“Come sit,” said Chad, directing me to the dining room table. I gasped when I saw the candles lit up and lined up along the center of the table.
He pulled the chair out for me like a gentleman.
“I don’t feel comfortable sitting at the head of the table,” I said shyly, instead trying to pull out a chair that was on the side. That was where their pack leader sat.
“You’re our birthday girl,” said Zaff, gently guiding me to the chair. Internally, I was struggling. I was just a beta in our hierarchy. They were alphas, and I cringed inside as I slowly sat at the head of the table. I had to remind myself constantly that they thought I was human.
But it all felt like blasphemy to me to be held in such regard like this.
“Happy birthday, sweetheart,” said Oscar, holding my hand as he sat to my right and Zaff to my left. Ruston was seated next to Zaff, and he was also looking at me with lots of love in his eyes.
I looked up and saw Chad holding a giant layered cake littered with candles. Something about seeing that white cake made my head spin.
He set the cake before me, and I tried to smile through the fog in my mind.
The smell of the vanilla hit me like a lightning bolt. I started breathing hard at the onset of memories that rushed through me.
I snuck into the kitchen and opened the fridge, staring at the cake Alan had bought for Mom. No one was around me. Maybe I should take a bite before the party. I knew they wouldn’t let me join and have a bite of the cake.
Seizing my chance, I quickly grabbed a plastic fork and carefully scooped a piece of cake from the back. Just a little bit of the frosting to taste…
But a bark sounded beside me, and I dropped the fork with a clatter.
“What the fuck are you doing?!” said Alan, barging around the refrigerator door with an angry scowl on his face.
“I…nothing,” I yelled, backing away from him instantly. Even though I showed my temper to him, my twelve-year-old self was terrified deep down. Terrified of what he’d do.
“You think you’re smart, eh? Eating your mother’s cake like it’s nothing,” he growled as he pulled the cake out from the fridge, and it fell on the kitchen floor.
I looked down, watching as the cake slowly smooshed onto the floor and the bits of frosting splattered everywhere.
“Oh my god,” I gasped, but Alan was smiling.
He grabbed the plastic fork from the ground, “Eat.”
“No, it’s fine,” I said.
“You wanted a taste, didn’t you? Now you have it.”
I jerked out of my daydream, gagging audibly at the sight of the giant cake before me.
“Take it away!” shouted Zaff, and Oscar immediately pulled it out of my vision as I sat there holding my throat. I couldn’t help the reflex after the sudden memory. The bile in my throat had risen, and I closed my eyes, breathing hard.
Calm down, Breanna.
Suddenly, I felt myself being lifted out of the chair, and my body was being pressed against one of the alphas. He was purring audibly, and I could feel his rumbles flowing through me, and my eyes were still closed.
“She’s having a panic attack,” said Zaff.
He was the one holding me.
“Breanna, it’s okay. It’s gone,” said Chad, trying to comfort me. “Oscar threw it in the trash.”
The memory was slowly fading away, and I was suddenly brought back into the present. I opened my eyes to see Ruston holding a cold, wet towel to my forehead while Zaff cradled me against his chest.
My breathing began to ease as I looked into Ruston’s eyes. He didn’t break my gaze as I tried to concentrate on him and break free from the memory.
“Baby, what’s going on?” asked Zaff, holding me tighter against him.
“I don’t like cakes very much, especially that flavor,” I said.
“I see,” he said as they all watched me silently. The house was tranquil, except for the collective sounds of our breathing.
“I had a bad memory, that’s all,” I said, deciding that they were owed an explanation. They had no way to trace who my dad was anyway. “When I was twelve, I snuck in a bite of cake, and my dad got angry with me.”
“For eating cake?” asked Zaff with contained anger.
“It was my mother’s,” I said.
“And you’re their child,” he said. “I’m sorry, continue.”
“Yeah, so,” I continued, also taken aback by how upset he was. “He threw the cake on the floor and made me eat every bite. After that, I never wanted a birthday cake in my life. And definitely not that flavor.”
“Fuck,” said Chad. “I’m so fucking sorry. I was the one who brought it to your face without thinking.”
“It’s not anyone’s fault,” I said, looking around at the alphas. They were quiet, with tense anger written all over their faces. In some way, I felt guilty for ruining the day with my sudden panic.
Tears rolled down my eyes, and my lips trembled uncontrollably.
