King of the Alphas

Chapter 9 : Mantra

After showering, I rinsed out the rest of the product left in my hair and on my body. I shut off the water and stepped out of the shower. I reached over for a towel and dried myself off thoroughly.

After exiting the steamy bathroom, I headed straight for my closet drawers. I picked out a random set of undergarments, pulling them on quickly. Today, I wanted to wear something more formal than my usual sweatpants and tee-shirt. I looked though the clothes Alice bought me--which I had an overly excessive amount of--and decided on a simple outfit.

I found a pair of vintage looking ripped jeans and a fitted white tee-shirt. As I was placing them on my bed the door was swung open. In a flash I turned around and yelled, "Don't you know how to knock!"

Alice looked at me surprisingly, "Well damn! Where can I get myself a pair of those?" She gestured to my chest. I flushed bright red and scrambled to cover myself with a towel before she saw anything else that she wasn't supposed to.

Before I could ask her what she needed I saw Kayden come in behind her, "I heard yelling, what did you do Alice?" He asked her. He turned his head, his eyes meeting mine as he took in my current attire, or lack thereof.

"Don't look, she has a tail," I scoffed, suppressing a giggle.

He removed her hands from his face and walked out the door right after saying, "I hate you, Alice." He remarked. She flipped him off in response.

"Have fun in the shower loser!" She shouted, chuckling. I looked at her confused.

"Why does he need--" She used her hands to gesture and point to the towel that was barely covering me, "--oh." Yikes, I'm surprised he hadn't choked on his own testosterone by now.

She shut the door behind us so that I could finish dressing myself with no further interruptions.

"Cute," She drawled, "I really do have a great shopping sense don't I, Charlotte?" I rolled my eyes at her. But I have to admit, the clothes she picked out herself were quite cute.

"Yeah, yeah. So what did you need?" I asked her. Before we were interrupted she did look like she wanted to ask me something.

"Oh yeah, I was just wondering if you wanted to go out to dinner with us all tonight, just you, me, and Sebby." I practically choked on my own spit.

"--Sebby!?" I laughed, "God, I'm so excited to use that one on him." I smiled, "But sure, I'll come along. As long as there's no PDA it's fine by me." Because the last thing I wanted to watch was those two lovebirds making out over some alfredo pasta.

"Fine, no promises though." She dramatically exhaled, "Be ready in an hour, we have a reservation at six." I nodded in response and shooed her out of the room.

Well this outfit isn't gonna last long. I thought to myself. A dinner with royals? Yeah there's no chance in hell I'm wearing ripped jeans.

I groaned and took another trip to the overflowing wardrobe Alice supplied me with. I searched through the hangers to find a proper dress that would be suitable for a dinner, a fancy one at the least. Anywhere that requires a reservation is fancy in my mind.

I decided to have a little fun with this, I picked out a red bandage dress that's slightly more scandalous than I'm used to. If I'm going to dress up, I may as well do it right.

I mean, I've got nothing better to do.

After laying it out on the bed I fixed my hair first. I used the straightening iron Alice bought me to create waves that cascaded around me. I lightly combed through the curls to make them softer and less dramatic.

I then applied a small amount of clear gloss to my lips. Looking in the mirror, for once I actually thought I looked great. My face no longer looked dull and pale, but was now looking dewy and fresh.

Without disturbing my hair and makeup, I cautiously put on the dress. I fidgeted with a fabric a bit to allow it to conform to my body a bit better and finally, I was almost done. I reached back into the closed and found a pair of simple red heels.

From a distance they looked almost painful but the more I looked at them the prettier they became. I slipped them on and wobbled a bit as I stood. It took me a few moments to regain my balance but once I did, I felt and looked great.

I was never allowed to wear heels back when I was still living with my family. I was barely twelve, and my parents didn't want me growing up too fast.

My eyes watered at the thought of my parents, I missed them so much. I wonder if they're still looking for me?

I shook off my thoughts, of course they wouldn't be. I'm not worth anyone's time. All I'm good for is pleasing others. The mantra remained implanted into my head after all these years, forced to repeat it to the Rogue Alpha each day.

On my way out the door I grabbed a simple black clutch that would pair well with the outfit I was wearing. As I descended down the stairs I saw Alice waiting for me. Then, looking at the King I was shocked at what I had seen...