Chapter 166: Not So Pregnant

Lorali

Tariq froze. The suave, dashing smile slid off his face so fast it almost gave me whiplash. "What?"

"Oh, you know," I gasped delicately, reaching up to unbutton the top of my high-collared winter coat. "It’s just getting so hot in here!" I pulled the coat open, revealing a distinctly rounded, protruding stomach beneath my fitted sweater. I reached down and bounced my hands lightheartedly over the lump.

It was a silicone prosthetic belly I had strapped on in the restaurant bathroom fifteen minutes ago. But the sheer, mortified terror draining the color from Tariq’s face made every second of wearing it worth it. Alphas were territorial creatures, they were notorious for being brutally un-welcoming to a child that didn’t carry their own pack’s bloodline.

Right on cue, two large hands slammed violently down onto the table, making the water glasses rattle. Tariq jumped half an inch out of his seat, snapping his head up.

Standing right beside our table was Erin. He wore a dark leather jacket, his hair artistically tousled, his jaw set in a posture of utter, devastating heartbreak.

"Love!" Erin wailed softly, his voice carrying clearly across the quiet, high-end dining room. "How could you?! How could you leave me with our unborn baby? How could you run away with our child and come on a date with this... this man?!"

I put a hand over my heart, looking up at Erin with melted, apologetic eyes. "Oh, my dear bakaboo, don’t you worry! This wonderful man was just telling me about his vast fortune! He is going to give our baby a glorious future, and I am sure he is open-minded enough to let you join his pack as well!"

Erin turned his dark eyes toward Tariq, looking at the stunned alpha with desperate, hopeful eyes. I looked at Tariq too, flashing him a huge, expectant beam.

"You want him to join your pack, right, Alpha?" I cooed, reaching across the table to grab Tariq’s paralyzed, frozen hand. "Don’t leave! Me, my alpha, and our unborn baby want to be in your pack! Don’t you want to accept all three of us and give us all your diamonds and emeralds? I mean, my alpha’s child would make a perfect heir for you!"

An heir without the blood of the pack would literally NEVER happen, I laughed in my head, struggling so hard to keep a straight face as Tariq began to sweat profusely. An alpha taking in another man’s kid as their primary heir? Unheard of. Honestly, it makes me wonder what the reaction would be if Torin’s family ever found out that Torin wasn’t actually blood-related to any of the alpha’s of that pack. It would be absolute, catastrophic chaos.

Tariq practically tore his hand out of my grip, yanked his silk napkin off his lap, and stumbled backward out of his chair.

"I... I have to make a call," Tariq stammered, his beard twitching as he looked at Erin, then at my fake belly, then back at Erin. "I will... I will be in contact with you guys!"

Without waiting for a response, the mighty Alpha of the Sun-Gilded Dune Pack turned on his heel and literally jogged out of the restaurant, pushing through the glass doors so fast he nearly knocked over a waiter.

As soon as the doors swung shut behind him, Erin and I turned to each other and burst into loud laughter, clapping our hands together in a high-five.

"Did it again!" I wheezed, leaning back in my chair and wiping a tear of mirth from the corner of my eye.

Erin grabbed an empty chair from the adjacent table, turning it around and sliding smoothly into it across from me. "Man, we are getting way too good at this."

Over the past month, Erin had become my absolute partner in crime when it came to scaring off Walter’s endless stream of suiters. At first, when Walter started scheduling these dates, I had just avoided going altogether. But then I realized that constantly flaking was boring and only fueling Walter more. So, I pivoted. I decided to actually show up to the dates, and completely turn them into a chaotic circus.

It had become my favorite stress-free hobby. It got better and better every single time, with Erin and I concocting increasingly wild storylines to see how fast we could make these pompous alphas run.

Last week, we pretended I was an escaped madwoman from a mental asylum, and that Erin was my obsessive stalker who had tracked me to the restaurant. The guy left so fast he forgot his umbrella. Two weeks ago, Astrid had gotten involved; she and I sat across from some snobbish Delta and pretended that we shared a single, split-personality omega soul that existed simultaneously in two bodies. It made zero logical sense, but the guy looked so terrified of our "omega mind-link" that he literally claimed he had a family emergency and practically sprinted to his car.

I reached beneath my sweater, unbuckling the straps of the silicone prosthetic, and pulled the fake stomach out from under my shirt.

A young waiter who was walking by with a tray of wine glasses caught sight of me pulling a giant skin-toned rubber belly out of my clothes. His eyes went wide as saucers, his jaw dropping in absolute horror. I offered him a bright, cheerful wave, tossing the fake belly casually onto the empty seat beside me. The waiter turned around and practically ran back into the kitchen.

Watching the fake belly sit on the chair instantly brought a hysterical memory back to my mind.

God, I remember when Torin wore a fake belly, I thought, giggling quietly to myself.

A while back, Torin had told Arabella I was pregnant, so to make the lie believable, he had literally forced me to strap on a fake belly for Vanya’s engagement because she’d be there, but it obviously didn’t work cause Ella is many things and dumb isn’t one of them.

