RiverDances really weren't his thing. In fact, as River got ready to go over to the main auditorium in the village where the ball was being held, he had serious thoughts of ducking out. He could have his mom tell everyone something important had come up, that he'd had to manage some work. No one would doubt that. Alphas were busy people, after all, and no one would understand that more than Ellie. But he knew he couldn't do that because even if he didn't want to go to the dance, he wanted to see her.The talk they'd had earlier in the woods had been short, and they hadn't talked about too many deep subjects, but he'd enjoyed getting to know her a little better. She was a fascinating woman, and unlike a lot of the girls he'd known over the years, she was interested in more than talking about herself and trying to impress him. In fact, she asked all sorts of interesting questions, he'd noticed, whenever he'd been around her, and she was just the sort of person he could find himself get

Ellie"Hello, Luna Ellie," Blade said, taking a few steps closer to her. He was wearing a white suit jacket, a black bow tie, and black suit pants. He was a good looking man. There was no question about that. It was his personality that made her sick to her stomach.It wasn't just that he was full of himself. Most of the men in leadership positions Ellie knew had suffered from that affliction at least a little bit. It was the entitlement that bothered her. He not only thought he was better than everyone else, he felt like everyone else owed him something just because he was Blade."Why are you standing outside?" she asked as he came over to her, still standing in front of her.Blade shrugged. "I guess I just didn't need to see the River show, that's all."Ellie inhaled deeply, held it, and slowly let it out. How ironic that the biggest showman of them all was annoyed at River. "Well, it's over now," she said, assuming he meant the fact that she had been dancing with Rive."You do reme

EllieNot being able to sleep was something she should've been getting used to. After several days of lying awake most of the night, this one was no different. Every time she'd start to doze off, she'd remember what it felt like to be held so tightly in River's arms. She'd think about Blade and how revolting he was. She'd worry about the contest the next day. What was she going to do if Blade one again? River had to win the race. He just had to.Finally, around 5:00 in the morning, she got up and headed for the kitchen, thinking it was going to be a multiple coffee sort of day. The race was supposed to start at 8:00. It was a long race, almost a marathon. The course wound its way through much of her territory, and her father wanted to give the contestants time to complete it before the sun was overhead since he thought that would make it hotter, despite the fact that it was fall, and drastic temperatures didn't affect them the way that humans were affected by them. Still, Michael had

EllieShe hadn't planned to say anything to any of the contestants at the starting line; it had just happened. River had been looking in her direction just as the whistle blew to start the race, and her mouth had started moving before she even realized what was happening. At least she'd only said, "Good luck!" and not, "I love you!" Not that she did.... Not yet anyway.She felt her cheeks heat up when he smiled at her, and they stayed that way as she continued to think about him. She wouldn't be watching the entire race like she'd watched the entire throwing contest because that would be impossible. Short of running alongside them, she wouldn't be able to keep an eye on the entire course, and her father had forbidden her from doing that. Originally, she'd asked Michael if she could run the race, too, and he'd said, "No! You are the prize, the delicate flower pinned to the lapel of the winner!"She'd reminded him that she was none of those things, and he'd still said no. So her plan n

EllieAs soon as River was back on his way, Ellie stepped back from the path, her hands clenched in fists. Anger tore through her, and it was all she could do to keep from punching a tree. Fortunately, she liked trees too much for that… and her hand."I cannot believe he did that!" she screamed, kicking up dirt. She looked around to see if the onlookers were watching her, but most of them had their eyes glued on the path because the next runner was coming by. She didn't even care who it was. Blade was very close to being in first place now, thanks to his cheating--again!Her father had followed her over to where she was dealing with her irritation. "Calm down, Ellie," he said, trying to put a hand on her back, but she pulled away. "It's all right. It was an accident."She whirled around to face her dad. "An accident? Dad! That was no accident. That guy is one of Blade's pals. He did that on purpose!""Ellie, you're shouting." Her dad was calm, like always, and that was starting to p*s