Goodbye Alpha, I'm Done - Chapter 34: Chapter 34

I stared at the bouquet of vibrant daisies that had been delivered to my desk. White daises were my favorite but looking at the sender, I wanted to burn them.
There was a handwritten letter attached to it, written by Kieran himself. There was no way in hell I was going to read whatever was on there.
Ryker chose that very moment to stride through the office. His gaze briefly met mine, and his expression was cold and somewhat distant. I wondered if it was because I was gifted those flowers. Linda was walking closely by his side talking animatedly and I groaned as they both disappeared into his office.
With a resolute shake of my head, I gathered the bouquet and made my way to the nearest trash can, unceremoniously dumping the daisies – my favorite flowers – into the bin.
"Hey, Selena," a cheerful voice suddenly interrupted my thoughts, and I looked up to see a petite lady with braided burgundy hair, a warm smile and a distinctly geeky fashion sense. "I couldn't help but notice that you threw out those beautiful daisies. Was something wrong with them?"
I blinked, momentarily caught off guard by the unexpected interruption. "Oh, no, nothing was wrong with them," I replied hesitantly. "It's just... the flowers were from my ex-Alpha, Kieran, and I didn't feel comfortable keeping them."
She nodded sympathetically. "Ah, I see. That must have been really tough to deal with. Alpha Kieran, huh? No offense though, but he was the one who left you at the altar right?"
I flushed in embarrassment hating that people recognized me as the “woman left on the altar by the Alpha”
The lady chuckled, her expression warm and inviting. "Oh, I’m so sorry if that brought back bad memories,” she spoke again. “Don’t worry, I'm not some kind of gossip monger," she assured me. "I'm Macey, one of the other analysts here. I've heard a little about your situation, that's all."
I relaxed slightly, offering her a small smile. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Macey. And yes, Kieran left me at the altar. That’s why I’m dumping his ass as well"
Macey smiled widely, adjusting her glasses carefully.
"I figured as much. It was so nice to see you publicly reject him in front of everyone. I’m team Selena, I don’t get why everyone picks on you."
That earned a giggle from my lips. “Thank you Macey. Linda seems to be the one leading them, it’s so exhausting.”
“ Linda is Alpha Ryker's betrothed, which is why a lot of us in the office are a bit wary of her. She comes from a very powerful family too."
"So, everyone here knows about that?" I asked, feeling bummed out.
Macey nodded, "Yeah, unfortunately. Linda's not exactly shy about flaunting her position, and she's made it clear that she doesn't take kindly to anyone who might threaten her claim on Ryker and the pack."
I sighed, running a hand through my hair in frustration. "Great, so I won’t ever catch a break here. "
She reached out, placing a reassuring hand on my arm. "Hey, don't worry," she said, her voice soft and encouraging. "You've got allies here, even if they're not obvious. And from what I've heard, you're a damn marketing analyst – you've got skills that Linda could only dream of. Don't let her or anyone else hold you back."
I smiled at her genuinely."Thanks, Macey. It's nice to know I've got someone in my corner."
Macey grinned, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Well, you've got me, at least. And who knows, maybe we can band together and give Linda a little taste of her own medicine, hmm?"
I couldn't help but chuckle at the suggestion, "I like the sound of that,"
"Well you're not the only one who's treated as an outcast around here." she confessed, her gaze dropping to her hands. "The thing is, I'm... well, I'm a wolf less omega." She paused, searching my face for any sign of judgment. "I don’t have a pack cause my parents are gone so I was kicked out. A lot of the other wolves here look down on me because of it."
I felt a pang of sympathy for her. "Oh, I had no idea. That must be incredibly difficult."
She nodded, a sad smile appearing on her face.
"It is, but I've learned to cope. I hope I find my mate soon and maybe I can be a part of his pack. The thing is, I wanted you to know that you're not alone in this. A lot of us here don't fit the mold, and we kind of stick together, you know?"
"My ex pushed away all my friends anyway, so I could really use a new one. Thank you very much." I told her.
Macey grinned, "Well, then consider me your new best friend, Selena."
Later that evening, I glanced at the clock and was shocked to see that it was well past midnight. Everyone else had abandoned me here and I didn’t even take notice. This was because of that witch Linda that had given me a pile of work to do.
My eyes were beginning to hurt from prolonged screen time and I knew it was my cue to leave. I was about to start packing up my things when I heard footsteps approaching. My head snapped up, and I felt my heart skip a beat until I realized it was Ryker striding towards me.
"Selena," he said, his voice low and steady. "What are you still doing here at this hour?"
I swallowed hard, suddenly feeling self-conscious under the weight of his scrutinizing gaze. "I, um, I had a lot of work to do," I stammered, my fingers fidgeting nervously with the pen on my desk.
Ryker's forehead creased a little bit as he took a step closer. "You should be packing up and heading home, not straining yourself like this,"
I blinked, surprised by his unexpected reaction. "But, the work... Linda, she-"
Ryker held up a hand, silencing me mid-sentence. "Don't worry about that,I'll handle Linda. You need to take care of yourself."
As I packed my things, his gaze suddenly hardened as if he remembered something.
"Why are you still entertaining gifts from your ex?"