River just watched as Zoya went back in her secretary's arms. It was clear that she was faking it, but why did he play along? Even more pissed than before, he turned and faced his pack. River had no expression on his face, so they couldn't see anything. But it was his twin brother who was watching more than just his facial expression. Ryder knew whatever River tried to hide.

"That was so much fun," said Ashley. "We need to do this again."

The ladies turned away and were distracted about the dresses they chose today. It didn't seem like what just happened with Zoya was the topic of conversation. Or the girls deliberately changed the topic because they didn't want to put River in a tough spot.

Sabrina stood facing River though. "Ryder, can you drop Ashley, Rosalie and Evangeline home," she said. "Azura, can take the rest of the girls."

"Yes, ma'am," said Azura as she stifled her laughter before turning away.

"You and I are going to take a walk," said Sabrina.

River stiffened. "Is that really necessary?" Sabrina raised a brow and River didn't say anything after that. He just followed her and everyone else left.

"There's a really good ice-cream parlour here. Let's get some," she said excitedly.

"This wasn't your real plan, was it?" he remarked. "Get everyone to leave so you can have all the ice-cream in the world."

Sabrina gaped at him melodramatically. "I would never," she said placing a hand over her heart. "Besides, no one has any say to my mint chocolate chip cravings."

River smiled at her. He took her inside the small store and they placed an order for their ice-creams. A pink bowl with large globes of cream was handed to them with pink spoons too. Both of them sat down at the table and Sabrina ate with gusto, unlike River who had sensed the tension from Sabrina although she masked it well.

"Is she your mate?" Sabrina jumped the gun surprising River. "Judging from the look in your eyes, I'm going to say that's a definite 'yes'."

"No," his mouth spoke faster than he intended.

Sabrina looked confused. "No," she repeated.

"I don't need another handful," he retorted.

Sabrina was baffled. "She's the CEO of White Knight and manages hundreds of stores," she said. "Zoya knows how to take care of herself. She has been since her parents-" Sabrina stiffened and looked down.

River remembered the hurt on Zoya's face when he asked her what she masked behind her smile. That vulnerable crack of sadness, resentment unveiled in front of his eyes and he had a carnal urge to murder whoever hurt her.

"What about her parents?" asked River.

"Zoya doesn't like talking about it," said Sabrina. "Unfortunately, I had the honour to meet them and they weren't as kind as they appear. Zoya told me everything after that because I was enraged and you know what happens when I get pissed off."

River clearly remembered when Sabrina punched Gabriel's father Robert Centauri. "I sure do," he replied. "But what does that have to do with Zoya trying to seduce me?"

Sabrina giggled. "You make it seem like that's a bad thing," she said and River's stern stare answered her. "Zoya's trying hard for you because she sees that you're special-"

"I'm not-" chided River.

"Don't you dare, River," Sabrina's tone firmed. "You're an amazing man and you deserve the best." River met her eyes that were always tender and kind. "And if I didn't think Zoya was the one for you then I would've never encouraged her."

River's ears perked. "What did you say to her?" he demanded.

"That you like flowers over cologne and you're a tough cookie with a soft, gooey interior," Sabrina listed with a grin.

River took a deep breath out. "You should not have done that," he said.

Sabrina took a bite of ice-cream. "I do whatever I want," she remarked and he already knew that. "Look, Zoya's a fun, loving, loyal woman. I think you should give her a chance and get to know her before you make any decision."

River looked down at his melted ice-cream as Sabrina's words settled into his head. "If you know then Gabriel definitely knows," he muttered.

Sabrina licked off the last bite of cream off the spoon with a knowing smile on her lips. "I wouldn't doubt it," she said. "He's always a step ahead of everyone."

River knew that but he still wasn't used to it. He still had to face Ryder who was most likely bursting with questions. What a wonderful experience that will be for him.

"Great. Now I'm craving chocolate-chip cookies," mumbled Sabrina before both of them went home soon after.

When they arrived another turn of events had occurred at the Centauri house.

River opened the front door for Sabrina when they found everyone sitting around the kitchen table. Vincent, Hunter were with Gabriel who was reading through some papers. Hailey was at the sink helping her son wash his hands. He looked as if he rolled around in blue and red paint which stained his entire outfit purple- Bone was helping her as well. Viola and Azura weren't here but Ryder was leaning on the chair beside Gabriel. Leo and Dante were here too but Ender must be in class since he wasn't.

Sabrina went to her mate when River noticed the concern on King's face as he stood stiffly near the kitchen-counter. Klaus was standing over the expresso machine as it beeped alive and poured coffee into the tumbler. Everyone silently watched as the tension in the room grew tremendously. River wondered what the hell happened between King and Klaus.

Suddenly, Klaus grabbed the lid of the tumbler and made a move to leave the kitchen. But King stepped in front of him.

"Honey," King called out. "Are we seriously going to do this?"

Klaus didn't make eye contact with him. He let out a breath and walked around the man over to the door where River was standing.

