The Predator

Chapter 27

Ivy's POV

"Girl, how the hell are you so gorgeous? You look like a celebrity." Ruth grinned as she looked me up and down. "Wait, let me take a picture of you. This dress is amazeballs!" She said as she made me pause for a photo. "Gorgeous! I knew my sense of style was top-notch," She kept mumbling things under her breath as she took pictures of me from every angle. I was flushed red from embarrassment. I'd never worn something like this so I felt really shy.

"Is it inappropriate?" I scratched the back of my neck nervously.

"What do you mean inappropriate?" She raised a brow.

"I mean…don't you think it shows a little too much skin?" I tugged on the dress here and there as I looked at the mirror for the nth time tonight. "Am I allowed to wear these types of dresses to the party?"

I've never worn something like this. It was a black dress that had no sleeves but straps to hold the dress in place. It was long and flowy. It was a beautiful dress but the neck was a deep V cut and my back was almost bare other than a few straps holding the dress together. There was a slit on the dress starting from my upper thigh area.

I was scared of what people would think….

"There's nothing inappropriate about this dress. This is an elegant dress, Ivy. You should see how Lunas from other packs are going to look." She grabbed my shoulders and then gave them a firm squeeze. "You look perfect but if you don't wear the dress with confidence, the dress is going to wear you. So be confident, okay?"

I gave her a nod before taking a deep breath. "You can let your hair down if that makes you feel at ease. We're going with minimal jewelry." Ruth told me as she took all the things I had to wear.

There was a small necklace, a hand chain, and earrings.

"Threader earrings look so good on you," She smiled as I put them on.

I looked in the mirror and took everything in. I do look beautiful. I never thought I'd be able to wear something nice like this.

"Now it's all set! You wait for your mate to come, okay? I'm going to get ready. I'll meet you at the party," Ruth told me before she walked towards the door in a hurry. "I bet his jaw is going to be on the floor when he sees you," She winked before closing the door.

I couldn't help but scoff. Yeah, right…

A few minutes passed by before the door opened. Cassian stood there dressed in all black. It's no wonder that we are matching since the outfits were picked out by his mother.

He looked so handsome in his suit that it made me shamelessly run my eyes all over him. Few of his shirt buttons were open and it only added to his sex appeal. He sure knew how to dress.

I caught his eyes. They were taking me all in but his expression gave away nothing. I don't know if he likes it or not. It was hard to tell.

"Are you ready?" He asked nonchalantly.

"Yes."

__

"Stay close to me and don't interact with people I don't interact with. If they ask you to show them around the pack, just tell them that you'll arrange for it tomorrow morning. Don't take anyone into any chambers of the pack house other than where they are." He paused and turned to look at me. "Just remember pack leaders are cunning and they'll use all sorts of tricks to get information out of you. Always keep your guard up."

I nodded away to all of his warnings. Goddess, is this a party or a war? Why did they invite these people here if they don't trust him?

I was taken aback when he gave me his hand to hold. "You're going to be approached by a lot of them since they are curious about you. The second mate thing is not common and a lot of them think that I'm keeping you a secret since I didn't invite them to the wedding. Don't talk too much to them." He told me as I placed my hand in his.

My cheeks were red when we entered the grand hall. There were a lot more people than I imagined. I suddenly felt overwhelmed.

I think he sensed my anxiety because I felt him give my hand a soft squeeze. He intertwined our fingers as he took me towards the stage. His father was thanking everyone for coming before he passed the mic to my mate who welcomed everyone to the celebration. He talked for a few minutes before he went down to chat with the guests.

I was beside him all the time while he talked to people. He introduced me to the leaders of different packs. They were all powerful people. One could tell from the aura radiating off them. The strong pheromones of all the alphas were starting to give me a headache.

Cassian was right. They were cunning. They asked me all sorts of questions and one of the common questions was which pack I was from.

They already knew that I was a rogue. I could see it from the way they all smirked subtly before they asked the question. They desperately wanted to get a reaction out of Cassian and me.

