Page 36 of Knocked Up By My Fated Alpha
“Mr. Blackwell, are you alright?”
I straightened, easily exiting the elevator as the staff focused on Alpha Damien. But as I walked, I felt the burn of Alpha Damien’s stare on my back, and I couldn’t help but feel like something had shifted between us.
Something substantial.
Chapter Twelve
Raven
Tonight would be my “official” engagement to Alpha Damien at the Shadow Thorn Pack, yet what I felt as I walked out of the changing room of the designer store Alpha Damien had cleared out for me was an unrelenting sense of trepidation. Misha let out an impressed whistle as she caught sight of me. “That’s the dress.”
Wordlessly, I stared at my reflection in the mirror without really seeing anything. I didn’t notice Misha moving until she was suddenly at my side, taking my hand between hers, her soft brown eyes searching mine.
“Are you alright, Raven?”
Was I?
For months, I’d prepared to take Elias’s people as my own, but I could never have anticipated that when the day eventually came for me to go to the Shadow Thorn Pack, it would be as his uncle’s pregnant fiancée.
“I’m queasy and nauseous. I’m a bit nervous about the party.”
“Is that all?” Misha’s lips tilted up into a teasing smile, the tension in her shoulders dissipating. “You’ve got nothing to worry about. It’llbe like meeting the in-laws, but the only in-laws you have are your ex-fiancé and your viper cousin.”
I shot her a side glare.
“Right. Absolutely nothing to worry about.”
“Alright, bad joke,” Misha gave a sympathetic wince, her tone losing the playfulness. “But on a serious note, Raven, you did nothing wrong. If anyone should be anxious about tonight, it’s that waste of space, Elias. Not you.”
“But I—” I’d barely gotten the words out when Misha cupped my cheeks, forcing me to meet her no-nonsense gaze.
“Tonight is your night, Raven,” she said sternly. “You will wear this sexy ass dress, go to the Shadow Thorn Pack with your head held up high, take your rightful place at Alpha Damien’s side, and you won’t let anyone make you feel bad about it.”
Letting go of the awkwardness I felt was easier said than done, but a small smile found its way to my lips anyway.
“You really think this dress is sexy?”
“Damn right,” Misha nodded fiercely. “Alpha Damien won’t be able to take his eyes off you.”
I rolled my eyes, more irritated than flattered.
“Goddess, Misha— I don’t care about that! I’ve already told you this relationship isn’t real.”
I definitely didn’t want his eyes on me tonight.
Dressedin a completely black ensemble tailored to perfection, his dark hair pulled back into a slick low ponytail, Alpha Damien stepped out of the limousine in a single languid yet incredibly dominant motion. It took my legs a moment to start working again. A long moment.
At the approaching sound of my clattering heels, Alpha Damien’s gaze unerringly found me, his eyes slowly raking over me from top to bottom, and then back again. Fine. I bought the damn dress. Sue me. Icouldn’t find even a shred of regret for my decision as the weight of his gaze followed me while I closed the distance between us.
“You look…” His voice was low and smooth like velvet over stone. “Stunning.”
Due to the fact that Alpha Damien and I had yet to officially announce my pregnancy, my wardrobe choices had been limited to a rotation of loose, flowy outfits that obscured the slight swell of my bump and my ever-widening hips.
The dress did all that, accentuating my breasts that had gone up a cup size while its short bubble skirt flared just right to veil my belly without making it conspicuous and still making my legs look a mile long. Flushing at Alpha Damien’s frank regard, my thighs pressed together under the weight of that stare, I struggled to find an amicable response.
“You clean up nice yourself.”
Understatement of the century. Alpha Damien always looked like he’d walked off a dark, brooding Vogue cover. But tonight, he looked downright edible, and it took everything in me not to stare. The sides of Alpha Damien’s lips twitched, a knowing look on his face as he held open the car’s door for me.
