Chapter 13: Mad Attraction.

S E B A S T I A N

Indignant.

I'm mad at the thought of leaving her alone with him back then.

I'm mad that she feels disgusted when she is with me.

I'm mad at how curious she makes me about her, and no matter how skeptical she appears to be, I can't be able to deny the attraction I feel toward her.

I take a deep breath and let it out as I check myself back in the mirror before I walk out and grace them all with my presence. A man stares back at me in a long-sleeved dark blue buttoned shirt, black dress pants and dressy shoes with slicked-back red hair, fierce eyes, and tightened jaw stare back at me. Bothered by the questions and doubts, I grit, brush my hand against the side of my head, and then, after a once-over, I overconfidently give myself an approving nod.

I don't know why, but for today's event, I have this need to look presentable— no, I have to be more than that, and for some reason which makes Duke interrupts me with a sarcastic growl, and I glare at him. I feel excitement and nervousness at the same time coursing through my body. But I do feel enraged, and it makes me wonder whether I really make her uncomfortable enough to cry and scowl whenever she is in my presence when she seems so relaxed with others.

Heck, she stands her ground and bravely faces the people who give her a hard time.

I know I made it clear that I don't care about her, but I can't help but notice her. I mean, since her sudden arrival, I haven't been quite focused on anything else.

So what is it about me that repulses her? Why shut me out when I am her god-fricking-mate!!!! Duke chimes in with a taunting, smug tone. Well, that's why you should have treated her better.

I pass him a dull look as he says, it's true, you haven't done a single caring thing for her— I am about to interrupt when he continues, —and sending a few clothes isn't caring. You should have treated Emmy♡ like the Luna she deserves to be than a freaking maid, and because of you, some no-name bitch slapped her.

My jaw gets tighter, and I glower. I have ordered Clayton to ensure the person who harmed her is severely punished.

So what happened? Do you have some news about what happened to the person who did that to your mate?

I feel out of words and clench my fists, but not for long when I sense my smug wolf. I tease him flatly. Don't you think I can feel that heart beside her name!? It makes him blush and let out a low howl while I make a note to ask my Beta about the same.

Anyway, no matter how much you deny the one chosen to be ours, destined to be ours, you won't be able to control your desire of wanting her, of holding her in your arms and marking her yours. I mean, you almost did today, didn't you?

What's your point? I snap.

The point is soon you won't be able to take it anymore. Also, I don't like men ogling her. If we mark her already, no one will even dare to— "Woah, what's up with you?" a voice brings me back to reality, and I look at the intruder through the mirror as a surge of bitterness and resentment rush in and I raise my eyebrow, "What do you mean?" I don't care if my tone is rude and if he is my friend.

Clayton steps in. "I don't know. It's just so unlikely of you."

I turn to face him and scoff, "Of what?"

Clayton looks around and then clicks his tongue as he gestures at me and comments, "You taking your time getting ready."

I get what he means. Usually, I am annoyed at any event or party because it involves meeting people you don't like, and this year it's my pack to host the bonfire bash, which is stupid. Ugh, why do we do this? Why mingle with people when you can make them fear you? But not today. I wonder why not. Duke teases.

Screw you.

Duke grins. I better spend more time with our mate, no matter what. I wonder what she will wear, but then whatever she does, she will look pretty as always.

I roll my eyes at this lovesick wolf and snap back at him.

Yeah, try not to do anything stupid. I know you have waited for a mate for a long time and are desperate to have her in our arms, but we must be patient and gain her affection the right way.

You should have done it anyway, you know, marked her yours.

Times have changed, Duke.

If I do that, she will sue me.

So, behave. I look back at my Beta with a poker face, trying not to give in to how many emotions are swirling inside me.

Of excitement.

Of anxiety.

Of fear.

Of anguish.

Of happy.

Of longing.

Of lovestruck.

"What? Do you have anything to say to me?" I snap insipidly and look back at Clayton with his annoying pleasing smile. "Uh," he straightens up and clears his throat, "It's quite surprising to see you in front of the mirror—" I tilt my head and raise my eyebrow, "Why? I can't?" "Oh, you can, but I have never seen you put effort into anything except making strategies, executing plans and overall being cruel to almost every person on this land. I wonder what brought this change." Clayton notes when Duke calls out, because we got our mate.

Even more annoyed at the mention, especially when Clayton is the last person I saw Emmy with, I look away and focus on the cuff links nonchalantly — or trying to be. "Do you have anything important to say to me, or are you done?" I repeat the question in a piqued yet suggestive tone.

