Aria and Knight are back in their car. 

The pure-blood alpha hates the fact that they haven’t even eaten their dinner yet but what matters to him most is Aria’s well-being.

"Hey, are you alright?" Knight asked as he took the younger's hand. 

In a normal scenario, Aria would normally flinch or pull back her hand immediately but at that moment she let the older hold her hand because she feels like she's breaking into pieces after seeing her ex-husband again.

"Would it believe me  if I told you that I'm fine?" Aria replied with a small nervous smile that made the pure blood shake his head.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Knight asked, he knows what happened at the restaurant isn’t something he could just shrug off seeing how shaken Aria was. 

He also knows Cyrus as an assemblyman and seeing the other pureblood lose his shit in front of them a while ago tells him that there was something between the two.

Aria swallowed the invisible lump in her throat before she turned to the side to face Knight.

 She knows this coincidental meeting with Cyrus that evening would not end there. 

Whether she likes it or not, she will be meeting people from her past sooner or later and she has decided that she doesn't want to drag Knight into any more drama from her past.

"You don't have to tell me now if you don't feel like telling me Aria. I just want you to know that you are not alone and that I am here for you whenever you need me. I am telling you this not because of Harris anymore but because you're dear to me. I don't care about what happened in your past but please know that I won't let anyone hurt you again." Knight uttered while holding the Omega's hand.

Knight knows that he's one step closer to confessing his budding feelings for the beautiful omega but at the same time he doesn't want to push Aria away so he is trying his best to hold back.

 He has seen how beautiful Aria is inside and out during the past months that they have been together in his penthouse and he would be a liar if he says he hadn’t fallen for the most beautiful omega he has laid his eyes upon. 

The moment he admitted to himself that he liked Aria more than he was supposed to, he promised himself to take care of her without expecting anything in return.

Aria suddenly felt the shift in Knight's emotion the moment the older said the last part of his sentence. 

They've been so close in the past weeks and she would be lying to herself if she said she didn’t notice how the pure-blood alpha looked at her. 

She knows Knight is really kind but the pure-blood alpha has a soft spot for her and she didn’t wanna take advantage of that.

"Knight ...that's Cyrus Carter."

"I know Aria, they're on the opposition side of Dad's party. I know him because…"

"He's the alpha father of my daughter. He was my husband, my mate." Aria said in a clear but very low voice as if she was so scared that others might hear her.

Knight didn’t know why he suddenly felt more relieved than stressed out knowing that he was right on his first assumption regarding Cyrus ' relationship with Aria. 

The alpha tightened his hold on Aria's hand. 

Maybe he was relieved knowing that Aria chose to open up to him and that just made him want to protect her more.

"I won't let him hurt you ever again," Knight said and he knew that he would put his life on the line to keep that promise this time. 

It's insane, his parents kept introducing him to alphas and omegas for years hoping that he would finally fall for one and settle down but he never did.

Now that he looks at Aria, he knows that he wasn't able to fall for anyone before because he was meant to fall for the omega beside him.

Aria smiled bitterly at the pure blood as she leaned his head on his shoulder. 

She was just so thankful to have this man beside her at that moment because, to be honest, she had been thinking of scenarios when she would meet Cyrus again and this wasn't one of them.

"You're so good to me. I don't deserve you." Aria said after a few minutes of silence between them.

"Hmm, I beg to differ. You deserve all the goodness in the world Ria. I don't know what happened between you and  Carter, but I am sure the universe cut all your ties with him because it knows that you deserve better. I don't understand why you need to hide but if you ever decide to come out in the open, Aria I want to be there with you. I may not be as powerful as my dad in this country but I promise to protect you."

 Knight said again and this time, he brought the hand of the younger to his lips and left a very light peck on the back of it.

Aria is not oblivious to not knowing that Knight just crossed a line between them that night.

 She doesn't want to assume that the alpha wants her more than a friend since he hasn’t explicitly told her so.

 Aria still pulled her hand away from the pure blood. She doesn't want to give him false hope without the older knowing of her past the full story.

 She is not ready for the possibility of opening up her heart to Knight.

She just decided to move on with her life and she doesn't want Knight to walk into her still chaotic life with blind eyes. 

So with still his shaky breath, Aria finally decided to tell Knight everything that happened to her and Cyrus Carter from the very first day that they met until the day that she left the country when she learned that her daughter was gone.

Knight's heart broke a hundred times just listening to Aria's story.

 If he was a little hesitant about wanting to court Aria a while ago, this time his mind, heart, and wolf all agreed that all he wants to do with his life is to make sure that Aria is happy and safe. 

He wanted her and he will do everything in his power to have her.

The omega cried a lot while retelling her story to the pure-blood alpha. 

The two are both quiet when he finally finishes telling him everything.

"I don't want you to be dragged into this mess Knight."

"You are not dragging me into anything Ria, I'll gladly jump in it. Also, uhmmm can we find another restaurant first? I know you haven't eaten anything all day and you must be starving. Knowing everything you've been through makes me so hungry, for real." Knight said trying to lighten up the mood between them.

