Chapter Seven

Christopher

Ruben comes into my room looking like he’s been slapped with a wet fish. He goes and sits on the white couch and covers his face with his hands, before screaming into them. I roll my eyes. My younger brother has always been one for the dramatics.

“Is there a reason you’re annoying me,” I ask him, looking away from the computer I have set up. We may be in a new location, but work never stops. The fact that I’m required to be here is deeply disappointing. Being put on princess duty isn’t helping either.

“That Alpha Princess,” Ruben groans, fidgeting with his tux. “My beast is drawn to her power. I’ve flirted with her, and I even asked her to attend the party with me, and she still shoots me down. Am I not good enough for her or something?”

I roll my eyes and resume going through reports of missing lycans. “From what I understand, she’s not much of a dater.”

“Do you think she’s not into me,” Ruben muses, not listening to my answer. “Nah, that can’t be it. I’m everyone’s type. Maybe she’s gay.”

I bark a laugh. “Yes, if a woman isn’t into you, she must be gay.”

“Thank you,” Ruben says, latching onto the slightest agreement to validate his insecurities; even if it is sarcastic. “Why are you even working? We have to be downstairs in five minutes.”

“Someone has to figure out where these rogues are coming from,” I say, giving him a hard look.

“You’re about to go to a party with hundreds of unmated females. Live a little,” Ruben says, standing up.

“Aren’t we on babysitting duty,” I ask, raising my eyebrow.

“I’ll take care of that,” he grins at me.

“You’re going to stalk that poor woman, aren’t you?”

He leans, “I prefer to think of it as performing my civic duty to protect the Alpha Princess.”

“She’s going to kick you in the nuts,” I warn him, standing with a deep laugh in my chest.

“That may be so, but you’ve felt this girl’s power. Are you telling me that you didn’t want to submit to her?” Ruben demands, putting his hand on my shoulder.

“A lowly she-wolf? You’ve got to be kidding me,” I tell him, stepping out from his grip. “Even as an Alpha Princess, do you really think she’s worth my time?”

“If you’ve seen her legs, you’d change your mind,” Ruben says, steering me towards the door by touching my back. “Relax for one night. It’s the season for mating. Dating. Fucking. Whatever you want it to be.” He pushes me out to the hall. “Just have fun.”

“Fun?” I ask him, putting on a black wolf mask. “How do you have that?”

“Dance, drink, talk, and for the love of the moon goddess drink. Relax,” Ruben emphasizes once again, tying a kerchief to my neck. “Seriously, you’re the first prince, not the first bore.”

I take a deep breath. “Fine. Now, what do we do here?”

Ruben gives me a confused look, “Did you do anything in London?”

I think about it. “Not really. Mia kept me pretty busy when I wasn’t working.”

Ruben snorts, “That bitch? Did she even have time when she wasn’t fucking someone else?”

He led us into a room filled with trees and moonlit orbs; appearing as if we were outside. A soft mist is pouring, acting as a soft rain. Why aren’t we outside? We push through the sea of females immediately taking notice of us. “Okay, this is the Moonlit Ball. It is always held the day before the Claiming. Our eyes are always covered, our necks are covered, and this mist blocks our scent. This gives the females a chance to get to know a possible new mate before they get their necks sunken into.”

I roll my eyes, “Lovely.”

“Okay, either way, you have about ten girls waiting to talk to you. Now go,” he says pushing me forward.

I glare at him while a brave redheaded girl comes and talks to me. “Are you as handsome as you are tall?” She flips her hair and tugs slightly on a silver scarf around her neck.

“I’m not interested,” I tell her, moving away from her.

“Wait, what?” She demands, following me. “Do you know who I am?”

“Not really, and that’s kind of the point.”

She grabs my arm, making my beast furious. “I am the Alpha’s daughter of the Moon Lake’s pack. The strongest southern pack.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, and I don’t date conceited people.” I pull away while I hear her growl.

“Sabrina retract those canines,” the Alpha Queen yells from one of the tables where the mated chaperones have been gathered.

I smirk and keep walking. I feel a subtle shift in the air, causing every unmated male to stand at attention; including myself and my beast. A woman has walked in with another female. The woman has a beautiful dark blue, floor-length gown that has a dangerous split up to her hip. The stones catch the light perfectly, calling every ounce of my attention to her. Her black hair is twisted and curled down to her waist. Her tall legs cause risky thoughts to appear in my mind, while the smirk on her red lips makes mine tingle. She has silver gloves pushed up to her biceps with crystals sewn in. She has a diamond choke collar necklace around her neck; hiding her bare neck and has paired it with a silver wolf mask, signaling she’s unmated. When she looks up and sees me, a playful smile touches her lips before returning her attention to her companion. There is no chance this woman will make it out of the Claiming unmarked.

Her friend is nearly as tall as the gorgeous female and almost as lovely. The woman has dark auburn hair, left in long curls that go down to her hips. She’s wearing a skin-tight white dress that has shapes cut up the sides, letting every male know she’s not wearing underwear. She has a white scarf around her neck as well as a white wolf mask. Judging by the men leering at her, she’s not going to be unmarked either.

