Xena’s POV

Her openly hostile stare had already rubbed me the wrong way from the moment we met, but this sudden provocation made my blood boil. Without hesitation, I stepped up, locked eyes with her, and said coolly, “Excuse me? You wanna say that again?”

Samuel quickly jumped between us. “Whoa! Whoa! Calm down.”

Leonard cut in immediately, “Hey!” he said quickly, nudging his date out of the booth. “Babe, why don’t you go get some drinks and order three large pizzas for the group? I’ll handle this.”

“Yes, please do,” I replied, my voice dripping with sarcasm as I stared her down.

The girl huffed but slid out of the booth, shooting me a glare before stalking off toward the counter.

“Seriously, Leonard?” Ama said once she was out of earshot. “Where do you find these humans?”

“She’s hot,” Leonard defended weakly. “And she doesn’t know who you are yet.”

“She’ll learn,” I muttered, standing up. “I’m getting my own drink.”

I made my way to the counter, weaving through the night crowd. Someone stepped on my foot.

“What the fu—” I jerked back instinctively.

“I’m sorry—” a deep voice began.

I looked up to find myself staring into the intense green eyes. Ryder. Closer now than we’d been this afternoon, I noticed details I’d missed before. My stomach did a weird flip as I took in the rest of him—light blonde hair cut short, strong jaw, broad shoulders under a black leather jacket. He was gorgeous in a dangerous way that made my skin prickle.

Before he could finish his apology, a girl with dark hair appeared beside him, wrapping her arm possessively around his waist.

“Watch where you’re going,” she snapped at me, her eyes narrowing.

Tonight really fucking sucks—ran into so many dumb bitches.

I drew myself up to my full height. “He stepped on me.”

Ryder’s eyes widened slightly. “Helen,” he said quietly, his hand tightening on her waist in warning. “This is Alpha Hank’s daughter, Xena.”

Helen’s demeanor shifted instantly, though the hostility remained in her eyes. Her lips curved into a fake smile. “Oh, how nice to meet you.”

“Yeah,” I replied flatly, moving past them toward the counter.

Noelle, the cashier who’d been working here since I was a kid, greeted me with a smile. “Hey, Blade! The usual?”

I nodded, leaning against the counter.”No, just a Fruit Punch.”

“Got it,” Noelle replied, punching in the order. “Put it on Logan’s tab?”

“Yeah, thanks,” I said with a small smile.

“Stupid bitch thinks she owns the place.”From behind me, I heard Helen mutter under her breath.

The words were quiet enough that a human wouldn’t have caught them, but my wolf hearing picked them up clearly. I felt my patience snap. Turning slowly, I looked directly at her and released a small portion of my aura—just enough to make her feel the weight of who she was dealing with.

“My name is Xena,” I said quietly, my voice carrying despite the restaurant noise. “Daughter of Alpha Hank from the Nightcedar Pack. I expect a certain level of respect. If that’s too difficult for you to manage, we can always step outside and discuss it further.”

Helen paled, her eyes widening as she felt the pressure of my presence. Ryder beside her, placed a restraining hand on her arm.