Chapter 55 The welcome dinner
~Sage~
It was almost time for Raina's welcome dinner and I didn't know how to feel. So far, I've handled my emotions pretty well, thanks to my wolf who wasn't very strong.
Since Natalie wasn't around to help me with my dressing, the female servant who had taken over handled it. I wasn't in the mood to personally pick out anything for myself, so I let her do it.
I'd also made sure that Keith wouldn't be able to speak to me through the mindlink. My phone was turned off as well. If I was going to last through this evening, I need to have my wits around me.
I sighed repeatedly as the servant, whose name I came to know as Mira, helped with my makeup and hair.
Even as she helped with my gown, smoothing the blue dress over my hips and pinning my hair into an elegant updo, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong.
There was this tightness in my chest, a pressure that had been building since Riana's arrival. It felt almost as if invisible hands had wrapped around my throat, squeezing tightly. Air struggled to reach my lungs, and my vision was beginning to blur.
I clutched the vanity table, bending over as a shaky breath escaped my lips. The beginning of a sob bubbled in my throat, threatening to break free.
"Luna Sage?" Mira's hands paused on my hair, concern flooding her features. "Are you alright? You look really pale. Are you feeling unwell?"
What was this feeling?
Why did I feel like I was about to lose something infinitely precious? Like something was being ripped from my chest slowly and I was too powerless to stop it?
The lights in the room suddenly began to flicker. And for just a fraction of a second, I could have sworn I saw something in the mirror. It looked almost like a shadow that moved independently of my reflection.
I gasped, scared of what I'd just seen. But then I blinked, and it was gone.
"Luna Sage?" Mira called, her voice more concerned now.
I took a deep, shuddering breath. It must have been my mind playing tricks on me.
I had a dinner to attend. It would be utterly unacceptable for the Luna to arrive after the guest of honor. Protocol demanded that I be seated before Riana made her entrance, and that I play the gracious hostess even while my heart was shattering into a thousand pieces.
It didn't matter if I was having a breakdown at the thought of Keith marking another woman. This dinner was something I had to endure.
I straightened my spine and forced a reassuring smile onto my face. "I'm fine, Mirs. I just had a moment of dizziness. It's over now."
If she wasn't convinced, she hid it well. She finished pinning the last strand of hair into place and stepped back to admire her work.
"You look beautiful, Luna."
I looked at my reflection and saw a stranger staring back. A woman dressed in silk and sapphires, her face a perfect description of composure.
"Thank you, Mira. That will be all."
Satisfied with how I looked, I began to make my way to the dining room. The moment I stepped in, I could sense the tension that filled the air.
Keith sat stiffly at his usual place, his eyes hard and distant. Damon occupied the head of the table, his posture radiating authority. Father and son exchanged glares across the tables, their animosity a living thing that poisoned the atmosphere.
"This is going to be a long dinner," I murmured under my breath, sending a silent prayer to whatever gods might be listening to help me survive the evening intact.
Keith's gaze found me the instant I crossed the threshold and the transformation that took over him was remarkable. The hardness melted from his features. A small smile tugged at the corners of his lips, and I could almost feel the warmth of his stare wrapping around me like an embrace.
It was difficult to believe that this was the same man who had looked so cold and forbidding mere seconds ago.
But there was something different about tonight. Something almost reckless. He wasn't bothering to hide the way he looked at me, nor was he making any effort to maintain the pretense that we were nothing more than stepmother and stepson. His eyes followed me openly and hungrily, as I made my way to my seat.
This was dangerous. It was foolish. And yet I couldn't bring myself to look away.
With a polite nod to Damon, I took the chair directly adjacent to him, putting as much distance between myself and Keith as the seating arrangement would allow. I didn't trust myself to sit near him right now.
I had barely settled into my seat as the sound of heels walking on the floor sang in the room.
I didn't need anyone to tell me who it was. Everything announced her arrival before she even appeared.
The woman the Alpha had chosen for his son. The woman who would take her place at Keith's side.
Riana swept into the dining room like she owned it, dressed in a flowing red gown that clung to her curves like a lover's hands. The color was bold, aggressive, almost like a statement of intent. She moved with the elegance of a woman who expected the world to fall at her feet and worship her.
I studied her as she approached, and recognition stirred in my memory. The same flawless skin. The same dark hair cascading over her shoulders in artful waves. The same arrogant tilt of her chin.
But it was her eyes that confirmed it. Those honey-colored eyes that had turned so cold when we were alone in her room. Eyes that held coldness behind their warmth and hardness beneath their softness.
My fingers tightened around the stem of my wine glass as I watched her take her place at the seat directly beside Keith.
"Alpha Damon," Riana purred, her voice dripping with honeyed sweetness, "I hope I haven't kept everyone waiting. I wanted to look my best for such an important occasion."
"Not at all," Damon replied, and I could hear the satisfaction in his voice. "You've arrived at precisely the right moment. Allow me to introduce you to my wife, Sage. I trust the two of you will become close friends."
Riana's gaze slid to me, and for a moment, we simply stared at each other.