Damon left with Maddox and Axel in order to attend meetings with other Alphas in the packhouse.
Neither of the three men was willing to leave.
Damon wanted to stick close to Talia, and Maddox and Axel wanted the same, for different reasons.
Both Maddox and Axel had their agenda why they wanted to get close to Talia, yet Damon showed up and hogged Talia's attention during the whole lunch.
Maddox and Axel understood that if they want to get close to Talia, they need to remove Damon as a variable.
Mindy was not eligible to attend the meeting because she is not an Alpha (or a future Alpha). She didn't want to linger in the boring packhouse when there was a festival going on, so she stayed behind.
When Damon took the trophy, Talia also gave him the bag with the jersey and pins. The only thing she kept for herself was the insulated bag that Stephanie prepared for her.. Talia was confident that she will get to eat that food, eventually.
Talia wanted to join the table where Keith and others were, but she felt awkward about leaving Mindy behind, so she offered, "Do you want to walk around the festival with us?"
Instead of answering, Mindy asked, "Can I have a minute with you?"
"Sure.", Talia said and gestured to Keith to wait. He was on his feet, about to approach Talia.
Keith, Lulu, Sandy, Pierce, Liam, and Caleb were full of questions for Talia related to her previous situation of having lunch with three Alphas at the table. Yes, Mindy is also famous, but she is more like a celebrity princess, while Damon, Maddox, and Axel are rulers worthy of everyone's awe and respect.
As soon as Talia sat at the table, Mindy asked bluntly. "What's up with you and Alpha?"
"Which one?", Talia had to ask.
Mindy stifled a laugh. "Exactly. Why are three Alphas fighting for your attention?"
Well, it was not unusual for Alphas to pick up female companions, but there are plenty of attractive females willing to entertain them; Mindy counted at least a dozen women stealing glances at their table at any given moment.
The lower ranking she-wolves won't dare to approach an Alpha openly without permission, but looking from afar is enough to let the Alpha know that the woman is willing. For any Alpha, the pool of bedmate candidates is always versatile, and Alphas don't fight over one woman. That's beneath them.
Sure, Talia is cute and everything, but she is not a pheromone-releasing bombshell that would make guys go crazy.
The only time an Alpha would be set on a female is if she is his mate, or it could be a matter of pride, and considering that Axel and Maddox just met Talia and didn't interact with her previously, while neither of the three Alphas acted smitten like Talia was his mate… Mindy was confused.
Mindy leaned closer and continued in a whisper, "What's going on? Don't tell me that three Alphas ended up at the same table, trying to impress you, accidentally."
Talia thought that Mindy was exaggerating. She had no idea why Axel and Maddox followed her for lunch, and she didn't know why Damon appeared unexpectedly either, but Mindy was obviously determined to get some answers, so Talia responded, "It's not a secret that I came to this pack recently. Alpha Damon is kind enough to make sure I'm adapting well, as for Alpha Maddox and Axel, I really don't know. Maybe they wanted to gather information related to the team spirit so that their teams can do something similar."
Mindy looked at Talia while wondering if Talia is an idiot or if she thinks that Mindy is an idiot. She could describe Damon with many words, but kind is not one of them. And why would Maddox and Axel want to make their soccer players go through a ridiculous hand-kissing ritual before a game?
Talia squirmed under Mindy's penetrating gaze, and she regretted offering Mindy to join them for the afternoon. Maybe Mindy will reject Talia's offer, but before that, Talia wanted to clarify, "Don't worry, I know my place. I'm not deluded to think that any of them would be romantically interested in me."
Mindy's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. "Is that what you are thinking?"
"No. That's what I'm NOT thinking.", Talia clarified. "If you want to pursue Alpha Damon or anyone else, you are free to do so."
Mindy made a face like she smelled something bad. "Who would pursue that arrogant guy?"
Talia didn't like that Mindy called Damon arrogant. Sure, he has a temper, but he is also kind and righteous. Talia never saw Damon flaunting his status or power. OK. Maybe he did that when they were in the human hospital, but he did it because Talia was mistreated right in front of him. Any Alpha would see that as indirect disrespect to him, so Damon's actions were justified.
Why did Mindy talk like Damon was not a good person?
"Alpha Damon is the unmated Alpha of the largest pack in North America.", Talia stated facts. "Don't all women want to be his Luna?"
"You are contradicting yourself, Talia. You said that you are not interested, but now you said that all women want to be his Luna. Which one is it?", Mindy asked with a victorious smirk, and she continued before Talia could respond, "Besides, I have no desire to be his Luna. I have nothing specifically against Alpha Damon, my dislike is about Alphas in general."
Talia was confused. "Isn't your bother an Alpha?"
"Yeeeaaah…", Mindy said dramatically. "And no matter how awesome my future sister-in-law will be, she will be reduced to be the Luna of the Blue River pack, the wife of Alpha Maddox. Do you see where I'm going with this?"
"No.", Talia admitted.
Mindy thought for a moment before explaining, "I am Mindy River, whoever read the WW magazine knows that I'm behind many charities that help werewolves who are in a difficult situation. But other than that, I'm close to getting my college degree, I love playing video games, I want to travel the world, and I have many other aspirations, yet if I become a Luna, everything I did, and all my future plans will be wiped away the moment I take on my new role that is completely defined by my husband-to-be. I find that… unsettling."
Talia nodded in understanding. "So, you don't want to be a Luna?"
Mindy shrugged. "When I imagine my future, I see a guy who will worship me without trying to fit me into a mold he created for me. That's why I will marry only one guy, and that will be my fated mate, regardless of what his standing is. I'm not an innocent girl who saves herself for marriage, but I know that playing with Alphas doesn't bring anything good, because they are the ones playing, while females are treated as playthings."
Mindy saw that Talia was frowning, so she clarified, "I'm not talking randomly. Just like any other unmated Alpha, my brother left a long trail of broken hearts behind him, and I refuse to be a notch on the bedpost no matter how expensive or flashy that bedpost is."
Talia gaped at Mindy while processing her words. She said so many things! But Talia understood that Mindy is a confident woman who knows what she wants.
In a stark contrast compared to Talia, Mindy was born as part of an Alpha family, and she grew up with all the riches one could wish for, yet Mindy was just like Talia, wanting independence and to be in charge of her destiny.
Talia respected that.
Talia looked at Mindy and thought how this was silly. Yesterday, Talia couldn't wait to put distance between her and Mindy, yet here are they now, at the same table, just the two of them, having a casual talk, like equals. Friends, maybe.
"You are a crafty one, aren't you?"
Mindy's question confused Talia.
"What?"
"I was asking you about your relationships, yet you managed to turn it around and I ended up talking about myself."
"That was not my intention.", Talia said. Why was it her fault that Mindy was chatty?
"But that's what you did.", Mindy said. "It's only fair that you return the favor and tell me something about yourself."
It's not that Talia was not willing, but talking about the Red Moon pack and her time in the attic was prohibited. She didn't want to get Alpha Damon in trouble.
"There is nothing much to say."
"There must be something.", Mindy persisted.
Talia gave up. She had a story ready anyway. "I grew up with my grandparents, isolated. When they passed, I went to find somewhere to live because it was hard to survive on my own, and Alpha Damon was kind enough to offer me a place in his pack."
Mindy made a face. There was that word 'kind' again. Mindy is not close to Damon, but the rumors about him are consistent: Damon doesn't care about women for more than one night. Besides, when a pack accepts new members, there are channels to put them through, yet in Talia's case, Damon was involved personally.
How can Mindy not be curious?
