Chapter 88
Chapter 88
Aria’s POV
Isla? That fucking bitch again!
I was absolutely certain now. That woman was deliberately targeting me.
$59%
IS
“Wait, is something wrong?” Delilah asked nervously, glancing between me and the untouched afternoon tea setup. “And what’s all this? Are you throwing your own party here too?”
“I’ll tell you exactly what’s wrong!” I snapped, glaring at her. “You went behind my back and called Isla for help, and now she’s officially back in Grayson’s life. There’s no getting rid of her anymore!”
Delilah’s eyes widened in shock. “W–Wait… You think Isla still has feelings for my brother? No, that’s impossible. You must be overthinking
this.”
“Overthinking?” I scoffed. “Then explain this–yesterday, she was snooping around my house like she still owned the place. And today, she hijacked my party and stole my guests, acting like she’s the damn hostess. Tell me that’s not suspicious!”
Delilah looked stunned, but she shook her head. “Isla? No, she would never do something like that…”
“Why does everyone keep saying that?!” I growled, frustration boiling over.
God, it’s infuriating! Am I the only one who sees right through her act?
“B–Because that’s just not who Isla is!” Delilah insisted quietly. “I know you think all high–society women are spoiled little princesses like me, but Isla is…different. She volunteers at orphanages, donates to charities, treats her staff like family. Seriously, you won’t find a single person
who has a bad word to say about her…”
I let out a bitter laugh. “Oh my god, Delilah. After everything with Jace, I thought you’d have learned to see through people’s facades. But you’re still falling for the same tricks.”
Her mouth dropped open. And after a pause, she stuttered, “W–Wait, you were saying she’s the same kind of person as Jace?! No…how can you be so sure she’s even pretending?”
“Because nobody is that perfect. If she seems flawless, it’s because she’s putting in serious effort to hide her true self.”
With that, I turned on my heel and marched toward the door.
“Wait, where are you going?” Delilah called after me.
“Upstairs. I’m not letting her steal this from me and act like it’s nothing!” I gritted out.
Damn it. Grayson made ME the hostess, not her!
“I’m coming with you!” Delilah quickly lifted the hem of her dress and hurried after me.
We took the elevator up to the penthouse.
The entire lounge had been transformed into an elegant wine–tasting event. Servants in crisp uniforms stood in neat rows holding silver trays
of drinks, soft jazz music played in the background, and the air smelled like expensive perfume and aged wine.
Fuck. I wouldn’t admit it out loud, but, this setup was undeniably more sophisticated than my tea party.
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ཅས་་ ་པའས་
Chapter SS
93
The sharp click of our heels on the marble floor drew everyone’s attention. Upon seeing us, a waiter immediately stepped forward to block our path.
“Apologies, ladies, but this is a private event. Invitation only,” he said in a rather arrogant tone.
Before I could respond, Delilah snapped, “Take a closer look you dumbass! This is Alpha Grayson’s girlfriend, and I’m his sister. Do you really want to ask us for our damn invitations?!”
The waiter froze, clearly unsure what to do.
Then Isla appeared, gliding toward us with effortless grace. She wore a stunning white dress today with bold black floral patterns, her hair cascading in loose waves over her shoulders. She looked like a goddess who had just stepped out of a painting.
“Oh, it’s fine, let them in,” she said, giving the waiter a reassuring smile before turning to us. “Aria, we were just waiting for you. And Delilah, I’m so glad you could join us.”
I clenched my jaw.
She made it sound like she had invited me already, and I was the one late to her event, like I was the rude one intruding.
“I didn’t know you were waiting for me,” I said coldly. “In fact, I had no idea this little gathering even existed.”
She blinked, feigning surprise. “Really? But I sent you an invitation…”
“I never received anything!”
“Oh dear, your assistant must have forgotten to pass it along,” she said sympathetically. “But it’s no big deal–these little mistakes happen, especially when your assistant is under a lot of pressure. A good leader doesn’t punish small oversights. I certainly never do.”
Christ!
Now she was making me look like some unreasonable tyrant while she played the gracious, understanding saint. Unbelievable!
“Isla? Is everything alright?” one of the Lunas called from across the room.
Isla turned back with a serene smile. “Oh, nothing serious! Just convincing Aria and Delilah to join us. I do hope they’re free…”
I pushed past her and strode toward the group of Lunas.
