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Oliver let out a guffaw. It was deep and booming.
“Are you saying that you are really hungry?”
Lillian unbuckled her seat belt and then shrugged. The ocean-blue jewels of her eyes were utterly smoldering.
“We will see about that,” she said with a sly grin.
They entered the pub, which was packed and loud. Oliver was greeted by the hostess, then heard a microphone booming over the eatery’s din.
“Welcome to couple’s trivia night! And here’s our alpha! Right on time! Everyone say hello to Oliver!”
Every single person inside the pub turned to them as they stood in the entryway and waved and sang out their hellos. Oliver wasn’t one to blush, but in that moment, he felt his face redden.
“I’m sorry. I didn't realize it was trivia night,” he said, smiling and waving. “We can go somewhere else if you want.”
To his surprise, Lillian adamantly shook her head. She was beaming.
“No, no, it's all good. This sounds fun. You also said that it is one of your favorite pubs, so I can’t possibly miss out on that.”
She had a brazen cheekiness to her that Oliver found compelling.
“Well, okay. Don’t say I didn't warn you.”
They were taken to his favorite table centered in the mix of the people. He had the option of a private table, but Lillian was excited by the prospect of the trivia game. They sat and ordered drinks just before the game kicked off.
Oliver watched Lillian the entire night. She was captivating. Her willingness to go with the flow and to take life as it came was enamoring. She was not a person who resisted much, and that in itself was rare and refreshing. She drank beer with him and spoke with the locals, a natural socialite.
The alpha recognized that it would be stupid to let Lillian go. But it still begged the question that was scratching against the back door of his mind … would she be willing to become possessed by him?
THIRTEEN
LILLIAN
It wasn’t officially a date, per se, but Lillian certainly got date-like vibes. It was thrilling, watching Oliver interact with every person who came by, treating them all with an equal level of respect and interest. It was a lot like going out for dinner with the mayor or a political candidate of sorts, except he was much more approachable and a hell of a lot sexier.
Lillian had never been in a long-term relationship. She had her flings, affairs, and dalliances. While they were sexy and fun in their own right, each of them had one thing in common. They fizzled out like burning coals in a rainstorm.
Passion was of the utmost importance to Lillian. And it could never be contained. Art was passion, sex was passion, and the desire to live an invigorating life was passion. Every inch of her soul was coated in that hungry will to live.
She realized long ago that very few men were going to live up to that caliber. Her friends told her she was far too idyllic and that she needed to come down to earth.
Lillian refused to give into that flat, mundane way of living. It was why her apartment was overflowing with art supplies, her clothing stained with a kaleidoscope of colors, and why every relationship sailed out to sea after only a few months.
Lillian wasn’t going to accept any less from some man who found her whimsical way of life far too fanciful. They could keep their suits and their capitalist ideals. She needed a man willing to completely unravel in front of her, even the ugly bits.
And Oliver wasn’t a man. He was a shifter, which was essentially a far more enhanced version of one. He had his prickly moments, but nothing she couldn't handle. It all stemmed from a place of passion … an eagerness to protect his people, a vigor to have things go his way.
That was what she wanted in a person. She needed someone to burn for her, to burn for life in the same way she did.
Watching Oliver that night, Lillian couldn’t help but daydream about a life together. All that fantastic sex. The interest and elation at commonplace occurrences of everyday interactions. His fierce protection of her. His adamant inclination to provide.
It brought something primal out of her that made her heart flutter like a hummingbird.
When trivia night was over, it was nearly midnight. Rain tapped against the pub window, and Oliver said his goodbyes to his people.
Thunder rumbled in the distance. Her head was still somewhat lost in the reverie when the rain fell harder. Oliver reminded her that Ronnetta would be accompanying her home.
That brought out the jagged edge of her vexation.
