CHAPTER 16

MIA POV.
As the music swirls around us, Dominic's hand on my waist tightens, his eyes still locked on mine. "Mia, I feel that I should inform you that your father will be arriving soon," he says, his voice low and husky. I feel a flutter of anxious anticipation in my chest at the prospect of seeing my father, but before I could think too much of it, Dominic spoke again, but it wasn’t directed at me. We have moved to the side of the dance floor, close to Tony.
"Tony, it's time," he says, his gaze pinned on his son. Tony turns pale, but he reluctantly makes his way over to us and Dominic leads us to the center of the floor for all to see.
“Everyone. May I have your attention.” Dominic’s voice booms over the chatting crowd and the music dies down as immediate silence ensues. All eyes on us. Tony stands frozen for a moment before he pulls out a little black box from his jacket pocket, but he hesitates.
Losing his patients, Dominic, snatched the box from his in one smooth motion. I took a shuddering breath as I saw Dominic turn to me and take my hand. Just as it dawned on me what he was about to do, he removed the ring from the box and slid the ring on my finger. Stunned, I stood there and looked at the new addition to my finger. The diamond sparkled as it captured the lights of the ballroom. It fitted perfectly as the coldness of the gold adjusted to the heat of my finger.
I look up to see Dominic watching me. His gaze burning with something that I hadn’t seen from him before but before I could read too much into it, he releases my hand and turns to the crowd. Dominic's voice rings out across the room again. "Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the future Luna of the Dark Moon pack – Amelia Woods, soon to be Romano." He states and the hair at the back of my neck stood up. Romano… I thought to myself. This was getting real too quickly, but I had to go along with it. I had no choice.
The room erupts into applause, and I force a smile onto my face. To my relief, the music starts up again and the crowd disperses. Some came to congratulate me, and Tony and others just looked skeptical as they went on with their way.
I glanced down at the ring; it really was beautiful. I could still feel the heat of Dominics fingers as he placed it on my finger and wondered if he meant anything else by it. An image of me and Dominic at the alter entered my mind but I quickly discarded that thought just as the music in the ballroom died down once again. I look up to see everyone watching the entrance.
A tall, imposing figure steps into the room, his presence commanding attention. Next to him was a woman and several werewolf guards following them as they approached. My heart skips a beat as I realize this must be my father. To my surprise, he doesn't even glance in my direction. Instead, he strides purposefully towards Dominic, a stern look on his face.
The two men meet in the center of the room, exchanging handshakes in greeting. “Hunter, it is nice to see you again, old friend.” Dominic said. The alpha stood and watched Dominic for a moment before a hint of a smile graced the corner of his lips. “Yes, it has been a long time, Dom. All is well, I hear.” He says before his eyes glanced my way. I swallowed nervously. Dominic took this as his que to introduce us. “Hunter, this is Amelia, your daughter.” Dominic says. Alpha Hunter Ryker looks at me again, his eyes narrowing in doubt.
Dominic's words hang in the air as my father’s gaze sweeps over me intently. I suddenly feel uncomfortable at the way he was trying to sum me up, almost like evaluating if I was worthy to be his daughter.
“How can you be sure?” He finally asked Dominic as his eyes remained on me. I notice the woman that came with him, was looking at me as though I was nothing compared to her.
”I am sure.” Dominic states confidently. "We've already taken steps to verify Mia's identity," he says, his eyes locked on my father, avoiding mine. "A blood test, specific to our kind, has confirmed she carries the Ryker werewolf lineage." Dominic elaborated and my mouth drops open in disbelief. When did he get my blood to do a test? I wondered as anger surged in my chest that he would go behind my back to do such a thing.
Alpha Ryker’s expression falters, his eyes widening in surprise. "A blood test?" he repeats, his voice tinged with hope. Dominic nods. "Yes. And there's more. Mia possesses the necklace, the one you gifted to Aurora.”
My hand instinctively goes to my neck, hidden beneath the high neck rise of my dress. I had forgotten I was still wearing it.
My father's eyes lock onto mine, a mix of emotions swirling in their depths. Shock, disbelief, and a glimmer of hope. He takes a step closer, his voice barely above a whisper. “Mia.” He says my name with a hint of emotion. My father's gaze lingers on me. Slowly, a glimmer of acceptance begins to dawn on his face. "My daughter," he whispers. He takes a deep steadying breath to rein in his emotions. “You look so much like her." he says. “The longer I look at you, the more I see her in you.” He says as he looks at me over again. "Your mother's eyes, her smile…” Tears glisten in his eyes, and I can sense the depth of his affection for my mother. He's no longer seeing me as a stranger or a possible imposter, but as a connection to the woman he cared for deeply. His female partner had a sour look on her face as she glared at me. She didn’t like this at all.
"Your mother was so beautiful and an incredible woman." he says, his voice cracking with emotion. I feel a surge of anger and resentment, wondering how he could have left my mother to face everything alone if he truly cared for or even loved her?
I glared at my father, his words about my mother's beauty and his apparent love for her only fueling my anger. How dare he speak of her with such affection when something clearly went wrong all those years ago.
"What about her final days?" he asked, his voice low as he tried to hide the emotion from it. "Was she...at peace?" he asked. I scoffed, my voice rising. "At peace?” I asked sarcastically and I saw his eyebrows rise in surprise to the tone of my voice. I was angry. “Which part? because from what I heard she was in several pieces.” I sneered and alpha Ryker went as white as a sheet. “What type of man abandons a woman and her baby when they clearly needed you the most?
The room seemed to hold its breath as those words left my mouth. Several members around us gasped in shock that I would dare to speak to an alpha like this, even if he was my father. For a moment, I thought I saw shame cross his face. It was quickly replaced by calmness but defensive. "There were circumstances." he said, his voice low and even. "Complications. You wouldn't understand."
I uttered a fake laugh. "Try me." I dared him, my heart racing with anticipation, but my father simply shook his head, his gaze never wavering. "Perhaps, one day, you'll understand, but now is not the time or the place." He stated with a finality that left no one in doubt that the conversation was not going to continue.
I wasn’t at all happy with his answer, but I didn’t push it any further as I felt a strong sense of intimidation from him. Warning me to stop.