Page 9 of Alpha-Ex Wedding Ruse
Did he think this was funny?
Elena blinked, clearly thrown. She leaned in toward him, her voice hushed. “But I asked you less than twenty minutes ago. You said you weren’t interested in anything to do with the wedding planning.”
I figured she didn’t want me to hear, hence the whisper. Or maybe she thought I couldn’t hear her. After all, she’d made that sly comment earlier about my “half-human” senses—like I was some kind of defective wolf shifter.
But I heard her.
I heard everything. And it made me wonder. Was he not interested in the planning…or the wedding itself? He didn’t exactly look like a man counting the days to say “I do”. Then again, if there was anyone who could bury his feelings under a well-pressed suit, it was Luca Vaughn.
He still didn’t look at her, even as she stared up at him expectantly.
“I’m interested now,” Luca said, eyes locked on mine like we were the only two people in the room.
Something cold and electric slid down my spine.
She led the way to the double cushion sofa and settled beside Luca. I took the single sofa across from them, acutely aware of Luca’s gaze burning into me.
“Would you like something to drink, Leila?” Elena asked, her voice light.
My throat felt like sandpaper—dry, tight, begging for something cold to ease the tension. But I wanted to be done with this meeting as quickly as possible, so I shook my head.
Ignoring the weight of his stare, I reached into my bag, pulling out a notebook and pen. I was ready to dive into this meeting and get it over with.
I closed my eyes for a brief second, inhaling slowly to summon the version of me I needed right now—Leila, the events planner.
When I spoke again, my voice was even, controlled. Professional. Like I hadn’t spent three lying nights awake, wondering if this meeting would end with Elena cursing at me to get out of her presence because of how unworthy I was.
“Before we talk about champagne fountains and appetizer rounds,” I began. “Let’s get to the heart of it. What does your wedding feel like? An intimate elopement in a snowbound forest? Or something with…say, a thousand guests and a fireworks finale?”
I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. But I had to.
Elena glanced at Luca, who didn’t smile back. “I was thinking…something bigger.”
Bigger than a thousand guests and fireworks?!
“I want it to be the most talked about event across Manhattan, the Bronx, and beyond,” she said. “I know you haven’t handled anything this extravagant, and to be honest, I wasn’t sure you could pull it off, honestly. But when I saw your designs? They weren’t just creative—they felt emotional. Bold but…raw. It’s rare to find someone who can do more than just order flowers and hire a band.”
She said it like a compliment, but it felt more like a surprise. Or a test I wasn’t expected to pass.
”And besides,” she added, flipping her impeccably styled blonde hair. “I thought this would be a good way to empower the women in the Bronx. You know…lift up small people.”
Ah. There it was. The real reason I was hired. I was a charity project. A convenient PR moment.
She smiled, perfectly poised. “Luca and I—well, we’re people of significant status. And our love story has that certain…flair. You know what I mean?”
I felt a sharp pang in my chest, but nodded. “Yes, I do.”
I most definitely did.
Luca belonged to a world built on power and legacy, where names carried weight and wealth was generational. He was the Alpha’s heir, and if his brooding presence and personality didn’t already command attention, that title certainly did.
And Elena? Alpha born. Full blooded. Groomed for Lunahood like it was her birthright. She was everything his world respected.
And me? I was half blood raised by a drunk father who offered more damage than guidance. My last name didn’t open doors. It barely got me invited in.
It should come as no surprise that Luca had chosen a woman like her. She was what he was raised to want.
And I had never been that.
