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Normally, they would spend the day together, but Damon had several things to handle outside the packhouse, and considering that Talia was making arrangements as the host for their guests, it was inevitable that they will spend some time apart.

"Rose will wait for you after breakfast to get instructions about the rooms.", Damon told Talia.

Damon could feel Talia's displeasure at the mentioning of Rose, but unless Talia spoke up, he was determined to push Rose in front of Talia. He was hoping that Talia will tell him what's wrong with Rose, but she just sighed with a "Fine".

"If something is bothering you, you can tell me.", Damon urged her.

Talia didn't want to tell him about her interaction with Rose. Actually, other than being nosy and scarcely dressed, Rose didn't do anything wrong. Sure, that irked Talia, but she didn't want to nitpick.

"I was just thinking about Lisa.", Talia diverted the topic.

"What about her?"

"I'm sure that she is uncomfortable with Tony and Lina coming here." Talia looked up at Damon. "You said that you will talk to her."

Damon made a face. He really didn't want to talk to Lisa, but he promised to Talia so… "After breakfast, I need to do rounds with warriors. It should be done within an hour and after that, I will talk to Lisa. Or after lunch. Today, definitely."

"Are you procrastinating?", Talia asked in a teasing voice.

"Me? No. I'm just... prioritizing.", Damon responded matter-of-factly. "Soothing Lisa's heartbreak is not on my list of important tasks, but I know that you want to avoid drama when Tony and Kalina come so I will talk to her today."

Talia's heart was moved. He was doing it for her. Can he be any sweeter?

Damon thought how Talia was adorable, thinking about the comfort of others, like a real Luna she is.

"You shouldn't worry too much about Lisa. She will get over it. After all, she is young with plenty of time to find her mate, and until then, Lisa has a loving mother, and all the resources she wants."

"But she doesn't have Tony.", Talia said.

"You are talking like you know how it feels to be dumped."

Damon frowned while thinking that someone would dare to dump Talia. And then his frown deepened at the thought that Talia had a romantic interest. Damon felt an urge to spill the blood of Talia's imaginary ex-boyfriend.

Talia was not sure why Damon was frowning, so she quickly explained, "I don't know how it feels to be dumped, but I know that it's easy to get used to good things in life. You might think that Lisa will look at her situation objectively, but she is hurt, and the only thing she can think of is what she lost when Tony found Lina."

"True. But it's up to a person if one will succumb to negativity or focus on the positives. Every situation has two sides. When my parents died… It was hard. But I focused on the living people who needed me to tell them that things are going to be alright. Whenever I thought about giving up, I imagined what would happen with my people if I failed to guide them as their Alpha. If I was weak, other packs would divide my land and my people, and I believed that if that happens, then the people who killed my parents truly won."

Talia didn't breathe while absorbing every Damon's word. She knew that he was opening up to her and this was important.

Seeing that Talia's honeyed eyes were waiting for him to continue, he tapped the tip of her nose with his index finger before saying, "Lisa needs to decide if she will stay in that room and feel sorry for herself, or will she come out and do something. No one can make that decision for her. By continuing with her current behavior, Lisa is only harming herself and her loved ones."

Talia thought how Damon was wise. "You should tell that to Lisa."

Damon cocked an eyebrow at Talia. "Do you really want to talk about other women while we are in bed, naked?"

Talia swallowed hard when she felt his erection pressing on her lower belly. They were having a serious conversation, but now it took a sudden turn.

"I thought we were talking about our plans for the day.", Talia said, slightly breathy.

Damon smiled slyly. "Yeah. We discussed what we will do after breakfast, but there is still this gap before breakfast that needs to be filled with… activities."

Talia wanted to say how they don't have so much time until breakfast, but before she could say anything, her arms already moved around Damon and his toe-curling kiss erased any thoughts that were not related to Damon, Talia, or the bed they were on.

…

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...

With Caden back in the packhouse, breakfast was lively again.

Caden and Damon were discussing drills they will be doing with warriors, and Talia listened with great interest.

Stephanie had her breakfast in the kitchen, as usually, and Maya was chewing the waffle absentmindedly while checking something on her tablet.

Talia loved that Damon would occasionally turn to her and explain what he and Caden were talking about. It helped her understand the basics of warrior training and how ranking and reporting structures work in the Dark Howlers pack.

After breakfast, Damon and Caden will be joining the generals in quarterly evaluation where prospective candidates for promotion will be completing various challenges and if they meet the requirements, they will raise up the ranks.

Higher rank meant a higher salary and more responsibilities, and of course, more bragging rights, but this was not something anyone could accomplish. It required a lot of hard work and preparations, and no one took it lightly, especially because Damon and Caden were there to personally oversee the final stages.

It sounded very exciting.

Talia really wanted to see that for herself, but she had a list of tasks that needed to be accomplished before guests come, and there was no time to dilly-dally on sightseeing. Besides, these evaluations were done every three months, so there was always the next time, and she was sure that Damon will take her if she asks.

Talia didn't realize that she started making plans for the future that included Damon. One week ago, she wouldn't dare think beyond what was happening at that moment, but little by little, the door of possibilities was opening, and Talia dared to dream.

At some point, Lisa entered the dining room and took a seat at the table.

Maya, Caden, Talia, and Damon threw quick glances at Lisa, silently acknowledging her presence before resuming their previous activities.

Talia felt weird, but she didn't dare to start a conversation with Lisa. Their first interaction left a bad taste in Talia's mouth, and Talia was not sure if Lisa will hate her for being friends with Kalina.

Talia's discomfort lasted less than a minute because Damon finished putting fruits and whipped cream on the waffle he already cut, and he started feeding her. It was easy for Talia to forget about everything when Damon was around and showering her with his attention.

Lisa was trying to stay focused on food, but her sight gravitated to Damon and Talia who were lost in their own bubble.

"Ah!", Talia exclaimed softly when Damon smeared whipped cream on her upper lip on purpose.

He chuckled because Talia looked like she had a white mustache.

"You did that on purpose", Talia said with a pout.

Damon didn't deny it. It was on purpose.

"I apologize. Let me fix it…"

Before Talia could react, he was holding her head in place and licking the whipped cream, and one second later, that action turned into a kiss.

Talia wanted to push Damon away because others were watching and it was not appropriate, but she ended up fisting his shirt and responding to his kiss. It was dark chocolate with whipped cream. Delicious.

Lisa couldn't believe that Damon and Talia were making out during breakfast, at the table.

Maya and Caden pretended not to see anything, so Lisa swallowed whatever she wanted to say, together with the dog food Damon and Talia were serving.

Over the years, Lisa saw Damon with many women. He would always be aloof and domineering, and with Talia, he acted like an enamored teenager. What made Talia so special?

Tony never treated Lisa like that. In public, they would hold hands, and Tony's arm would be draped over Lisa's shoulder, and everyone knew that when she spent the night in Tony's room they were not playing dominoes.

There was a time when Tony looked at Lisa with the fire in his eyes, but the moment he confirmed they are not mates, Tony's behavior changed, and he became more reserved.

Yes, Stephanie advised Lisa to end the relationship right there, but Lisa still hoped that Tony will change his mind. By refusing to give up, she gained two years long extension and now that it was over, she wished for a bit more. A lot more.

Lisa was not sure if she was more upset because Damon was giving Talia attention that Lisa didn't get from Tony, or because this reminded Lisa that Tony was out of her reach. Forever.

And there was the point that Damon barely acknowledged Lisa's presence when Talia was around.

How can she not feel dejected?

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