Page 155 of Sweetheart: Part One

Nothing. After I’d fled his room, I heard nothing from Ebony all day.

It was a fight, getting my makeup and hair done, smiling when Drake joined me, all the while terrified that Love would come into my room and tell me the contract was dead.

I was free of punishment from breaking Alastor’s rules for now. I hadn’t told Ebony anything. He hadn’t said anything.

I knewheknew I was an omega by assumption only.

That would all come tumbling down, but for now, I was safe from the dark bond’s punishment. I don’t know how I was going to salvage this. The moment Ebony told me he knew—no matter what he was going to do with that information—I would have to tell Alastor.

The Diamond Tides Gala was a massive event, and I knew there would be press everywhere. We got ready together, which did wonders to my nerves. We’d played Heart’s album, Gilded, on blast, taking turns to sing along to my hairbrush.

My dress was my usual black, though similar to the classy one I’d worn to Ebony’s interview. I hadn’t given up my combat boots though.“Absolutely not,” Drake had said when I tried to pick a more appropriate set of heels.

“They should see the real you,” he’d told me with a smile and a stolen kiss.

He was looking unusually formal himself tonight, though there was still a thin chain on his jeans, and his dark button-up was ruffled and only half tucked.

“You look fucking beautiful, Dreamgirl,” Drake told me as we made our way down to the foyer. “I’m not even nervous, going with you tonight.”

We were first ready, but to my relief, I’d caught Love’s gaze snag on me when he came down the spiral stairs. Anything from Love to prove there might be hope I would take. I needed to find a way to reach him.

Rook also warred with an obvious desire to stare, though Ebony pretended I didn’t exist at all when he’d arrived.

I made it into the limo on Drake’s arm, still trying to pretend everything would be okay. I missed his blackcurrant wine, but the whole pack had taken strong scent blockers—normal when attending an event with alpha-omega attendees of this calibre.

As the limo departed, Drake watched me scroll through the pictures on his phone, tweaking the good ones and deleting the duplicates. I stopped on one, a selfie of us both from a week before. Back when he was still waking up by my side.

He nuzzled into my neck. “You’re stunning even first thing in the morning,” he whispered to me. “It’s ridiculously unfair.”

“You don’t look so bad yourself,” I said with a smile.

He laughed, drawing me closer, and I couldn’t help my glance at Ebony. He wasn’t looking at us at all, his eyes fixed on the window.

“Have I ever told you how much I love your hair?” Drake asked, drawing my attention away from Ebony.

Uh.

Whathad he just said?

My beam was, all of a sudden, uncontained as I peered up at him. “Wait wait wait—” I tugged my own phone out of my purse, then I tapped on the camera. “You have to say that again,” I said. “Exactly that.”

“You want it on record?” Drake sounded amused.

“Call it a bet.”

He grinned, as I flipped the camera so we were both on the screen.

“Right then.” Drake fixed his smile, getting serious. “Under harsh duress—”

He cut off with a laugh as I elbowed him. “This isserious.”

He straightened his expression, looking back at the camera. “Under no duress whatsoever, I’ve decided to announce that Vex Eden’s hair is the prettiest hair in the whole wide world.” He turned to me, eyebrow raised, something dancing in his eyes as my smile widened. “There, is that what you wanted?”

“Absolute—” I cut off with a yelp as he tugged me toward him, drawing me into a deep kiss. I ended the video instantly.

I was breathless by the time he let me go, cheeks flushed, but this time I didn’t feel the need to look at the others.

Drake was my mate.

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