Today is a good day for me. Not only did I just get my wolf, but I also got to bind with my mate and live forever with him. For me, this is one of the best days of my life because I have been looking forward to this day forever.
“C’mon, Loraine. Get your ass moving or we are going to be late.” My best friend, Jennifer, calls out to me, and I flip her away. I can’t seem to step away from the mirror. I want to appear perfect for him. I can already imagine the look on his face when he sees me standing in front of him in the tight-fitting, curving, accentuating ball gown I have chosen. Anxiety is causing me to break out in sweats, and I know I have to calm myself down or I’ll ruin the little makeup I’ve managed to put on. My best friend appears beside me suddenly and pulls me away. “That’s enough!” she says sternly. She has taken up the role of being a mom to me ever since my parents passed away in an auto crash two years ago, and the role fits her well. After all, she’s a bit older than me, and she cares a lot about me. “Everyone’s waiting.” She snaps, pulling me towards the door. “You don’t want to keep the entire pack waiting.” I try to struggle out of her grip and run back to the comfort of my mirror, but her grip on my wrist is too tight. Jennifer has always been the strong one among us both, so I know that my actions are futile. Although I’m ecstatic to meet my mate and finally be bound with him, I’m also really shy, and the thought of the crowd of people waiting for me behind those doors whose eyes will be on me as soon as I step into the room is overwhelmingly choking. ‘I’m right here.” Jennifer whispers in my ears reassuringly, and my stiff shoulders release some of the tension they have been holding, but not all of it. I tighten my grip around her arm more than I should, and I notice from the corner of my eye that Jennifer is pulling a face, but she does not complain or move to stop me. We stop in front of the door, and Jennifer gently lets go of my arm. “You can do this.” She purrs affectionately. Then she rolls her eyes. “I don’t know why they have to make such a fuss about a mere binding ceremony. Inviting the entire pack as though its something big and making you feel so nervous.” "It's customary in our pack.” I remind her, just in case she has forgotten. “We always do this for everyone who is meeting their mate for the first time. You too will do it when you meet him.” She sighs. “At least I won’t be a nervous wreck like you.” A minute later, Jennifer is gone, and I am left alone to face my fears. Taking a long and deep breath in, I pull the double doors open and mentally prepare myself for the onslaught of eyes, which I know would be resting on my form. Walking towards the moon priestess, who is standing on a platform that, for some reason, resembles an alter, is like walking on an aisle towards your groom. The only difference in this case is that I have no escort and my groom is not standing on the alter. I have never met my mate before. I might have met him since our pack is quite small, but I don’t know who he is. That is why the ritual is organized every month so girls who get their wolves can also meet their mate. I have an idea who I think it might be, and as I walk slowly towards the platform, I lock eyes with him. It is only for a few seconds, but I feel like it lasts for eternity. My breath is knocked out of him as I meet his forest green eyes, and my body explodes with different kinds of emotions. My wolf, who I am yet to name, is prancing about inside of me, eager to go over and smell him; maybe even a little cuddle would be nice. But when I blink again, I am standing right in front of the priestess, and her all-seeing eyes are appraising me. My breath catches in my throat, and anxiety snakes up my arm. I have never been this close to the priestess before, and now that I am in front of her, I feel as though I have gone through all levels of hell. There is a frown on her face, and her lips curl up as if in disgust as she studies me. I want to stop and ask her if there’s any problem, but then I know that is not right for me. The ritual for meeting your mate has several rules that are to be adhered to strictly. She starts the ritual soon after, chanting some tings in a language I don’t understand and in-between asking me several questions that I don’t think should be mentioned here. After thirty minutes of impatience, she finally concludes and turns towards the crowd. “The Goddess has given her reply.” There are a few murmurs and nods that go around the crowd, and she waits until it dies down before speaking again. “Loraine Kellen.” My heart skips a beat at the mention of my name. “Your true mate is to be Gordon Graylock. Alpha of the Withall Pack.” I had known it for quite some time—I have no idea if it’s the same for other werewolves—but to hear it confirmed like this from no other person but the priestess catapults me to another level of ecstasy. I am overjoyed to the point where I almost did not hear when she said that I could either accept or reject the bond. But who, in their right senses, will reject a bond with someone as perfect as Alpha Gordon? He is everything a woman could ask for. Kind, a great leader, and most of all, perfect in every sense of that word. I want nothing but to “Alpha Gordon Graylock.” Again, my heart misses a beat at the sound of his name. At this rate, I might end up in the healer’s ward, or worse, a hospital. “Would you please get over here?” I shift my eyes towards where he is seated and watch as he slowly pulls himself from his seat. When I say he is perfect, I mean every word of it. His eyes are riveted on my form as he strides towards us, and that makes me blush even harder. When he stops in front of us, I feel as though all of my world has stopped too. But when he says the next words, I feel my world drop to the ground and shatter into a million pieces. “I, Alpha Gordon Graylock...” I squeeze my eyes shut and clench my hand tight beside me. “Reject you, Loraine Kellen, as my mate and Luna of the Withall pack.”“I, Alpha Gordon Graylock, reject you, Loraine Kellen, as my mate, and Luna of the Withall pack.”WHAT?!I can’t hide the surprise that makes its way to my face or the pain and hurt that follow. His eyes are cold and detached as they stare me down after that proclamation, and I am left wondering if this is the same man whom I have always known as kind and good. I open my mouth to choke out words, but the priestess beats me to it. “Loraine Kellen, you have been rejected by your mate.” as if I did not just hear it loud and clear and in front of the entire pack. “You can either accept or decline his rejection, but bear in mind that declining his rejection might be risky for both you and your wolf.”Tears pour down my face, and I immediately wipe them away. My wolf has folded herself away into a corner. I’m sure that she is even more hurt and shocked than I am. We had both been anxious for this day. The mate bond starts to break slowly. I can feel it. It’s like being ripped apart slowl
