Chapter 21
Ara’s POV
The closer he got, the louder the whispers became.
00
By the time he was just a few steps away, one of the girls beside me squeaked, “A–Alpha Grayson, it’s such an honor-
But he didn’t look at any of them.
Instead, his eyes locked straight on mine. “What are you doing here?”
Everyone whipped their heads toward me with wide eyes like
ke Why
the hell is she talking to the Alpha?
“I–I had something to do here.” I stammered.
“You followed me?” His voice dropped dangerously low as he narrowed his eyes.
“No! I swear. I didn’t even know you were coming here!“.
He didn’t respond right away, just kept staring at me like he didn’t buy a single word I said.
Whatever excitement I felt when I first saw him just evaporated. I remembered how badly we’d fought not long ago–and the way he told me we need space. Maybe he was already planning to kick me out of the villa, and now I’d suddenly popped up here like some clingy stalker.
“Alpha, aren’t we supposed to dance?”
A tall, stunning girl appeared at his side, latching onto his arm with practiced elegance. She was gorgeous–model–level gorgeous. Perfect body, perfect dress, perfect everything. Her existence alone made half the girls in the room self–conscious.
My breath caught as I looked at Grayson and his perfect date.
Disappointment hit me like a freight train. For a second, I even wanted to flee.
“Aria, you shouldn’t be here,” he said coldly, eyes still on me.
“I—I know. I’m sorry. This was a huge mistake…” My voice was shaking. “I really didn’t know you’d be here. I’m sorry–I’ll leave now.”
I turned quickly and walked away, heart pounding-
I was so humiliated. Even my wolf was whimpering deep inside..
But then I heard footsteps behind me,
And a hand caught mine!
“Wait,” he said.
He glanced back at the tall girl. “You can go.
Everyone around us looked at him like he’d lost his mind–including the tall girl. And, obviously, me
“You’re sending me away?” she hissed, glaring at me like I was a roach. “Seriously? You’d rather dance with this—?
“Brenda,” he cut her off, voice sharp. “You heard me.”
She bit her lip in fury and stormed off, heels clicking like gunshots.
Grayson gently pulled me forward–and suddenly, I was in his arms. And we were gliding into the middle of the dance floor,
I couldn’t believe it.
I was dancing. With him.
I didn’t know the first thing about dancing, but he made it so easy. One hand rested on my waist, the other holding my hand, guiding 1/3
Chapter 21
me through the steps so e
so effortlessly I felt like I was floating.
“Why did you ask me to dance?” I whispered.
“Do I need a reason?”
“Well, yeah… You already had a date. A perfect one,” I muttered, tasting jealousy like a mouthful of lemon.
“I guess it was the way you looked at me. All desperate and pleading He smirked. “Felt like not inviting you would’ve been a crime.”
My cheeks burned. “I did not look at you like that.”
He let out a soft laugh, and then, after a brief pause, he said, “I’m glad you’re here, Aria
My heart nearly exploded.
“I swear I wasn’t following you. It was Delilah-
“I know. I’ll deal with her later for breaking grounding orders. But at least she did one thing right tonight. His voice softened like velvet.
“You look beautiful.”
could’ve floated off the floor right then and there.
Some part of me knew I shouldn’t let him affect me this way. It wasn’t healthy–the way he could crash and lift my y world in a second.
But let’s be honest. I had zero control
He had total control of me.
The song ended way too soon. It felt like we’d just started.
I wished we could stay for one more song, but Grayson had let go of me and guided me to the edge of the dance floor.
And that’s when I realized how many people were watching. Some had literally crowded around the edge, standing on their toes to get a better look
And unlike the reverent way
“Hey, Arial”
way they looked at him, the way they looked at me was… critical, Judgmental.
Delilah appeared like a happy whirlwind, Jace trailing behind her looking like he’d swollen a fly.
“I saw your dance! It was amazing! Why did you say you couldn’t dance? You were incredible-
*Delilah Hart, you need to explain why you are here,” her brother’s sharp voice cut her off.
Delilah instantly wilted under his stare. “I–I know I’m grounded… but the summit’s coming up, and Jace had business here, so I figured… why not come with him…..“.
Grayson’s eyes shifted coldly to Jace. “So you knew she was grounded. And you still brought her here. That means you knowingly defied my orders.”
Jace’s face turned an ugly shade of gray.
“She’s not in high school anymore. Isn’t ‘grounding‘ a little over the top?” he muttered.
“What’s appropriate is up to me. Or are you under the impression that you make the rules in the Hart family now?”
Jace’s jaw twitched. He looked like he was biting back every insult he wanted to spit out.
“I wouldn’t dare, Alpha Grayson,” he said finally, voice full of sarcasm.
“And I see you’ve got time to come dance, but no time to sign the prenup,” Grayson added, eyes narrowing.
“That’s a family matter, Alpha Grayson. I hardly think this is the appropriate time or place-
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Chapter 21
my
business. That prenup ensures Hart property stays in the right hands. Away from people with questionable motives.”
Jace turned a dark purple. I stared at him coldly. For someone with his massive ego, this must’ve been devastating
But I mean he deserved it.
“Grayson, please, not tonight.” Delilah begged. “Aria’s here, you’re clearly happy. Can we just not fight for once?”
“Get it done,” Grayson repeated coldly before wrapping his arm around my shoulders and turning to leave.
But I caught Jace’s eyes before we walked away. His gaze was sharp–ice cold, hateful.
And for the first time in a while, I felt a flicker of real fear.
Once we were far enough away. I leaned closer to Grayson and whispered, “I’m a bit worried about Jace. He hates that Delilah and I are getting close. He thinks I’m trying to ruin his life. I’m scared he might do something reckless..”
“He won’t
But
Don’t worry. Losing his manager title was enough to keep him in line. Il make sure he signs the prenup. Without power or money, he can’t do much.”
I didn’t say anything.
But inside, I wasn’t convinced,
Grayson might be underestimating just how far someone like Jace could fall. Especially when they’ve got nothing left to lose.
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