I understood their strategy. They wanted to take a jab at Cassian who hated rogues.

I gave them nothing. I only smiled and said that I had no pack before joining this one. I didn't fail to catch their annoyance when they realized that they couldn't get to me. It was amusing.

I met a few kind alphas and betas. Most of them were female alphas. They congratulated us both on our marriage. They were nice but my mate was still on guard.

"Whoah…I have to say Cassian you got lucky with this one. She's a beauty." the middle-aged alpha we were with suddenly said as he turned to me. I frowned at his words. That didn't sound like a compliment. "I bet you're having fun every day but it's weird that I don't see a single mark anywhere on her beautiful skin." The man took a sip out of his wine while he looked me up and down. His stare made me uncomfortable.

Another type of people I came across were perverts. I couldn't understand how they could behave so disgustingly when they probably had a mate waiting for them at home.

It made me want to vomit.

My mate quickly got in front of me. "I advise you to keep your mouth shut, Joliaz." He muttered in a threatening voice. I knew he looked murderous because Joliaz took a step back in fear. "The treaty we signed four years ago isn't strong enough to hold me back. You know that," I felt goosebumps on my body when I heard him talk. The scent of his pheromones increased and it took me some time to gather myself.

When I looked up, Joliaz was already mumbling apologies while my mate stared at him with a stoic look.

I have to get out of here. All these alpha pheromones are getting too much for me.

"Umm…Hey…" I called Cassian but he was too busy looking around. I tapped on his chest to make him look down and then pulled on his coat to make him lean down.

"What?"

"I need to go out."

"No. Stay here."

What? Oh god.

"No. I really need to go out." I whisper shouted.

"Why?"

"I need to go to the bathroom."

Cassian closed his eyes and let out a deep breath. I guess he was annoyed. "Go to the one close to the hall that is not used by the guests. If you're not back in ten minutes, then I'm coming in there." He told me sternly.

"Whatever," I rolled my eyes. Why is he being so annoying all of a sudden? Before this, he didn't even care where I went but now all of a sudden he's acting like he's my protector assigned directly by the moon goddess.

I quietly got out of the hall and made my way towards the bathroom. I had to pass a hallway to get to the washroom. I was so caught up in calming myself that I didn't even notice the shadows lurking in there.

They appeared before me all of sudden, causing me to jump back with a gasp.

What the hell?!

"Hello, Luna. Where are you going?" One of the guys asked with a drunken smile.

"Umm…to the washroom….Who are you both?" I frowned. One was an alpha and the other one was a beta. I could sense it from their pheromones but I didn't know who they were or where they were from.

"Oh, sorry. We didn't get to introduce ourselves earlier." The man smiled.

"I'm Rafel, the alpha of the Rosemoon pack. This is Karl, my beta." He introduced.

I gave him a nervous smile. They both seemed intoxicated. "My name's Ivy. Nice to meet you," I scratched my neck awkwardly.

"You're the miracle mate Cassian got, right? You sure are a miracle." The beta licked his lips as he looked me up and down.

"Umm…I think you guys should go back to the hall. We have a feast prepared and my mate would be glad to meet you." I faked a smile.

The alpha smirked. "Is that so?" He looked at his beta with a weird expression. "Speaking of your mate…I noticed that your neck is bare." He pointed to my neck. "Why hasn't he marked you, Luna? I've heard some rumors that he's not very fond of you. Is that true?"

"That's none of your business," I snapped in annoyance. Don't they know about boundaries? Why are they being nosy?

"Oops! We weren't trying to offend you, beautiful lady," The alpha raised his hands before they both laughed mockingly at me.

"We are just amused why such a beauty like you is untouched by her mate," The beta shrugged, leaning back on the wall as he lit a cigarette.

"Alpha Cassian must be out of his mind to let you walk around looking like that," He looked me up and down again.

I squirmed uncomfortably. What the hell is wrong with these freaks?

"Excuse me, I have to go now. My mate is waiting," I tried to escape but I was blocked by the alpha stepping in front of me.