Clayton and I manage to stare at each other in silence for quite a while without I not losing my temper. But, as if realizing what I imply through my gaze, he nods and clicks his tongue, "Well, now that I am here, let me tell you about the hearing you had asked me to sit."

"You mean, judge?" I butt in, to which he waves a hand and continues, "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Anyway, a culprit did come forward and was sent to guard the faraway borders in the North for two weeks. It's going to get colder, and you know harsh winter is in this place—"

"a person willingly admitted to being the offender?"

I tilt my head and raise my eyebrow as he leans back and sighs, giving me an answer already. I scoff, "So, the wrong person got penalized."

"I know it sounds suspicious, but it is what it is. We can't punish someone with no proof, and no one came forward to testify against the one we all knew was the real offender. Also, that person belongs to one of the influential families in our pack, and if we do something, it would mean that we are—" he says in a beseeching tone, but I snap, "Do you think I care about ruining my relations with the members here?"

Clayton looks surprised and then takes a deep breath and sighs, "But you also do not care about someone who works as a maid for you." huh? His words startle and pierce my heart when he grins, "But don't worry, Emmy feels fine. I made sure of that."

I blink at him speechlessly with the words stuck at the tip of my tongue and fists clenched.

Duke growls at our best friend as silence settles between us until there is a knock on the door, which creaks open, and a low-ranking warrior peeks in as she says, "Beta, uh, Alpha, I believe we must go now. So many people are waiting for you to grace them with your presence."

I do not respond other than a curt nod while Clayton politely smiles at the woman, the same way he does when Emmy is with him, which makes me infuriated again. So before I can see red and let Duke take over, Clayton blurts out, "Let's go, then."

I blink at him and force myself to relax as I sigh and walk out of the room.

The other two follow me as we descend the stairs and make our way out to the backyard where the event is. The atmosphere is cheerfully boisterous, people are looking up and greeting me with the utmost respect, and girls are looking at me, which makes me want to gouge their eyeballs out and torture them more.

I maintain a poker face, a glass in my hand and then nod when Graham comes by my side, but roll my eyes when Jenna clings to me and tries to stick her breasts against my arm, yapping in her usual third person. That's so not hot!

I let out a sigh.

It's all so tiring and uninteresting, even with Duke excitedly yapping. But, all of a sudden, I feel so down and discouraged, yet I find my eyes scanning the wide area for just that person.

And I halt in my track right before Graham introduces me to a group of people, including Alpha Nathan Crawford and his Luna Becca, when I see her.

Emmy.

Standing in the corner with her curled hair cascading her back and making Duke feels his heart missing a beat as he howls out of joy. I subtly take her in. She is wearing an oversized flannel shirt and denim short shorts with fishnet tights and boots when the wind blows her hair onto her face.

She turns to the side and chuckles to herself as she tucks her hair behind.

Mingling with others has always been tiring and boring. However, this time everything seems blurry when she is in my sight. I am equally happy and surprised by her presence.

She is breathtaking—and I can't help smiling at her smile.

Not for long because that's when I notice Clayton with two glasses making his way to her, and I have a crease on my forehead. My grip on the glass tightens as I see him talk to her with a familiar gleam in his eyes. I remember so easily: sophomore year, locker room where Clayton confessed his feelings for a classmate to me.

I take a sip and grit. It's bitter in my mouth, or is it the feeling in my heart when I watch her laugh at whatever he said and playfully nudge his arm?

How dare he? Isn't he my best friend? Well, This had to happen. You didn't tell anyone. You tried to deny it first. Our mate is a human being. She is bound to fall in love with someone who is kind to her.

I glower. Even the thought of Emmy being with someone other than me irks me, so falling in love with my best friend is so out of the question. I want to rip somebody out into pieces.

Yeah, at least you could have told Clayton. I mean, that guy is your Beta and is currently with your chosen one. Duke taunts when Graham calls out, "Alpha!" I force myself to tear my eyes off of her and turn back to listen to whatever these people around me have been talking about as I set my poker face self back on.

Only for a few minutes because it's not easy to focus on something else when I know she is right there. I can't bring myself to go up to her and ask her to spend time with me, so when I finally take some alone time by the cocktail bar, I lean against it and watch her have fun dancing with Ivory and a bunch of little kids circling them.

Her laugh is not boisterous, but it's wildly contagious.

I smile.

But she stops everything altogether, and in a blink of an eye, I see a grave expression on her face, and she is as white as a sheet.

She is staring, making me follow her gaze at the crowd on the other side of the pool. What is it? I straighten up and frown.

Duke is confused too.

That's when I see her on the move after she whispers something to Ivory, who looks concerned, but doesn't bother interrogating her further and lets her go. Having no option, no one to talk to, and too curious to stay, I follow her cautiously. However, those kids startle me by running and circling me. So distracted, I try to make them stop, but in vain.