“Breanna, don’t cry,” growled Oscar, kissing me on the forehead. Zaff rocked me on his lap, and I turned my head and cried in his chest. Zaff’s chest rumbled with purrs as I cried from my past.
“You didn’t deserve what your father did to you, sweetheart,” said Zaff, allowing me to cry my heart out. His dark chocolate scent felt so nice and comforting as I inhaled him in. I felt terrible ruining his suit with my tears.
“I know…it’s just hard,” I said. “Maybe I was a bad kid for stealing her mother’s cake.”
“Kids do things like that all the time,” said Ruston. “Trust me, I was the worst.”
“Parents should love you no matter what you do,” said Zaff, his voice hitching. “I didn’t have a great family myself, but I learned to seek solace within myself. And with my pack.”
“Sorry,” I said, pulling back to see his light blue dress shirt stained with tears.
“It’s okay,” said Zaff, kissing my eyes, and I softly giggled. “I want to kiss your tears away because it’s breaking our hearts.”
“Here,” said Chad, and I took the tissues from him, loudly blowing my nose into it while they silently watched me.
Later that night, the alphas presented me with gifts which lightened the mood in the house after they allowed me to wash up and recover in the maid’s quarters. I was sitting on the bed, texting my aunt that I’d be out late, until the alphas walked into the room.
They each held something in their hands, and I smiled when I saw the various red ribbons on the boxes. They stood around my little bed in a circle, each holding their presents.
“Oh my god,” I said. “I never got presents on my birthday before, except from my aunt.”
“Well, you’re getting them today,” said Zaff, popping open a small box containing the matching ring to the bracelet he bought. “This is the second half of your gift.”
“It’s so beautiful,” I said as he slowly pulled it out of the box and held it in his palm. It was made of amethyst mixed with gold, just like the bracelet, and I absolutely loved it. My aunt even asked where I’d gotten it, and I had to make up a story about impulse shopping for myself. She would freak out if she knew the truth of what was happening.
“Which finger do you want it on?” he asked, and deep down, I felt slightly disappointed that I would never get a marriage proposal from these alphas. He gently slid the ring over my middle finger, and I looked at it adoringly under the light.
“Thank you, Zaff,” I said, and he kissed me on the lips.
Ruston was next.
He handed me a small rectangular box, and I smiled as I unraveled the ribbon. I felt giddy, like nothing I’d ever felt before. I wasn’t able to celebrate holidays with my family and was always made to stay at home alone. A warm feeling arose within me just at the motion of opening the box.
“Oh wow,” I said upon seeing a brand new phone sitting in there. It was the latest phone and nothing like the old phone I was using now.
“Happy birthday,” he said, kissing me next on the lips.
“It’s too much,” I said, but he smiled against my mouth to shush me.
“Enjoy it, baby,” he said.
Next, Oscar handed me his box, and I gasped with shock when I opened it to see a pair of crotchless panties with a diamond-studded plug next to it.
“What’s that?” I said, shaking my head while the men chuckled around me.
“The most beautiful plug for the most beautiful butt in the world,” he said, rubbing my ass as he kissed me. My pussy began to tremble with arousal again at the feeling of his wide hand rubbing my ass.
“Well, thank you, I guess,” I said. “I’ll wear it tonight.”
“Fuck yes,” breathed Oscar.
“My gift now,” said Chad, handing me a small bag with water in it and a red ribbon tied around it.
“What’s this?” I asked, trying to peer into the bag, but all I could see was an orange-looking pellet.
“Open it.”
I carefully opened the bag and stared at it.
“It’s a shark egg,” said Chad excitedly, and I looked at it more curiously, noticing something tiny swimming inside the egg.
“Whoa, that’s crazy,” I said and quickly closed the bag again out of fear. Ruston laughed at my sudden reaction. “It’s a shark! This isn’t normal.”
“I have to show you something,” said Chad, holding his hand out. I carefully took it, not trusting him. He led me out of the room while the other alphas followed closely behind us. They were cracking jokes and feeling good now that the mood was a lot lighter.
“What are you going to show me?” I asked him.
“My second bedroom,” he said. “Not many people know about it, but I want to show you.”
He suddenly swung open a door, and all I noticed was blue around me as I walked inside. I gasped when I saw the giant glass tanks covering the room in a circle from floor to ceiling. There was a variety of sea life swimming behind the glass, including sharks.
“What the…?!” I said, awestruck as I stood there with my mouth dropped open. He had an entire aquarium down here that I had never seen.
