Chapter 15– A smitten alpha

Arabella's POV

Chapter Soundtrack: Attention (Violin) cover by Joel Sunny.

I waited downstairs for Bloyd to finish dressing up. She had pushed me out of the room so that she could have the privacy to dress. I wondered why she was always weird and freaked out to dress up in front of me. Not like I was a guy or even gay.

I paced a little impatiently as I waited for her and turned my head sharply as some footsteps joined me. Turning my head, I saw that it was Alcot. He had a brow rose as his eyes took in the sight of my pink ball gown. 

"Hello, brother." I sent a smile to him and he kept a rather puzzled face.

"I have just two things to say." He did not take his eyes off my dress for a moment. "First of all, you look amazing in that dress."

I blushed at his words. 

"Secondly, where are you going in that?"

"The maidens elite ball." I answered him with an excited smile pasted on my face and he nodded in response, a small smile reciprocated on his own face too. And that was until I dropped the bombshell. "Bloyd is going to be my escort."

The smile on Alcot's faced was wiped away and replaced by a completely blank expression. Knowing Alcot too well, I knew that behind those walls of blank expression was a storm of anger being held back. It always surprised me how Alcot managed to replace his rage with an expressionless face. He took so much after our mother although most people who knew our father claimed he bore more likeness to our father than to our mother. I had never been close to our father because he spent more time with Alcot than with me. To him, I was just a young weakling who should be mated off to a high wolf immediately I finished schooling. I was glad he died before I reached my prime. 

"Bloyd is your escort?" He repeated my words in a question as though he had not heard me correctly. 

"Yes. And please, take a moment to listen to me before you throw a tantrum." I sighed and I took his silence as a go-ahead to talk.

"I was supposed to attend the party with Riley but she bailed out on me. She doesn't want to be friends with me anymore. And you know how much I hate attending parties alone. Bloyd was the only available friend I had."

He bit his bottom lips and shook his head, not looking at all convinced by my excuses. 

"That is bullshit, Bella. You could easily replace Riley with someone else. Willow is in the castle. She would be happy to accompany you…"

As if on cue, a soft pair of heels cut us off our conversation and we stared behind us to see Riley walking towards us. She was dressed in a rich, deep blue shimmering satin dress with delicate beadings and small pearls. It hugged her lean shape perfectly. If there was one word I'd use to describe the dress, it would be…beautiful.

Alcot on the other hand didn't look at all impressed by her outfit. And if he was at all impressed, he didn't show it. He had his blank expression on. 

"See you later, my love." She completely ignored my existence and shone a smile in Alcot's way. She stopped to plant a kiss on his lips and I rolled my eyes at the gesture. With another mischievous smile playing on her lips, she walked away and out of the castle doors. 

That bitch. I couldn't believe she would be so heartless to ignore me that way. 

Alcot and I were left in silence. I raised a questioning brow at him and crossed my hands over my chest.

"You were saying?"

"For how long does she plan to stay here?" Alcot kept looking at the direction she had left.

"Who?" There was a faint smile of mockery playing on my lips now. "You mean your Luna-to-be? You should ask Mother. She was the one who invited her over."

Alcot's jaw set as he grew silent again. 

Ah. Finally, someone's shown their emotions. 

"She's going to be the woman you'll spend the rest of your life with. Start getting used to it now."

Someone cleared her throat behind us and we turned our heads to look at the 'lady' standing on the stairs. She was dressed in a body fitting red, luxurious silk gown with a cinched waist and a low, square neckline with bare shoulders. There was a hint of slit at the front, showing off just a little teasing amount of her smooth legs. Her long, brown hair was packed in a messy bun, with a few tendrils falling artfully over her face. 

In my entire life, I had not seen anyone dress so feminine, sophisticated and yet, so undeniably sexy. And to think that was a dress I had abandoned in my closet because apparently, they weren't flattering. Bloyd was rocking it so perfectly and the dress enhanced all of her curves in the right places. 

"Oh, my, god." I exclaimed under my breath and stared at Bloyd for long seconds before shifting my eyes to Alcot. He didn't take his eyes off her for a single moment. His Adam apple bobbed and his face seemed to have released all its hardness. His lips parted a little and his eyes appraised her entire being. 

It was as if he was standing face to face with a goddess. And if anything, he looked completely smitten by her. It was a realization that shocked me to the bones. Alcot. The cold hearted, emotionless Alpha getting smitten by a human girl. Never in my life had I ever imagined such a scenario. But it was playing right in front of me. This moment was as real as the feeling of my heart thumping in excitement to see my brother softened. 

"Does it fit?" Bloyd's voice broke the silence and I nodded immediately, a wide smile on my face.

"Yes…" I began to say but was cut off by Alcot.

"You look ravishingly beautiful. A heart stopper."

Wait, what?

I threw a surprised look at Alcot's way but he didn't seem to mind. His gaze remained fixed on Bloyd. When I turned my eyes to Bloyd again, she had a faint, shy smile on her face and she slowly advanced down the stairs. Alcot walked over to her on the stairs and held a hand towards her. She looked a little taken aback by his gesture and darted her eyes towards me as if searching for an explanation or something of that sort. 

With the smile back on my face, I shot Bloyd a go-ahead thumbs up and she blinked at me before turning her attention back to Alcot again. Slowly, she set her hand over his and he held them gently before leading her down to the floor. 

From up close, I could see every dashingly breathtaking feature of her face and body. Her eyes were done in a smoky makeup and her lips were painted red. Anyone would be taken by her features. Little wonder Alcot was. 

Alcot was still holding on to her hand but Bloyd cleared her throat and was the first to let go of their entangled hands. 

"Shall we?" She turned her head to ask me and I nodded immediately, taking her arm into mine. 

"See you when we get back, brother." I waved at Alcot and made to leave with Bloyd but he called me back again.

"Bella?"

I turned to look at him. His eyes were fixated on Bloyd even though he was speaking to me. It was as though he was afraid that if he should take his eyes off her for a second, she would vanish into thin air. 

"In whatever you do…, do not let the prisoner escape. Am I understood?"

To me, his words translated to; "In whatever you do, do not let the prisoner escape. I want her."

But I nodded at him anyway and gave him a reassuring smile.

"Perfectly understood, brother."