Chapter 3

Isabella Brooks POV:

Richard's face went pale, the color draining from his cheeks as if he'd seen a ghost. Panic flickered in his eyes. He quickly disentangled his arm from Eva's possessive grip.

"Isabella! What... what are you doing here?" he stammered, his composure crumbling.

"I could ask you the same thing," I replied, my smile never wavering, though my eyes were like chips of ice. "And more importantly, since when is Eva the head of the AO3 project?"

He glanced nervously at the other Alpha, who was watching our exchange with keen interest. "Bella, can we talk about this later? In private?" he pleaded through our Mind-Link.

"No," I said out loud, my voice dangerously soft. "Let's talk about it now."

Richard swallowed hard. "My parents... Alpha Danny and Luna Savannah... they felt it was for the best," he explained, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "They think, for our union to be strong, you should focus on your duties as Luna. Not on business."

I remembered the countless times his parents had looked at me with disdain, their words dripping with condescension about my "lowly" Omega status. They believed I would tarnish their precious Alpha bloodline. I had endured it all, for him. For this.

I feigned a look of hurt understanding. "Oh. I see. Of course. For our union."

Eva chose that moment to step forward, looping her arm back through Richard's. She leaned her head on his shoulder, a triumphant smirk playing on her lips. "Richard, darling, Alpha Stone was just telling us about his new trade route. We should listen."

She shot me a look that screamed, "He's mine. You've already lost."

Richard, weak and easily led, allowed himself to be pulled away. "We'll talk later, Bella," he tossed over his shoulder, leaving me standing alone in the middle of the crowded ballroom.

It was a familiar scene. How many dates had been cut short? How many nights had I spent alone because Eva sent a single Mind-Link message, and he ran to her side like a loyal dog? The memory of my own foolishness was a bitter taste in my mouth.

Shaking off the anger, I turned my attention back to the room. I spent the next hour networking, finalizing a lucrative deal with another powerful Alpha who was more than impressed by the Shadowfen name. I was not a weak Omega to be cast aside. I was a future Alpha, a queen in waiting.

When I finally left the ball, my heels clicking on the cool concrete of the underground parking garage, my phone buzzed. It was a message from Eva. Not a Mind-Link, but a simple text.

"Come to Level B3. I want to show you just how 'enthusiastic' Richard can be about pack business."