Chapter 392-The Knight At My Ball

Jenna:

The most painful part of my life was over.

At least, sometimes it felt that way.

Other times, it felt as though the real test had only just begun.

My friends, the same ones who had complained before that I wasn’t spending enough time with them, were overly sweet to me at the Mate Ball.

But I knew they had seen those videos too.

None of them was willing to tell me who had shown them.

They only claimed the videos had been passed around by being played on one phone, never actually sent to anyone.

Still, I had my suspicions.

There was one person in particular who hadn’t even shown up to the Mate Ball that night.

Gigi.

I didn’t know why, but her entire story had started to feel fake to me.

Fabricated, even.

Or maybe this was simply her karma.

Then again, what was the point of thinking that way?

What happened to me had happened to her too.

The only difference was that afterward, she had received attention and love, while I still had to go back to my real life and figure out how to comfort myself.

I was ready to find my fated mate.

Theodore no longer had the same hold over my heart.

His name alone now brought back too many memories, and with those memories came fear.

It wasn’t that I hated Theodore.

Of course I could never hate him.

He was a good man. One of the best.

Whoever ended up with him would be incredibly lucky.

In a strange way, I supposed that woman would be living the life I had once dreamed of.

But I had to swallow the pain and smile whenever someone approached me for a dance.

At least one thing people said about being connected to the Alpha King family was true.

Every man in that room knew what had happened to me, yet they were still practically lining up to take my hand and ask me to dance.

And I knew it wasn’t because of me.

They wanted proximity to the Alpha Kings.

Getting close to me gave them a chance to get closer to the family, to slip into their circle.

I couldn’t decide whether that worked in my favor or only made me want to cry even more.

Still, throughout the evening, I kept my emotions buried.

I wanted to enjoy my Mate Ball.

Sadly, Theodore and Jaguar had to leave early.

I heard Verity was suffering from transition pains again.

I was genuinely worried about her and hoped she would be all right.

"May I have this dance?"

A man approached me, and I offered him a polite smile before placing my hand in his.

I rested my other hand on his shoulder while he wrapped an arm around my waist, and we began to move slowly with the music.

"You know, when I first saw you, I had quite an impression of you," he remarked.

I tilted my head, still smiling.

I had taken off my mask by then. After all, the men needed to see who they were considering.

"But seeing you here tonight, dressed like this..." His gaze traveled over my gown. "I realized you’re more than just a beautiful body."

The smile nearly vanished from my face.

Something about the way he said it made my stomach tighten.

"Excuse me?"

I slowly pulled away.

"I’m sorry. Did I say something wrong?" he asked, looking genuinely confused, as though his words had been perfectly normal.

"Where did you see me before?"

My heartbeat began to pick up.

"Oh, come on. You know where." He gave me an awkward look. "But I’m just saying, I don’t judge you. It’s fine. Everyone has their own kinks."

For a second, I felt as though the floor had disappeared beneath me.

"Kinks?"

My hand shot out, gripping his collar.

The music faltered, and heads turned in our direction.

"Hey, hey, hey. What’s going on here?"

A voice came from the side, followed by a sharp clap meant to grab our attention.

Someone stepped between us and caught my wrist before pulling us apart.

"You all, please carry on," he called toward the watching crowd. "Looks like someone isn’t taking rejection very well."

I recognized him immediately.

Bruno.

He wore a black suit and had spent most of the evening sitting beside Grandma Lucille.

The moment he noticed the commotion, he had stepped in, deliberately making it sound as though the man had simply reacted badly to being rejected.

"Come on. Play the music."

His cheerful tone vanished as he turned toward the pianist, and the singer.

A moment later, the music started up again.

Bruno guided both of us out of the hall and into the quieter hallway.

Once we were out of sight, he let go.

"What happened?" he asked.

"He said I have some kind of kink. He said when he saw my videos, he..."

The words caught in my throat.

I couldn’t even finish the sentence.

The humiliation was too much.

"Oh my goodness, you’re so dramatic," the man scoffed. "You weren’t exactly some crying victim in those videos. I mean, it looked like you were enjoying the blackmail quite a lot."

My hand flew across his face.

The slap cracked through the hallway.

"Do you know who I am?" he shouted, pointing at himself as he stepped toward me.

Before he could get any closer, Bruno grabbed him by the collar and slammed him back against the wall.

"Yeah, I know exactly who you are. A royal beta."

Bruno stood tall between us.

"Which pack are you from? And which alpha do you serve? I know both answers."

The man went quiet.

"The real question is, do you know who she is?" Bruno continued. "Do you even understand how blackmail works? How does coercion work?"

His grip tightened around the man’s collar.

"No? Then if you can’t understand something that basic, I don’t think you deserve the title you’re carrying."

Bruno released him with a shove.

"So go home, Royal Beta, because by tomorrow, you won’t have that position anymore."

"Wait, I was only saying... You don’t have to do that."

The man immediately began scrambling for excuses.

Bruno didn’t bother listening.

He simply snapped his fingers.

Within seconds, warriors appeared and dragged the man away.