Not even my Alpha tone helps when it comes to these young brats.

Ivory comes to my rescue and teasingly grins at me. She looks like she wants them to torment me more, but a single glare makes her take them away instead. I brush off my shirt and run a hand through my hair as I let out a huff. I look around, and my frown deepens that Emmy has completely vanished out of my sight.

What the heck!

Confusion.

I wonder where she could go now.

E M B E R

It has been a blast. The whole evening from getting dressed and hanging out with Clayton and Ivory, has been a lot of fun.

Minus the parts where I sometimes glance and witness girls swooning over a certain someone, Jenna desperately clinging onto his arm like a second skin and glaring at me.

It's ridiculously hilarious, but my heart aches, and so does Rayne's, because he does nothing to get her away.

However, hanging out with Ivory and the kids is turning out to be a great distraction.

Though I have noticed him a couple of times now, I have watched him from the corner of my eye, looking at my side and burning a hole in my head with his blazing gaze.

It sends shivers down my spine, and I can't help but blush, sometimes tuck my hair behind my ear and shyly smile, which I thought was literally impossible for someone like me. I feel like a teenager harbouring a secret crush.

I have denied it. I have played it cool. You know, act brave. But nothing matters when he makes my heart race and is constantly on my mind. And the hardest part about being around him is that I have conflicting feelings for him.

A kid grabs my attention back on her as she tugs onto my arm. I blink and glance down with a big smile on my face. Ivory looks over at me and beams as the two of us dance and play around with the kids for a while until my eyes land on someone very familiar after hearing something through the mind link, Alpha!

I immediately stop.

My smile fades away.

And I lock my eyes with Flora, my Gamma.

What are you doing here?

Flora slightly bows her head.

Dexter asked me to attend the bash as the representative.

I frown.

Flora continues, we knew that something happened to you, and he had an inkling that you might be here.

So, you are here for me?

Yes, Alpha! We must go quickly.

Her voice sounds urgent.

Is there a problem? Is everything okay — no, meet me in the woods. We can talk freely and away from prying eyes.

Or him.

I shudder.

Flora doesn't notice that and subtly nods in my direction before she turns around. I watch her disappear when Ivory snaps her fingers in my face.

"Yo, where'd you go?" She beams at me, but her expression sobers down after looking at me. I lean over and whisper, "I need to go."

She straightens up and asks, "What's wrong?"

I take a moment to answer and then tilt my head as I force a smile. "Nothing's wrong. I need to do something."

Ivory isn't convinced and looks worried, but she doesn't pry further. Instead, she clicks her tongue and nods, whispering, "Come back soon. The bonfire's going to start soon—" before she can even finish, I turn around and walk through the rambunctious gathering as I manage to disappear into the woods.

I hope nobody caught on.

I work my way through a narrow brown trail, inhaling the earthy smell of pine and wildflowers and my feet sliding through the leaves.

Soon, I realize Flora's absence and the fact that I might have come away from the party, I halt in my track to wait.

I lift my face and let the moonlight and shadow dance across my skin as I look at the dark tall shadowed pines stretching up like arrows into the sky and the stars shining through in the sky in glimpses through a lattice of leaves. The wind whistles gently, and the leaves rustle. Insects hum. I inhale the earthy smell of fresh pine and wildflowers.

That's when a twig snap makes me red-alert, and I turn around at the sound.

I raise my eyebrow and squint at the growls when suddenly wolves surround me.

What the heck! Is this an ambush? Have I been fooled? I feel the sweat and lick my lips before a smirk appears. I can tell from their scents that they are rogues. It's so bad that I almost grimace.

Since they don't make a move yet, I force them to hold my gaze and scoff, "Ha, one against ten. It doesn't seem to be a fair fight. But who cares. I can take on every single of you easily." in a taunting tone.

I have enough power to fight, but I don't know if I can let Rayne take over; that's when one of the hot-headed rogues can't help and strikes at me first.

And Rayne growls as she does take over me.

I have shifted.

I see my white fur.

Before I dodge the attack and swipe my claw on his stomach, he whimpers out in pain and falls to the ground.

I smugly lift my head and make sure the others understand how bad it will be for them. After circling for a couple of minutes, the cowardly rogues decide to pounce together. As if that's going to break me.

Rayne and I manage to fight the rogues single-handedly. Blood is everywhere when one of them tries to get up, but I pin her down and bite her neck. She wails in pain and tries to kick me off her.

Feeling mercy, I step off her and pause when a twig snaps. I turn my head and look over, only to lock my red eyes with bewildered green ones.