•Dahlia•
"Where's your husband?"
"He just stepped outside to speak with someone," I lied proficiently for the umpteenth time tonight.
In truth, I hadn't seen River all day. The last time I spoke with him was two days ago when I begged him to wear green for today's event so that we would match.
Every five minutes, I bombarded his line with a text, asking his whereabouts. I could tell that he was reading my messages but ignoring them. Typical River Everett.
"Oh, that's too bad." The other party shook their head in disappointment before coming up with an excuse to go meet someone else.
I was left alone once again in this grand hall. I retreated to an inconspicuous spot to appreciate the aesthetics of the scenery.
A lot of effort and money must have been plunged into this event. The gold-plated columns and diamond chandeliers said as much. Even the buffet table was a sight to behold.
I never imagined someone like myself would ever be privileged to be at such a place.
This was a royal birthday banquet, the best place to establish connections between powerful packs. Night Garden Pack has been rising in power ever since we struck a moonstone mine last year in the center of the pack that has been generating steady income for us.
Everyone wanted to approach us. No, not us, just River. He was the alpha. The man-in-charge. I was his wife and Luna, only by name.
As soon as people realized that I actually held no power in the pack, they would step away from me and pretend like I didn't exist. I didn't really care though. Being a powerful Luna has never been on my wishlist.
This year was predicted to be an amazing one for Night Garden. In the last five years, we wouldn't have even dreamed of receiving an invitation to a royal event.
Now, we were VIP guests in attendance, granted the highest honor of interacting with the First Princess of the Werewolf Continent, Miley Moonstone.
But surprise surprise, my husband AKA the man with power, was not even here.
I hurriedly sent another text to River, begging him to show up. Not for me but for our pack's reputation at least.
Turning down the invitation of a royal was like a slap to their face. I'd even made arrangements for a customized jewelry design carved from our mine's moonstone well for the princess.
Without River, I had no authority to present it. None at all.
"Curse him…" I muttered in spite.
"Who?" A masculine voice frained beside me, and I startled.
"No one!" I quickly lied as I caught River's cold amber eyes boring a hole into my body.
Of course he could tell I was lying. I cursed him at least five times a day. In return, he would cut off my air supply and fling me across the room for daring to harbor negative emotions towards him.
He couldn't do that to me now since we were in public. But I knew that when we returned home, I'd be in for it.
I noticed something. He wasn't wearing green. Instead, he was putting on an all-black suit that his muscular frame filled out wonderfully, emphasizing his dominant features.
I had begged him to wear green. But he chose to wear the most contrasting color, probably just to spite me.
Fuck him.
"Have you greeted the princess?" River changed the topic, his eyes darting away from me. He never liked staring at my face for too long; he said it irritated him.
"Not without you," I answered plainly, "but I have an appropriate gift prepared."
"Good," he sounded like he was rebuking me for some reason. He might hate me, but he knew that I never lacked when fulfilling my duties as Luna.
The fact that I was perfect in my doings made him hate me even more.
"Let's go meet the princess." River reluctantly held out his arm for me.
The man detested touching me more than anything. Luckily for him, my formal gown was designed with long silk gloves. As I roped my arm in his, our fabrics collided and prevented our skin from direct contact.
Though, I could still feel the chills from his body that always ran cold, freezing me to the touch.
I pretended like I wasn't fazed by it and straightened my spine, preparing to put on a flawless act of appreciation for the gracious invitation in front of the princess.
The First Princess of the Werewolf Continent, Miley Moonstone, was an illegitimate child born from the former king's infidelity. But no one dared to treat her like one.
Apparently, she was the sweetest soul in the continent and also the most cherished person to the Alpha King.
Rumor has it that the two of them regarded each other as more than half-siblings. That was why even though the alpha king was a man in his thirties and Miley was turning twenty-six today, the two of them were without romantic partners.
Miley served as Luna regent. The king was without a mate and heir. No one really knew the extent of truth concerning the rumor.
It could just be mindless gossip at the end of the day.
River and I located Miley without difficulty. She was easy to spot as she was the only person seated on a throne-like chair at the center of the event, wearing a puffy pink dress with a pile of gifts and guards around her.
Whoa, she was more beautiful than I expected.
Her eyes were a fine shade of hazel, and she had a round face that gave her this innocent and pure look. Her curly brown hair extended to her waist, and would it be weird if I said that I found her beauty beyond attractive? Like it was otherworldly.
I composed myself quickly and pulled River along so we could stand in front of her. Her attention was on the gift she had just been presented with: a snow globe of a sort.
Her eyes sparkled with interest for the gift. One of the guards standing beside her had to clear his throat to draw her attention from it so she could acknowledge River and I.
She didn't really look at us after the interruption, but she made a carry-on gesture to get us going.
I released River's hand and took a step forward. River wasn't good at dealing with people so I was going to do most of the talking.
"Night Garden wishes you a happy birthday, Your Highness. May this new age grant you more happiness and prosperity. Your shine will never dim for as long as you live. May the Moon Goddess will it as so." I spewed a bunch of sugary words, then snapped my fingers.
A servant from Night Garden Pack appeared and presented the princess with our gift box.
"The only one of its kind made just for the only princess of the continent." There was a hint of pride in my tone as I spoke.
Miley opened the box to reveal a fine necklace set designed with the highest quality of moonstone and gold. If her eyes had sparkled with interest for the snow globe in her hands before, now they were glowing with adoration as she stared at the necklace.
"Beautiful…" Her soft voice rang out.
The ends of my lips tilted upwards. Miley finally lifted her head to look at me. Then her gaze settled on River who was a step behind me.
There seemed to be a shift in the atmosphere when Miley looked at him. I didn't understand what was going on at first until I heard the sound of two voices speak the same word simultaneously.
"Mate."
I was neither of the two speakers.