"What's the rush, dear Luna? We have an offer for you." He gave me a sinister smile. I scrunch my nose when the disgusting smell of booze fanned my face. "If you aren't satisfied with your mate…" He leaned closer to me, causing me to tense up. "we can help you out, you know…"

I took a step back. "Please enjoy the party and then go back to your pack. Your mates must be waiting at home for you both." I said through gritted teeth. They're both surely mated and that fact made me want to bash their heads.

"Ugh…why did you have to ruin the mood by mentioning them?" The beta groaned.

"Have some respect for your mate," I glared at him.

"Respect?" He laughed. "My mate was a whore before she met me. That omega's hole is so loose I can barely feel anything while I fuck her," He scoffed, causing his alpha to laugh.

The way he talked about his mate made me want to vomit. Can people think of their mate like that? Aren't they supposed to at least respect their mate?

"Mine is an alpha. I hate alpha females, you know? I'm an alpha. I like to dominate people so I prefer omegas more." He smirked.

"I don't care what your preferences are. Go back to the party." I glared at them.

"Wow, you're fierce. You must be fun in bed," I stepped back when his hand was suddenly on my shoulder.

"Move your hand."

"Come on, let's have a little fun. No one has to know…"

I caught his hand before it came close to my neck. "Touch me and I'll break your dick." I breathed out, my wolf was already on the edge.

"Shut up, omega. You're not strong enough to threaten an alpha like me. Know your place," His whole domineer changed.

"Oh, that wasn't a threat," I smirked. "That's a promise."

His face morphed into an ugly sneer. I knew I hurt his ego as an alpha from how he gritted his teeth. "How dare—" his hands were already in the air when I ducked and suddenly kicked his balls. "Fuck!" He doubled down from the pain while uttering a string of curses.

"What?" His beta looked at me bewildered. "Where did you learn to move so fast?"

My combat skills aren't the best but I'm not the weakest fighter out there. The fact they were drunk, slow, and ridiculously underestimated what damage I could cause worked to my advantage.

I smiled. "Perks of being trained by one of the greatest fighters of all time," I said before I took the opportunity to land a punch on his face while he stood there still in surprise. My dad didn't raise no weak omega.

The alpha started to release his pheromones, trying to force me down into submission. I held my breath. Not today. Your nasty pheromones aren't gonna work on me. "There's no way a lowly rogue as you can fight—" I kicked his shin one more time, causing him to fall to his knees.

Good thing I went for his weakest point at the very first kick. He'll take some time to recover from that.

"Look who's low now." I smiled. "You look so cute on your knees."

"You–"

"What's going on?"

I flinched when I heard his voice. I didn't think he would actually come.

Cassian was standing there with a murderous look on his face. His eyes were so dark that they sent a chill down my spine. No wonder our pack is one of the most powerful packs in the world because he could bring people to their knees with just a glare.

God, he looked so evil.

I stepped onto the side when he strode towards us, eyes scanning the alpha on the floor. The beaten-up guy started to tremble as he got closer. Cassian stood in front of him and stared at the alpha like he was just an annoying patch of dirt on the floor.

"You have five seconds to explain, Rafel. Make the best of it,"

"I-I…it wasn't me! I swear! You know me. She came to us. She tried to offer us a good time! Yes, and then–and then she attacked us when we refused–ugh!!"

Cassian stepped on his hand, causing him to stop his blabbering. I stared at the alpha in disgust. How could he tell that lie in front of me without any shame? And why did he even dare to touch me if he was so scared of Cassian? So pathetic.

"Wrong answer." My mate smiled. Goodness, what's with that creepy expression? Does he always look that psychotic when he's angry?

"Alpha, you called?" I turned around to find Ryder behind us.

Cassian stood up and looked at me. "Take her to the hall and watch over her until I come back."

"What? Where are you going?"

His sharp eyes met mine, causing my heart to speed up. I could feel his rage. I was glad that it wasn't directed at me. He looks like a bloodthirsty demon.

"You wouldn't want to know that.".