Kieran’s POV


    The sound of cutlery nging against the ceramic te was all that could be heard for a while, and not just from me too. Literally everyone that was seated at the dining table with a steaming bowl of food in front of them hadn’t said a word since lunch started and I wasn’t particrly sure yet. Of course, everyone probably had their different reasons, just the way I had mine.


    Alice, Sabrina, Oliver and Alpha Xander were all scattered around the circr table, each one doing their thing. The only person who seemed to be a bit cheery and happy was Oliver. He munched happily on his meals, a huge smile on his face. Sabrina on the other hand, was seated directly opposite me and I couldn’t help but notice her throwing some kind of weird looks in his direction.


    Alice, on the other hand, was being bitch as usual. I didn’t pay a lot of attention to her but the little moment we locked our eyes was more than enough to send a scowl my way. From the re in her eyes, you could tell she still hadn’t gotten over the incident that happened in the garden a couple of days back. I’m sure if she could, she would drive the table knife currently in her grip into the deepest and darkest part of my throat. To be honest, I wasn’t even sure why she was sitting at the table with us but I wasn’t ready to be that bitch.


    Alpha Xander on the other hand, was just there. He barely said anything, neither did he eat a lot. Since this lunch started, I could count the number of times he’d actually put a spoonful of food in his mouth.


    “Oh,e on now.” Oliver suddenly let out, catching the attention of the entire room. We all turned to the man in question immediately. “What’s going on here? Did someone die?”


    “Not yet.” I could swear on my life I heard Alice mutter under her breath. Even though she was sort of subtle about it, I knew her nasty statement was directed at no one else but me. “Although I really wish that was the case.”


    “It’s lunch, Oliver.” Xander spoke up. “Not everyone thinks everything is supposed to be a freaking party. Not everyone thinks like you.”


    “Well that’s wrong.” Oliver smirked. “Really wrong, how then are you supposed to enjoy the meal?”


    “In silence.” Xander pointed out while his friend guffawed out loud. Involuntarily, I found a small smile making its way to my face. “No one talks while eating.”


    “Nonsense.” Oliver waved his hand dismissively. “Let’s make this ce lively. Sabrina, tell me something interesting about you.”


    “Um.” She looked confused for a while. “You know basically everything there is to know about me Oliver. Besides, I mostly just spend my time running the affairs of the mansion”


    “Used to.” Alice coughed out loud, before dropping a forkful of food into her mouth. “Do I always need to remind you that you’ve been reced?” she asked rudely and I stared at her in shock. Did she really just?…


    “Reced?” Sabrina scoffed. “You’re nothing more than a substitute dear. A mere assistant too, or did you think your uniform was going to make any difference?” she retorted and I was so happy, I couldn’t hide it.


    Thankfully, a ripple ofughter spread through the table, so no one was able to notice my excessive happiness and the shocked look on Alice’s face was priceless, it was pure gold even. Apparently, no one had foreseen Sabrina’seback, not even Oliver himself.


    “How dare you?!” Alice asked, and saying was red, was a big understatement. Right now, if someone walked into the room and mistook her for a tomato, they wouldn’t be wrong. “I, I, I am not a substitute and I graduated from one of the best institutes in the state. You better take that back or…”


    “Alright, alright.” Oliver cut in amidstughs. “That’s enough. Now Kieran, what have you been up totely?” he asked almost immediately, catching me off guard.


    “What?” I froze midway while putting my spoon in my mouth. Goosebumps littered the surface of my skin as everyone’s eyes turned to me, each one holding a different emotion. Even with the feel of their collective gazes on my skin, I could clearly tell one person’s emotions.


    Xander’s.


    His beady eyes were trained at me, but a tiny part of me couldn’t help but wonder if the indifference in his eyes were for me.This belongs to N?velDrama.Org: ?.


    “Um… well…” I mumbled awkwardly. “Nothing really. I don’t exactly have anything fun going on.”


    “Nonsense.” Oliver chimed, something glinting in his eyes. “How can a beautifuldy not have anything going on?”


    “It’s not a big deal actually.” To say I was ufortable had to be the biggest understatement of the century. My fingers trembled and I could hear myself croaking out the words that slid past my lips. “I mostly like being on my own and….”


    “You certainly must have hobbies.” Oliver chimed in again. “Do you like horses? I know Xander has a couple of horses in his ranch a distance away from here. How about we go horse riding this evening? Just you and me, riding into the sunset.” he suggested.


    “Oh.” I muttered. If someone else had that, maybe it would have given me the reaction he was looking for; butterflies in my stomach. But instead of butterflies, I felt my stomach churn in anxiety. I could already feel beads of sweat forming on my forehead too. “I don’t know about that…”


    “But I do.” Oliver grinned. “You would look mesmerizing by my side. Right?”


    “Yes.” Sabrina nodded. “I think horse riding is a wonderful idea. I haven’t ridden in years and I just say I miss the thrill of it all.”


    “I could take you, but Kieran first.” Oliver smirked and for the life of me I couldn’t bring myself to share in his happiness. “I’d like mydy to experience it first and….”


    A loud ng on the floor cut him short. My heart leapt to my throat as we all turned towards the direction the sound came from. It was Xander, he’d just dropped all of his cutlery on the cold tiled floors.


    “Xander?” Oliver called. “Are you okay?”


    “Peachy.” Xander quipped as he stared straight ahead. He looked to be staring at nothing, but I knew better. “just peachy.”


    “Are you sure?” I called out wearily. “If something’s wrong you can…”


    “Nonsense.” Oliver chuckled. “Little things like this don’t matter to the Alpha. Now where were we? Horse riding right? If you don’t like that, how about a romantic evening?”


    “Ouuuu.” Sabrina and Alice whistled simultaneously.


    “Just picture the most romantic atmosphere.” Oliver sighed. “Just you and me, string fairy lights under the moon’s gaze. We would talk for hours, steal a couple of kisses in between…”


    A loud screech filled the room as Xander got up from his seat. He’d pushed the chair back with so much force, I was stumped at how it hadn’t snapped on his fingers. With just one menacing nce at all of us, he stormed out of the dining room.


    “Xander?” Oliver was on his feet too, looking genuinely concerned. “Wait up man.”


    In less than a minute, both men were up and out of the dining room. An awkward silence filled the room as none of us decided to look at each other.


    What were we supposed to say? There was nothing to say because…


    “Kieran dear.” I raised my head to the sound of my name on Sabrina’s lips. “Would you be a darling and help me out with something? I need to get some things before tonight. Maybe if you and Oliver decide on your date night you could help me get it before it starts?”


    What?


    “I..” I muttered, not sure of my next words. Was she really serious right now? Had she somehow missed all of what had just happened, or was she just trying to intentionally ignore it? “I don’t think so.”


    “Why?” Sabrina’s eyebrows creased at the center. “I think it’s a great idea. All of them , maybe when hees back we can discuss more to find out the perfect one for…”


    “Excuse me.” I just couldn’t take it anymore. Without so much as another word, I pushed my te back and headed out of the dining room. In the history of all the lunches we’ve had, this just had to be the worst and most awkward of them all.


    By far.