The care package on the neatly made bed didn't explain a lot to Enora. But that was mostly due to her worrying about her phone, which was now probably in the hands of Sean, the head of the tech team and one of the betas. And her boss. She did not want him to run her phone through security and data scans and she knew for a fact that Sean was exactly doing that. 

And that was her own fault. She was the one who had written the tech protocol for the women who were eligible for the role next to the Alpha King. She had been brutal about it too. Sean and Jesse both had tried to tone her down, but she had been adamant: it was the safety of Jesse they were talking about. During the last selection over 30 years ago, there had been no communication technology that had to be confiscated. Sure, walkmans had to be checked for recording options, but other than that, there were no real worries. 

But now? She hadn't cared the selected women were all hand-picked by the people who stood right beside the Alpha King. She wanted to make absolutely sure all women were safe to be in the mansion. And if that meant confiscating their phones, their laptops and even their blow dryer, she would do it. Sean had mocked her and then she had shown him photos of the Dyson Airwrap without telling him what it was. Within a minute Sean had convinced himself there was a new technological product on the market that he was not familiar with and how dare she not have updated him on this device, whatever it was? She had let him believe it was whatever he thought it was, until Mason had ruined it by telling Sean it was a blow dryer and his mate had just one like it. 

Damn her brother.

So now she was without a phone and apparently somehow had ended up being selected without her knowing. There were 20 women on the list. She knew, she had seen the list. But with her, there were 21. 

She hadn't been on the list yesterday. Why was she now? 

She needed to talk to Sean. She needed to talk to Jesse. She needed to get ready to be in the ballroom at 1 PM. 

Her suit case hadn't arrived yet, but the letter in the care package had explained there was an outfit waiting for her in the wardrobe. With matching shoes. She opened the wardrobe and let out an impressed squeal at the gorgeous light blue gown. She loved gowns. Loved dressing up as a princess when she was younger, so this was absolutely perfect. 

She quickly took off her simple t-shirt, her combat boots and black jeans and got in the dress. She admired herself in front of the full mirror. She eyed the shoes and her smile disappeared. Oh dear God, those heels were high. She winced as she sat down on the ottoman and fingered the shoes. She tried them on, stood up and her ankles wobbled. No. She really needed flat shoes. She took them off. She needed her suitcase. She had flat shoes in there that were better than her combat boots. So she waited.

When it was 5 minutes before 1, she had to make a decision and then forced herself in the heels yet again. She carefully practiced for a bit and then exited the hallway. 

It was empty. 

Either the other women were already downstairs or she was very early. That didn't matter. She had all the time in the world to calmly and gracefully walk the hallway and down the stairs in these shoes.

The moment she placed one foot on the marble staircase, the sole of the shoe slipped a bit. With her heart in her throat, she clutched the staircase. She sat down on the top step. 

"To hell with you." She told her feet. She slid her shoes off, got up and wanted to return them to her room, but then heard sounds. She quickly stuffed her shoes behind a big plant as she made her way downstairs, making sure her feet were covered by the gown the entire time. When she was in the hallway, she saw one of the staff members with her suitcase.

"My bag! Can I - "

"Miss Enora, you are right on time. This way please." Maya called from just behind a pillar.

"I just need to - "

"You need to follow."

The staff member ascended the stairs with her suitcase. Enora entered the ballroom and stood next to a woman with long brown hair.

"Hi, I'm Enora." She whispered. "I love your dress. Are you as nervous as me?" 

"Liana." The woman answered with a gentle smile. "I tried to describe my emotions all morning, but being nervous sums it up quite well."

Enora opened her mouth to reply, but the air seemed to shift and she caught a scent that had her straighten her back and focus all her attention to who was coming. Then she saw him. Jesse. She tried to catch his eye as he walked past, silently begging for answers, but he didn't even look at her. He didn't spare her a glance for the entire duration of the introduction, no matter how hard she willed him.