After dinner, per Mindy's request, Mindy and Talia went to Mindy's room.
Since Mindy said that guys were not welcome, Damon and Maddox headed to the entertainment room to catch up over drinks while two girls were doing whatever Mindy had on her mind.
Caden and Maya went into their room.
They all agreed to meet up later so that they can go to Shifters nightclub together.
Talia was happy to leave the dining room because Dawn and Zina were serving food and both Omegas were unable to conceal their inquisitive gazes at the sight of Talia and Damon sitting next to each other and holding hands.
Dawn and Zina knew that there is something between their Alpha and Talia. After all, the duo was acting suspiciously, and they also appeared in the WW Magazine for everyone to see. However, the fact that Talia and Alpha were so intimate with each other even now, meant that they are an item. Officially. That was a big deal because Alpha Damon was not official with any other woman before.
Dawn and Zina couldn't wait to get more information from the source itself (aka Talia).
Talia was painfully aware that Dawn and Zina were hoping to catch her for interrogation the moment Damon is not in sight, but she wanted to avoid that as long as possible. Maybe until forever.
When Talia and Mindy got inside Mindy's room, Mindy was pleased to see that Omegas kept her suitcase in the closet, and they arranged boxes with presents for Talia on the coffee table to form a pyramid, just how Mindy instructed them.
"These are for you.", Mindy announced proudly.
Talia's eyes moved over a small mountain of boxes. She never saw so many presents in one place. "Which one is mine?"
Mindy giggled. "All of them, silly." She approached the table and took one square-shaped box that was larger than her palm. "OK. This one is for Alpha Damon, but the rest is for you."
"You really…" Talia had no idea how to respond other than, "I can't accept this."
Mindy rolled her eyes. "Please. This is not the first time for me to come here, and last time I didn't bring you anything so I'm making up for it. Don't think I will come as Santa Claus every time. Don't hurt my feelings by rejecting the presents I painstakingly picked."
Mindy didn't painstakingly pick anything. She just swept through several brand-name stores and got their latest products.
Seeing that Mindy was eagerly waiting for Talia to start checking out the presents, Talia took the box from Mindy's hand and after removing the wrapper, she could read "Rolex" which was written in golden letters on a dark green box.
Inside was a Rolex oyster perpetual cosmograph Daytona 18k yellow gold men's wristwatch that was impressive with golden and deep green colors, and it sparkled in a way that told Talia it's expensive beyond belief.
"What do you think? Will Damon like it?", Mindy asked.
"The watch is beautiful. I'm sure he will like it.", Talia said honestly.
"Great!", Mindy exclaimed with glee. "I'm glad you think it's beautiful because you have a matching one."
Talia helplessly accepted the next box that Mindy picked from the pile. It was a square-shaped box, larger than Mindy's palm, and Talia guessed that inside was a matching Rolex watch. And she was not wrong.
About a dozen present openings later…
Talia was sitting on the sofa, absolutely flustered. Other than two Rolex watches, there was jewelry, a purse which probably cost more than all the jewelry combined, a silky bathrobe with matching fluffy slippers, a set of luxurious toiletries, and a variety of imported snacks that came with professionally paired wine.
Among all those things, Talia was flabbergasted by a women's self-care kit that included bathing salt, a playlist of slow songs for relaxing, a sponge, scented candles, a bottle of wine, facemasks, lotions, a lubricant, and a dildo.
Talia paid special attention to the bottle of wine. It had a yellow label with many details that resembled a vineyard and it said 'Far Niente Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon'.
With this one, Talia counted that Mindy gave her a total of seven bottles of wine, and Talia deducted that wine is a must-have for females. Should she try drinking it?
"The sales associate told me this is popular.", Mindy explained when she saw that Talia was carefully examining the contents of the box. Mindy was pleased because every item was from a high-end brand.
"What is this?", Talia asked when her attention was drawn to the purple dildo.
She took it in both hands and saw that silicone was somewhat bendable.
Mindy giggled. "With Alpha Damon giving you company, I assume you won't need that."
