Understudy [ABO] [MxF] [18+]

N I N E T E E N

The week before the wedding both went by in a blink and took an eternity.

Elias was on edge the entire time, constantly on the brim of boiling over. The thought of Allegra trapped in that room the entire time made him furious. He had tried to convince her father to let her stay with his family for the week before the wedding, citing a family tradition he made up, but it hadn't worked. He had only managed to convince him to let her spend the night before with his family, which he had accepted as the best offer he would get.

He had very little say in the wedding arrangements. Allegra's family was very old fashioned, he found out, in their views on mating and status. He had already gathered it in a sense by how they treated Allegra, but even the way they domineered over Gabriel had surprised him. He could tell from the growing resentment in the boy's eyes that it wouldn't be long before he snapped at them. His voice when he had called Elias that day to arrange the marriage had been so full of hate that Eli had flinched even through the phone. It made him somewhat relieved to know that his mate had someone by her side against her parents.

His mate.

The thought still gave him goosebumps. Tomorrow, Allegra would become his mate. Not bonded in the sense of a true mate -- he had sworn he wouldn't mark her against her will -- but even in name only it was enough to settle that fire he had felt inside him for weeks now. He was beginning to understand now why it was so strongly encouraged for Alphas to settle down with a mate sooner than later. Just the thought that she was his was enough to put him more at ease than he had felt in a long time.

"What time did they say they would drop her here?" Poppy called out across the living room from the kitchen as she put yet another dish into the oven. "Dinner will be ready in an hour!"

"They just said before nightfall," Elias sighed, answering the question for the hundredth time. "So any time now really. Just focus on not burning the food!"

"I'm a great cook, thank you," Poppy clicked her tongue. "Where is Daisy? I need her to help me prep the desserts. Daisy!"

"What!" The teenage girl shouted from upstairs.

"Get down here and help!"

"But I'm not ready yet!"

"Who cares? It's not like she is here to be your mate. I'm sure you look presentable, and I need an extra set of hands to do dessert prep."

"Get Eli to help you then, I still need to do my makeup."

Elias chuckled and walked over to the kitchen, "She's right, I can help---"

"You stay out of this kitchen," Poppy snapped, only half lightheartedly. "Tonight is the beginning of the celebration, so you are off duty. Daisy. Lillian. Conte. You get your ass down here and help with the dessert prep or I swear---"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Daisy groaned as loudly as possible, followed by dramatic thumping coming down the stairs. "Oh my god, ma. Chill out."

Poppy shot her daughter a look that silenced any further complaints.

Elias glanced towards his sister and rolled his eyes. He had dressed nicely, but comfortably, in a neat sweater and shorts, which only made Daisy's outfit stand out even more. She looked as though she was about to go to a party. She always had a tendency to dress a little more distinctly than one would expect of a rich girl with a name like Daisy, currently wearing black leather skinny jeans with a sparkly gold halter top. Her hair, normally long and full of waves, was styled up elaborately in a way that couldn't have taken less than several hours. She was at least wearing her house slippers and not some fancy heels.