Chapter 41: An Alpha’s Honor?

I furrowed my brow as the smoke drifted toward me. My nose twitched—it didn’t smell like normal tobacco. There was a sharp, medicinal underlying scent mixed in, cold and vaguely metallic.

"What’s that?" I asked, my eyes narrowing at the pale gray tendrils curling between us.

Benjamin glanced down at the lit tip, then back up at me, a sleepy flicker of surprise crossing his face. "Hm... seems you noticed."

He took a short drag, letting the faint vapor linger before blowing it away from the table. "It’s a specialized wolf suppressant. Supposed to numb my senses and settle my wolf down. Uncle had it made specifically for me, so the scent doesn’t affect or suppress other wolves around me." He let out a dry, mirthless chuckle. "Though it barely works as it should now since my wolf has gotten used to it. It dulls the edge for a few minutes, but after that, I’m right back to trying to shut out the noise."

He rested his chin on his palm, his purple eyes looking heavy as he tapped his ashes into the tray.

"That’s why I sleep most of the time. I sleep because I don’t want to hear the noise. The wolves out there are always whimpering so loudly—there’s not a single drop of discipline among them. It makes my head feel like it’s going to explode."

He paused, tapping his ashes into a tray. "Around Uncle’s assisstant, though... It’s quiet. He’s mostly silent, so I often wonder if he even has a wolf at all."

My mind flashed back to Oliver, the Gamma I had briefly encountered. A Gamma of his caliber would naturally have extreme mental discipline, I reasoned silently. His wolf wouldn’t be wildly projecting its scent or presence like an untrained mutt.

"And you don’t have a wolf," Benjamin continued, his sleepy gaze locking onto mine. "Maybe that’s why it’s so quiet around you even though everything else about you is noisy. I’ve never stayed out this late without wanting to tear someone’s throat out. The noise outside usually dulls my senses and gives me a massive headache. But I guess as long as the person next to me isn’t making a racket in my brain, it doesn’t matter."

He took another drag, his voice dropping into a low, gravelly hum. "My wolf’s pressure is too high. All those weak, undisciplined wolves around us are constantly whimpering in fear or broadcasting their useless emotions. It’s infuriating. But you... you’re just silent."

This guy has been talking way too much, I thought, staring at his tired, cigarette-haloed face across the polished wood. I asked him one thing, and he spilled twenty. Should I be satisfied with the information or actually feel worried for him?

Seeing how pathetic and tormented by his own senses he was, he didn’t seem so imposing or hateable anymore.

I let out a soft sigh. This body is making me soft. That’s the only reason I’m intervening in his helpless situation. I’ll bless this ignorant child with my knowledge.

"Hey," I called out, leaning back, and resting my chin on my palm. "If having a silent wolf nearby helps to some degree, have you ever thought of having an Omega companion? An assistant? Someone to be by your side at all times to help settle the noise around you? Because that’s basically how it’s working right now, isn’t it?"

Benjamin’s eyes widened. He blinked at me as if the concept had never once crossed his mind.

I scoffed internally. Typical. Alpha pride ran so deep they instinctively looked down on Omegas, so he had probably never even entertained the thought of relying on one.

"That’s it!" he suddenly yelped, slamming his hands flat onto the table.

CLACK!

The sudden impact rattled the glass vase sitting in the middle of the table, water sloshing over the brim. A few young nobles in the far corner turned around, whispering in shock.

Wow, who was being noisy now?

"You!" Benjamin declared loudly, pointing a finger right at my face and I frowned. Me, what? "I’ll give you the honor of being my companion! So hurry up and thank me for the honor."

A thick, pulsing irk mark practically formed on my forehead. This time, there was no hiding my annoyance. My jaw tightened, and my eyes narrowed into cold, lethal slits.

This guy... I am definitely going to kill him.

But just as I was calculating the cleanest angle to snap his neck, the waiter arrived, setting down heavy, silver-domed platters. The dome was lifted, revealing a thick, sizzled cut of premium beef dripping in rich garlic butter sauce.

The intoxicating aroma hit my nose, and my stomach let out a low, desperate rumble.

A hungry wolf is an angry wolf, as they say. My gaze locked onto the steak, and the killer instinct instantly evaporated into thin air.

Fine. I’ll forgive his audacity this time.

Without waiting for him or saying another word, I picked up my knife and fork and dove straight in.

I didn’t bother using proper table manners. I sliced straight through the thick, tender cut of beef and shoved a large piece into my mouth.

The rich, savory juice burst across my tongue, garlic butter and seared meat coating my palate in a way that made my eyes close in brief bliss.

For a girl who had choked down a dry piece of bread for breakfast, this felt like a divine blessing.

Goddess, this is good.

Across the table, Benjamin stared at me, his hand still frozen mid-air where he had been pointing at my face. His eyes blinked slowly, his unhinged, arrogant declaration completely suspended in the silence between us.

He lowered his hand inch by inch, resting his jaw in his palm as he watched me practically inhale the entire steak.

"You’re eating like you haven’t seen meat in years," he drawled softly, a faint, lazy twitch at the corner of his lips. "Did you even hear what I said?"

I chewed, swallowed, and casually sliced off another huge piece without looking up from my plate.

"I heard you," I said, my tone as flat as an iron board. "And my answer is a big, fat NO."

Benjamin tilted his head, his eyebrows pulling together in genuine, sleepy confusion. "No? What do you mean, no? Is ’no’ all you know how to say? I just offered you a position as my companion. Do you have any idea how many Omegas in the territory would kill for that kind of protection?"