Under many different circumstances, had she not been under general house arrest, she would have invited Evelyn and her husband to the wedding. But only as a means to rub it all in her face that she technically ended up with the guy whom she originally thought loved her.
Much to Samantha and her mother’s dismay, the wedding had been nothing more than a small group of family and staff. The venue
was nothing to brag about as there was hardly any decor or flowers.
Indeed, she felt cheated on various levels.
It pained her to think that between the two of them, Evelyn had managed to have the better wedding ceremony and even that wasn’t saying much.
But surely she felt somewhat pleased with herself, knowing that she married Liam instead of being stuck with a disfigured Alpha like Alexander, right? Nope.
Liam was solely focused on his pack, hardly sparing Samantha a real moment of his time.
“I don’t have time for this, Samantha, I have pack duties that need my attention.”
“Can’t you make yourself useful?”
“The pack needs an actual Luna to help work out the issues that come up – that’s your literal job!”
Each remark felt like a smack to the face. She was, after all, an Apha daughter who came from a life of luxury. And she had learned real fast that Liam’s family and pack came from a
more frugal lifestyle.
There were hardly any staff and the house was significantly smaller than the one she grew up in.
When Samantha had tried to buy a few dresses for the upcoming event season, her new relatives were quick to shut down the transactions and knit-pick at her for going overboard with her spending.
Needless to say, marriage life did not agree with her.
To make things all the more complicated, Liam’s mother had been ill for quite some time which made the pack’s need for a full-time Luna all the more imperative.
“I don’t understand why you can’t just step into my mother’s place and take over as Luna,” Liam remarked coldly. “You know she hasn’t been well for years. As the new Luna, you should be able to take on the responsibilities.”
But that was just it – Samantha didn’t know the first thing about how to run a pack. She knew very little about a Luna’s responsibilities
and expectations. It all just sounded like a bunch of hard work that she didn’t want any part of.
She’s used today’s Luna gathering as a chance to escape the misery of her new home life. So, there she was, wearing an already second-worn dress and practically hiding herself in some corner of the venue to not attract any attention to herself.
Gold help her if someone pointed out the fact that she was currently wearing a dress she’d already worn to a previous event. People like Fiona would never let her hear the end of it.
On various levels, Samantha felt alone. All that she really had was the company of her mother who, even then, was busy with her pregnancy.
Isabella approached her with a glass of sparkling tea in her hand. “Samantha, tell me. How are you enjoying being a new Luna?”
Samantha let out a snort and rolled her eyes. “An absolute mess and waste of my time,” she said bitterly.
Her mother sighed. “Samantha, we talked
about this. You must immerse yourself in pack affairs if you want to remain in power and well respected.”
She sneered in response. “That’s just it,” she huffed. “I don’t want to learn about pack affairs, nor do I ever care to.”
“Well, how are things going between you and Liam, at least?”
“Not so good,” she muttered. “We got married and all of a sudden it was as if all hell broke loose. There are constant problems popping up left and right. Liam and I are constantly getting into arguments lately; we can hardly stand to be in the same space as one another.”
When Liam finally reached the conclusion that Samantha wasn’t going to step up and take on the responsibilities she’d been given, he pretty much gave up on her.
Her mother gave her a sympathetic look. “I’m sure things will work themselves out in time. Just think, things could be a lot worse. You could be like Evelyn who no doubt is miserable and suffering under that monstrosity of an Alpha,” her mother laughed.
“That’s true.”
Samantha smirked at the thought of Evelyn sharing her misery of being locked in a loveless marriage as well. It made her perk up and eager to catch a glimpse of her Stepsister.
No doubt she’ll be rolling in here in some sad excuse for a dress, acting like a complete wild child.
Oh, yes. She was eager to regain some of her superiority she held over Evelyn’s head. Since they were little, whenever Samantha was in a bad mood, she would belittle Evelyn to feel superior and restore her inner balance.
However, nothing could have prepared for the sight of watching Evelyn stroll into the venue looking like an actual model.
“What the hell?!” she hissed in anger.
[Evelyn’s POV]
I can do this…I can do this…Please let me be able to do this.
The moment the car pulled up to the front of the venue, I felt my heart slip into my stomach. My nerves were so on edge that I was practically vibrating. The driver opened the door and allowed me to gracefully get out of the back seat.
Wendy was kind enough to help me with the back end of my dress so it wouldn’t get bunched up or accidentally caught in the car door. It certainly wouldn’t have been the most ideal way to enter this gathering.
With Wendy at my side, the two of us entered the venue which was tastefully decorated in elegant ribbons and gorgeous bunches of flowers.
“Don’t worry about what anyone says,” the older woman said quietly. “Remember, all because you’re obligated to be here doesn’t
mean that you won’t have a nice time.”
I tried to offer a smile. “I suppose you’re right.”
Wendy slipped my hand through her own and the two of us continued walking. As I tried to get a hold of my shaking nerves, I began to hear the subtle low hum of amused chuckling.
“What is it?”
“I wasn’t going to say anything,” she mused. “But…Well, Nina told me about you hauling yourself up in the library these past few days.”
I stopped moving and nearly swayed off my feet. My face flushed a deep shade of pink that I had no hope of hiding. Goddamnit.
“Yes,” I admitted. “I was trying to prepare myself for today as best as I could.”
Wendy nodded her head. “Etiquette…It can be a very overwhelming and rather frustrating topic to comprehend.”
I bit the inside of my cheek, desperate to hang on to what little dignity I had left at that
moment. No one was supposed to ever find out about my research. It was bad enough that I had never been taught these things when I was younger, I was merely hoping to brush up on a few lessons and maybe gain a few pointers so that I didn’t end up making a fool of myself.
“I was never taught certain things growing up,” I said meekly.
“My dear, why did you not just come to me directly?” Wendy asked. “I would have happily instructed you through a few short lessons. Surely it would have saved you a bit of time if you had.”
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