The Ivory Queen
Chapter 81

***Oliver’s POV***

“Calm down, baby. She’s clearly hurting. You may not have loved her but she did and she’s in pain,” Aurora soothes.

I calm down and interlock our fingers to keep from lunging at Adeline.

“I know we haven’t always gotten along, but I am happy for you two,” she slurs, putting a bottle of Vueve Clicquot champagne on the table before sloppily pouring out three glasses. It’s hard to watch as she hands Aurora and I a glass before she lifts the final glass to her lips. “Cheers to the Luna of River Moon,” she giggles before chugging the drink, spilling some onto her dress.

She bursts into laughter at the mess she’s made and my mother comes rushing over. “Adeline, this is not like you!” She snaps. “Come on, we’re getting you a black coffee to sober you up!”

I watch as my mom literally carries Adeline back towards the house to rest and turn to Aurora. She lifts her glass up and eyes me.

“Here,” she smiles and hands me the glass.

“Are you trying to get me drunk?” I chuckle, taking the glass from her.

“Maybe…” she grins and grabs a glass of water.

“To you,” I smile.

“To us.”

I drink both glasses and she giggles as I try to steal a k**s from her.

The DJ starts playing Hispanic music and Aurora starts tapping her foot to the beat. She’s itching to dance. I check my watch. Her surprise is almost here but until then, I can keep her occupied. I pull her onto the dance floor as a cumbia blasts through the speakers. Since our date, I’ve been practicing the steps she taught me and feel pretty confident she’ll be pleased to see I can keep up with her.

As we step to the rhythm, Aurora’s smile grows wider. “Who have you been practicing with?” She yells over the music as I spin her around.

“There’s this very cute broom stick in the janitor’s closet down the hall from my office,” I reply, making her laugh.

Several of the Valle de la Luna wolves join us on the dance floor. The champagne and tequila start to kick in and I feel myself loosen up bit. After about 20 minutes of dancing, I get word that Aurora’s surprise is at the front door and give the order to send them in.

I ask the DJ to stop the music and suddenly the sound of the sousaphone, drums, trumpets, clarinets, and trombones fill the night. Tears well up in Aurora’s eyes as people make way for the Banda on the dance floor.

“Oh goddess!” She squeals. “I can’t believe you got a Banda!”

“Will you do me the honor of dancing this first song with me?” I ask, extending a hand out to her.

I pull her to the middle of the dance floor and press her up against my body. She hooks an arm around my neck and rests the other on my shoulder while I wrap my arms around her waist. While I’m significantly taller than her, Aurora’s heels are certainly helpful tonight and she’s just the right height for me. She lets me lead and we begin our dance, moving forwards, backwards and spinning occasionally. For a moment, I forget the pack is watching and just focus on Aurora resting her head on my chest. I’m still a bit clumsy with my steps but Aurora doesn’t mind, caressing my cheek and showering me with k****s.

The dance floor fills up with drunk and happy wolves and I see Javier and Mia dancing together from the corner of my eye. After about 13 songs, I start to grow tired but Aurora has the energy of a puppy, dancing like she’s not wearing 6 inch heels.

“Babe, is it alright if we take a water break?” I ask, leading our dance towards the edge of the floor.

“Sorry, I got carried away,” she giggles. “I’m just so happy right now! This is the best night of my life! Thank you so much!”

I love seeing her so happy. We grab some water bottles and I replenish my thirst, but I’m still exhausted. We head back to the table to rest for a few minutes, my energy still low.

“Sorry baby, I’m too tired to dance anymore,” I apologize, knowing she would much rather be on the dance floor.

“Oliver it’s fine. I had a wonderful time with you. Thank you,” she replies, leaning over to plant a k**s on my cheek.

Suddenly, two squealing toddlers run over and tug at Aurora’s dress.

“Rora! You look so pretty!” Isaiah blushes as he reaches for Aurora’s hands.

The little boy is quite smitten with Aurora and much to my annoyance, Aurora enjoys his attention.

“Why thank you,” Aurora giggles, pinching his chubby cheeks. “You look very handsome too!”

“Luna! Luna! Dance with me!” Taylor squeals, tugging at her dress.

“Go dance,” I say, nudging her up. “I know you want too,” I tease.

She gives me a lingering k**s and I chuckle as Isaiah and Taylor scream ‘eww cooties!’ at us. Aurora scolds the kids before grabbing their hands and taking them to the dance floor. I watch as she twirls them around and lifts up her dress to show them how to move their feet as the Banda continues to play.

Eventually, I get up to get more water when Javier walks up to me.

