With his words still echoing in my mind, I turned to watch my Dad walking away, and even his posture seemed to show his pain. I hated that I was hurting him by struggling to talk to him. I knew he was desperate for me to open up to him. And, in truth, I was desperate to be able to finally open up to him... to my family. Stop hiding who I am. They are my family. I should not have to hide from them...“I found my mate, Papi.” I whispered.In an instant, he had swiveled on his heels to turn and look at me, his brows raised and a look of surprise upon his face. I think it was safe to say I had taken him by surprise. In truth, Aria had shocked me when she had told me, so I knew how that felt. “How? You haven’t come of age yet, Isabella. You would have no way of knowing yet.”I smiled. Trust him to think of it like that. I guess I didn’t have my wolf to confirm what Aria was telling me. But my heart and my gut were telling me she was right. I knew she would never lie to me. And, when we kis
We had returned to River Ash Pack as soon as we could once I had been so easily dismissed by the woman chosen for me by the moon goddess. I could not bear to be in the same pack as her, knowing she would soon be marrying another man. Another Alpha. It sickened me. I was struggling to grasp the concept of her not wanting me. Not in an arrogant way. Just in the fact that she was willing to so easily go against fate.I had hoped beyond all hope that in talking to her, I could convince her to consider leaving Lunar River there and then, and returning with me. Refusing the marriage that had been arranged for her, demanding the mate she was fated instead. But Bella seemed so unwilling to even put up a fight for me... for her fate... and that hurt. I was in pain, so that surely meant she had to be too? She was willing to cause herself pain for her own pack? It made no sense to me...“Are you going to stop tapping your feet on the floor?” Landon asked, sounding more than a little frustrated.
I could sense the fury radiating from Kai, and in all seriousness, I don’t think I could blame him. He was having his fated mate ripped away from him. And the option to fight, while there, brought risk to both his fated mate, and his own pack...Not to mention, I didn’t think it was what his family needed right now. They had so much to cope with, having just lost Aunt Lilah's father, and his looming funeral. Kai did not need to be going into the house full of fire and fury, ready to burst; because his parents would surely sense something was wrong. And as we pulled back into River Ash, the only thing I could think of was suggesting a run.“I know it will be hell, Kai. But, she is doing what she feels is right for her family. They made the arrangement for the sake of the pack. I have a feeling she will be in touch.” I told him.“I offered to try to buy them out of the arrangement.” He muttered under his breath, taking me by surprise. That would have been a lot of money, I would imagin
I had needed to get away the moment we stepped from the car. Landon's suggestion of a run had made sense. I did not want to be explaining the mess I found myself in to my family right now. Not in this state, anyway. I was ready to kill for Bella, and that was not the state of mind I should be in to discuss this with them. They had so much to cope with right now; the last thing they needed was to worry about my out of control temper or the possibility of me having lost my mate to another Alpha... I would calm myself, somehow, and find a moment where I could discuss things with my Dad and hope he had more ideas for a solution than me...Right now my mind was on the run that lay ahead, and Nyko, being Nyko, had seen Landon’s suggestion of a race as a challenge and wasted no time in pushing forward and urging me to shift to allow us to get the lead. My wolf did not like to lose. I knew Landon would see it as a direct challenge now too. He was an Alpha wolf, just like I was, whether he tr
I moved. Walking aimlessly. My mind was a whirlpool of emotion and mess right now, but all I know is that I need to get away. I cannot stand and watch Finn touch Cleo that way. It causes pain I can’t describe, and they aren’t even doing anything major… imagine if he took things further… that look in his eyes tells me he wants to…‘Fucking stop!’ Dex growled angrily at me. My wolf did not like that thought. He did not like the thought of my mate with another man. He did not agree with me on the reasoning for letting her go. He never had, I don’t think. He saw her as ours, and that was it. That was how the matebond worked. But I knew I had to protect her. Dex said we would protect her. That was our job as her mate. He failed to see she would need protecting from us…“Landon!” A voice from behind me told me that Kai had shifted. Wonderful, just what I needed.I kept moving. I had no intention of stopping. I did not want his company right now. I had shown weakness in my reaction to seein
I had felt so low. So fed up, and seeing my Grandma struggle was making me feel like I was falling apart. She was fine when she was with her friends, almost like she was putting on a brave face. But the moment she was back at her house, she seemed to withdraw. She sat in her chair, her mind wandering, and her eyes off in another world. I liked to think she was thinking of my Grandad.But seeing a woman who had been so strong now so weak and vulnerable was almost soul-destroying. And then I was there battling the desire to message Landon…Terra missed him. Of course, I knew my wolf would be missing her fated mate. It would be natural. We had yet to officially reject one another, so we still shared the bond. The pull to one another was still strong… and, I would not lie, I missed him too, and was wondering how he was getting on at his family’s pack. I was surprised when I had heard he was staying a little longer than expected, and could not help but wonder if that was in a bid to avoid
I could not help myself with the sly dig at Cleo, or more so at Finn, when I saw his smirk. He was enjoying it. It was almost like he was attempting to rub it in my face. I knew he would take my fated mate if given a chance. The look within his eyes when he looked upon her said a thousand words without uttering a thing... Though was Cleo even considered my fated mate anymore when she knew I planned to reject her? Maybe she already planned to move on?Finn snarled, the anger more than evident on his handsome features and I expected him to come for me. Though he would be a fool to, I knew that much, and he had to too. I was an Alpha, he was simply a Gamma. And the anger simmering through me right now would be enough to kill him, of that I was certain.But he had stronger self-control than me as he held himself back. His eyes simply darkened, angrily glowering at me. His jaw was tight with irritation... I knew he loved and cared for Cleo, and could I blame him for that? Could I be angry
Landon’s face as he screwed up his nose and looked truly disgusted was, actually, quite adorable, and I couldn’t hold back the little laugh that sneaked from my lips. I saw the look he gave me. The way his eyes drifted over my face... I am sure there was hope there… had something changed?“Right. I am covered, and you two need to give your heads a shake and realize that being together is not the hell you seem to have it imagined as.” Kai’s voice was loud and full of authority as he approached, like he planned to take over what this was about to be. But in storming over, he had also managed to disturb any atmosphere that was building between Landon and I. Though considering the awkward expression appearing upon Landon's face, maybe that was a good thing?I watched the two of them and the brief nod they shared. Where had this sudden friendship between my brother and Landon come from? Kai usually did nothing to hide his dislike for Landon, yet here he was pushing for the two of us to be