Chapter Five

"Ha, Miss Cullen." Evie shook hands with one of the noblewomen who was a dear friend of her mother.

"Happy birthday, Princess. You're looking beautiful like usual." The woman said with a bright smile on her lips.

"Please don't flatter me, Milady. You're looking more beautiful." Evie looked down at the woman's blue dress that fitted her beautiful slender body. 

"Please stop it." The woman waved at her and turned to her mother. "She's so beautiful, just like you, Your Majesty." The woman chuckled. "Come on, Ethan. Entertain your friend we'll be back." And thus the women left, leaving them all alone.

"They have no idea don't they?" Ethan chuckled, as they both walked to the dance floor.

Evie straightened her dress before they began the dance.

"They don't." Evie sighed, as they began to dance to the slow beautiful music of the orchestras.

"Have you seen him today? Or you haven't tried enough?" Her best friend asked. 

Well, Ethan and Gwendolyn were the only friends she could make since she was stuck inside the palace. And Gwendolyn couldn't make it.

Was she to tell him? And of course, would he believe it? Her mate had turned out to be the one everyone hated. The cruel and merciless Alpha of the clan her father hated with

"Breathe Evie. I'm not having you die on me. Your mate Isn't here yet?" 

𝐻𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡. Those thoughts burnt Evie's heart.

Although her mate had turned out to be such a person, she still wanted to be with him. To go with him, but that was never going to happen seeing how things were holding up.

"Let's take a rest. You have a lot on your mind. Are you okay?" Ethan asked, letting her go sit.

"I am." She lied through her teeth. "How's Titi going? I bet she's becoming more fierce than ever." She diverted the topic.

"She's becoming more powerful and rough. I had to influence her before taking her to her kennel the other day. It isn't fair as well." Ethan sighed and took a seat too.

Evie watched so many people dance around elegantly while eating and drinking.

It didn't excite her as much as it did before she had found her mate. It angered her for no reason when her eyes suddenly got that of the woman that was pleasuring him earlier.

"Hey!" Ethan grabbed her shoulder. "God! I can feel so many negative sensations coming from you, are you okay? Or do you need a break?" He asked, helping her with her tiara.

"I'm fine. I just, I'm just frustrated about trying all night but not finding him. I wanted to find him tonight and there's no other time to.." She paused when a pair of firm hands held her shoulder tightly.

"Dad. I didn't see you there." She faked a smile.

"I know too, baby. It's tiring and it's making you anxious but you still have all the time in the world. You're still so young and you will find him, you must find him.. 'cause he'll come to you himself." Her father patted her shoulder, bending down to place a kiss on her cheek.

Evie smiled at the calm gesture but nothing could calm the swelling storm inside her small chest. It was as if she could feel everything in the room.

"Thank you, Dad." She held his hand on her shoulder.

The party didn't stop till midnight and Evie stood at the entrance of the mansion, greeting the people that had attended her birthday party.

"Ha! Is that you Miss Penelope?" She called out. "I'm so sorry, I didn't even know you attended, how was the party?" She asked with a pretty smile on her lips.

Although she was tired, it wasn't fair to leave her mother to cater for all these herself. She had to do this, after all, she wasn't that little child with a tiara on her head to smile at everyone like before and leave when everything was done.

"Your Highness." Three Little girls bowed at the same time. 

"My three little triplets. Are you okay? Did you eat to your satisfaction?" 

"Yes, your majesty. Make sure to have another party tomorrow." The little one said, and Evie nodded with a short laugh.

She stretched her hands as she headed inside when the guest was long gone.

"She can find her mate another time if you keep up with these. She's going to think she's not cut out for these Miranda." She heard her father whisper yelled at her mother who was standing in the middle of the hall where the party had been held.

"I just want to try and help her. You know how hard it gets when one doesn't get to find her mate at the coming-of-age ball. We do not want our daughter to end up like us, no?" Her mother said, tapping her leg on the floor as she looked around for nothing in particular.

"So you're going to arrange for another ball tomorrow? Tommorow Miranda? Do you want her to begin to feel useless? She was already tired today because she couldn't find him. These things make it difficult, Miranda. Drop it." Her father warned.

"Our daughter is not likely to ever find her mate In these lands and the ones we rule. What if she finds him in other lands, huh?" Or maybe she finds him in his clan, eh?" Her mother snorted.

"There's no way we'd let our daughter go to that place called a clan. The moon Goddess can not do that to us. She won't be going there." And that was it. Her father stormed out of the hall, and her mother kept pacing around

She couldn't tell them she had found the man they were all looking for. And the man had turned out to be someone they would agree to go with.

She knew her parents and the hatred they had for Alpha Ronan, there was no way they'd forgive him overnight for being their daughter's mate.

She walked into her room and looked out of her large window.

The bell rang loudly, indicating it was midnight and all windows and doors be closed.

Evie walked to the bed, not after discarding her clothes of course. She hugged her cinnamon-scented pillow and thought about her dreams.

She had had the same dream again; the dream that she had always longed for but never happened.

Evie got tired and walked to the bathroom door, not after making sure her clothes were kept for washing the next morning.

She could still feel his heartbeat on her hand.

The cold but warm flow of blood in his shoulders. The change in his eyes and those swirling thoughts lingered whenever she took a step closer and he took one back.

Evie was left to imagine how their life would have turned out to be if he wasn't who he was. It would have turned out to be just fine and they would have marked instantly. But this was Alpha Ronan, someone who hated her father with passion and didn't even mind banging a woman in the female's restroom..even though he could feel his mate in the house.

Someone who wanted to play hide and seek with her and nothing more.

A knock on the door made her look up from the door she had been leaning on.

"Who is it?" She asked.

"I'm sorry Your Highness. It is the maid." 

"Come in." She said rather hard than before.

"What is it I can help you with? Didn't the bell ring?" Evie asked.

"It did, Your Highness but I was asked by the Queen to come see if you need anything and to run you a warm bath for sores."

"Sores?"

"According to the Queen, the dress lines would leave sores and she didn't want you hurt Milady." The maid was careful with her mouth.

"Well, thank you for your concern, but I can take care of that myself. Do you need something else?" She couldn't help but wonder why her mother would send a maid when she does that herself.

Was it because she had not found her mate today? Were they disappointed in her?

No, that probably wasn't the case.

She pulled the beautiful covers up her chest and watched the maid go into the bathroom to heat the water.

"All done." 

"Good. Thank you, you can go have a calm rest now." Evie said. "Tell the others to go rest and continue tomorrow." She added.

"Happy Birthday your Highness." The maid bowed slightly and Evie smiled.

Although her day was going to end badly, she would use that as compensation although little but mighty.

"Thank you." She whispered as the maid was long gone.

As she walked into the bathroom, she decided to keep it to herself about Alpha Ronan. It would do her clan no good and her father would surely get a heart attack knowing who her mate was, and that she must avoid.