Note: PLEASE go back to read CHAPTER THIRTY SIX if you haven't.
Wattpad glitched on me the last time and so my update wasn't sent out no matter how many times I unpublished and re-published the chapter. So I think that most of you didn't see that chapter update or it didn't load.
So PLEASE go back to that chapter before this one if you haven't read that yet. Or just go back to check JUST IN CASE.
Thanks...❤️🖤...
"I was coming to call you," Leilani started explaining. Well, more like started lying but oh well.
Enzo opened the door wide for her to come in.
"Leilani, you were standing there for a while listening. I smelt you the moment you came. Don't lie to me, please," Enzo told her sharply. He wasn't having it.
Leilani just looked between me and him. Her eyes were still black. Enzo looked directly at her and tilted his chin towards her. I could feel the air shift. "Your gaze,"
Leilani's eyes turned back to their natural pale green instantly. And her eyes looked down.
"Better," Enzo stated and then he took a step aside. "Are you coming in or you just want to stand outside and eavesdrop?"
Leilani shook her head and I could see how deeply she flushed. Her face was getting increasingly red.
"I-" she stopped herself from completing her sentence, probably only wanting to defend herself. Then she entered into the room. Enzo closed it behind her. "Ronan was searching for you. He fell off a tree so his ribs are hurting again,"
"Then why didn't you ask your sister or my cousin to link me if it was so urgent?" Enzo responded and Leilani simply pushed her curly blonde hair behind her ear.
She wanted an excuse to meet you, obviously.
"It's Indigo's birthday in two days. They went to the seamstress to get her dress," she explained and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at her. Its a mansion for crying out loud. You could get anyone to link him.
"And why didn't you go with them?" Enzo asked and Leilani stared up at him like a fucking deer in headlights. Her fingers started to play with each other. I didn't expect her to be so nervous around him. "You haven't been here in a while. I thought that you'd like to see the pack or something,"
"I didn't feel like it," She answered honestly.
Enzo nodded.
Leilani looked at me. I stared right back. I had no reason not to. She looked like she wanted to say something but was reluctant because Enzo was here. She looked from him to me while Enzo just looked straight at her.
"Anything else?" He asked and Leilani shook her head.
"Ronan's in alot of pain though. You should probably take a look or send a healer to him. His ribs haven't fully healed from," she paused to look at me, "last time."
"He's Alphaborn, he can handle it," was Enzo's response. "But I'll go nonetheless,"
Enzo looked at me and said, "If you don't mind then lets go. I don't like anyone being in here,"
I nodded and stood up. Enzo, Leilani and I walked out of the room and then after locking the door, Enzo left, nodding at us both in a polite goodbye. Leilani and I were left together in the hallway.
"Will you come for Indigo's birthday party?" Leilani asked me out of the blue and I nodded my head not understanding why the girl who just threatened me with her gaze some few moments ago was now speaking to me like we were friends. When I turned away from her, she again began to speak.
"How close are you and Enzo?" I let out a small gruff but didn't turn.
When I did, she stood there with her flowing hair and long black skirt waiting for an answer. Her face seemed nervous, like asking me what she did took alot of courage out of her.
"He's my friend," was my only answer to her question. I didn't need to answer to her. I didn't owe her an explanation or anything. Her fiancé did, not me. She should instead direct her questions towards him.
"You were alone with him in a closed room. Its not very proper in this pack," she continued but her voice stayed soft. Her tone was demure. She sounded more like a friend advising me than a jealous fiancée.
"He didn't ask me to leave though so it probably isn't as inappropriate as you find it to be," I shrugged my shoulders in her direction.
Not proper my left knee.
"He probably should have," she said this in the tiniest of tones that I almost couldn't catch but I caught it.
"Maybe you should speak with him about that then," I suggested as I shrugged once more. Leilani stiffened a bit and shook her head. My eyebrows creased together. "Are you afraid to do that or something?"
Leilani shook her head and her blonde curly hair bounced around majestically. She pushed it out of her face. The modelling agencies in my pack would have killed to get their hands on a face like hers.
"He's Alpha, I-I can't tell him what to do. If he gets mad then-"
Her explanation was truly ridiculous. He's going to be your husband for crying out loud. Was I the only one that wasn't scared of Enzo for heaven-sakes? I'm tired of everyone skirting around the man.
"Then why are you speaking to me about it?"
