Sawyer, who would absolutely choke on his water and demand a formal inquisition at the next Pack council meeting.
Nope. Nope nope nope. That name – his name – was strictly off-limits in public.
We still had to work together. I had to be professional. Distant. Emotionally Switzerland with a non-disclosure agreement.
Harper’s gaze bounced between us suspiciously.
“It’s so hot in here,” Levan complained, having wolfed down his food with sweat beading on his forehead.
He turned off the hot pot and walked to the balcony, opening the door and taking off his shirt to cool down.
Tang, taking the cue, nodded. “It really is hot. Don’t you have air conditioning?” He grabbed the collar of his T-shirt and pulled it off, tossing it aside.
Harper and I both paused mid-sip.
Muscles. Youth.
The dim lighting caught every line of muscle – shoulders, arms, abs – like a magazine shoot come to life.
My beer suddenly didn’t matter.
Harper leaned in slightly. “I’m not saying I’m objectifying them, but I’m also not not saying it p>
I choked on a laugh, trying to look anywhere but directly at the two impromptu shirtless men in my apartment.
That’s when I felt the shift in the air – subtle, electric.
Sebastian’s voice was low and smooth, brushing right against my ear. “Tell me, Secretary Moore… whose muscles are you enjoying more? Tang’s? Or Levan’s p>
My spine snapped straight.
I blinked rapidly. “Oh no,”I said, suddenly grabbing at the floor, “I think I dropped my contact lens p>