The Alpha King's Chosen

4

The Dinner

Serena made her way down the hallway, following the other candidates, making their way back to the dining hall.

Earlier after brunch, each had been led to their individual rooms, by a staff member. Entering her room, she held in a gasp, the room was the size of her cottage. And the design was elegantly modern, nothing close to the antique castle they currently presided in, everything brought up to date. The bed was large and centered, with modern sleek lines, a seating near the windows, two doors on either side of the bed. The colours a mix of cream, pink and dark furniture. All blending seamlessly together. And at the center of the room stood two young women, almost identical and similarly dressed, she assumed these were the maids.

"Good day, Ma'am." They said in unison, curtsying before her.

Feeling uncomfortable and not one to stand on formalities. Serena moved forward, a gentle smile on her face, extending her hand out for a handshake. "Hello, please to meet you. Please call me Serena. Calling me Ma'am, only wants me to look over my shoulder and see if my mother is there." She gently chided, "May I please know your names."

Both girls looked at each other, unsure. They had been taught to respect authority, yet this woman before them, was giving them permission to talk freely.

"Please, it would make me extremely happy if we became friends. I understand if you are worried about getting into trouble. So, why don't we compromise. In privacy I'm just Serena and in public you can call me Ma'am." Understanding the girls reservations.

Looking back at each other, they came to the same conclusion, " I'm Millie and that's Tillie." One of the girls moved forward, taking Serena's hand, shaking it enthusiastically. Tillie moved forward timidly, shaking Serena's hand quickly, barely a brush. "We are twins, Tillie is rather shy, barely says anything. You are different, previous candidates always ordered us around, hardly acknowledging us."

"Well, I'm just plain Serena, where I come from, the pack don't treat me so highly, I'm just a worker, like you." Serena said, letting them know, that she wasn't anyone special.

"You have to be special, you wouldn't be here, if that wasn't the case." Tillie whispered, fearful that Serena would lash out, hiding behind Millie.

"To be honest, I'm here only because I made a promise to my Nana and because she was a close friend of our former alpha, he added me to the list. Otherwise I wouldn't be here, truthfully I'd given up of finding my mate. But out of respect for them, I'm here. So, I'm not holding up hope of being chosen. I'm doing this without much enthusiasm, I'd rather be at home, tending to my garden and watching over the pack kids." Serena commented.

After that, the nervous air around them lifted. Serena and the girls got comfortable with each other. The girls confident in getting her ready for dinner and Serena quietly sat down, surrendering to their ministrations. Not wanting to upset them, though she did grumble here or there, when something was too over the top for her, though she voiced it in a respectful kind of manner.

So, here she was, walking to the dining hall, looking at the other candidates, she felt underdressed, most the women were dressed in flashy designs, sparkling from top to bottom. Sara's dress was the most eye-catching, clinging to her curves, parts of her skin showing. Her jewelry just as much and in your face type of richness. Katie and Marie were in equally beautiful dresses, though theirs was elegant, sparkling as they moved along. The two shy women, who she learned were Tabitha and Mandy, were also dressed in sparkling dresses.

Serena looked down at her dress, she had a bit of sparkle, the dress was a light blue, with a shimmering of silver, the straps were small diamonds, her waistline just under her breasts, the material flowing down in cascades of silk. Her shoe's were ballet slippers, she drew the line on heels, she was tired after standing and all she wanted was comfort, perhaps at the next formal event she might consider heels. Her hair had been elegantly tied up to a neat bun, with wisps of curls framing her face, her makeup was minimalistic, compared to the others. She wore small diamond studs, a simple chain, with a simple diamond pendant and a charm bracelet. 

Reaching the doors, two valets stood on either side, opening the double doors for them as they approached. The women entered one by one, as someone announced each individual. Of course Sara had to be first.

Mateo sat at the head of the table, on either side was his Beta and Delta and their mates. His parents and siblings seated nearby. The main table had been arranged in a strategic place, giving him full view of the doors, allowing him to view each candidate as they entered.

The first to enter, was a blonde, confident as she walked in, her dress so tight fitting, he wondered if she could breath, "It's a wonder she can walk!" Rocco whispered, expressing out what Mateo was too respectful to say.

Hiding his laugh behind a cough, "It's too soon to judge." Neo reprimanded, trying to remain serious.

"Lady Sara." The staff member announced.

Mateo watched as Sara moved forward, swaying her hips, trying to seduce every male within the vicinity, she approached his table, curtsying low, hoping to attract attention to her breasts, her face lifted demurely, looking innocently at Mateo.

Mateo gave a curt nod, if this was the beginning of the lineup, he was already giving up hope. So far he wasn't impressed. The next six candidates entered, each looking less and less promising. Perhaps one or two might, like Katie or Mandy, but nobody so far pulled at his senses. But like Neo said, it was early days to judge...

"Lady Serena." The member announced.

"Wow!" Leah, Neo's mate exclaimed.

"You can say that again." Mara spoke, agreeing with Leah.

Both Neo and Rocco agreed.

Mateo was too stunned to formulate words. The vision before him was angelic. The way she walked towards him was like she floated on air, reaching him she curtsied, looking up at him, their gazes locked, everything and everyone around them disappeared. Her blue eyed gaze was bewitching, drawing him in. Somebody nudged him, breaking him from his trance. Remembering where he was, he forced himself to remain aloof and cold. Just because Serena looked like an angel and made his heart pound faster, he wasn't going to fall for her, past experience taught him a hard lesson.

Straightening in his seat, he gave the same curt nod, as he had given the other candidates, keeping his emotions in check, watching fascinated as a blush appeared across Serena's cheeks, but her eye's held a spark of defiance, like she hated admitting the attraction that passed between them.

Tilting her head into a stubborn slant, she forcibly acknowledged his nod with one of her own. Smiling at everyone else around the table, she turned, barely making eye contact with Mateo again and moved towards the table allocated to her.

"Now that was intense. You could actually feel the sexual attraction from here." Rocco joked. Grunting when Mara poked him in his ribs.

Mateo glared at his friend, wishing he hadn't intervened earlier, when Neo wanted to throttle him.

"Quit it Rocco. You're not helping." Neo remarked.

"What? I'm only stating a fact, we all could clearly see that Mateo was interested. I bet he already has made his choice." Rocco stated with confidence, sitting back, crossing his arms, smirking.

Taking in a fortifying deep breath, Mateo responded, "Too soon to decide, I've been previously duped by my emotions. This isn't any guarantee. Time will tell."

Determination set in his mind, watching as the next two candidates entered, refusing to look in Serena's direction.