CHAPTER 483: THE SILVER WOLF LINEAGE

Evaline:

I almost forgot how to breathe.

The young man standing in front of me was undeniably handsome - sharp cheekbones, smooth jaw, eyes the color of a clear morning sky - but that wasn’t what made my lungs stop working.

It was his hair.

Silky, long strands of silver, falling over his shoulders like threads of moonlight.

Silver.

My heart skipped.

In nineteen years of my life, I had known only two people with hair like that.

My mother.

And me.

Silver hair wasn’t just rare... it was almost extinct in our world.

Only wolves born from the lineage of ancient Silver Wolf Pack carried it, and that pack... well, it had been hanging by its last thread for as long as anyone could remember. My mother was one of the last three remaining members of that lineage. From her, I inherited these silver strands and her amber eyes.

But not the wolf.

I had been born without one.

The disgrace of my pack.

An embarrassment my father never bothered to hide.

So standing here... staring into the face of another silver-haired wolf... my mind emptied completely.

Until the man lifted an eyebrow and spoke.

"You plan to keep staring at me all day?"

Oh Moon Goddess.

Heat shot up my neck, flushing my face.

"I-I’m sorry!" I blurted, nearly dropping the last file I had scooped up. "I wasn’t-I mean, I didn’t mean to-um-I just-"

Stop talking, Eva. Please. Stop.

His lips twitched with the faintest hint of amusement, but he stayed silent, watching me struggle through my own tangled nonsense.

Mortified, I grabbed the final document from the floor and stood, holding out the stack toward him with both hands.

"Here."

He accepted the files, his expression smoothing into something calm and polite.

"Thank you."

I nodded quickly, ready... desperate... to escape this humiliation, when his voice stopped me again.

"Before you go," he said lightly, "may I have the privilege of learning the name of the beautiful young woman who shares my wolf lineage?"

I froze.

His gaze wasn’t inappropriate.

Not overly warm, not flirtatiously bold.

Just intrigued. Observant.

Still, my cheeks heated again.

"I’m... Evaline," I managed, deciding to skip the lack of family or pack name. No need to dig that hole today. "I’m joining Alpha Ezekiel’s team for a month-long project."

Fortunately, he didn’t react strangely. Didn’t ask questions. Didn’t give me the pitying expression others sometimes did when they sensed something "off" around me.

Instead, he nodded slightly.

"A pleasure, Evaline." Then he added, "I’m Elion Grey."

He introduced himself.

And the name hit something in my memory.

Familiar... but distant. Like a word you have read somewhere but can’t place.

I must have frowned slightly because he tilted his head.

"Are you new here?" he asked. "You look quite young."

"Oh-no," I said quickly. "Not exactly. I interned at the Council for five months not long ago. Now I’m back for another project."

Something lit in his eyes.

"Impressive," he said, sounding like he meant it. "Interning here once is already exceptional. Being invited again means you are quite capable."

I blinked.

I... didn’t know how to respond to that. Compliments still felt foreign, like clothes tailored for someone else... especially when it came from total strangers and still felt genuine.

Before I could find words, he spoke again.

And this time, he completely derailed my brain.

"Do you have a boyfriend, Evaline?"

"Huh?"

I stared at him, stunned all over again.

He seemed utterly calm, as if he had asked what time it was.

I shook my head automatically. My mouth opened... my brain intent on telling him, Actually, I’m already mated... but before I could get a single word out, he continued smoothly.

"Good," he said. "Then I’ll look forward to seeing more of you in the coming days."

I blinked.

What.

"I wasn’t too thrilled about coming to the headquarters," he added lightly, "but now, with you here... I might not mind it as much."

My brain fully short-circuited.

Was he...

What?

Who even flirted like that with a straight face?

Or was that flirting?

Was I imagining things?

Was he just naturally like this?

Why am I sweating?

Ding.

The elevator behind him chimed open.

Before either of us could speak again, a voice called out.

"Alpha Grey!"

My stomach dropped.

Alpha?

He’s an Alpha?

I whipped my head toward the elevator... and sure enough, a group of Alphas stepped out.

And among them...

River.

His expression was unreadable.

His eyes?

Not even a little unreadable.

They were locked on the silver-haired Alpha standing in front of me.

And they were dangerously cold.

Alpha Elion Grey glanced back at the group, then shot me a quick wink before turning away.

A wink.

A wink!

The audacity...

My heart flew to my throat as the group approached.

I hurriedly dipped my head in a polite bow to the Alphas. River’s gaze never left the man until the very second I moved.

Then those deep green eyes snapped to me.

My face burned.

I needed to get out of here.

Immediately.

The elevator doors were still open. I slipped inside quickly, hitting the first floor button.

As the doors slid shut, I caught one last glimpse of River - his jaw tight, shoulders tense, eyes flicking between me and Alpha Grey.

And Alpha Elion Grey... he was staring right at me with that barely present smile on his lips. Either he was genuinely not aware of River’s deadly glare, or he didn’t care.

I hoped it was the former, because if by any chance it was the latter... things were going to be really bad.

Wonderful.

Absolutely wonderful.

Just what I needed.

The doors closed completely, and I finally let out the breath I had been holding since the moment those silver strands first hit my eyes.

Whoever that Alpha was...

He had just turned my day upside-down.

And I had this very terrible feeling that this wasn’t going to be the last time.