#Chapter 5 Her New Partner

Tina

“You need a companion for the party, Joseph,” Tina whined, peering up at him with a small frown.

A celebrity party was being hosted the following night and Tina spent a healthy amount of time trying to convince Joseph to take her as a companion. An entire month has passed since his divorce from Anna and since she left, it almost seemed like Joseph was growing cold toward her. She didn’t like how closed off he was becoming.

“You aren’t well enough for a party like this,” Joseph argued with her, for the hundredth time that evening.

“I am though, Joseph,” she argued back, the pout remaining on her delicate lips. “Everybody is going to be there.”

Well, maybe not everybody. She thought to herself as Anna popped back into her mind. She had to hide the smile from her face before Joseph took notice of it.

“I promise I am well,” she said again. “I even have the perfect gown to wear. You can’t honestly deny one of your oldest friends a chance to attend a celebrity party.”

He narrowed his eyes at her; he looked like he was going to argue again, and she had to resort to something she knew would work to convince him.

“What would my brother say if he knew the wolf-man he sacrificed himself for won’t take his little sister to the celebrity party.”

She watched as Joseph’s jaw tightened; the mention of her brother always had that effect on him, and she always seemed to get what she wanted. Her brother was Joseph’s weakness, and she knew that too well. She had to stifle a chuckle that crept to her lips.

“Fine,” he finally said after a long pause. “You’ll accompany me to the party. But you will behave yourself, Tina. I mean it.”

“Promise,” she agreed.

…

Tina wore a gorgeous shimmering golden gown that hugged the curves of her body perfectly. Her hair glistened in the lighting of the ballroom and her skin was radiant, yet still pale from her time in the hospital. To those close to her, they could tell she wasn’t fully well. However, to an outsider who is seeing her for the first time, she looked delicate and perfect beside her Alpha.

She stood beside Joseph who wore a dark suit and a golden tie that matched her dress. They planned it; it was her idea that if they are to attend the celebrity party as companions, then they needed to look like companions. He had his dark hair brushed and jelled out of his face; his facial hair was neatly trimmed, making him look older than he was.

Tina wrapped her arms around his, hugging his firm arms tightly and pressing her body against the hardness of his upper torso. The suit he wore left no mystery of the strong build underneath. He was one of the strongest Alpha’s in the kingdom, besides the King himself.

When it came to her Joseph, nobody was a match. He deserved a proper Luna to stand by his side and help run the pack. Ana wasn’t anywhere near that kind of luna, and it was disgusting that Joseph allowed himself to be married to such a gold-digging wench.

“Everyone is gawking at us,” Tina whispered from beside Joseph.

It was true, a lot of people around them were staring at them almost admirably.

“I’m sure they are thinking about what a wonderful couple we appear to be,” she chuckled.

He was paying her no attention though and it was making her blood boil. What did she have to do to get him to notice her? She needed to make him see that she was perfect for him. She was going to be his Luna.

Murmurs erupted through the party; everyone was excitedly looking around. Word had gotten out that there was a guest appearance; through the murmurs, Tina heard mention of the 3(rd) Prince, David, and his companion.

“Prince David has arrived, and he’s brought a companion,” someone through the crowd gleefully said to her friend.

“Has he found his mate?”

“It’s about time the 22-year-old prince finally found his mate!”

Tina glanced up at Joseph and he looked even tenser as he looked around the party, trying to spot the prince like all others. They haven’t had many run-ins with the royal. The royals ruled the entire kingdom, and the alphas oversaw the towns within the kingdom. However, the Royals didn’t make themselves very known to the alphas and the rest of the kingdom.

Most of the royals were kept in private. However, they would know a royal when they saw one. The king’s sons, the princes, looked almost identical to the king. They were handsome gentlemen. The Queen was said to be the most beautiful woman in the kingdom. However, she passed away years ago, leaving the king to raise their sons on his own. He never found another Luna because no woman could ever compare to his mate.

Prince David appeared toward the entrance, looking as handsome as ever. Tina, instinctively, straightened her gown in case she was introduced to the handsome prince. She glanced back up at Joseph who was still staring in the direction of the prince, his jawline hardening.

Tina couldn’t help but wonder what her beloved was thinking; surely, he wasn’t thinking that David was any better looking than Joseph. That was absurd. Nobody could compare.

She heard a low growl from deep within his throat and it made her frown deeper. She followed her gaze to what he was looking at that’s when she noticed Prince David’s companion.

Anna?

She wore a red gown that hugged her thin body and formatted her curves almost perfectly. Her boobs were pressed together and lifted by the gown to make them appear much bigger than Tina knew they were. Her skin was fair, but not nearly as pale as it was when she last saw her. Her hair was a bit thicker as well; it was no longer flat and hanging loosely around her round features, but wavy and sprung to life around her shoulders and down her back. She wore a red headband that matched her dress and brought the brightness out in her features.