I watch as the woman starts walking through the crowd. Not one male has approached her, and I’m assuming it’s because she’s putting so much attention on her friend. I can catch a light bell tone in her laugh, setting my skin on fire. What is happening to me?

“So you did find one girl you like here,” Ruben’s voice comes from my left, watching her with as much interest as I am. “Too bad she’s just a lowly she-wolf.”

“That aura belongs to a wolf?” I ask, my mind unable to think. I can’t take my eyes off her to even look at Ruben for confirmation.

“That, my dear brother, is the Alpha King’s daughter. I’d also like to point out that her power you felt earlier, is also while she’s recovering from being poisoned with Wolfsbane, so that wasn’t even all of her power.” He puts his hand on my back and pats it. “Too bad you already decided you’re not interested in her.”

I let out a low growl when a male approaches her. She squeals and then kisses his cheek before giving him a hug. “And who is he?”

Ruben shrugs. “Not sure. That’s the whole point of the event. She must know him if she recognized him.”

“And she’s who we have to keep from getting marked tomorrow?”

“Yep,” Ruben says, giving me a knowing smirk. “And you thought it’d be easy.”

“And why doesn’t dad want her marked?”

“Because of the chance that it’s a rogue, I guess. He’s a little on edge after he learned about Danny being her mate.”

“And how did dad learn that?”

“He made her tell him. You can’t say no to the Lycan King, even if you’re a princess.”

“Does she know who he was?”

“Nope. She thinks he was a rogue lycan, and that’s how father wants it to remain.” He straightens, “Now if you’ll excuse me.”

I feel my beast growl as he watches Ruben approach her. What did they say her name is? Celina. My beast starts pacing back and forth watching her. I can’t tell if he is interested in her, or if the aura is disturbing him. I try to calm him, but he wants to challenge her.

Trying to calm my beast, I go and lean against the wall. I’m glad I turned around when I did. By the time Ruben has reached her, the two girls are already gone. I can see them working their way through the crowd laughing. Celina has retracted her aura enough that she’s pushing through the crowd without being noticed. I can feel more power coming from her friend than I can from her at the moment. That’s impressive.

It started to become a game eventually. How many times could she lose my idiot brother? One minute she’s talking to friends and the next she’s dancing on the opposite side of the room. I’m up to twelve times so far, and it’s starting to get to him. Currently, she’s blending in with the chaperones and is talking to her mother. Her mother is criticizing her and tells her to go back out to socialize.

I lose her for a brief second before I feel a hand on my back. “Do not move, do not speak, okay,” a silken and warm voice says; making my insides quake and make my beast stand at attention.

“Your brother is a pain in my ass, and I don’t feel like losing a bet to my idiot brother,” she starts off, making me smile. “Now, you’re just big enough that I can hide next to you, and get to the other side of the room. Will you please make it look like you’re going to the bathroom so I can find Jenna?”

I almost laugh, “How much are you betting?”

“Ten dollars. He doesn’t have a lot of faith in me, considering who your brother is.”

“A pain in the ass?”

“That’s the one,” she says, slowly turning me. She tugs on my arm slightly, having me move with her. I glance down at her and she’s keeping an eye on my body, watching how I move.

“So what is the particular bet?”

“If I can avoid him the entire night.” She risks a glance, watching him go to where she had once been; by her parents. “So far, he’s been more persistent than the past men I’ve had to do this with.”

My beast growls at that, but I keep my voice composed. “I’ve noticed three others tonight. One of them seems to be your beta.”

“Close, not counting your brother, the answer is five.”

“And how did you know I'm his brother?”

“Tall angry loner looking guy in the back watching my every move? You weren’t fooling anyone with that disguise. I assume your father is ordering you to keep an eye on me, and your brother is taking it up a notch.”

I hate her description of me, but what I hate even more is how accurate she is. “It’s been a rough couple of days.” I give in a small way of explanation.

She nods, “I heard about your break-up with your long-term girlfriend.” She looks up at me and I swear I feel a gravitational pull to her hidden eyes. “I can’t say I understand your pain, but I do wish you find your peace. This is the worst place to try to heal a broken heart, so you might as well go have some fun.”

I watch her carefully as she gives me a playful smile. “I think that’s something I can try. Maybe you can show me how to have some fun at this party, provided I keep you away from my brother.”

She laughs then stiffens, slightly. She recovers quickly and motions outside the door. “Actually, I just found my friend. I’m-I’m going to go collect her and then retire for the night. Have to look fresh enough to get my neck sunken into, and all that,” she chuckles that last part nervously before taking a step back; regaining her composure. “I’m happy that I was able to make you smile today, Prince Christopher, even if it came from a lowly she-wolf.”

Her words hit me hard as I watch her retreat through the crowd. Did she hear my conversation with my brother? Was she blowing me off? No. Her steps are hurried, even though she’s trying to keep elegance in her composure. The second she rounds the corner, I see her go into a straight run. There is something wrong.