Chapter 4: Teach Them a Lesson

Selene's POV

My breath hitched in my throat. This man looked so unlike any other man in the room. He literally towered over every man-wolf, larger and more imposing than any Alpha I’d ever seen.  

The music still played in the background, but no one was listening. Every pair of eyes were locked on him, mine included.

Suddenly, his oppressive aura eased, just slightly, and the trembling that gripped us all subsided. My muscles relaxed, though not entirely.

He came towards me, his gaze locked on mine. It was a probing, hungry gaze, as if I were the only thing in the room that mattered. Everything else—the crowd, the music, the grand hall—was mere backdrop. 

My pulse quickened, and instinctively, everyone took a step back as he advanced. He approached, closer and closer still. My breathing became shallow and erratic. His eyes were so intense, for a moment, I tried to avoid it, afraid I might offend him if I gazed back. Yet a part of me—a part I didn’t understand—longed for it. Longed for his nearness, his attention, even as fear tightened its grip around my heart.

“Hey handsome,” Cynthia’s sweet, practiced voice broke the tension, cutting through the silence like a blade. 

Her hand trembled as she adjusted her gown, lowering the neckline ever so slightly, offering him a glimpse of her flawless skin. She took a deep breath and stepped forward. “I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Cynthia, the daughter of Alp—”

He didn’t let her finish though. He waved his hand dismissively at her, silencing her and brushing past her without so much as a glance. His stride remained unbroken, his attention still fixed solely on me.

Shock rippled through the room. Cynthia, the untouchable Cynthia, had just been slighted for the first time in her life.

Her face flushed crimson and her lips parting in stunned silence. I broke my gaze and glanced at Cynthia. Her expression was so absurdly funny to me. The way her lips twisted in confusion and her brows furrowed, perplexed. She didn’t know what to do; this man wasn’t fawning over her like all the other man-wolves and that fact left her in a state of utter disbelief. 

Cynthia followed his gaze and saw that it was locked on me. Furious, she stormed toward him, her heels clicking sharply against the floor, her finger out and pointed in my direction.

“She’s just a freak without a wolf!” Cynthia spat, her voice rising. “You can’t possibly be interested in her!”

The man didn’t answer. He didn’t even flinch. It was as though Cynthia didn’t even exist to him. But he stopped suddenly and tilted his head to the side, as his eyes continued to pierce mine. 

Cynthia scoffed, lifting her chin with disdain. “One minute ago, this freak was claiming my boyfriend as hers. No wolf, no status, no future! She’s a liar!” Her voice dripped with jealousy. She was clearly doing everything in her power to draw this man’s attention away from me and onto her. 

Laughter rippled through the crowd, restrained but cutting. I barely heard it though, I was fixated on this devastatingly handsome stranger. A smile tugged at his lips as he continued to stare at me.

Jason chimed in next, emboldened by the crowd’s laughter at me. He declared, loud enough for everyone to hear. “She’s delusional. She thinks I’m madly in love with her. She’s been chasing me around for months. Honestly, she’s pathetic…”

Jason’s words cut off with a sickening crack.

The man hadn’t let Jason finish. With lightning speed, his fist had collided with Jason’s jaw. The impact caused Jason to go hurling through the air. Everyone gasped, myself included.  

Jason crumpled to the floor, blood streaming from his nose and mouth. His groans echoed faintly. 

“Jason!” Cynthia shrieked, rushing to his side.

Before she could reach him, the stranger moved again with impossible speed. He hauled Jason up by the throat, his hand clamping around his neck like a vice. Blood dripped from Jason’s jaw onto the stranger’s fingers, his expression finally flickering with mild irritation.

“No! You can’t do this to him!” Cynthia’s voice wavered as she stood frozen, too afraid to come closer.

The man held Jason so tightly, he couldn’t even choke out a word as his face turned red. Everyone was shocked. 

Jason had always been one of the strongest warriors in our pack. He was the brightest star among the wolves, earning everyone's respect—especially the she-wolves. But now, he looked like nothing more than a toy in the hands of this mysterious man. 

“W-Who... are...” Jason rasped, his words barely audible.

Cynthia boldly stepped forward. “Release him,” she demanded, her hands on her hips. “I don’t know who you are or which pack you’re from, but my father is the Alpha of our pack and if you don’t let him go, our pack WILL retaliate.”

The man didn’t answer. Instead, with an effortless motion, he flung Jason across the room. Jason hit the wall with a sickening thud and collapsed in a heap, unconscious.

“You’re not worthy of her.”

The stranger’s voice was like thunder, resonating with finality.

Her? My heart stopped. Or raced—I couldn’t tell which. Was he talking about Cynthia?

But then he turned to me.

A ripple of disbelief swept through the crowd. Gasps filled the room, and when I glanced at Cynthia, her eyes burned with jealousy, her perfect composure cracked.

Before I could react, he closed the distance and scooped me into his arms. His movements were impossibly gentle, as if he was afraid of causing me pain.

And for the first time, I realized something.

The girl he wanted—was me.

But Why?

No one had ever wanted me. Not really. Jason had pretended to, but he’d only toyed with my affection. I’d lived my entire life as an outcast. So it was unbelievable to me that this man, this handsome, powerful man would want someone like me. 

As confusion and disbelief swirled in my mind, just as I caught sight of someone at the ballroom’s entrance.

It was my mother.

My stomach dropped, and the air fled from my lungs.

She was here. She glared at me, a deep frown on her face. She’d come to the ball looking for me, and now she’d found me, gathered up in a stranger’s arms.

I swallowed…hard.