"Because it's not proper for me to tell Enzo what to do especially now that I'm unmarked. He's Alpha. I can't command him. And I'm still trying to get to know him. I don't want him to think that I'm trying to interfere in his matters. He won't like it very much,"
But you are interfering, bitch.
You're in my way. It's so obvious that she's pissed about me and Enzo but she's trying to get him to like her so she's keeping her anger to herself. She's not stupid enough to confront him right before their wedding. Maybe after but not now. No, the princess groomed as Luna was smarter than that.
"Well, I'm sorry about that but it doesn't sound like I can help you with that. He's my friend. What can I do?" Her lips pinched together angrily. Her eyes were getting darker but she suppressed them probably too afraid that I would complain to her dear Alpha about her.
I mean, she wasn't wrong. I would. Why wouldn't I? I wanted their ship to sink.
"He's my betrothed. If I am not comfortable with you around him then please respect it, Aoife," Leilani cried out in extreme frustration.
All of her features were twitching. She was really upset but forcing herself to be respectful. Forcing herself to remain proper.
"Exactly. He's your betrothed so why are you stressing out? Regardless, tell all of your worries to Enzo and not to me. He's my friend and I'm not your betrothed. Until he asks me to stay away from him or doesn't have a problem with my company then I can't help you, Leilani. Maybe try to communicate with your soon-to-be husband instead of eavesdropping behind closed doors," I turned away from her at this point. At least from my end, this conversation was over.
Leilani knew that she couldn't intimidate me so instead, she was trying to guilt-trip me into staying away from Enzo. Unfortunately, resistance to emotional manipulation was something I mastered in Assassin school. Her efforts were all in vain.
"Aoife, please respect my relationship with Enzo," She pleaded from behind me as I kept walking away from her.
I didn't even turn towards her when I said, "It takes two to tango, Leilani,"
***
"Are you ready?" Willow asked me and I turned towards her. I placed my black shawl over my neck. It hung elegantly down my back.
"I think so. Has the party started yet?" I asked looking at her in her dark blue dress. She looked beautiful today especially with the ribbons which she has attached to her head.
It was Indigo's birthday today and Enzo was throwing her a party. Erica had gotten a dress made for me and I wore it, happy to dress up. She even got me new earrings. They were smaller dew drops. I wore a large black satin tunic that was so long it reached my feet with gold embroidered at the cuffs and glitter lining the whole fabric. It was designed in the style of a low turtle neck and my shawl was made of black organza. My hair was held in a high bun.
"It's about to start. Indigo was born at 6:40pm or something around then so it doesn't officially start until then but she's downstairs. I just came upstairs to give this to you," Willow rushed to my side and shoved something in my hand. When I looked at what was in my hands, it was a vile with clear fluid.
"This blocks out our mind link for sometime. I promised I would make it for you so here. Just throw it on any one of us or use it to touch us and depending on the amount that is used, it will block our link out for some time. But use it cautiously, it's potent. The more you use, the stronger and longer the effect will be," I stared down at the vile.
"Aren't you not allowed to use witchcraft?" I asked.
"It's herbal magic. It's minute and doesn't require invocations so if made in less quantity, Enzo can't sense it so I am safe," I nodded, thanking Willow before she rushed out the door.
I shoved the vile into my bra, figuring it would be better for it to stay closer to me. I didn't know when I would need it but I just hoped that Enzo wouldn't be able to sense it. I shoved that thought aside.
When I made it to the garden where the party was ongoing, I found Ronan. He was seated by the corner so I went to him. He was dressed in a suit without a tie which was different than everyone else because no one exactly wore suits in this pack. I sat down beside him.
The lawn was decorated serenely for the day with pink begonias and azaleas lining nearly everything. There were chairs around tables and at the centre, a large cake. There were several guests seated and children running around. Kids were allowed to wear pink and blue, something that I had noted before.
We were looking over the lawn where the party was ongoing if you could call it that. Tinley stood with Leilani and Fleur and they both laughed over something while Enzo was at the entrance to the garden holding Enys in his arms while 'talking' I guess with Erica because since they were probably linking, their lips weren't moving. Indigo, the birthday girl was decorated in a gold princess dress.
Was that a corset?
