Alpha Loren novel Chapter 83

December 3rd

The next morning I woke up surprisingly early. There was an overpowering scent of bacon in the air so I didn't have much trouble getting out of bed and heading straight for it.

Leo was in the kitchen, stood shirtless over the sizzling stove. He grinned widely as he saw me and I wrapped my arms around his waist as he plated up the food before he handed me a beautiful plate of bacon, eggs and toast a few minutes later.

"Buon appetito."

"Grazie mio amore."

After breakfast, I began to feel the urge to sleep again. Being pregnant was exhausting and everyday we got closer to the birth, it drained me even more.

Just as I was settling back into bed for a nap, Leo came in.

"I'm going to the base in about half an hour so I won't be here when you wake up. Luca is...Luca and Mateo is busy comforting Allison so I'm afraid you're stuck with Marco and Carlos," Leo said. "I think they've just about sobered up from last night."

"That's fine," I said, "Might want to search their pockets on the way in though," I added with a smile.

"As if Mom hasn't raided their bedrooms already and grounded them from going anywhere but here," he said.

I smiled, "As she should."

He then kissed my forehead and tucked the sheets up around my shoulders, "I'll see you later and I'll tell the twins to do their best not to wake you."

After he left, I must have fallen asleep pretty much immediately. I didn't hear a sound from Marco or Carlos and I only woke to the sensation of a kick in my stomach. 

I shot up and placed my hand on my baby bump unsure if I had dreamt it but there it was again.

"Marco! Carlos!" I called.

A few seconds later I heard footsteps coming up the stairs but they weren't as familiar as Leo's.

"Do you want to feel your nephew kicking?" I asked him.

The corners of his mouth twitched up. 

He nodded and sat on the edge of the bed as I guided his hand to where my son's foot presumably was. 

"Wow," he whispered in awe. "That's incredible. Carlos!"

A few moments later Carlos had his hand on the baby bump too waiting for a kick.

"Any second now," I said just before I felt another little nudge come from the inside of my belly.

Carlos gasped as he felt it before smiling like crazy.

"Now I want one," he said and I giggled.

"What are you naming him?" Marco questioned.

"At the moment we are thinking Cato," I replied (pronounced Kay-toe). 

"Cato Leonardo Loren," Carlos said to himself.

"Alpha Cato," Marco added.

"I like it," they both said in time.

"Can we get you anything?" Carlos asked.

"A cup of tea would be great, please. I'll be down in a second," I said and he nodded before both the twins left the room. 

For a few minutes, I sat feeling my unborn baby boy kick before going to the toilet and then downstairs for my tea.

"I'm so bored of doing nothing," I groaned after half an hour of watching TV with Marco and Carlos. "Leo won't let me go to school or get a job or do anything without him so when he's working, which is almost every day, I have nothing to do but sit in this house."

"We can take you somewhere," Marco suggested.

"Thanks for the offer but last time someone took me out without permission, they ended up in a bad way," I said remembering the time that Luca took me to Mcdonalds and how that ended.

"Relax, Ells. Remember last time we took you out when with Allison? He was totally cool about it," Carlos said in his typical laid-back tone.

"Where would we even go?"

"Can we get food? I'm starving," Marco asked.

"You two are always hungry," I replied.

"Let's go to that really fancy restaurant in Kellington!" Carlos suggested, "The place Mom and Dad go with our sisters but refuse to take us."

"The Duchess?" I asked, "That place is high class. Why don't your parents let you go?"

"They don't trust us to behave ourselves," Marco said, "But Elena always comes back and gloats about how good the food is. So we should just take ourselves."

"No offence boys but you aren't really dressed for that..." I said looking at their outfits. Carlos was wearing a grey v-neck with a pair of black kinda faded jeans whilst Marco was wearing a white Washington state cougars t-shirt with grey sweatpants.

"We can go home and change," Marco said. "You go and change into a nice dress or something and Carlos and I will book a table. You said you were bored so stop arguing and let us unbored you."

"Unbored isn't a word," I pointed out.

"Get your smartass upstairs and change!"

"Okay! I'm going, I'm going."

Half an hour later Marco and Carlos were in suit and tie and I was wearing what I believed to be a sophisticated black dress and my favourite dangly earrings. 

"Best behaviour okay?" I said as we pulled up outside the grand building that was the Duchess, five-star luxury dining restaurant. "That means no pushing, no shoving, no cursing, no messing around. Understand?"

"You seem to be mistaking us for three-year-olds, Ells," Carlos said as we got out the car.

I raised my eyebrow, "You aren't exactly respectable gentlemen. Let's just remember what Leo and I stumbled across last night..."

