Chapter Fifty-three

Lukas was merely scrolling aimlessly through his phone while he tried to picture just how the afternoon would go.
Killian Reid was an asshole, through and through. He was well aware of his own power and made sure to use what hold he had over Lukas to his own benefit.
Meet ups with the human consisted of him treating Lukas like a hired secretary, and Lukas wanted nothing more than to sock him in the face. He just might if the pompous human said something off about his mate, he didn’t care that that would mean going to war against the Human Government.
They eventually got to the hotel and it would seem that the media had been tipped off because they were swarmed as soon as they stepped out of their car.
Lukas grimly wondered how that could have happened, it was certainly not Claire and he hadn’t leaked the upcoming lunch either so it had to be fucking Killian doing it to show off that a werewolf King still needed to report to him.
He placed an arm around Claire’s waist to lead the way inside, ignoring the camera flashes going on in their faces.
Claire winced at them, she hadn’t been expecting them to get ambushed by the paparazzi and from the way Lukas’ expression tightened and how closely he held her, she could guess that he didn’t either.
When they got to the foyer of the hotel, they were immediately approached by a butler who was dressed in finery and was constantly half bowing, his demeanor a subservient one. “Your Hignesses, please come with me.” He bowed and then gestured with gloved hands before scurrying ahead to lead the way.
The butler was the one to lead them to an elevator and input the numbers to take them up to what Claire presumed was the penthouse floor. This new finding caught her off guard again, she hadn’t known that it would be such a lavish affair.
From the looks of things, it would be hosted in the Emissary’s residence. That made her doubly nervous, why couldn’t they just go to one of the private rooms that she was certain the restaurant had?
She discretely glanced at Lukas who had been in a terrible mood all through their journey here, wondering if he knew of this as well.
The elevator ride was silent and tense, Lukas keeping his possessive hold around her waist. Claire didn’t try to step away because she was too occupied with the lunch meeting.
The elevator finally opened to reveal an empty hallway, the butler leading them hurried forward leaving both Claire and Lukas no choice but to follow him.
He didn’t lead them to the front door of the penthouse suite, he went around instead, taking them to the top floor balcony instead. They went up a flight of stairs to reveal a lavishly decorated balcony.
The balcony had sleek white furniture and it featured a hanging garden with a glassed-in fireplace. It looked to be taken right out of a magazine for luxury homes.
“Please have a seat, Mr. Reid will be with you shortly.” The butler gestured them to a couch.
Shortly after the butler that had shown them in left, a newcomer emerged from a different set of stairs. These stairs clearly led to the interior of the penthouse suite.
A tall well dressed man in a three piece suit, holding a flute of champagne appeared with a polite smile, his dark brown hair was slicked back and he gave the air of a military personnel even though he was all dressed up.
“What an honor to meet the elusive human Luna Queen herself in person.” Killian said with a flourish, making his way towards them. “I appreciate you showing up, Alpha King Grey.” He nodded politely to Lukas, nearly bordering on cold.
Claire rose to her feet with a slightly nervous smile, too busy trying to get a read on the Emissary to notice Lukas clenching his hands into fists as he rose to his feet as well beside her.
“The honor is all mine, Mr. Reid.” Claire politely replied, taking his offered hand.
“No, please, call me Killian.” He said smoothly, still holding her hand. “And may I call you Claire in return?”
Lukas practically glared a hole right through the human, he could never had guessed that he could be so nice. He didn’t appreciate it that he was only turning the niceness on his mate.
“Wouldn’t that take away from the formal meeting we’re about to have?” Lukas cocked a brow, slipping an arm around his mate’s waist again.
Killian’s black eyes turned cold and shrewd when he glanced at Lukas, “The goal of the meeting is to facilitate a better relationship between humans and werewolves, I daresay that we’re already making progress in that regard.”
Claire stood very still, finding herself caught between the prides of two very powerful men. She wasn’t entirely certain what Killian’s deal was but it was painfully clear that he and Lukas were just a few cold words from lunging at each other's throats.
She couldn’t let that happen. She might be human but she was also the Luna Queen of a country of werewolves and she took that very seriously, so for the sake of her country, she needed to try to diffuse the situation.
Killian still held on to her hand so she withdrew her hand with a warm smile. “I feel we should all be on a first name basis, it would make things easier for everyone involved as the meeting has already begun.” She said diplomatically.
That way, the both of them would get a win. Killian would get his request of them being on a first name basis and by acknowledging that, he would also be agreeing that the meeting had begun which should soothe Lukas some.
If both men noticed what she had tried to do, neither of them made any comments on it but it would seem like they had both come to an agreement on the matter.
Killian immediately offered his hand to Claire again, “Please come with me, lunch is already served, we can discuss over lunch.”
Claire demurely took his hand again, clearly, he was trying to turn the charm on her. She couldn’t tell if he was doing it because she was human but she was going to find a way to use that to her own advantage.
She could maybe see why Lukas disliked the Emissary so much. Lukas’ hate for humans stemmed from them treating werewolves like they were less than humans, and that was exactly what Killian represented.
So she understood that their relationship would be a dumpster fire. It was just her luck that Killian seemed to take a liking to her, maybe she could turn this situation around because it was important that they have a smooth relationship with the Emissary.