Chapter 123
Ellie POV
I stand in front of the Alpha mansion longer than I mean to, fingers curled tight at my sides, my pulse ticking loudly enough that I swear the stone lions flanking the entrance can hear it.
I… don’t want to be here.
That thought repeats itself like a warning bell, but it doesn’t matter. You don’t refuse an Alpha family’s invitation.
And after there letter showed,up to our house after my little…scene at the gala, it wasn’t exactly and invitation rather then a small threat.
So I lift my chin and knock.
The door opens almost immediately.
Dominic stands there, wild looking.
For a split second, neither of us moves.
He looks… different. Not softer, Dominic never looks soft, but unsettled. His hair is still damp from what I assume was a shower, a dark shirt clinging to his shoulders, sleeves rolled.
He looks…nice. Really nice. But I couldn’t take it in, not after the last memory of use together played over in my head,
I tucked my chin, clinging my purse.
His eyes flick over me, quick and unreadable, then away.
“I told them not to do this,” he mutters.
No hello. Not are you okay. Or maybe I should be the one to appologize.
But all I do is exhale slowly. “I know.”
And then I step inside, because what else am I supposed to do?
The doors close behind me with a quiet, final sound that feels a lot like a trap snapping shut.
Dinner is already laid out like a performance. Candles, polished silver, the kind of table that makes you sit straighter just by existing. Dominic’s parents greet me warmly, too warmly, hands brushing my arms, smiles sharp with assessment.
“Ugh, Ellie, you look so darling,” His mother cooed. “That dress is so cute!”
“Thanks,” I say with a weak smile. “It was my mother’s.”
I expected more tension from my last embarrassment for them, but they seem…fine. Which is worry some.
They seat Dominic and me beside each other.
Our chairs are close enough that our knees brush if either of us shifts. Neither of us does. The space between us hums anyway. tight and electric, like it’s daring one of us to acknowledge it.
I expected them to ask me more questions too, about Dominic and I, but we stay mostly…silent. And I wondered if this is how Dom feels all the time.
Conversation flows around us, but none of it feels meant for us. Questions about my studies, ny rankings at the healer academy, my “potential.” Compliments wrapped in expectation.
Dominic’s mother beams. “She’s remarkable,” she says, like Dominic isn’t sitting right there “Top of her class. Disciplined
+30 Bonus
Grounded.”
I keep my smile polite. My jaw aches from holding it in place.
Dominic says nothing.
His father tells a story about Dominic’s temper as a boy, how he once refused to bow to a visiting Alpha. They laugh like it’s charming. I glance at Dominic and catch the brief flicker of irritation in his eyes before he schools it away.