"Okay...granted...we have our moments," Marco said, "But we won't get kicked out of here. Not until we've at least ordered anyway."

"Come on then M'lady," Carlos said holding out his arm, "Shall we?"

I grinned and we walked up the marble steps to the large double door.

"Good afternoon, Sir," a man in a tuxedo asked Carlos as soon as we entered. "Do you have a reservation?"

"Yes. A table for three under the name Loren," Carlos replied.

The man's eyes flickered slightly at the name. I wasn't sure if I had imagined it or whether he had just played it off exceptionally well but I was pretty sure something happened.

"Right this way," he said and we followed him into the restaurant.

"Did you see his reaction when you said your name? His eyes flickered like he recognised it or something." I whispered in Carlos's ear as we were lead to our table.

"No. Maybe he just knows one of us from school or something," Carlos replied in a laid-back manner.

"Are you ever concerned about anything?" I asked. "He could be an assassin or something."

"Live life as it comes, Ella. If you think your waiter is trying to kill you, then deal with that when you get to it and for now just enjoy being in a fancy restaurant filled with fancy people eating fancy food," he replied.

We soon arrived at our roundtable and took our seats underneath a striking chandelier.

"Do you have any questions? If not I will leave you to decide your order," the waiter asked.

"I have a question," I began and from the corner of my eye, I spotted Carlos roll his eyes. "When we first came in, did you recognise the name Loren?"

"Yes, for a moment I thought I did but I could put my finger on why. I'm sure many have that name," he replied fluently.

"Okay, thank you," I said and he nodded and walked away.

"Did you hear that? His heartbeat rose. He was lying!" I exclaimed.

"You're being paranoid," Carlos said.

"No, I'm not. He recognises your name and he lied about why. Does that not convey anything to you?" I asked.

"Here is the menu. Choose what you want to eat," Marco said shoving the menu into my hands.

"And while you're at it stop worrying. You have two pretty good bodyguards with you, sweetheart," Carlos added.

I scowled, "Okay. I'm just saying...something isn't right."

"Like I said, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Carlos said.

I couldn't relax for the entirety of the meal. My eyes constantly glanced around us, keeping watch of that waiter just in case. But it wasn't just him acting weird. I kept thinking I was seeing men stood in the corner or by the door or up on the balconies just watching us. But as soon as I looked back, they'd be gone.

We were half way through the maincourse Leo started calling. I had to temporarily bid farewell to my juicy looking lobster to head out of the main sitting area to answer it.

"Hey. Carlos said you've gone to get food," he said, "Anymore detail than that?"

"We're in the Duchess," I replied, "I'm installing some manners in your brothers."

"...The Duchess," he said, "In Kellington?"

His voice had suddenly deepened in tone.

"Yeh we-"

"I need you to come home now," he said.

"What? Why?" I questioned.

"I'll explain when you're safe. Just get out of there," he replied, "Are you with Marco and Carlos now?"

"No I just left them to answer my phone," I answered.

There was another tense pause on Leo's part.

"Get back to them as quickly as you can."

"Okay," I said.

"And text me when you've left."

He then hung up, leaving me with an immense amount of confusion which crippled me with fear.

As I scurried back to the table, I spotted that first waiter again. He eyed me carefully before he looked across the room. After following his gaze, I could see he was making eye contact with one of the other men I'd spotted earlier. And he was nodding to yet another.

"We have to go," I said getting back to Marco and Carlos.

"What?" they both asked, looking up from their steaks with sad eyes.

"Now," I replied sternly, "We're in danger. I don't know why or how but Leo said we have to get out of here. My guess is it would be something to do with the men infiltrating this entire restaurant, staring right at us."

Marco and Carlos both glanced around before getting to their feet.

"Oh shit," Marco said before he put an arm around my shoulder and began heading to the door as Carlos followed, keeping an eye on the men.

Marco was striding so fast I had to jog to keep up, but I just had time before we reached the door to look back. The strange men had moved from their positions and were all marching through the restaurant, barging through the guests and other waiters after us.

But we got to the door in one piece and then down the steps to the car where Marco and Carlos bundled me inside before we sped away.

"Who the fuck were they?" I asked as I pulled out my phone to text Leo.

"Smelt like rogues," Carlos replied, "But that waiter was human for sure."

"I thought the problems with the rogues had settled?" I questioned.

"It never truly settles," Marco said, "And this time it's very different to how it's ever been before. They could have killed you, Ella. You were gone for at least two minutes. Why didn't they?"

"They know us so they know you. They know you are the Luna and they had the perfect chance," Carlos added, "Why wouldn't they take it?"

I looked out the back window. Down the road in the distance, the restaurant was still just in view. The men now gathered outside, watching us drive away.

I swallowed, "I don't know..."