"Klaus," King's stern voice stopped him in his tracks.

Everyone witnessed the shock on King's face as Klaus turned his back on him. However, no one except River saw Klaus's expression when King called out for him. A pang of guilt swept across his face but Klaus subdued it quickly and anger appeared.

Klaus turned but only looked towards Leo and Dante. "Let's go," he said and they quickly followed after giving King an apologetic face.

"Wow, Klaus took the kids too," mumbled Vincent.

King stood staring after Klaus even after he had left.

"Why is Klaus upset?" asked Sabrina.

King swept a hard hand through his dark hair, letting those electric blue eyes reveal themselves. "Klaus isn't upset. He's angry, which is a lot worse," he grumbled.

"How is that worse?" asked Ryder. "I would think getting upset would be harder on you."

"I can comfort Klaus when he's upset, I just have to take him to bed," King revealed. "But when Klaus is angry, I can't even get him to look at me."

They all shared a bewildered look.

"What'd you do that was so bad?" asked Vincent.

"Getting Klaus angry is impossible," Hailey pointed out.

"And we've all done some stupid shit," added Hunter.

"I may have taken things a little too far," said King.

"So, you admit it's your fault," said River.

"Of course, it is," said King. "I just-" he sighed.

Gabriel looked up at King. "You fucked up, so fix it," his voice was stern with no sense of amusement which straightened King out. "I don't want see Klaus upset." He got up from his seat to leave and that's when River locked eyes with him. "You and I need to talk."

River frowned wondering what this was about. He followed Gabriel to his office.

River closed the door behind them when Gabriel put the papers on the table. River caught the glimpse of a newspaper headline; 'Woman was brutally assaulted and left on the street. Police have found nothing on the perpetrator and investigations will continue'. River doubted the police will find anything since their investigations are half-assed and swept under the rug all the time.

Gabriel went to his desk and River wondered what he wanted to talk about. Then it clicked, he must want to talk about Zoya. But Sabrina couldn't have said anything already, he was there the whole time with them. River doubted if Gabriel knew about the bond yet, neither him or Zoya gave any indication either. Unless, Azura or Viola said something about it before River came back.

"Tonight, we're going-"

"I wasn't going to keep it a secret-"

Both of them spoke at the same time.

Gabriel froze. "What?"

River opened and then closed his mouth. Maybe he thought wrong. "What were you going to say?" He let Gabriel go first.

"Tonight, we're going to meet with someone," he said.

River let out a breath. "Oh," he was too relieved and shouldn't give it away. "Er- I mean, who?"

Gabriel crossed his arms and leaned back on the table. "Ivy Croft," he said. "The alpha female of the Poison Ivy pack."

River straightened to his full height. A darkness seeped into Gabriel's eyes like he visited a dark place in his memories. River knew his friend and he didn't go to those memories often. What was it about this alpha-female that concerned Gabriel? he wondered.

"Tell me about her?" asked River.

Gabriel motioned towards the papers he had earlier. River sat down in front of the papers and started to flip through them. He only caught words that stuck out to him.

"She reminds me of-" his voice fell and he let it go. "Ivy Croft is on a mission and that mission can lead to a slaughter."

River's gut churned like Gabriel had taken a knife and shoved it through his belly. "What is she after?" he asked.

"Revenge," Gabriel uttered that word and silence fell between them.

River's eyes caught the newspapers full of the same news of a woman being found on the street after being assaulted. "The Poison Ivy pack harbours women only," he said. "Does this assault case have something to do with Ivy Croft?"

Gabriel nodded. "King brought the real story. A wolf from the Red Fang pack assaulted one of Ivy Croft's wolves," he explained.

"So, I don't see a problem," said River. "Let her kill the bastard."

"Trust me, I would happily let her do that too," Gabriel said. "However, the wolf that Ivy is targeting isn't from an ordinary bloodline. The one she seeks is Zane Morelli. He's practically royalty and his pack is as old as ours."

River rolled his eyes. This is why River fucking hated all the old packs who had their heads way too far up their own asses. "So, Ivy can't kill that trash because he's got a daddy protecting him," River's tone was icy cold.

"His father is dead," said Gabriel. "Zane has an older brother who is the alpha now to the pack and will inherit the fortune and he has an uncle. Halo Morelli is the one who Ivy should be afraid of."

River stiffened when he heard that name. Halo Morelli was a man built on bloodshed and torture. It was said that Halo's wolf drank the blood of his victims and he even devoured the bodies. He would lock up his prey; human or wolf it didn't matter to him and he'd hunted them for entertainment. River wouldn't have believed the gossip if he hadn't seen it himself.

It was a long time ago, when Gabriel had only just ascended as alpha. They went to a gathering and Halo brought a chain of dead bodies to the meeting; it was his grand way of showing his loyalties to the wolf laws. River still remembered the bodies of the women, men and children gathered and pooling their fresh blood on the floor. Halo was unshaken and amused by everyone's revulsion. River had never felt such horrific pheromones before, the man had every vile intention one could have. If Ivy Croft was going to war with Halo Morelli then there was no way she would survive and Halo would make sure to destroy her pack along with her.