“I know you don’t like me for several reasons,” he sighs, grabbing a bottle of water. “And I know Aurora has her reasons for inviting me here tonight…”

“Spit it out already,” I growl, too tired to be going in circles with him right now.

“I was wondering if I could dance with Aurora…” he asks quickly, completely catching me off guard. Seeing my cold expression, he tries to explain. “I-it’s not what you think. I’m not trying to steal her from you.”

Not that you could, Michael snarls.

He sighs. “I-It’s just.. I want the chance to prove that I’m not a monster to her and Celina. And I know it would mean a lot-“

“Let me clarify something for you because you seem confused…Aurora forgave you. I didn’t. The only reason you are still breathing right now is because my future wife would be furious and her only sister is your mate. I respect Aurora and Celina too much to ever hurt you, but don’t think for a second I’ve forgotten what you and the rest of her so called family did to her all these years. I know you’re only sorry because Celina is your mate, not because you actually mean it. So save your ‘sincere apology’ for some other poor bastard because I don’t believe any of the s**t that comes out of your mouth.”

“That’s not true! I am sorry-“

“Bullshit!” I snap. “If you really cared, where the f**k were you when she was in the hospital all those months fighting for her life? Huh? You knew she was dying but none of you, not a single person from Lluvia Blanca asked to see her or asked how she was doing. Do you have any idea how hard we had to work to get Aurora to trust us after what you did to her? How long it took for her to accept that we wouldn’t hurt her like you guys did? S-she still gets nightmares. I still wake up in the middle of the night to the sounds of her whimpering or feel her squeeze my arm in fear.”

I have to take a deep breath to keep from strangling him. “I explained everything to you that day I called you in but you didn’t give a s**t. You would have walked out my office without so much as an ounce of guilt had Celina not walked in. You, Mia, Salvador, and Karina are all monsters and nothing you ever say and or do will change that!” I glare at him. “So no… you do not have permission to ask for a dance. You barely have permission to speak to her. Now get out my sight before I lose whatever patience I have left.”

Javier remains glued to his spot and looks me directly in the eyes. “You’re wrong, Oliver. Yes, Celina being my mate made me rethink everything, but that does not make my apology any less sincere. I do feel guilty and I do understand that I was wrong for hurting Aurora as I did. You can keep believing I’m a monster for all I care, it’s not you I want to apologize too, it’s her. You can’t keep me from trying to make up for what I did to her. That’s her decision, not yours.”

“What’s my decision?”

I turn to see Aurora standing behind me, arms crossed over her chest and a little grin on her perfect lips.

“Care to explain what you two were talking about?” She asks.

“I wanted to dance with you,” Javier says, offering her a smile. “Just like we used to do.”

I feel my b***d boil as he asks so coyly and Aurora reaches for my hand, soothing my fury with her touch.

“Thank you for the offer, Javi, but I don’t think I’m ready for that yet. I forgave you, but it’ll take some time before I trust you again,” she says. “I not ready to let things go back to the way they used to be between us.”

Javier’s smile falters much to my satisfaction but he stands tall and sighs. “I understand… I look forward to earning your trust again. Believe it or not, I’ve missed your friendship,” he says with a little sadness in his eyes. “Con permiso (Excuse me).”

We both watch as he walks away towards the dance floor and grabs a girl to dance with.

“Are you okay?” Aurora asks, kissing my hand. “I can tell he pissed you off,” she chuckles. “I’m sorry for inviting him. I just wanted- “

I stop her with a k**s. “Don’t apologize for being yourself and trying to make this work. My feelings are irrelevant.”

“That’s not true. They matter to me,” she murmurs.

I sigh. “It’s going to take a while for me to forgive him and to be honest, I don’t think I ever will. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, take your time,” She smiles. “There’s no rush. I have to learn to trust him too. We can do this together, but if you find that can’t forgive him, then I only ask that you try to be respectful.”

She leans forward, her lips just grazing mine and I feel my anger melt away. I was exhausted but I would never get tired of kissing her.

Our little moment is interrupted when Diego clears his throat and bows. “Umm… sorry for interrupting. Celina isn’t much of dancer but I’m told you are, Aurora. If you wouldn’t mind, Oliver, could I have this dance with my cousin?” he asks shyly.

Aurora looks at me and I nod. “Go, have fun,” I say as I k**s her cheeks.

I watch as they step on the dance floor and let the Banda influence their movements. I know I shouldn’t be jealous considering they’re related but I feel my b***d boil as he presses her body against his, wrapping an arm around her waist while the other holds up her dress to keep her from tripping over it. Even more infuriating is the fact that he’s actually a good dancer, moving expertly in sync with her as they dip, spin and skip around the dance floor. At one point, he even lifts her off her feet in short movements to beat of the trumpets and she giggles excitedly. I wish with all my might I had the energy to dance with her right now, but I’m drained.