"Man," Erin sighed, leaning his elbows on the table and looking at the empty spot where Tariq’s glass sat. "We really should have gotten some actual diamonds or emeralds out of that guy before he bolted. He looked rich enough to drop a ruby just to get away from us."

"Right?!" I laughed, adjusting my sweater. "Missed financial opportunity."

Erin picked up the leather-bound menu Tariq had left behind. "You want to order some real food? Because I am starving."

"Oh, absolutely," I said, rolling my eyes. "That jerk ordered a dry garden salad for me before I even sat down. A salad. I’d rather die."

Erin signaled the same terrified young waiter, who cautiously crept back over to our table, trembling slightly as he took our orders. I asked for a massive plate of rich, creamy garlic-parmesan pasta, while Erin ordered a full prime-rib steak meal.

Once the waiter hurried away with our menus, I leaned back, looking around the intimate, dim lighting of the restaurant.

"You know," I mused, flashing Erin a smirk, "this really feels like a date. If Torin saw us sitting here right now, he would completely lose his mind."

Erin grinned, shaking his head. "Oh, I am sure he would. The man’s blood pressure would hit the roof." He pushed his chair back and stood up. "Hold that thought, I need to use the restroom real quick."

"Go ahead," I nodded. As Erin walked off toward the back hallway, my phone buzzed loudly against the tablecloth. I picked it up and saw Scarlett’s name flashing across the screen.

I tapped the screen and brought the phone to my ear. "Hey, Scarlett! What’s up?"

"LORALI!" Scarlett’s voice practically exploded through the speaker, so loud I had to pull the phone an inch away from my ear. "Guess what?!"

"What?" I asked, sitting up straighter, infected by her sudden spike of energy. "What happened?"

"You are going to be in the main New Year’s national ad campaign for Royale Activewear!" Scarlett shrieked happily.

My jaw dropped. "WHAT?!"

"YES!" Scarlett cheered. "You’re in! Lorali, this is the biggest commercial endorsement deal you have EVER gotten! I am staring at the draft contract right now, this ad alone is paying five hundred thousand!"

"$500,000?!" I gasped, gripping the phone tight. "Scarlett, are you serious?!"

"Dead serious! Half a million! And guess who your co-star is going to be?"

I blinked. "A co-star? Who?"

"You are going to be co-starring alongside Walter!" Scarlett squealed. "Isn’t this insane?! The agency said you two together represent the absolute peak of the new generation of omega’s!"

My brain momentarily short-circuited. "I’m... I’m going to be with Walter in a national ad?!"

"Yes! You and Walter!" Scarlett babbled excitedly. "It’s going to broadcast on every major network on New Year’s Eve!"

This is insane! My heart was pounding against my ribs, a rush of joy washing over me. Oh, this is amazing! This day could not possibly get any better!

"Scarlett, you are an absolute legend," I said, a massive smile breaking across my face. "Thank you so much!"

"Go celebrate! I’ll email you the shoot dates tomorrow!" Scarlett said before hanging up.

I set the phone down on the table just as Erin walked back from the hallway, sliding back into his seat. He took one look at my face and raised an eyebrow.

"Wow," Erin remarked, smiling slightly. "You look extremely happy. What happened?"

"I am!" I practically bounced in my seat. "Guess who just booked a massive New Year’s national commercial campaign for Royale Activewear?"

Erin’s eyes lit up. "No way! Lorali, that’s huge!"

"Right?!" I grinned wildly. "And guess who my co-star is? Walter!"

Erin let out a low whistle, clearly impressed. "Wow... that really is great, Lorali. I’m genuinely so happy for you. Man, we should cheers to that!"

"Yeah, we definitely should!" I agreed instantly.

Erin looked around for a waiter. "Should I order us a glass of champagne?" I waved my hand in the air, chuckling softly. "Oh, no, no. I’m laying off the alcohol for a while. My skin has been getting so flaky lately from the ridiculous amount of scent-masking cream I’ve been using every day."

Erin paused, his eyebrows pulling together in mild confusion. "Oh... I thought you were bonded? Bonded omegas don’t really need scent-masking cream, when they drink, they’re scent doesn’t get all crazy when they drink alcohol."

My smile faltered for a fraction of a second before I smoothed it over with a dismissive wave. "Oh, well... my bond didn’t set right. It’s... a whole complicated, messy thing. I really don’t want to get into it right now."

I didn’t want to think about Spade Pack right now. Today was a good day. Today was my day.

"Anyway!" I said quickly, changing the subject with a bright smile. "Can you accompany me to my friend’s ceremony this weekend? I think it’s her Sangeet."

Erin grinned, leaning back in his chair with a dramatic, sweeping bow of his head. "It would be my absolute honor, milady."

I giggled. "I’m pretty sure Torin is going to completely kill me when he finds out you’re coming with me."

"Oh, without a doubt," Erin chuckled.

"Whatever," I snorted, tossing my hair over my shoulder as the waiter finally approached our table carrying our piping-hot plates of food. "Torin needs to come down off his high horse anyway. The view from up there is clearly impairing his judgment."

Erin laughed loudly, picking up his fork. "True to that."

I picked up my fork, diving into my creamy pasta with a huge smile, letting the warmth of the restaurant and the excitement of my future completely wash away the cold.