Aria shifted in her seat to see the older's face and odd enough, she found herself smiling at the pure blood.

"You're unbelievable! But fine, let's go get some food!" Aria doesn’t understand how Knight can easily lighten her mood but at that moment, she's just so grateful to have him.

Aria knows it would take a long time to go for her to finally come out of hiding but knowing that there would be someone who still wants her despite the fucked up past she has is more than enough for her to take another step toward wanting to have a happier life.

Maybe, it's not too late for her and her dream after all.

It's been a week since Cyrus and Dylan found Aria in her hometown. 

It's been seven long tumultuous days. They have traced where the omega lives and what she is up to because Cyrus is determined to bring his mate back to him and his pup's life.

He still wants answers. He still wants to prove that everyone else is wrong assuming that Aria left them for another alpha.

 He's doing everything in his power to locate his ex-wife, discreetly. 

He does not want his father to know that he's been searching for Kiana’s mother because he doesn't want to put Aria in danger if he is right about one thing.

"Cyrus!" Dylan suddenly barged into his office with a Manila envelope in his hand. 

"Dylan?"

"We've finally found her and you wouldn't believe it," Dylan said while settling on the leather couch inside the Assemblyman's office.

The older alpha opens the envelope and slowly takes out the documents and photographs that are taken discreetly because most of them are zoomed in and at a bad angle.

"Gems-Harmony Inc. Why would Aria…oh! Fuck!" Cyrus suddenly cussed once he realized something.

Of course, the omega was working in that agency because it was her lifelong dream. 

Gems-Harmony was easily one of the Biggest Entertainment agencies in the country and now that he's thinking about it,

"Travis Cromwell was Knight Ashbourne's classmate at University back in the day. We also found out that Ashbourne’s assistant Justin  Steele is the cousin of Cromwell’s mate. I guess it's not a coincidence that Aria is working for the company that is very capable of hiding her for years Cy. I'm sorry." Dylan says he’s disappointed with all the information they gathered because it only led them to one thing.

It looks like Aria really ran off with Knight to pursue her dream, of being a musician. 

But still, the alpha is doubtful about the whole thing because there's one thing that's not adding up.

"She left us to pursue music? But Dylan, why would she keep hiding if this was all she wanted? She doesn't even have her own name as a producer! I don't understand." 

Cyrus feels a little lost about everything.

Dylan might be right that  Aria, his ex-wife, might have left them because of this.

Now that Cyrus is trying to decipher the big picture, the possibility that Aria really chose to break their family to be with Knight so she could continue to pursue her dreams.

"But what about the mark?" Cyrus didn't realize that he said that out loud.

 Dylan turned to his cousin and saw how stressed Cyrus was about the whole thing.

"Cy, I'm sure we're missing something here. Just give me more time and we'll figure this out. Remember, you have a gala to attend tonight and you promised Kiana you'll take her with you this time." Dylan said, trying to divert Cyrus's attention from Aria at least for a while.

Cyrus sighed. 

He hates it whenever he feels like he can’t do anything about something he really wants but he knows his cousin is right.

 He needs to pull himself together more than ever if he wants to keep his family safe.

"Thank you, Dylan, I don't know what I'll do without you." The pure-blood alpha forces himself to smile at his cousin to convince him that he still has his shit together even when the truth is, he's already breaking apart piece by piece every new information they obtain about his mate.

The truth is, he is very eager to get Aria back, and he's willing to offer everything that he has just to have her back in his and Kiana’s life but at the same time, he's also so scared because he feels like the closer he gets to the omega, the closer he'll know the truth about what actually happened three years ago. 

And he might not admit it out loud, but Cyrus is so scared to know the truth.  He knows it will change everything in his life again whether Aria was really forced to leave or if his mate just wanted to get rid of him.

"Just go home, Cy. Please don't let Alex dress my little princess again." Dylan scoffs while putting back the pictures inside the envelope.

"Come on Dylan, what did Alex ever do to you? Let her be. You are constantly throwing snarky comments  when all she has ever done is to be with me and Kiana all these years." Cyrus said it because he felt bad for his friend.

 Dylan just rolls his eyes as if he's boring him.

"The girl is too sweet for her own good Cy. Also, you're right..she's been by your side all those years even after you refused to fuck her, it smells fishy to me."

Cyrus's hand froze mid-air upon hearing his cousin. 

He knows Dylan didn’t mean to offend him but he doesn't like the way he uses his words when it comes to Alex who's always available for Kiana and himself.

"Dylan, please just leave Alex alone. You don't have to like her but please at least treat her with civility for Kiana’s sake ?" Cyrus pleads because he doesn't want any drama between his cousin and close friend.

"I'm not saying I hate her Cy, just be careful around that girl, yeah?" Dylan insisted before he left the younger's office.

Cyrus just clicks his tongue in disappointment because he knows Dylan would never like Alex.

 He sighs as he reaches for the envelope again.

