CHAPTER 68: 68-LOOKING LIKE A PRINCESS

Clementine:

In the next two hours, the alphas had actually left to get suits for themselves. I was with them, and honestly, I didn’t know if I could even afford a dress. At this point, I realized the alphas had gotten the access to their accounts so they could use the funds in their banks whenever they visited. My bank account, on the other hand, was empty. I didn’t even have one. So I was just looking around, wondering how I would break the news to the alphas that I’d be attending the dinner in my worn-out clothes.

"You should wear this one. You know, we need to match so it seems like we’re really connected. It’ll annoy your father so much," Haiden said. I noticed that everything he said was tied to my father. First, he tried to get closer to my stepsister because she was important to my father. And once that plan failed, he focused on me because he knew my father hated seeing me happy. I mean, it was messed up, but it was the truth.

Haiden kept touching the royal blue silk gown, eyeing me to pick it because he was going to wear a royal blue suit.

"No, I don’t like the color," I said, rubbing my elbow and looking around.

"What is it?" he finally asked after I had been acting so weird and quiet. The others were just doing their thing in the other aisles, while Haiden and I had to stick together so the warriors who came with me would report back to my father, and tell him we were getting along. At the same time, the lurkers were also here, keeping an eye on us.

"I can’t buy these gowns," I said to Haiden, feeling so ashamed.

"Why not?" Haiden asked.

"Haiden, do you not know what conditions I was living in?" I snapped at him, hands on my waist.

"Seriously?" He almost whispered the words, and in response, I only gave him a nod.

"Well, then you should have told me. Come with me," he said, as he led me to the other side where the most luxurious and expensive gowns were.

"Oh no, I can’t get any of these, Haiden." I started to pull away, but he held my arm, dragging me with him.

"Can you please show us the most beautiful and expensive gown you have?" he told the designer who had specifically come to help us with our outfits.

I didn’t know the Crusaders would get so much respect. Back when there were other squads, they were never allowed to visit their packs. They would leave, and then no one would see or hear from them again. One day, people would just get the news that one of the Crusaders had died many years ago. It was like they went into an abyss. But for us, things had changed. We were back in our packs, and everyone looked at us like heroes, fighters who were protecting their land by keeping the monsters out.

The designer happily returned with a gown that hitched my breath. It was a full-length silk gown in a soft champagne-beige color. It was sleeveless, with thin straps over the shoulders and a deep neckline. The bodice was fitted and decorated with soft, gold embroidery that ran down both sides, almost like vines. The silk was smooth and shiny, and it caught the light when it was moved. The skirt flowed out gently and had a few layers that shimmered, like there was glitter woven into the fabric. It was simple, but it felt like something out of a dream.

"Perfect," Haiden said, smiling at the gown. Then, without even letting me object, he paid for it with his card.

"I have to earn to return the money to you," I said to him, watching as he finally stood up. He had been sitting on the chair waiting for the gown, while I paced around anxiously. When he stood, he looked so tall that I felt small in front of him.

"Well, then I will be the one to decide what I want," he uttered, his face showing strange emotions.

"What are you thinking?" I asked.

He started chuckling. "Just imagining you in this gown," he said with a wink before walking away.

Usually, Haiden and I would always bicker, so there were never moments when he flirted with me or said anything that gave me goosebumps. This time, his simple wink and smile covered my entire body with goosebumps.

He then went ahead and got himself an ivory suit made of fine silk. Obviously, Ian returned with a black suit with a hint of royal blue in it. Yorick chose a grey suit, and Troy settled for all white. They all paid, and we began to walk out of the mall.

Once we sat back in the SUV that had been sent by the academy, we started to look around awkwardly, as if trying to avoid talking.

"I have actually hired a stylist and makeup artist for you," Haiden said, quickly looking away.

"I’m not wearing any makeup," I said, and he began to click his tongue.

"It’s not a bad thing to wear makeup. You need to learn to adjust to the environment. You can’t come to a funeral wearing a gown, and in the same way, you can’t come to a party thrown in your honor looking like someone died." He hissed, upset that I even questioned his gestures.

I sat back. I was grateful. The only reason I said no was because he was spending too much money on me, and I knew I wouldn’t even look good. I’d never worn anything like this, so I wasn’t even sure it would suit me.

The makeup artist and stylist arrived, so part of the room was taken up by me while the others were getting ready in the back. They were doing a lot to my face and hair. I was starting to wonder if I looked like a joker. But then they finished and made me look in the mirror.

My beautiful red hair was styled like a princess in the back, and in the front, they had left a few strands of bangs around my forehead, with other strands loosely resting on both sides of my face. They had applied red lipstick but smudged it so it looked natural, along with a lot of blush, plain eyeliner, and mascara. Honestly, I looked so gorgeous that even I couldn’t look away.

The dress I wore, the cleavage, it shocked even me how great my boobs looked. Half of them were out. They looked like milk cartons peeking from the fabric. I knew I had huge breasts; I just didn’t know they were this huge. My waist looked tiny, and with my wide hips, it gave me such a beautiful shape. I was in love with myself. I wanted to wear makeup all the time now, but I couldn’t afford it.

Still, I smiled, gave myself a good twirl, and my curly hair danced around my back.

That’s when Ian walked in, wearing a black suit and holding his tie like he was struggling.

"Does anybody even know how to fucking put this thing on?"

He went silent when his eyes landed on me, and the look he gave me made me shyly tuck myself into the corner, my hand holding my elbow. He gave me a full glance from head to toe, his tie almost slipping out of his palm. I’m no expert in body language, and I wasn’t sure if it was intentional, but he looked stunned, and Ian being stunned by anyone was almost impossible.