Reid opened the curtain for them and Riannon tried to hold her head straightsince she knew that all eyes would be on them now.

In all her years as Luna, andeven before that, she saw lycans just a few times.

They usually weren’t minglingwith the werewolves and it was considered an honour to just meet one of them,regardless of their rank.

Back in the day, when Ria got acquainted with a Beta, itwas the talk of the surrounding packs for months.

And all he did was tell her thathe owed her one and handed her a card in front of a few witnesses.Still, Brayden was proud and was telling everyone that a lycan owed their family.It sounded impressive.Well, now Brayden did not look that proud anymore when his wife wasdescending the stairs holding the mighty lycan king’s hand.

Although this wassupposed to be an honour beyond anyYet she could feel how her husband was gritting his teeth and saw how he wasn’teven reacting to the words of his precious redhead mate.

Roxy didn’t look excitedto be at a ball anymore either.

It was a disaster.

For her.Unlike in the previous life, where she was the star of the event, the little innocentomegawho overcame many hardships and stole the heart of a powerful Alpha, now shewas second-hand news.

Now everybody was questioning what got into BraydenThorn’s head that he abandoned his wife of six years like that.

The wife whoclearly was the centre of attention today and for all the right reasons.Not only wasn’t she embarrassed by her situation, she embraced it, attractedevery single male wolf in the room to the power that she was emitting.

Alphasloved strong women.

It was a given.

That was why often mates were chosen.Because not everyone could become a suitable Luna, not everyone could bearthe burden of responsibilities and pressure.

And today Riannon proved that shewas one of the very few who could do all that flawlessly.

So that even the most powerful man in the room got interested in her.

So that allthe gossips in the hall had to shut up.

So that on the day when she wassupposed to be humiliated,she came out on top.“Smile, Riannon, smile,” the king’s lips curled into a smirk, “You don’t want todisappoint everyone who is watching.”“Sorry,” she mumbled as he led her to the very centre of the dance floor andgestured for the musicians to start playing again.

The sounds of a slow melodyfilled the room and they started moving.

And when Gideon pulled her closer, sothat their bodies were touching eachIt was a display of great favour.

And everybody in the room knew it.She wanted to think of what she would be doing next, to strategize...

But theproximity of the man in front of her was clouding her mind.

His scent wasoverwhelming, and he was emitting dominance and power.

More than anyoneshe had ever met.“I can tell what you are thinking about,” Gideon chuckled softly.“That’s not surprising,” she replied calmly, “I bet everyone here is thinking of thesame thing now.”“And that would be?” he looked at her with amusement.“Why are you doing this?” she lowered her voice so that only he could hear her.And he lowered slightly so that it was easier for them to talk, resulting in his hotbreath burning her cheek and earlobe.“You know why,” he whispered, creating goosebumps.

This man was toohandsome to not react to him.“You could have simply said a word for me at the next Alpha Council,” she tried toreason, “But instead you are doing this.”

“I have my reasons for everything,” he confessed simply and she shot her browup.“And that would be?”“I am territorial, Riannon,” his lips curled into a smile, “I want everyone to knowwhat is mine so that they in turn knew that if they touch it, it would cost them theirlives.”He said those last words loudly and there was no chance that couples who weredancing right next to them hadn’t heard every single word.“But I am not yours,” the words left her mouth before she realised what she wassaying.

And she could swear that his eyes got darker and grip on her becametighter.“You are my,” he hesitated as if he was making a very important decision thatvery moment, “My ally.

And I will make sure that everyone respects you one wayor another.”The Luna’s lips parted in shock but otherwise, she managed to keep a neutralfacial expression.

What kind of dumb luck was it? Why was he so generous?He danced surprisingly well, leading her firmly and making her look even betterthan she usually did.

His every move was precise and Ria was shocked with hisskills.“You are very good at this,” she praised him, smiling and arching her back in hisarms when she heard him growling softly for some reason.

after just one dance.“Riannon,” he made her look at him, “May I ask you a question?”“Of course,” she nodded.

After what he did for her tonight, she was ready toanswer any questions.

“What is your wolf’s name?” he asked and she suddenly got sad.

Which did notescape him.“Onyx,” the girl said quietly.“Is Onyx around?” the Lycan kind bent to whisper the words in her ear, saving herthe humiliation as her eyes grew wide.Just how would he know about something like that?She didn’t know what to answer, so muttered the first thing that came to hermind, “She is...

resting.”“Ah,” Gideon nodded with a mixture of emotions on his face, “Well, Ria, it was apleasure.

But I am afraid it’s time for me to go.”She did not know how to react to that.

Did she do something wrong or was itreally the time for him to leave? Yet somehow she felt disappointed that it washappening already.“I will call you tomorrow,” the kind said and she almost choked on the air, “Andwe will need to meet again very soon.

To talk.”“Sure,” she smiled nervously and felt his grip on her tightening.

It was as if he...did not want to let her go...“Then I will see you soon,” the music stopped and he bowed to kiss her hand,making the room fill with gasps at once, “It was a real pleasure, Riannon.”The lycan king made a gesture to his Beta and they both left the room abruptly.Ria wanted to return to the bar and order herself a drink when Brayden stood infront of her.“What the hell was that right now, Riannon?!” he growled.