Dylan left it in his office because he knew his cousin would check them again and he was right because the moment Cyrus was finally alone in his office again, he took out one of Aria's pictures.

He knows it's illegal to stalk someone but who cares if that someone is the other mother of his child?

The pure-blood alpha sighed as he grazed his finger over the photo of the beautiful omega. It was taken inside a cafe and Aria might be alone in the photo but Cyrus knows she was with Knight during that time because he read the note at the back of the picture.

[8.30 PM, Sweets Cafe with Ashbourne]

"Do you drink coffee now? Why are you inside a cafe Ria? Do you still love those strawberry souffles?" Cyrus almost teared up while asking those questions when he knew that the photograph in his hand would never give the answers even to the most basic questions

"Ria, are you ready?" Knight knocks on the omega's bedroom for the second time because Aria just keeps screaming inside.

"I told you, you don’t have to come if you are uncomfortable to go out in public. 

You know I can always talk to Alyssa and Travis about this." Knight says while leaning his forehead on the omega's door.

She was answered by silence again then followed by footsteps before the door finally burst open.

Knight always knew Aria was beautiful, so beautiful with her golden blonde hair but the omega in front of him was gorgeous.

"uhmm do I look alright?" Aria asked when the alpha remained quiet, his mouth hanging open.

"You're gorgeous! Wow, your hair...it’s black it looks good on you Aria." Knight finally managed to find words.

"I just don't want to embarrass you. This is the first gala I am going to attend in all my life and I'm going there with you so..." Aria suddenly gets nervous as she remembers how big this event is because the grand ball is a celebration for the rich and powerful wolves in the County.

It is a fundraising event where the most powerful families come together to boast their wealth, and power and make connections.

Knight didn't want to invite her when he learned about the event because he didn’t want to pressure her but Travis and Alyssa informed her about it. 

At first, Aria was hesitant to join them because of the Carters but Alyssa talked her into it

She remembers how her fellow omega told her that it would be a great opportunity for her to show Cyrus that she was already over him and that she didn't need to be scared of Julius Carter anymore. 

It is also Alyssa’s idea for her to get a makeover including changing her hair from her usual golden blonde locks, which she dyed to black, and her natural curls added a little to add a little drama to her hair. 

They also shopped for a few pairs of clothes so she would have something beautiful to wear for the big event.

Alyssa helped her prepare for everything but now that she was standing in front of Knight, she couldn’t help but feel so little again not only because she was not used to using makeup but also because the pure-blood alpha was just so gorgeous.

"Alright, can we not talk about being embarrassing here because I feel like I'm gonna embarrass myself all night for staring at you. You look so beautiful Aria and thank you for agreeing to be my date this evening." Knight said before taking out a small box in his pocket.

Aria's eyes widened when she saw the thin long jewelry in Knight's palm.

"Knight what is…..”

"Can I put this on Ria? This is just a simple congratulatory gift for you coming out in the open after years of hiding. You are beautiful and the world doesn't deserve to even take a glimpse of you but I'm so proud that you finally want to do this." Knight said with a small smile before he carefully put on the necklace on Aria's neck.

The omega gasps in surprise when she sees the pendant. It was a tiny diamond that looked like a sunflower.

"Knight,  It's beautiful but this is too much and…,,"

"Come on Ria, or we would be late. if we keep arguing about this. Besides, I love showering you with pretty gifts because it's what you deserve." Knight said with a smile on his lips so Aria chose not to argue anymore.

 She just leaned closer and hugged the alpha before she whispered a small thank you in his ear.

*****+*+**+*++++*+***+++*

Cyrus momentarily forgot  his worries about his ex wife because of his daughter.

"Princess that looks good on you baby." Cyrus  coos at the cuteness of his growing daughter.

He may never admit it to Dylan ever but he really went home so he could choose his baby’s dress for the event instead of letting Alex or anyone else dress her.

"Kiki likes pink daddy! Kiki is so pweetty!" the little girl squealed as she ran towards her father who immediately opened his arms to catch his princess.

"Of course you're the prettiest baby. Daddy will be all eyes on you the whole evening. But promise me you'll behave there okay? Aunty lex will be with us but I want you to be on your best behavior too princess. Do we have a deal?" 

Cyrus said, leaving a tiny peck on his daughter's cheek.

"Yes daddy. Kiki behaves in the pawty!" Kiana replied before giving her father another round of kisses that made Cyrus laugh.

The father and daughter duo were still having their moment when Ale  finally arrived.

"Hello Cyrus, good evening angel. Are you ready for the bestest night?" Alex smiled widely at them because she really was genuinely ecstatic about the fact that Cyrus chose to invite her as his date for such a prestigious event. 

It is also their first appearance with Kiana with them so she really dressed to impress everyone since she was already expecting the press and media to take a thousand photos of them.

Cyrus smiled back at the alpha as he carried his daughter.

"We're ready!" Cyrus and Kiana cheered in unison before they all went inside Cyrus's car so they could finally go to the gala!