The Selkie's Alpha

Chapter 29

Anxiety sank deep into Brooke's stomach as she paced outside the banquet hall. She'd barely ever spent time in there to begin with—the children's parties that used to make up the bulk of her job mostly took place in more fun areas of the Cowrie Cabana—and now she'd be attending not as the head event coordinator, but as an honored guest.

Perhaps honored wasn't the right word. Brooke shrank away from the stares of the werewolves filing into the banquet hall. Mr. Evergreen may have put on a polite façade when he'd invited her to join the festivities, but it was no secret she wasn't welcome.

Thankfully, she wouldn't have to bear the event alone.

Jasper strode through the crowd, shaking hands with all who paused to greet him with the same smile regardless of which pack they belonged to. The instant he spotted Brooke, he quickly excused himself to join her.

"It's wonderful to see you," he said, enveloping her hands in his. With his gray suit that highlighted his muscular arms while still looking suitably fancy, he drew more than a few appreciative glances from other werewolves. Yet, he only had eyes for her.

She smoothed down her simple blue gown. "Do I look okay? It took forever to decide what to wear, and I still feel underdressed."

He gave her hands a gentle squeeze. "You look absolutely stunning."

"But they're staring." Especially now that she was dominating the guest of honor's attention.

"Don't mind them." He wrapped his arm around her back, sending a wave of goosebumps running across her skin. "No use letting them ruin our evening."

Inside the banquet hall, werewolves milled around a ridiculously long table boasting brilliant bouquets of black and dark blue flowers. White cards with elegant golden cursive marked where each attendee was supposed to sit.

"This is ridiculous," Jasper growled. "Mr. Evergreen didn't care where anyone was for any of our other events, yet now he's decided we can't even sit where we please."

Gwen would be directly across from Jasper. With Brooke next to her, Jasper would be forced to turn his head if he wanted to have a conversation with anyone besides Mr. Evergreen's daughter.

Still, getting annoyed over the Alpha's manipulative seating arrangement would do about as much good as cursing the tide for erasing her footprints from the shore. "Hey, at least we still get to spend time together," Brooke said. "What do you think of the decorations?"

"You always do a phenomenal job making everything look beautiful." A smirk played on his lips. "You're the most beautiful thing in this room."

Heat rushed to Brooke's face. She was so flustered by his compliment she nearly missed the chair as she moved to sit down, scrambling to keep herself from introducing her butt to the floor. Goddess, how was she going to go the entire evening without embarrassing Jasper in front of everyone?

"Glad to see I'll have good company tonight." Gwen greeted Brooke with a warm smile as she eased into the seat beside her. "I was afraid my father would make me sit next to Waylon."

"Thank the Goddess that much is going well." Jasper cleared his throat. "I've been meaning to thank you for standing up for me during our meeting the other day."

"Think nothing of it," Gwen said. "I said I was okay with you trying to find your soulmate, and I meant it."

As much as the rest of Kudzu Pack annoyed her, Brooke couldn't bring herself to be the least bit bothered by Gwen herself. Whatever jealousy she'd felt when she'd first met her had been washed away.