The Established Siblings of the Pack

Serena glowered at Nancy icily as a murderous look registered on her features.

Meanwhile, Kingsley reached for her hand under the table and regarded Nancy impassively as he pointed out, “With a face like yours, it’s no wonder you try to put Serena down.”

“Excuse me?” Nancy shrieked. She grimaced menacingly at him and demanded, “Who the hell are you to speak to me that way?”

“He came as Serena’s plus-one, didn’t he? Maybe he’s her boyfriend.”

The guests had all brought along their own plus-ones, so they naturally overlooked Kingsley’s presence at first, especially while he was plainly-dressed.

Emory assessed Kingsley contemptuously and drawled, “Of course he’s her boyfriend. Will you look at the cheap counterfeits he’s wearing? He and Serena-the-orphan are a perfect match, if you ask me!”

Once again, everyone laughed in disdain. Nancy, in particular, was on a vicarious thrill when she saw that Serena was being made fun of. The crows’ feet near the ends of her eyes crinkled as she beamed. This was finally her chance to trounce Serena.

“Who would’ve thought you’d find yourself a boyfriend, Serena? I ought to go out and see if pigs are flying,” she mocked, clutching onto Tyler’s arm. “But I must say you have horrible taste in men. Why would you go out with someone dirt poor like him? I mean, there’s nothing wrong with being poor, but what’s with all that fake-nouveau riche get-up? I’m embarrassed for you!”

Serena stared at her witheringly. “I can date whoever I want, so keep your nose out of my business.”

mention it,” Nancy began, smirking triumphantly as she lay her head on Tyler’s shoulder. “I’m perfectly happy with

shameless flattery. “Nancy and Tyler are the real deal here. Look at how

and then there’s Serena who is way out of her boyfriend’s league. She’s just dragging

his gaze flickering from one part of her body to the next as if deciding which he liked best. He had been drawn to her beauty since she walked through the

as he said with implication, “Nancy’s right. It’s crucial for women to choose men that complement their worth. Surely you wouldn’t want to be saddled with some pathetic deadbeat guy forever, knowing that he would never be able to make something of himself.” He had as good as told her that she ought to be with someone like him. Then, he glanced at Kingsley with a demoralizing air and asked, “What line of work are you in, anyway? Bet you can’t even afford to

his seat casually and replied, “I just retired from the army, so I’m still

unemployed,” Nancy

to stoop so low. Must be some serious self-esteem issues

would’ve thought that the ice princess

burst at the seams. “Hey, kid, if you need a job, our company’s still hiring

Nancy squealed in amusement. “Being a guard dog is better than starving, right,

that she could finally walk all over Serena, and satisfaction swelled up in her. The crowd, on the other hand,

room and asked in a voice that cut above the others’ rambunctious laughter. “What’s so funny, guys? Did I miss anything? I could hear the lot

said, “We were talking about how Serena’s boyfriend should become a security guard at my fiancé’s company!” She had only managed to get these out before she started

side of Noah’s face was swollen, Emory asked, “What’s up with your

fine.” He would rather bury himself alive than have anyone here find out he was roughed up by

him to take a seat as she