I forgot that more traditional packs wore corsets as part of culture instead of to be sexy. Indigo wore a golden dress decorated with delicate embroidery of blue flowers. Her corset was a lose one that hugged her upper body just enough to be decent. The sleeves of her dress were oversized, long and elegant. They stopped at her wrist while the skirt of her traditional corset dress flowed down like a waterfall. Her updo was intricately woven with golden strings and she even had golden glitter staining her skin and neck.
Indigo was gorgeous. I never saw it before today but now, staring from afar at the birthday girl cladded in ceremonial clothes, her beauty struck me sharply. If Leilani and Enzo didn't work out then there was no way in hell that Indigo wouldn't be the next option. Not with the way she looked today. She looked regal in a very natural way. She looked innocent, something that this pack valued. A part of me started to understand Leilani's fear and motivations without wanting to.
Then I noticed that Indigo wasn't standing with her sister or cousin. She was instead standing with an elderly man. The minute his eyes met mine, there was intense hate. Then I realised that he must be the grandfather.
"I thought you would enjoy parties, Ronan. Lighten up," I turned towards Ronan, wanting to distract myself.
"This isn't my idea of a party," Ronan rolled his eyes at my and let out a rough breath. "No alcohol, no hookah, no hash. Why is everything in this place so family friendly?"
"Because," I leaned in and patted his back. "It's the moon's pack. They have to remain pure and stuff,"
"You know," He leaned in closer as well so that his mouth was at my ears. "Don't tell Enzo this but I'm dying to get in the pants of one of his pack girls so I see if they even know anything about the human anatomy and even better, how to use it,"
I almost choked on my own spit. Well, that was an interesting thought. I had no doubt that they knew how to use it though. They were conservative, not dense.
"Maybe try on Leilani, make my job easier," I muttered lowly but Ronan caught me and he gave me an incredulous look and then glanced over to Leilani then Enzo.
"What part of my etiquettes haven't shown you that my number one priority in life is a little thing called 'self-preservation'?" He feigned a dramatic look and I bit my lips. "She's Enzo's woman for crying out loud. Are you trying to get me killed? She's gorgeous and all but she's definitely off limits. My ribs still hurt cause of you. If I try something on his official female then even the moon won't save me from Enzo,"
I laughed, the image of Ronan getting ripped apart by Enzo suddenly invading my mind but at the same time, the statement of 'Enzo's woman' and 'official female' had me beginning to feel annoyed.
"Then maybe the birthday girl?" I whispered sinisterly. "Give her the best birthday gift of her life,"
Ronan's face contorted in disgust then he looked at Indigo and eyed her from up to down. Indigo seemed to feel him watching her because she turned towards us. She waved at me but scrunched her face in annoyance at Ronan.
"She's so bitchy. I never met a girl so ill-mannered in my whole nineteen years of life and I've met lots of girls!" Ronan complained and I placed my hand on his shoulder. "She's such a turn off. She even looks like an over-dressed hippo in that contraption she's wearing,"
I couldn't stop myself from laughing out loud. Heads turned in my direction but I couldn't stop. I pulled my hands off of Ronan when Enzo's gaze traveled down my spine. I didn't let myself look at him but he didn't stop looking at me. I don't think anyone stopped.
"Ronan, she looks beautiful. What are you saying?" I admitted. Ronan only huffed.
"Even if she came to me naked, I wouldn't touch her. She's been so mean to me since the day I got here. I can't stand her,"
Indigo didn't like Ronan. She made it very clear that she didn't like Ronan. Everyone knew that. She thought that he was a flirt, which he was and it irritated her. She didn't like guys that weren't like her pack guys; pretentious and decent. Ronan was neither and she made it clear that she didn't want him anywhere near her. That sort of rejection didn't sit too well with the Alphaborn's ego.
"Well maybe-" my words were interrupted by the sudden clapping. It was officially time for the birthday.
Indigo stood in the middle with the cake and everyone sang in their heads I guess because no one said anything, only clapped. So I clapped too. This was so fucking weird but I clapped too.
Indigo smiled very widely as she cut her cake then her eyes turned black, indicating that it was exactly her birthday. The exact moment she was born eighteen years ago.
"The time had arrived, it seems," I said to Ronan but Ronan looked limp. When I stared at him, his eyes had gone full black.
"Oh shit!" He cursed under his breath. His eyes were on Indigo and Indigo's eyes were on him.
You have got to be kidding me.
