Chapter Two

Eira

"Really? What's the good news?" I asked, failing to hide my surprise.

I wasn't expecting anything good after everything I had been through and hearing this from them just lifted up my mood to a whole new level. I wanted to be a part of whatever was going on and I needed to know what they had in mind.

"Just guess?" Giana said, slumping on the couch.

I had noticed that she was the first person to always slump on the couch as soon as they walked in which just told me that she easily got tired.

"Oh snap! I don't think I told you girls, but I'm very bad at guessing. I'm not really good at it."

"Okay, there's going to be a very big party at the bar where we work," Diana said, excitedly.

She pulled her shoes, walking towards the bar to grab a drink which was what she always did after a long day at work.

"Anyone care for a drink?" she asked, walking back with a bottle.

"I'll pass," I murmured.

The idea of a party freaked me out. I wasn't the party type. In fact I completely hated it and I had a feeling that these girls would drag me even if I put up a fight.

"It's going to be a blast, that I can assure you," Gianna said.

Diana poured a healthy portion of the drink in glass cups for herself and Giana as I stared on, completely lost for words. I didn't know how to tell them that I hated the very idea of parties without sounding very awkward and pathetic.

"Why do I have a feeling that you aren't exactly thrilled by the idea?" Diana asked.

I sighed, placing my head on the couch in total tiredness. These girls had done so much for me and this was how I was going to repay them. I hated the feeling but one thing I couldn't do was to pretend like I was happy with something I totally detested.

On second thought, I wondered why they were telling me all these. We didn't have so much familiarity to the extent of them telling me there was going to be a party and I was momentarily confused.

"Can I just stay back at home instead?" I asked even though I knew what the answer was going to be.

"No, you can't do that," Gianna said.

I sighed yet again, wishing that I could escape this somehow but I knew it wasn't possible. The girls would drag me without mercy and I knew I just had to be prepared for what was to come.

"But wait… do you hate our bar or you just hate the general idea of parties?" Diana asked, sipping her drink slowly.

Gianna busied herself with tapping her phone but I knew she was listening to every word exchange between me and Diana.

"I just hate it… I feel like I really don't know what to do there and let's not talk about the many sweaty bodies and stale breaths you have to deal with. It's a bore, to be honest,'' I explained.

Gianna burst out laughing and I knew what I said was the most hilarious thing she had ever heard. I couldn't lie about my emotions as that was the main idea I had about parties.

"Then probably the parties you attended were dreadful. Ours isn't going to be like that, you'll see," Gianna said, placing her phone on the couch.

I so much wanted to believe them but I couldn't. Even the very idea of going to something as tasking as that was already giving me a headache. I just wish there was a place I could probably hide and stay there till all of this was over. It was really draining, to say the least.

"Are you guys sure?"

I couldn't even believe that I was considering this option but on a second thought, I realized that these girls had actually helped me. They took me in, accommodated me when I was at my lowest point and the least I could do was to honor their invitation. It was insensitive to know that they thought of me while making plans for the party and still refuse to go just like that. That wasn't the proper thing to do and I knew that I needed to think of a plan and fast.

"So will you follow us, babe?" Diana asked.

I wanted to say no. In fact it was at the edge of my tongue but realizing what they had done for me far outweighed my decisions and I knew it wouldn't be fair on my part for me to just refuse that way.

"I'll go but please, you guys shouldn't leave me alone in the venue. I'm terrified of people."

"Oh… here goes Declan the second," Gianna said and laughed lightly.

"What's the deal with that guy anyway?" she added.

"Well, that's a story for another day. I really don't want to bother you with all of that," Diana said.

I couldn't help but notice that she said all of that with a sad undertone and I knew that there was more to all of this than met the eyes. I decided to leave the issue at that and focus on what was most important: surviving the party.

***

"Guys, I don't think I can wear this," I sighed.

What I was wearing was a sorry excuse for a dress. It was shorter than the shortest dress to ever exist and I couldn't believe that I was giving this a thought. Since I had arrived here with no clothes, Diana and Gianna were responsible for that and what they had given me to wear was nothing short of a nightmare. I didn't see how I was going to wear this but I realized that if I wanted to make them happy, I just had to do it.