“Hello, ladies,” I said, forcing a polite smile. “I’m Aria Collins, Alpha Grayson’s girlfriend. He personally asked me to host all of you.” My heart was pounding so hard I could feel it in my throat. “If you’d like, please join me downstairs–I’ve prepared a proper welcome party for you.”
There’s a deadly silence. And my back was sweating.
I wasn’t good at dealing with the upper–class crowd who generally had a lot of money and even more pride. I was also told before that women older than me didn’t really fancy me.
And this crowd checked two boxes.
Nobody answered me. These women exchanged glances, their expressions unreadable. A few sipped their champagne, their jeweled fingers glinting under the chandeliers.
Finally, one of them spoke, her voice dripping with condescension. “Why would we go downstairs? We’re already at a perfectly lovely party.”
I took a steadying breath. “Because Alpha Grayson specifically wanted me to-”
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12:39 Sun, 10 Aug
Chapter 88
“What exactly is this downstairs party like?” another Luna interrupted.
“It’s a high tea,” I explained. “I’ve set up a beautiful spread. Fresh pastries, floral arrangements, live music. It’ll be fun, I promise-”
“High tea?” one of them gasped, as if I’d suggested something scandalous.
A ripple of laughter spread through the group.
“How quaint. Are we supposed to be 19th–century aristocrats?” one mocked.
“And that floral dress she’s wearing… So tacky. Don’t tell me that’s her dress code…” another snickered.
“We’re perfectly comfortable here,” a third Luna said dismissively. “Lady Isla has been a wonderful hostess. We don’t need to be dragged down to some…amateur tea party.”
My hands trembled with barely contained anger. “I put a lot of effort into that party. And as Grayson’s chosen hostess-”
“We’d much rather stay with someone who actually understands our social circle,” a woman cut in, smirking. “Lady Isla mentioned she’s known Alpha Grayson far longer than you have. I doubt he’d mind us preferring her company.”
My head snapped toward Isla.
So she’d been whispering that again, huh? That Grayson was closer to her than to me?
“Isla. A word?” I hissed.
She gave the crowd an apologetic smile and followed me a few steps away, her expression the picture of innocent concern. “Aria, why are you so upset? I don’t think the Lunas here would mind you joining us…”
“You sabotaged me on purpose!” I growled lowly. “I spent a lot of time on my event and you blew it. You want this to happen, don’t you?”
“What are you talking about? I merely wanted to help,” she corrected gently. “See, you don’t know these women’s tastes. But I do. So I did you a little favor. Is that not allowed?”
“You should’ve asked me first!”
She sighed like I was being totally unreasonable. “Like I said, ‘I emailed you. If your assistant failed to deliver it, that’s hardly my fault. But a good leader doesn’t blame others for small mistakes, and the way you are acting shows your lack of sympathy and…”
“Oh, just shut the hell up!” My voice rang out sharply, echoing across the room.
Everyone froze, looking at me in shock.
Shit. Isla probably wanted this to happen. She’d been pushing me to lose my temper. To let me become the rude and uneducated country girl
in front of everyone.
I fell into her trap. But I couldn’t care that much now.
“Leave,” I ordered.
She raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure you can handle this crowd alone?”
“That’s my problem, not yours.”
“Fine.” She shrugged. “As you wish.”
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པ་འ་ས་
Chapter 88
With a graceful wave to the Lunas, she turned and walked away in her silver stiletto–still looking every bit the poised, untouchable queen.
“Wait a second. Why would you send Isla away? We want her here,” one of the Lunas cried.
“So rude,” another one muttered. “No sense of etiquette at all.”
I hesitated for a second, torn between playing hardball and using Grayson’s name to threaten them.
And then, Delilah stepped forward and spoke up, “You’re all going to Aria’s party.”
The room fell silent. With them exchanging reluctant gazes with one another.
“With all due respect, Lady Delilah,” one woman began, “You probably mean well, but we really don’t want to-”
“I know every single one of you has been begging for Sabrina’s new jewelry collection. But the waiting list is years long.” Delilah paused, letting that sink in. “Do this, and I’ll make sure you get bumped to the front.”
A wave of excited murmurs spread through the crowd.
“Sabrina’s new collection…you sure about this?” a Luna gasped with excitement.
“Of course. And…I also know you are all begging for a seat in the box at tonight’s Royal Symphony performance.”
Delilah pulled two tickets from her clutch, holding them up like treats for her puppy dogs, smirking.
“I happen to have two tickets. Whoever gets downstairs first wins this little reward.”
For a split second, nobody moved.
Then the room erupted into chaos as all the Lunas scrambled for the exit.
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