Indigo dropped the cake in her hands to the floor and stumbled backwards in horror. Ronan stood up without warning. Their eyes remained on each other and I couldn't decide who looked more petrified between the pair.
Indigo and Ronan were mates.
No one seemed to notice what was happening because they kept clapping all around. Until Ronan went to Indigo. When he stood before her, the whole lawn gasped. Enzo seemed to understand before anyone else did because he quickly handed Enys over to Erica and rushed to the pair whose eyes hadn't departed from the other.
"Of all the girls in the world, why did it have to be you?" Ronan nearly screamed out at Indigo and Indigo's lips started to twitch without control. Her dark eyes changed back to their natural tinted indigo hue. "An overly holy and extremely boring girl from the Blue Moon pack of all places. This is not a match which I can accept,"
Tears spilled down Indigo's cheeks as everyone gasped around us. I stood up, partially shocked.
"This has to be some sort of a prank!" Ronan exclaimed and he threw his hands up in the hair. "Why you? I don't give two fucks about you. I don't even find you attractive,"
"Ronan, control your tongue," Enzo intervened as Indigo turned to her grandfather and cried into his chest. I wondered where Tinley and Leilani were but they were both nowhere to be found. Fleur rushed to Indigo's side.
"No, no. I need to make it clear to this girl that as a true mate, she isn't acceptable by me. Neither do I like anything about her nor would she ever suit my pack as it's Luna. Just look at her," Ronan argued with Enzo as his tone of voice raised sharply. Enzo jutted his jaw forward probably getting increasingly upset at Ronan's reaction.
Ronan was not happy that Indigo was his mate. Ronan seemed to despise the girl just for existing and he felt no remorse about letting her know in front of everyone. He was completely humiliating her. I guess that he did end up giving her the birthday gift of her life, after all.
"I don't want to be your Luna. I don't even want to be anywhere near you!" Indigo spoke out in between her tears. She pulled away from her grandfather with puffy cheeks. "I'm more upset than you about this pairing. You are not at all what I imagined. You are not at all what I want,"
Ronan stared at her without saying a word. He was upset. She was upset. And everyone was watching this play out quite dramatically.
Finally, some action in this place.
"Indigo, Ronan, this is not the right place to discuss any of this. Please refrain from exchanging anymore words and go inside the mansion. You both can discuss your pairing when you're both more relaxed," Enzo was trying so hard to diffuse the situation. This didn't look good. Ronan just humiliated Indigo in front of the whole pack at her very own party.
When he said that he hated her, I didn't realise that he meant it.
I guess Ronan was right; he doesn't lie.
Indigo nodded her head in respect to her Alpha and left with Fleur who seemed to be dragging her off to somewhere. Ronan also disappeared out of sight in an opposite direction with eyes so black that I understood he was going to shift.
Enzo's eyes found mine and they looked troubled. He placed a hand on his hip and shook his head as if trying to comprehend what just happened. I thought of approaching him but stopped myself when Enzo turned to Indigo's grandfather to console him.
I decided that it was time for me to go inside. The party was most definitely over. There was no point in me hanging around anyway because it wasn't like I could hear the gossip that was no doubt flying around everywhere. Ronan, the canon-ball Ronan just rejected and completely disgraced Indigo in front of everyone.
When I stepped into the mansion, it was a bit empty but then I spotted Leilani. She stood closer to the entrance of the dinning hall and was talking to someone. When I tried harder to look, it was Jude.
Interesting.
Their conversation must be really interesting considering she left her sister's birthday party and missed the grand event just to converse with her soon-to-be sister-in-law's husband. I was dying to know what they were talking about but from where I stood, I couldn't tell the tone of the conversation.
When an idea came to my mind, my lips curled upwards and I rushed up to my bedroom.
Before even opening my bedroom door, I knew instantly that someone was inside. I stepped in cautiously wondering who it could be.
It was Tinley.
"Tinley, why are you here? There's so much commotion downstairs. You should probably talk to Indigo," I shut the door behind us.
"Hello to you too, Raven,"
~🖤~🖤~🖤~🖤~🖤~🖤~🖤~🖤~
Wellll this was definitely a chapter where so much was going on at once.
Did anyone guess that Ronan might find his mate in this pack?
Hope you enjoyed it. Please share you thoughts 💜💕 and please remember to vote, comment and follow. Thank you💜💜
~Эмма✌🏻💕