"How do you plan on stopping this?" River asked Gabriel.

"We will talk to her tonight," he answered. "I know where she will be."

"Do you think she will listen?"

Gabriel thought for a while before he spoke. "I don't know," he admitted. "But we've seen enough wars between packs. I don't want the innocent lives from both packs to suffer because of these alphas. We can call the council to prosecute Zane Morelli. Halo can't argue with the law once they decide the punishment."

"The bastard will be locked up in jail and then let out," said River. "If I don't like this plan how do you think Ivy will like it."

Gabriel's pheromones turned to a dangerous blaze heating up the entire room. "Zane will get sentenced to death for what he has done," he seethed. "I only need Halo to be chained by the law, so the rest of Ivy's pack isn't targeted. I don't want innocent blood shed on my streets."

River nodded. "Then we go to her tonight," he said.

Gabriel nodded back.

"Oh right, what were you going to say earlier?" he asked suddenly. "I didn't mean to interrupt you."

"Nothing," said River. "It's not important." Gabriel showed no reaction, so he must have believed him.

Gabriel didn't question further. "How was the trip today?" he inquired then.

Zoya's face appeared in front of his eyes. "It was fine," he said. "The girls had fun in their natural territory around couture."

Gabriel revealed a smile. "That's good to hear. I know Sabrina is nervous about the pregnancy, so it's necessary she enjoys herself," he told him. "I guess I have Zoya to thank for that."

Zoya planned a whole day and took care of every little detail for them. River remembered the way her eyes brightened when she described the fabric of a gown or how much work went into any tailored piece. She admired the efforts of her workers and told all sorts of stories to them about her job. She was there at every step when the girls needed to make a decision of what gown to get. Zoya was charming, confident and most of all, she was kind to the people she loved.

River stiffened and he wondered if he should open his mouth. Maybe, he should wait for a better time when they weren't busy taking down bad guys, ending wars or meeting angry alphas.

"I'll get the gang ready," River said.

"No, don't bring anyone. Only you are needed," said Gabriel.

River took a stern stance. "That's out of the question," he said. "You will have full security. I don't want any risks tonight."

Gabriel held back his arguments and listened to River. "Three is the limit then," he negotiated.

River glowered and walked out of the room to meet the one who would set up the security for tonight's meeting... Azura.

He just stepped out the door when his twin stood there with a smug grin. "I'm busy," River blurted out and tried to move.

He moved ahead of him. "Not so fast, brother," Ryder interjected. "You're going to tell me what I want to know about you and a certain lady-" River grabbed his brother by the arm and took him all the way outside the house.

Ryder was laughing at that point and it was quite obvious that he had already figured things out. "Damn, I've never seen you so freaked out before," he remarked.

"I'm not freaked out," he retorted.

Ryder raised a brow. "You're going to lie to me of all people." It was true, River was never able to blindside his twin.

"I..." his voice fell. River ran a hand irately through his hair. He started off down the porch into the snow-covered field hoping that the icy air would cool him down. Instead, he just kept thinking back to Zoya. The way her body felt against his. Her sweet fragrance bewitching him to take a step closer until nothing was between them.

Was this how the bond between wolves is supposed to feel? Everything was being consumed like someone set him on fire, and instead of pain, he felt the electric rush to hold Zoya like she was the solution to his salvation. She warned him that he'd think about her, he may have smugly answered her that he wouldn't. But who was he kidding? All he could see right now was her. Instead of thinking about the mission Gabriel gave him, he was more concerned about her.

"Damn it all," he cursed.

"River," his brother's voice was concerned and it bothered River. He never wanted to trouble anyone with this. "Zoya seems like a nice person and she's a good friend to Sabrina, which practically makes her a part of the pack. What's the problem?"

River was afraid. He didn't want to hurt anyone. "We have a mission tonight," he said. "Get ready."

"You can run from me, River," Ryder said, "but how long do you think Zoya will wait for you to make up your mind?"

River froze in his tracks.

Ryder walked off leaving River with a sick feeling in his gut.

It wasn't snowing tonight. The roads were clean and the weather was bearable too. As River crossed the road, he surveyed the area. There wasn't a single spot that was dark, since every tree on the street was decorated with bright Christmas lights. The Golden Pier restaurant that they were visiting was famous around the city. There's always a queue unless one made reservations weeks prior to get a table here. However, the Centauri's didn't need reservations since Gabriel was friends with the owner and was informed of their visit tonight.

"Are we planning on having a civil conversation or the usual?" River asked Gabriel who was dressed in a white suit tonight, that matched his long wool coat.

"What do you mean?" Gabriel raised a brow. "I'm always civil."

River couldn't help but scoff. "You really don't know how much you piss people off with that smug attitude, do you?" he asked.

Gabriel's golden eyes winked with mischief. "Let's hope I stay civil," he said. "Otherwise, the other side of me can be quite scary."