Talia's confused expression told Mindy that Talia didn't understand.
Mindy eyed Talia suspiciously. "You are kidding, right? Tell me you are kidding. You really don't know what that is?"
Talia blinked. She really didn't know.
"It's to help yourself when there is no man to satisfy your needs. Or you can use it in addition to your man. I mean, we have two holes down there.", Mindy said, and her eyes darted toward Talia's crotch area.
One second passed in silence… two… three… and then Talia's eyes widened in realization, and she swiftly kept the purple thing back in the box, like she burned herself.
What did she just hold? And she even bent it a little!
Mindy burst into a fit of giggles that produced small snorty sounds. Talia's expression was comical.
Talia's embarrassment turned into dejection. "Did you buy this to make fun of me?"
"No, no…", Mindy said while catching her breath.
Other than the saleswoman's pitch how that was the most popular self-care kit for women, MIndy didn't check the details. But Mindy didn't want to admit that to Talia because she previously said how she 'painstakingly' picked presents.
"Sorry.", Mindy said when she calmed down. "I had no intention to make fun of you. To be honest, considering your relationship with Alpha Damon, I would assume that you are more… experienced."
Talia pressed her lips into a line. Yes, she entangled her body with Alpha Damon's many times, but her lack of experience was showing. Actually, every time Alpha Damon would be on top or would hold her upright, and he was the one doing things while Talia would be on the receiving end.
Now that Talia thought about it, there was no variety, but even if she wanted to try out something different, she didn't know what that 'different' might be.
Mindy was an obvious person who could provide Talia with information related to those topics, but Talia was too shy to ask, so she closed the box and kept it on the table, together with many others.
"Thank you, for all this. I am overwhelmed. I don't know if I will ever be able to repay…"
"No!", Mindy cut her off sharply. "I didn't give you any of this because I am expecting something in return. I admit, maybe I got carried away while shopping, but I never did anything halfheartedly and I have no regrets."
Mindy scooted closer to Talia on the sofa and took her hand between hers.
"I'm glad you like the presents.", Mindy said and patted Talia's hand before getting to the point, "How are you doing?"
Talia's eyes moved to the presents. "Did you buy me those so that I loosen up and talk?"
Mindy cocked an eyebrow at Talia. "I got you those because I can afford them, because I wanted to come with presents, and because we are friends. Are we friends?"
Talia didn't need to think much about the answer to this one.
They met only recently, but Mindy and Talia shared fun moments at the Summer Solstice festival, they had a few heartfelt chats, Mindy had Talia's back when Marcy and Nora approached her, and they spoke on the phone and kept in touch... Isn't that what friends are?
"We are.", Talia said, and Mindy's face broke into a genuine smile that warmed Talia's heart.
Talia knew that Mindy noticed the intimacy between her and Damon, and Talia guessed that Mindy's 'how are you doing' is mostly related to Damon.
Talia told herself that people will find out one way or another, and she wanted her few friends to find out first.
"Can you keep a secret?", Talia asked, and Mindy's eyes widened. A secret!
"You can tell me anything, dear.", Mindy said enthusiastically. "My lips are sealed."
Talia inhaled forcibly before spilling the beans.
"Damon and I are mates."
Mindy froze for a moment and then responded a bit stiffly, "Congratulations, dear."
"You don't seem surprised.", Talia voiced her thoughts.
Mindy gave Talia a smug smirk. "A guy like Alpha Damon stopped chasing skirts and gave his exclusive attention to you. I suspected it at the Summer Solstice festival, and at Lina's party it became more obvious, but I still needed confirmation."
"And you don't seem delighted with the news either.", Talia said the second half of her observation.
Mindy didn't deny it. "Don't get me wrong. Finding a mate is once in a lifetime and you should accept it with your arms open wide and enjoy every minute of it even if you know it will last forever. However, being Alpha's mate means you will become his Luna. Your choices are to accept the role or for him to abandon his pack, and the mate bond won't allow you to harm him, so you will sacrifice your dreams in order to stay by his side."
