SEBASTIAN'S POV
The air is thick with cheap perfume and loud, fake laughter. I'm scanning the crowded main room, my wolf pacing just under my skin. Where is she? Julian said she went for air. That was twenty minutes ago. I see Cassian by the fireplace, deep in conversation with an older Alpha. I see Julian charming a group of socialites. But I don't see Jessica. And I don't see Dominic.
A cold knot forms in my gut. I push through the crowd, ignoring a Beta who tries to get my attention. My eyes rake over every face, every flash of color. That f*****g emerald dress should be impossible to miss.
I head toward the garden doors she'd slipped through. The path is quieter out here, but my hearing picks up everything. Rustling leaves. The fountain. And then, a clipped, bitchy whisper.
"—ca
