Alera’s POV
I wasn’t just being dressed for a party.
I was being presented. To alphas. Elders. Nobles. Rivals.
And to a world that had not yet accepted me.
Kael had warned me that tonight would be crucial. That his betrothal to me would not only rattle the court, but enrage some. Especially the ones who had other ambitions—others who perhaps once saw themselves or their daughters beside him on the throne.
The grand hall of the Lycan palace had been transformed into something out of a dream or a nightmare, depending on how you looked at it. Gold chandeliers glowed overhead, casting soft pools of light that danced across polished floors and glinting silverware. Silk banners bearing the royal crest draped from the ceilings, and floral arrangements of deep crimson and ivory lined the wall
