(Daniel's POV)
Getting through the ballroom is always an obstacle, given how many times someone spots me. Whether it's the maelstrom of pushy mothers and their young, unmarried daughters vying for my attention, or the testosterone-fuelled enthusiasts provoking me for a fight—I don't know which is worse.
Learning from my mistakes, I've now taken to wearing a full face mask instead and voilà—total discretion.
This masquerade, though, I find it hard to get to my seat and swiftly get it over with—because Lina's lovely scent wafts through the air and stops me in my tracks.
Given my marking of her—sorry, Lee—I can spot her a mile away, easy. Still, her presence in the ballroom surprises me. I hadn't exactly told her about this, and with good reason.
My eyes track the crowd for the person responsible and I'm met with David's sly grin near the bar. He only holds my stare for a second before dismissing me completely to turn back to his fiancée, Irina, who is in his arms.
Asshole. I think about going over there to bash his head in, but out of reverence for his future wife, I restrain myself.
Instead, I focus on finding Lina and spot her loitering near the councilmen's chairs, clearly eavesdropping.
Shit.
This is exactly what I had hoped to avoid—she didn't need to hear their bullshit. I hasten my steps toward her when a spindly hand latches onto my arm and a shrill female voice rings out in my ear:
"Oh my Alpha, I almost didn't recognize you!"
I close my eyes—and curse the day I was born. I really, really did not need this right now. Trisha's loud incantation almost blows my cover because people are starting to look over, so I turn around and quickly pull her to me to shut her up. I hiss in her ear:
"Don't say my name."
She stares back at me in shock but recovers fast.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know you were trying to conceal yourself."
The vein in my neck must be popping out any second now, and I shake my head.
"Really? You couldn't tell at all?"
The sarcasm in my tone dies on her, but she continues to chatter on anyway, forcing me to walk toward the dance floor.
I'm really sick of her now; it was bad enough that she forced her way into my carriage and made the ride to the homeland hell, but she's been even bolder at making passes at me in public.
I need to shut her down quickly and effectively. Except for now, to avoid making a scene, I limply hang my arm, which she hastily grabs onto and pulls in her desired direction while I try to scan the room to see where Lina is.
Great, she isn't there anymore. Her scent has permeated all over the room and for a second, I worry that she's left.
Once we reach the dance floor, Trisha wraps her arms around my neck and presses herself flush against me despite my best efforts to subtly push her back.
Man, either she's really naïve or really ambitious.
I twirl her around a few times—more than necessary—looking and searching, but to no avail. My grim mood darkens, and I can't help but dwell on the fact that just the notion of being close to her here had been enough to pull me out of the misery of these hateful parties.
I'm in big trouble with this girl—and she doesn't even know it.
During the last chorus of the song, I nearly lose it and stomp off when a lone figure standing at the sidelines makes me pause. Trisha notices my statue-like freeze and tries to call out my name, but I can't hear her—or anyone else.
All I can see is her.
I shake off Trisha's hands and move toward her—I'll be damned if anyone stops me this time—to reach Lina quickly. Her mask is good at concealing her human scent as long as you don't get too close, and her dress is... well, pure perfection. But she could wear a sack and still look that way. The red satin drinks up her skin and flaunts her curves in all the right places—except that's not even the best part.
It's the same shade as my tie.
Kudos to David for giving her that getup. Maybe this will lower his sentence and I'll consider giving him an easier death.
I reach out to my girl, but before I can get her attention, I notice her stricken expression. She's numb—completely still as she fixates on a scene right in front of her: David and his mate dancing and laughing. My nostrils flare. Did she hear something from the senile council bastards that got her so upset?
I fall in step behind her and bring my hands down to her shoulders. She gasps before turning abruptly and staring at me with fear. Oh right—the mask. She doesn't know it's me. I take it off quickly, and her eyes widen in shock before darting back to look at David and his mate again.
"How...?"
Her voice breaks off. Wait... did she think that was me? But who did she think I'd be dancing with, if not her? I decide to test my delusional theory,
"Dance with me, Lee." I slide my hands to her waist, but before I can start swaying to the music, she stops me with a hand on my chest.
"Shouldn't you be dancing with your fiancée?"
Fiancée?
Her eyes move to my ring, and it suddenly dawns on me. Her recent cold behavior, her pulling away from me when I thought we were doing okay—that is, despite the whole human-wolf issue. She thought I was in love with someone else?
For some reason, this fills me with glee, and I grin widely before stepping even closer to her and lowering my voice to a huskier tone.
"No. I just want to dance with you."
I don't bother correcting her or relieving her suspicions. Her jealousy is so adorably endearing that I can't help it.
She glares at me, and it takes everything in me to suppress a chuckle. To think I was worried that she didn't feel anything for me.
I place my forehead against hers and hold her in place despite her struggles. At least this distraction is keeping her away from the dreaded council.
I don't want her worrying about a single thing now—other than, of course, being mine forever.