Chapter 80

ARIA'S POV

I didn’t want to be here.

The moment I stepped out of the car and set foot on the steps of the banquet hall, my stomach twisted into a knot so tight I thought I might be sick.

The whole place was lit up like something out of a fairy tale—golden lights twinkling in the trees, the soft murmur of laughter and conversation floating in the air.

It should have been beautiful. Magical, even. But all I could feel was the pressure of a hundred eyes that would be on me the moment I walked through those doors.

“Aria, you’re overthinking this,” Adam had told me before I left, his voice patient but firm, like he was talking to a child. “You won't be able to hide forever. At some point, they’re going to have to know who you are. And tonight is as good a time as any to make an impression.”

“I don't want to make an impression, Adam,” I had argued, standing in front of the mirror, my dress half-zipped. “You’re the Alpha. You’re the one who is supposed to handle things like this.”