Bonded to My Ex's Alpha Brother (by CalebWhite) novel Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Thankfully, I’d had the foresight to wear heels today. Amy’s shoes would have been too small for me, at least a size too small, and if I had tried to squee le into her stilettos, my toes would have been in agony.

“Our birthday girl looks absolutely beautiful,‘ I said, turning to Amy, who was focused on dabbing something sparkly onto her cheeks.

She caught my eye in the mirror, her face breaking into a smile that reached her eyes.

“Thank you, Erin,” she said softly. “You know, as awful as that whole drama with Lily and Bradley was… in a weird way, I’m kind of glad it happened.

My eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“Because of you,” she quickly clarified, turning to face me directly. “I got the best friend I could ask for.”

Something inside me softened as I looked at Amy’s sincere face. This girl wasn’t Lily.

After the Soul Bond disaster, when I was hiding from whispers and contemptuous glances, she had found me in the library. She’d sat down at my table uninvited and started chatting about the chemistry assignment as if we’d been friends for years.

མ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་ ་

She introduced me to Jack, and slowly, cautiously, I’d lowered the walls I’d built. The three of us formed a friendship with substance that I’d never had with Lily.

“Oh! I almost forgot,” I said, reaching for my bag. “I got you a present.”

I handed her the small gift box, suddenly nervous. What if she didn’t like it?

Amy opened it and gasped in surprise as she lifted the pearl necklace from its velvet cushion. “Oh my god, it’s gorgeous! I’m putting it on right now.”

She fastened the necklace around her neck, her face glowing with delight. “How does it look?”

“Perfect,” I said honestly. The pearls shimmered softly against her skin, elegant and understated.

Amy hugged me tightly. “Thank you. I love it.”

We finished our styling–my hair elegantly pinned up with a few tendrils framing my face, Amy’s in loose waves–and said goodbye to her parents before heading out.

Jack was waiting for us outside Moonshade, waving enthusiastically as we approached. When he saw me,

“Wow, Erin! You look… wow.”

his eyes widened.

I smiled, feeling a bit self–conscious. “Thanks. You cleaned up pretty well yourself.”

He grinned, then turned to embrace Amy. “Happy birthday, beautiful. You know, you’re late to your own party.”

“The star makes a grand entrance,” Amy declared, striking a pose that made us all laugh.

Together, we walked into Moonshade, and I tried to ignore the nervous flutter in my stomach.

The club immediately assaulted all my senses–flashing lights that made my sensitive eyes squint, muste so loud I could feel the bass vibrating in my chest, and a mixture of scents that made my nose twitch: cologne, perfume, alcohol, desire, and the unmistakable musk of wolves on the prowl.

Through the artificial fog and flashing lights, I glimpsed couples in dark corners, so absorbed in each other they might as well have been alone. Several making out, hands wandering to places that made me blush and look away.

It seemed Amy had invited half of Silvermoon Academy. Students called out her name as we passed, raising glasses and bottles in celebration.

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Chapter 28

Within minutes, Jack and Amy were swallowed by a crowd of chattering classmates, leaving me awkwardly standing alone with my wal to look casual while scanning the room, though my wolf felt tense at being surrounded by so many unfamiliar scents and sounds. The mushe making it difficult to concentrate.

A prickling sensation at the back of my neck–the feeling of being watched–made my spine straighten. My wolf suddenly became alert, her attention focusing outward. That’s when 1 realized I was being stared at, and not just by one person.

Several males were watching me from different corners of the toom, their gazes heavy with interest and something more primal that made my skin uncomfortably hot. I quickly averted my eyes, my pulse quickening.

Desperate to look anywhere else, my gaze traveled upward to the second floor–the exclusive VIP section visible through stylish glass walls, allowing the elite to observe the common folk below while maintaining separation. My casual scan came to an abrupt halt, my entire body going rigid as electricity shot through my system.”

There, lounging on a black leather couch with the casual confidence of someone who owned the world, surrounded by high–ranking wolves who seemed to hang on his every word, was Derek Stone.

His steel–gray eyes locked directly onto mine, his stare so intense that it felt like a physical touch across the distance.

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