CHAPTER 24

JASMINES POV

The room was quiet for a while, except for the spicy rustle of fabrics and the distant noise of the occasion coming from the Alphas’ house. I stood motionless, staring at the woman in the mirror whom I could barely recognize.

Draped in a black sleek gown, its fabric clinging to my figure and cascading down my knees until they touched my ankles. Its simplicity was unique, its sleeveless design leaving my shoulders and collarbone exposed and glowing under the sheen of carefully applied oil.

“You look…exquisite,” the lady who was getting me dressed for the occasion said, forcing a smile to play around my lips.

“Thank you,” I said, waiting for her to leave my side before I moved out of the chair to take in the full beauty.

How could I look this way and let them bully me all my years in high school?

My red hair stood out, perfectly oiled and aligned to fall my shoulders in a curl.

“Has he arrived?” I asked the lady.

But she shook her head in negation. “I’ll go confirm,” she said.

My heart kept racing at what Caine would say. He was supposed to be here by ten as he promised to drive me to the grand hall. Why hasn't he come yet?

I sighed, trying to take my thoughts away from him when my phone rang. It was my dad. At first, I didn’t want to answer it. Why would I when he wasn’t going to come see me like this beautiful for once?

But on second thought, he was the reason why I came back to the pack, so I answered it.

“Dad?”

“Jas…are you all set? I wanna come down and get you,”

My heart almost dropped. “You’re coming?” I asked.

“Of course Jasmine,”

I hung up the call, trying not to ruin my makeup by sweating out of excitement. The door opened again and the lady who got me dressed came in.

“Caine won’t be picking up tonight again. Something urgent came up which needed his attention,” she said.

Of course, I knew he would disappoint. I mean all that drama just to back out so no one would see him driving the ugly, wolf-less Jasmine to the swearing-in ceremony. Too bad for him, he wouldn’t be the first male eye to see me this way.

On the brighter side, I had my father.

He pulled up a few minutes later and was totally in awe when he saw me walking out of the pack house.

“You look..,”

“Beautiful,” I completed with a soft chuckle, hugging him tightly.

“Just like your mom,” he completed his statement. I swallowed, my mind traveling to her for a second. “Is this what Caine has to deal with when..,”

“Dad…please. Not now,” I cut him short, filling my eyes as I made my way to the passenger seat. Be drove me to the Alpha’s house, down to the grand hall where the event was being held.

It was crowded with the students and other older people. My dad was the beta, so he used his position to get out to the front line them into the hall without having to show out invites.

“Joseph,” a masculine voice called my dad’s attention. It was Morgan Creek, Caine’s father, with his beautiful wife and son. Not Caine. “Been a while you stepped out. You…”

“You are beautiful. Joseph’s daughter?” The woman called my attention away from the men’s talk. I smiled a little and nodded. “What’s your name again?”

“Jasmine,”

“Jasmine,” she repeated with delight, holding her son's arm. “Jasmine, this is Dave, my son. He’s a student too. Why don’t you two get acquainted with each other,” she nudged him to move to me,

My father was so engrossed in his conversation with Caine’s dad that he barely noticed me heaving his side. Dave and I walked the squares of the hall in silence until he broke the silence.

“You’re really beautiful, Jasmine. What grade are you?”

“I’m…I’m done. I’m only here because I need to train my wolf, “ I said proudly, hating the fact that instead of Caine, it was his brother whom I am five years older than who was taking all my efforts to look good tonight, “Have you seen Caine?” I asked before he could say anything else.

“He’s supposed to be here by now. We found the body of one his friends on the street while driving here,”

His words made me halt, my heart fluttering as I tried to process his words,

“Was it a girl?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he replied.

I picked up my purse from the table where I dropped it and started heading out in haste. Dave ran after me.

“The event is about to begin” he called, but I was in a hurry. They’d found Lucy.

I opened the door to the back exit only to bump into Caine. I stumbled back a step, my breath hitching in my throat as my eyes locked with his. His face was etched with a mix of surprise and concern, his eyes scanning the length of my black gown, lingering just a moment too long on my bare shoulders.

“You look…pretty,” those words escaped the lips of Caine Creek, I wanted to slap myself up from sleep, to be pinched on the arm to confirm I wasn’t in some kind of dream or something,

No freaking way he said that.

Did he just call me pretty?

The tickle I felt in my belly traveled up my system in a rush, almost making me blush.

“Thanks. You look good too,” I muttered, uncertain if I was supposed to be complimenting him in return. His suit was styled in a unique design, making him stand out from the other students I had seen tonight.

“The event just started, where are you going?” He asked, now walking into the building. A cling chill ran down my spine the moment he walked past me. His cologne breezed the base of my nose, stirring a very unsettling feeling inside me.

“I…I heard you found Lucy,”

“I see you met Dave, my brother,” he replied instead.

“How’s she?” I asked. He hesitated for a while before answering.

“She’s strong. She’s at the hospital now. Once we get through with the night we’ll go see her by first light,” Caine assured me. We stood staring at each other for a while, the tension between us growing with every passing second.

He inched closer, and I found myself being drawn to him as well. His breath flushed against my skin, our faces a meter apart, and I thought this was the moment.

“Here,” he squeezed something into my hand, shattering my hopes. I swallowed, burying my head to hide my disappointment before checking what he gave to me.

“What is this,”

“Possible questions for tonight. Study them with little time left. I’ll be hanging around,”

“But…” I halted him after he attempted to leave. “Isn’t this cheating?” I asked, covering the gap he created between us.

“What? Do you think everyone makes it out successfully without shortcuts? It’s a castle thing, Jasmine. And if it means cheating for you to win.., I’m willing to go that far,” he said with a steady gaze which left me dumb.

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