She also had on a light layer of makeup, including red lipstick that matched the red theme she had going on. She was never one to wear makeup in the past and she couldn’t help but wonder if she was only wearing it to appease the prince.

This was making no sense; Anna was just a nobody orphan. How could she attend a celebrity party with a prince?

Tina felt her palms growing sweaty and her breathing gets caught in her throat as Ana draped her arms through David’s. Tina’s jaw tightened and she gritted her teeth, looking at the seemingly happy couple.

“Did you know she was with the prince?” Tina found herself asking, keeping her eyes locked on Anna, who hadn’t noticed them yet.

“No,” Joseph muttered; he sounded strained. “Let’s go introduce ourselves to the prince,” he said, walking through the crowd before she could respond.

She quickly followed him, and they speedily reached Prince David and Ana. Ana looked puzzled at first to see them, but then her face turned uninterested as she whispered something to the prince. David soon followed her gaze over to Joseph and he straightened his stance like he was ready to fight if needed.

Joseph bowed to the prince and Tina curtsied politely.

“Anna,” Joseph said, eyeing her carefully. If she was uncomfortable, she didn’t make it known. “I’ve been trying to mindlink you.”

“I’m not interested in hearing what you have to say,” Anna said, keeping her tone surprisingly even. She was calm and refused to look in Tina’s direction.

Joseph looked like he wanted to say more but David interrupted him.

“If you don’t mind, we have some mingling to do,” David said, offering Anna his arm. She took it without hesitation, and they began brushing past them.

“Have you been deceived, your majesty?” Tina found herself saying before they could walk away. They paused and David met her eyes, curiosity lingering in his gaze. But he didn’t say anything, he waited for her to continue. “Having an abandoned rogue as your companion? She’s just divorced.”

He rose his eyebrows; he didn’t look angry at her forwardness though. Moreso amused.

“If I were to get divorced, does that mean I couldn’t attend this party also?” David asked, narrowing his eyes at her. “Alpha Joseph was just divorced as well. And yet, he is here… with you.”

Tina felt the color draining from her face as David turned and walked away with Ana.

Her heart was beating heavily in her chest as fury rose through her. She looked over at Joseph, but he was already walking away from her.

Was he mad?

She shouldn’t have had that outburst in front of the prince and Joseph like that. What was she thinking? She felt so foolish.

“Let’s go,” Ella said coming out of nowhere and pulling Tina through the party.

“Where?” Tina asked.

“Ana is heading to the bathroom. We can intercept and talk to her without anyone nearby,” Ella explained.

Tina couldn’t help but laugh.

This ought to be good.

…

“You little gold-digger,” Ella sneered right before Anna could enter the bathroom. The small crowd that surrounded them started silencing Ella’s loud tone.

Tina was relieved that neither David nor Joseph was in the area to stop them, but she hoped that nobody else around them would intervene.

“What is it you want?” Anna said, only glancing in their direction briefly.

“You might have the prince fooled, but you don’t have us fooled,” Ella said, her tone darkening. “How did you do it? Trick the prince into bringing you to this party?”

“I didn’t trick him…” Anna tried to explain.

“Bullshit,” Tina snapped. “To think the 3(rd) prince would bring a rogue like you to a celebrity party. It makes me sick thinking about it.”

“Did you trick him by flashing the money my brother gave you?” Ella asked with a laugh. “You’ve been married to him for 3 years. I know he’s been giving you money for your blood donations. Marriage wasn’t enough for you…”

“I told Joseph already that I wanted nothing from him,” Anna shot back. “I stand by my word.”

“That doesn’t mean you didn’t keep taking his money while you were married,” Tina said with an eye roll. “Are you taking the prince’s money as well? Is he paying you to be here?”

“Oh my god; that must be it,” Ella laughed. “She’s a fucking prostitute.”

Anna turned to face them; her face was glowing red, but she remained oddly calm.

“No one is paying me to be here,” she said, her jaw tightening.

“If it wasn’t for my brother’s money, you’d have nothing,” Ella sneered. “Considering you decided to divorce my brother and leave our pack, you can give it back.”

“I’m sorry?” Ana asked, confused.

“Give everything penny that Joseph gave to you back,” Ella ordered.

After a long pause, Anna took a step back and examined them carefully, the redness of her face dispersing from her cheeks.

“Okay,” Anna finally said. “How much would you like?”

Tina was a bit thrown off by her question and she could tell Ella was also confused. More and more people started to gather around and watch the conversation unfold.

Tina was red in the face, and she clenched her fists to her side, aggravated.

“54 million dollars,” Ella said, folding her arms across her chest with a grin.

“Fine,” Ana muttered as she reached into her purse and pulled out a wad of cash.