Chapter 34

(Isabella’s POV)

My mouth all but waters looking at this man. I swear, Greek god doesn’t begin to cover him. And as if his beautiful face and icy blue eyes aren’t enough to take in, his muscular body and Alpha confidence have my knees threatening to buckle beneath me.

And then there’s my wolf, practically clawing at my mind to convince me to let her take control of my body.

“Flirt, Isabella. Take the opportunity to touch him. It’ll make him want to reciprocate,” she tells me.

“After the disaster in his study? Absolutely not. Look…is he gorgeous? Yes. Do I want to touch him and feel his touch in return? Also, yes. Have I managed to catch feelings on some level for him? Maybe…But, we are pushing every bit of that down to the depths of our souls,” I tell her. “We have a business arrangement. From here on out, we will keep to the contract. He’s made it clear that nothing beyond that is going to happen.”

“Stubborn human half. Both of you!” she barks.

“Shh,” I respond in kind.

As Santiago and I begin to walk together inside for the Alpha Ball, Santiago offers his arm like a gentleman. As a lady and his date, I accept the gesture with a smile. By the moon goddess, this man is handsome in his tailored, three-piece, navy-blue suit.

My wolf relishes the closeness of him…the warmth of his skin through layered clothing has her panting and prancing in my mind.

“See, touching him is glorious,” she says.

“You didn’t win our argument,” I state flatly. “Coincidental timing.”

“If you say so,” she says.

“We aren’t an actual couple,” I remind myself and my wolf.

“Yet to everyone in this room, we are mates. Here we are, holding his arm; the fine yarn count in his suit is cool to the touch and soft, like cashmere, beneath our fingertips. It doesn’t matter, Bella, how many times you say this is just a contract. We both know it is not,” my wolf says.

The jacket hugs his chest and tapers at the waist. The top button of his crisp white dress shirt is undone, allowing his tattoos to peek through, showing just enough of his throat and chest to make my wolf think we’re in heat.

Despite the layers of his jacket and button-down dress shirt, it's as if I'm holding on to finely sculpted marble. I trace the powerful bulging ridges of his bicep as we enter the Alpha Ball.

The scent of sandalwood swirls around us until Santiago walks away from me to get us drinks. With his back turned, I inhale deeply through my nose and exhale slowly through my mouth, taking in his earthy yet sweet aroma.

He disappears into the crowd, and suddenly, another familiar scent hits my nostrils. There was a time when the combination of pine and mint entangled me like Santiago’s sandalwood…now it sears the flesh inside my nose and makes me nauseous. Without flinching or looking behind me, I greet the owner of that odor.

“Hello, Jesse,” I say with a sigh.

“Hello, Love,” he returns.

I barely manage to refrain from gagging. “Cheating bastard,” I whisper. “Never call me that again. You lost the privilege a long time ago.”

He places his hands on my bare shoulders. The sensation of his skin on mine burns through me. I feel his face invade my space as he moves my hair away to place his cheek against mine. As he speaks, his warm breath makes my flesh crawl.

“I just wanted to let you know that an appeal is impossible,” he says with a low, menacing chuckle.

“Why is that?” I ask through gritted teeth while trying in vain to pull away from his grasp.

His hold on my shoulders tightens, preventing me from moving at all. “It came down to a vote. As you know, all the members of the council must agree for an appeal to move forward. Sadly, one elder voted no. He and I agree that your pack is better led by a real Alpha.”

I scoff. “So, the Elders voted to award my pack’s leadership to Santiago?” I ask with a fake smile. “Because other than me, he’s the only real Alpha up for the job…in our region anyway.”

He raises his hand to slap me when Santiago returns to my side. He growls as he grabs Jesse’s hand mid swing with one hand while pulling me out of his reach with the other. “Touch my mate with an unwelcomed hand ever again and I will kill you without hesitation.”

Jesse steps back with his hands splayed out in defeat in front of him. “Was just saying hi…see you around.” He winks at me and walks away.

Santiago’s eyes pierce through me. “What was that about?”

“I don’t know. He told me my appeal was denied. He has an elder on his side, Santiago. They aren’t going to give my pack back to me.”

His hands pull me at my waist close to him. “We’ll look into it. He’s not going to get away with railroading you. I promise.” He lifts my chin to look into my eyes. “I won’t let him, Bella. I swear to you.”

I nod and offer a smile.

“Will you dance with me?” he asks.

(Santiago’s POV)

Beautiful doesn’t cover it. I almost forget how to speak when I look at her. The second she takes hold of my arm, my skin tingles, and my heart jumps in my chest. Her lilac scent calms my nerves and practically lulls my wolf to sleep, well, it would if he didn’t lose his mind at the sight of her in that dress.

Beta Levi has missed his calling. Apparently, he has an eye for fashion. I’ll have to remember to both thank him for ordering this dress for Bella, as I swear it looks as if it were made for her, and also give him shit for being a little too good at dress shopping for her.

The gown is a satin, fitted navy blue floor-length sleeveless dress that perfectly matches my jacket. The neckline delicately grazes her breasts, forcing me to remind myself not to stare.

I find myself jealous of the material as it hugs her toned body without being overly tight. It accentuates her tiny waist with a simple silver leaf design that wraps around her perfectly, like I’d like to.

The slit on the left side starts at her mid-thigh. Every move she makes, the fabric opens to give just a glimpse of her toned leg. Looking at her, I feel myself salivate.

Her hair is down. Soft black curls bounce with her movement on her bare shoulders. One shorter strand falls against her lips when she turns her head. My gaze fixes on her soft, plump lips.

“She looks unbelievable,” my wolf says.

“Yes, she does.”

“I want her.”

“I know you do. But this is all for show. She’s not our mate. We must remember that and not act on our physical attraction to her.”

“You want her too.”

“It doesn’t matter; we have a contract.”

“Her body feels good close to ours,” my wolf says.“At least ask her to dance.”

When she says yes to the dance, an almost boy-like giddiness bubbles up within my chest. She’s dangerous to us.

I pull her close to me with my right hand, allowing my thumb to trace circles on the small of her back. My left hand finds hers, and I twirl her under my arm onto the dance floor, where my right hand reconnects with her waist.

She rests her free hand on my shoulder. Her fingers brush the nape of my neck, sending shivers down my spine. I pull her body to mine as close as possible.

As we sway and keep in step with the music, electricity fires through every nerve in my body. She leans into me, then arches her back gracefully until our eyes meet. I take advantage of the position and dip her.

She wraps her thigh around me, the skirt slit opens, revealing her thigh to her hip…a low growl escapes me as I stand her back up and spin her around one last time. Our movement continues several moments after the music stops.

I bring my face to hers, grazing her lips as my breath hitches in my throat.

We stare into one another’s eyes for a heartbeat longer when the phone in my pocket begins ringing, pulling me out of my thoughts.

I gesture for Bella to take my arm and walk toward our table as I answer.

My eyes go wide. “Yes, I’ll be right there.”

I turn to Bella. “There’s something wrong with Layla or the baby. They’ve taken her to the pack hospital.”

Muscles in my neck tense as my heart feels like it's in my throat.

“Go,” Bella says. “I’ll be fine to get home on my own.”