"Why, you look very hot in it and best believe that you'll be the hottest girl at the event." Diana laughed.

What she was even wearing was so much worse than mine but she carried herself with a grace I didn't know she had in her. It was beautiful and she looked really lovely in it but I feared that one terrible mistake could have the dress ripping apart in seconds.

"Are you even comfortable in that?" I asked.

"As comfortable as I'll ever be," Diana replied, smiling.

For the party, Gianna opted for skin tight black leather pants that hugged all her curves, and a black corset-like top. She was the curviest and the way she also carried herself just screamed pure confidence.

These were women who had had their fair share of challenges in life but here they were, standing tall and smiling and about to go for a party. It was really commendable to say the least but I had a feeling that if they even knew half of what I had faced, they would run screaming for the hills.

"What's on your mind, girl?" Gianna asked, snapping her fingers at me.

I came back to reality, giving out a heavy sigh. Zoning out had become the order of the day for me and I hated it because it made me lose touch with reality. The problems I had faced in the past were telling on me and I hated how it affected my relationship with my new found friends.

"Maybe I do need this party after all," I murmured.

I looked at myself in the giant mirror again and I saw myself in a new light. It was time for me to forget everything that had happened to me in the past and embrace my new life, the new light I was now living in.

"Let's do this!" I grinned.

I didn't care about whatever happened after this. This was my new identity, my new power and it was time for me to embrace it fully. My name was now Ariana and I had to live up to it.

***

The loud music coming from the bar had me in my feelings as soon as I stepped into the premises. It was the most engaging thing I had ever witnessed and I was happy that the girls had dragged me to the event. I didn't care about my dress anymore. All I cared about was that I was here to have fun and that was exactly what I was going to do.

"I told you it would be fun!" Diana exclaimed.

We walked in and it was a smooth affair. Being staff of the bar, they had direct access to the building and the huge bouncer at the door didn't even look at me twice before giving us access.

The first thing I witnessed as soon as I walked into the bar was how large it was. It was four times bigger than the girls' apartment. It was dark as most bars usually had a disco ball casting party lights at all corners of the room. The music within the room was even louder than the one we heard outside.

"This is so much fun," I said and laughed as I moved my waist to the rhythm of the music.

Before I knew it, Diana and Gianna slipped into the crowd, leaving me all alone but at that point, I wasn't bothered anymore because I had finally found the inner badass I possessed. I twisted my body to different angles, dancing according to the beat of the music blasting from the loud speakers.

"Wow!" I screamed, clapping my hands in pure ecstasy.

It was then I saw him, the man who would later change the course of my life. Even in the dimness of the bar, his eyes shone with an intensity I didn't know one could possess. It just felt like there was a secret only the both of us were privy to and we were all alone among the hundreds of sweaty bodies dancing to the beat of the music.

Sebastian Redwood was a household name. He was the leader of the most dreaded pack in the entire werewolf kingdom and what was worse was that his pack and mine were constantly at war, seeking dominance over issues that could have easily been settled diplomatically. He was staring at me, searching for something in my eyes and in that moment, my body was on fire for him. It just felt like he was drawing me to him, closer and closer.

"Girl, you look like you've seen a ghost. Are you alright?"

Diana's voice snapped me back to reality and I found myself searching for the direction the voice came from. I found her behind me, staring at me like I had completely lost it but still, my eyes sought out Sebastian whose eyes I could feel on me.

Diana seemed to catch what was going on and soon, there was a wide smile on her face. She knew what was happening.

"Oh… I see you've met him. That is Sebastian, New York's most eligible bachelor. Have fun, babe and trust me, he wouldn't allow let out of his sight." She laughed, slinking back into the crowd.

New York's most eligible bachelor? Really? Is that what humans referred to him as? The man she had just described was a blood-thirsty Alpha King, but she had just described him like he was a college kid.

"I believe we need to talk," a deep voice said from behind me.

I almost jumped in fright, refusing to turn around even though I already knew who it was. He had found me and just as Diana had said, I wasn't getting out of this.