I feel someone tap on my shoulder and I turn to see Celina laughing at me.

“I can hear your growling from my seat and your aura reeks of jealousy,” she laughs. “You do realize they’re cousins. right?” She asks, throwing her head back and stumbling a little. “Anyways, I figured you could use some company.”

She’s had a lot to drink and I can tell she’s hanging on by a thread. I hook my arm under hers to keep her steady and she gives me a toothy grin.

“Thanks,” I mutter, turning my attention back to Aurora dancing. “How are you holding up with Javier being here? I’m sure he’s managed to piss you off as well.”

“It’s not easy… my wolf wants him…it makes it hard for me not want to take him back,” she admits solemnly.

“You want him?” I snap.

“I don’t know what I want! Every time he’s near me, all I want to do is be with him… I mean, how sick is that? After everything he’s done, I still want him!” She fights back tears. “And to make matters worse, I’m jealous of my own sister for having had his attention at one point. My mind explodes when I think of all the possible secrets they have together and all the memories they share,” she g****s, folding her arms across her chest. “I mean he asked Aurora to dance. He hasn’t even asked me to dance! Why isn’t he looking my way right now? I mean who is that skank he’s dancing with anyways?”

I roll my eyes. “If you want to dance with him then go f*****g ask!”

“No! I hate dancing.”

Drunk Celina is getting on my nerves…

“Then what’s the problem?” I g***n.

“He could have at least asked!” She takes a minute to calm herself down. “A girl likes to be asked,” she whispers, a little teary eyed.

“There’s no need to be jealous,” we hear a voice say from behind us.

We turn to see Mia staring back at us. I tense up in her presence. Another monster.

“I won’t lie, Aurora and Javier did have a connection. They were really close and I know they had feelings for each other. Dad used to joke that Aurora would be Lluvia Blanca’s next Luna,” she chuckles softly as Celina and I both growl at her. “But that’s obviously not the case anymore,” she says, raising her arms in surrender. “They stopped feeling that way for each other a long time ago when Javier kissed her. It just didn’t feel right for either them and they agreed to just be friends. That’s what they were before my father died and that’s all Javier wants to be with Aurora now. Just friends.”

Celina and I eye her suspiciously and she g****s.

“Look, I know in your eyes Javier is evil but that’s not true.”

“Why would we trust your opinion? You couldn’t even be honest with how you hurt Aurora!” I snap.

She falls silent, looking at the ground. My words must have stung.

Good. She deserves to feel bad.

“It’s hard to lose one parent, but watching the other drink herself to death is even harder,” she says quietly before lifting her dress sleeve and revealing fresh bruises. “Aurora wasn’t the only one mother abused,” she pauses to wipe a few tears from her eyes. “Javier is not a monster. He protected us when Mom was…too far gone to know what she was doing,” Mia sighs, looking up at the night sky. “He saved us all. Trust me, Aurora wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for him. There’s a lot that went on in the pack house that she doesn’t know about.”

I’m honestly shocked at the news Karina beat Salvador and Mia too. I knew Karina was messed up, but to take your anger out on your own kids? f**k! It’s just too much.

“Does Aurora know Karina hurts you and Salvador too?” I ask and she shakes her head.

“No and I don’t want her to find out. Knowing Aurora, she’d probably blame herself for not knowing. I’m only telling you this so you can give Javier a chance. He’s no saint but he really is trying. He does care about Aurora and he is in love with you, Celina. The only reason he’s not all over you right now is because you asked him to stay away.”

“Whatever,” Celina mumbles. “I don’t care what he does.”

We all turn to the dance floor and watch Diego and Aurora spin in circles, completely oblivious to Mia’s revelation. Aurora suddenly looks up at me and blows a k**s at me. I subsequently blush, making Celina and Mia burst into giggles.

“I love you my little French snob,” she says.

“I love you too, baby.”

I feel exhaustion once again creeping up on me and the flashing lights on the dance floor make me dizzy.

“I’m gonna go get Aurora her flats. I’m sure her feet hurt,” I sigh, afraid my knees might give out if I stayed there any longer.

As I walk, my vision starts to blur and I know something is wrong. I stumble into the house and crash against the couch, feeling weak and panting to catch my breath.

Michael what’s going on?

My eyelids grow heavier by the second and I hear footsteps come up behind me. I suddenly feel a prick in my neck, the injection spewing cold liquid into my veins.

I look up at the perpetrator and freeze when I realize who the traitors are.

“Y-you?” I manage to mumble before my vision goes black.