13

At the dinner...

Ryder's grandfather, Beta Winchester, one of the ruling betas in the pack had also been invited.

The four betas in the pack had different areas they headed.

Beta Philips was responsible for the Pack Military and the pack's warriors, their weapons, training, and defense.

Beta Winchester was responsible for the pack commerce, the pack's businesses, trade, money, and taxes.

Beta Remington was responsible for the pack estates, the pack's lands, properties, houses, and buildings.

Beta Crossel was responsible for pack medicine, the pack's healing centers, healers, medicines, and herbs.

Beta Winchester was getting old. He walked slowly with a walking stick and said a few words to the guests before preparing to leave with his friends.

Just as Ryder arrived with Feyre, he was about to leave.

"Ryder, is this your future mate? After all these years, you finally..." he looked at Feyre with a kind smile.

Feyre nervously glanced at Ryder. She wasn't sure what he had told his grandfather about her.

"She's my guest, Grandfather," Ryder quickly interrupted. "I haven't convinced her to be my mate yet."

Beta Winchester chuckled and looked at Feyre.

"Lovely girl. Take your time with this one, he can be very stubborn."

He was too old to stay at a party filled with young people.

He walked away with his friends.

Ryder turned to Feyre.

"Thank you, at least I will be free from his nagging about getting a mate for some time."

"It's fine, besides you also helped me out of prison earlier." Feyre told him.

"Ryder, this is the first time I've seen you bring someone to one of these events. Who is she? She must be someone special."

A few werewolves walked over with curious smiles.

"She's beautiful. Ryder definitely has good taste."

Everyone here was part of the pack's elite.

They were exactly the kind of people Feyre wanted nothing to do with.

She hated crowds like this.

They all felt like predators waiting to find someone weak enough to tear apart.

People like these reminded her of Grant.

And most likely, Ryder too.

"She's young and a little shy. I won't bother introducing her to everyone."

Ryder offered his arm to Feyre.

Feyre quickly held onto it. She was nervous and wanted to leave.

She hated this place.

The fake smiles and hidden schemes made her feel suffocated.

"Ryder, seeing you like this, should we expect a mating ceremony soon?" someone teased. "Your grandfather has always said his biggest wish is to see you mated. It should happen soon, right?"

Ryder simply smiled without answering.

The others understood and stopped asking.

"By the way, did you hear? Grant might be getting mated soon. He has been hanging out with Anna Remington."

Feyre's chest tightened when she heard Grant's name.

Without thinking, she held Ryder's arm a little tighter.

Ryder noticed but said nothing. He only glanced at her.

"Why didn't Anna become his mate before? Instead she ran off to be with that Alpha from Graceland. She was gone for four years, became a widow, and now she's back."

"She's confident. Even after everything, Grant still only has eyes for her."

When Anna left four years ago after becoming mated, everyone had been shocked and felt pity for Grant.

They had all known how deeply he loved Anna.

That kind of devotion was rare in their elite circle, which was why their relationship had always attracted so much attention.

"and here is he!"

Someone laughed as they looked toward the entrance.

"Grant, you're late. You have to be punished!" the person teased.

Grant walked in with Anna.

Anna looked stunning that night.

She wore a blue gown that matched her elegant and mature beauty.

Feyre couldn't help feeling envious. She wasn't envious of the dress. She was jealous of Anna's confidence.

The confidence that came from growing up with everything Feyre had never had.

"Are you scared?" Ryder asked quietly.

He was asking if she was afraid of seeing Grant.

Feyre shook her head, she wasn't afraid of seeing Grant.

She and Grant had nothing to do with each other anymore.

"Anna's brother got hurt, so we had to make sure he was okay," Grant explained politely as he approached.

"It's been a while, Ryder."

Grant smiled at him.

Originally, Grant had planned to bring Feyre to the dinner to make her happy.

But Anna had wanted to come and after what happened to Phil, he wanted to make Anna happy, so his plans changed.

"Hello, Ryder."

Anna greeted Ryder. Although they were all children of betas, she and Ryder weren't close at all.

"What happened to your brother?" someone asked.

Anna smiled gracefully.

"He was hurt by a poorly raised girl."

She and Grant were now standing right in front of Feyre.

Neither of them had recognized her yet.

They probably still thought she was in prison.

"What did your brother do to make a young girl beat him like that?"

Ryder's voice was calm, but there was a clear warning in it.

Anna wondered why he sounded angry.

As far as she knew, she had never offended Ryder.

So why did he sound angry?

Feyre also looked at Ryder in surprise.

Why was he defending her?

She hadn't expected him to stand up for her, especially in front of so many important people.

"Ryder..." Grant was about to ask him what was wrong.

Then his eyes met Feyre's. He became speechless.

His eyes had anger, but he forced himself to remain calm.

This Feyre looked completely different from the woman he knew.

She had been with him for four years, from the age of nineteen to twenty three.

He had always known she was beautiful, but she rarely dressed up.

She always wore simple white shirts or plain dresses.

She never tried to bring attention to herself. That was part of what made her so easy to keep as a secret mate.

But now, the secret mate he had kept for himself was standing beside another man.

The thought made him angry.

"Feyre?"

Anna finally recognized her.

Her eyes widened.

"Weren't you... at the prison?"

"I am pretty sure the person who belongs there is Phil."

Ryder's voice was cold.

He stepped in front of Feyre, completely shielding her from Anna.

He didn't care about making Anna angry.

Everyone always treated Anna with care and respect.

But Ryder was different.

Anna's expression became angry.

She frowned at him.

"Do you know Feyre? She's Grant's servant. We are friends."

"Friends? I didn't know friends treated each other like that"

Ryder chuckled.

He turned toward Grant.

"I didn't know you liked people who pretend to be innocent, Philips."

The entire group went silent.

Everyone could feel the sudden tension.

What was happening?

The Winchester family was one of the most powerful families in the pack, same with the Philips.

These two families had always gotten along.

So why was there suddenly so much tension between them?

Grant said nothing.

He only stared at Feyre.

Feyre refused to look back.

She simply didn't want to look at him.

Grant disgusted her and made her disappointed in herself.

"Anna, why don't you go mingle with your friends?"

Grant's voice was gentle as he gave Anna a way to leave.

Anna was angry, but she couldn't argue in front of everyone.

She gave Feyre one last look before walking away.

Grant looked at Feyre.

"Feyre, come with me now." he said in a low voice.

He turned and walked toward the balcony, expecting her to follow.

For four years, she always followed him.

No matter how unreasonable his requests were, Feyre always obeyed.

But this time, she stayed where she was.

After walking a few steps, Grant stopped and turned around to stare at her.

Feyre didn't move.

Instead, she held Ryder's arm even tighter.

"Master Winchester, your grandfather has already left. Can I go home?"

Her voice was quiet. She was exhausted.