[Jasmine's POV]
Everyone clinked their champagne flutes, encouraging the happy couple to kiss. In the corner of the room, I watched as they leaned in for a sweet peck on the lips. When Elliot pulled away to gaze wistfully at his future bride, my heart sank.
It wasn’t too long ago that he used to look at me that way.
Quietly, I sighed and leaned against the wall, trying my best to make myself invisible. Of course, Elliot probably already knew I was attending his engagement party. He would be able to sense my presence and smell my scent.
The back of my eyes pricked, and I crossed my arms tightly over my stomach, trying to keep myself together. Trying to keep myself from falling apart.
As the sounds of laughter and happy chatter surrounded me, I recalled what Elliot told me when he broke things off.
‘I have to marry Isabella. That is the only way to ensure that I become Alpha. But don’t worry. I won’t leave you behind.’
I highly doubted that.
Across the room, Isabella Laken looked gorgeous in a white sundress. As the Lycan King’s daughter, she would be very useful to Elliot in obtaining his lifelong dream of being Alpha.
Much more useful than I.
Isabella placed her hand on Elliot’s chest and looked up at him like he was her whole world. He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead.
Their public display of love was like a bad car accident that I couldn’t look away from.
Ever since Elliot broke up with me, it felt like there was a heavy weight on my chest, pushing me down until it seemed like I would drown under the agony of losing my mate.
My stomach stiffened as Elliot’s gaze flickered over to mine for a fraction of a second. His eyes widened slightly, but that was the only indication that he had seen me. I guess he never expected that I would actually take him up on his invite.
Maybe I was masochistic for coming here today, but I needed to see for myself that Elliot had moved on.
Then, I might be able to move on too.
The feeling of someone’s gaze made me look up. I assumed that it was Elliot staring at me, probably wondering why the hell I was here.
It wasn’t.
A tall, handsome man was striding toward me. He looked familiar, but I couldn’t place him. His hypnotic gray eyes were roaming over my body, and when our eyes met, his sparked with curiosity.
The palms of my hands grew slick as he neared, and I shrank back further into the wall.
Surely this good-looking, distinguished man wasn’t coming over to talk to me. Not when there were so many other, more mature women of higher status around us.
The man walked right up to me, and my mouth dried as I took in his silver-streaked dark hair, powerfully built body, and black suit. Everything about this man screamed strong and sexy.
Who was he?
“Hello,” the man greeted in a deep voice, looking right into my eyes. “Care for a drink?”
My pulse quickened as he took in the plain blue dress I’d thrown on. Now I wish I had spent more time choosing what I wore.
“Sure,” I agreed, my voice slightly breathless.
“Champagne or a glass of red?” he asked.
It took me a moment to answer. His deep voice was almost as mesmerizing as his eyes.
“Red wine, please,” I answered shyly.
I refused to drink champagne. I wasn’t celebrating anything today.
Right when he turned, a server appeared seemingly out of thin air with a tray of glasses filled with deep red wine.
This man must be pretty important.
When he handed me the glass, our fingers brushed slightly. A powerful aura washed over me like a tidal wave. I froze with my arm outstretched, and a quiet gasp escaped me.
I knew why the man in front of me looked so familiar.
He was the Lycan King, Gareth Laken. The most powerful werewolf in the world was standing right in front of me.
And he was the father of Isabella Laken. My ex-mate’s future bride.
Gareth stared at me with a searching gaze, like he was trying to figure me out.
“Are you enjoying yourself…” he trailed off, waiting for me to supply my name.
“Jasmine,” I said and took a sip of my wine, not because I was thirsty, but because I needed to stall for a moment. “Yes, of course I’m enjoying myself.”
Gareth smirked and leaned down, placing his lips right next to my ear. My heart thudded against my chest in a broken rhythm, and I suppressed a shiver.
“I don’t believe you,” he whispered. His tone was playful, but I could tell there was a layer of tension behind his words.
I swallowed nervously but decided to play it cool. I raised my chin and looked him in the eyes.
“Don't I have a trustworthy face?” I asked mischievously.
He smiled, and it was the first one that seemed genuine. “You do.” The Lycan King tucked a lock of my hair behind my ear, and my heart skipped a beat. “You seem innocent, but that's the very thing that makes you so dangerous.”
A burst of laughter escaped my lips. “I can't believe the Lycan King just told me that I'm dangerous.”
He leaned toward me, and the space between us filled with electricity. I moved closer to him until our bodies were only inches away.
When Gareth put his hand on the wall behind me, I swore I stopped breathing.
Were we…flirting? Despite my heart being broken, I realized that I enjoyed talking with him.
“Why are you here, Jasmine?” he asked outright.
“I'm an old friend of the groom's,” I answered immediately.
When I decided to come to the party, I made sure that I came up with a good cover story.
Gareth's eyes flashed, and I had a feeling that I'd said the wrong thing.
Nervously, I shuffled to my left, trying to distance myself from him so that I could think straight. His sandalwood scent made my head spin.
Flustered by him, I didn't look where I was going and realized too late that I put myself in the direct path of a woman in dangerously high heels. Her head was turned, talking to her husband.
Before I could move out of the way, we collided. The next thing I knew, the front of my dress was damp and sticky. A large red stain was spreading across the front of my dress. Because of the red wine, it almost looked like I'd been stabbed in the stomach.
Great.
Just when this night seemed to be going alright, my dress was ruined.
The woman who spilled her wine stared at me with disdain, but when she noticed Gareth, she began to apologize purposely.
Gareth turned his back on her and offered me his black suit jacket. He laid it over my shoulders, enveloping me in his delicious scent.
“Thank you,” I murmured, blushing. I wrapped the jacket around me, covering the stain.
Maybe this was a sign for me to leave the party. I didn't belong here anyway. I had seen enough.
“If you'd like to change, I'm sure I have something in my room that you could have,” Gareth offered suddenly. I blinked in disbelief at his words, catching how his eyes roamed all over my body, lingering on my curves. Heat crawled up my cheeks at the blatant appreciation in his eyes.
Was the Lycan king checking me out? It seemed almost too good to be true.
My legs trembled, but I managed to keep my voice steady. “Lead the way.”
He led me out of the busy room and down a quiet hallway. The king’s shoulders were broad, and through his white dress shirt, I could see his muscled back. In the master bedroom, the sight of a big, white bed made my throat grow dry, but it didn't hold my attention for long. Gareth turned to me, and my heart slammed against my rib cage.
His face was a work of art. From his curly salt and pepper hair, sharp jawline, sensual lips, and intense gray eyes, he was so handsome that it almost hurt to look at him.
But it wasn’t just his look that was mesmerizing. It was the energy around him that made him so attractive.
Gareth shut the door and crossed his arms.
His angry expression made my stomach swoop.
“Why are you at my daughter's engagement party if you're Elliot's fated mate?”