“I, Alpha Gordon Graylock, reject you, Loraine Kellen, as my mate, and Luna of the Withall pack.”WHAT?!I can’t hide the surprise that makes its way to my face or the pain and hurt that follow. His eyes are cold and detached as they stare me down after that proclamation, and I am left wondering if this is the same man whom I have always known as kind and good. I open my mouth to choke out words, but the priestess beats me to it. “Loraine Kellen, you have been rejected by your mate.” as if I did not just hear it loud and clear and in front of the entire pack. “You can either accept or decline his rejection, but bear in mind that declining his rejection might be risky for both you and your wolf.”Tears pour down my face, and I immediately wipe them away. My wolf has folded herself away into a corner. I’m sure that she is even more hurt and shocked than I am. We had both been anxious for this day. The mate bond starts to break slowly. I can feel it. It’s like being ripped apart slowl
“What does it look like I'm doing, Jennifer?” I retort. “I never expected something like this from you, of all people. But since it happened, it's only been proven that I have nothing here, so I’m leaving.”She shakes her head, and I feel the sudden urge to slap her. Her motherly act is beginning to get on my nerve. QUIT ACTING LIKE MY MOTHER, GODDAMMIT!“Loraine, seriously. You have to think about what you are doing now. You know, leaving the pack like this nullifies your membership in this pack. You risk losing everything you have worked so hard for.”I tilt my head and ask, “Have I not already lost everything? I told you I suspected that the Alpha was my mate because of the pull I had towards him, but you forgot to mention that you both were already seeing each other.”“I didn’t think you were actually going to be his mate, and I did not want to hurt your feelings.”“Yeah, of course. Even in the end, you were thinking about me. Which is why you spent four hours in his room consolin
A Treaty Between Four KingsThe rest of the night up until the moment when Alpha Gordon climbs up the podium to greet his pack and the guests and make the announcement passes without hitch. Alpha Gordon has warned me to steer clear of other people in the room since I have turned out to be a walking and talking time bomb, and I am doing just that. Yet my eyes keep being drawn to the group of four elegant men in the room, one of whom saved me the other time. He’s looking at me too, and heat rises on my cheek. He’s not engaged with the other perfect-looking guys in his group; instead, he’s focused on me. I think he’s about to make a move when Alpha Gordon starts his speech, snagging all of the attention in the room. “I want to start by thanking you all for making the time to be here.” He starts, but his eyes are focused on only one person in particular. Although our bond is almost gone, it still hurts to see that he is not even the least affected by all of this. “This is five years s
A Treaty Between the Four Kings IIHunter’s POVI have wanted her as soon as I set my eyes on her in that hall, and now that I have her, I still want her. She is not entirely mine, and that disturbs me. The way in which she had come with us after Alpha Gordon’s announcement also disturbs me. After the little show of dragging her out of my sight, I had met him privately to tell him I was interested in the woman he rejected, but I had not imagined he would humiliate her that way in front of all his pack members. Making a spectacle of giving her to me as spoils for the treaty. Not only did he hurt me, he also deeply wounded my pride, and I don’t think I could ever forgive him for that.I lean towards her, but she scuttles away. “Are you okay?” She does not reply. There is plenty of fear in her eyes, and that hurts me too. To think of all the things she might have been through at the hands of that jerk. “We will get to my house soon.” I continue. “So, you can relax. Me and my brothers
Loraine’s POV Alpha Hunter is in his office when I arrive. Just as hours ago, he’s dressed in a customised suit that hugs his body tight, accentuating all of the fine tans and rippling muscle. I salivate just from looking at him. He stands when I enter, and I don’t miss the glint in his eyes when he rounds his desk to meet me. “Loraine.” My name rolls off his lips with expertise, grace, and fluency, and I find that it is what I want to keep hearing. Unconsciously, I push my chest out as though that would make me more irresistible. When he slips his arm around my waist to lead me deeper into his office, my wolf growls. The word is there, just at the tip of my tongue, and I have to hold myself back when I realise what I’m about to say. Mate. It can’t be. I have met my mate, and then I was rejected by him in the most embarrassing fashion. There’s no way I have another mate except... The word hangs there, in the dark recess of my mind, as my eyes hold his pool of deep green eyes.
Killian’s POV I can see why my brothers are falling over this pesky little girl. She is gorgeous—like drop-dead gorgeous—with long lashes, high cheek bones, waist-length raven hair, a heart-shaped face with perfect pink bow lips, a graceful, slender body with all the curves in the right places, and blue eyes that you can swim in for eternity. What I’m more surprised at is how hard Hunter fell for her. She is another man’s reject for the sake of the goddess. Something another man threw away. If she is not good for him, why would he think she would be good for him? For us? I hate it. I hate everything. I hate that even after thinking all of this, I still feel some part of me being drawn to her. My wolf wants her. He wants to sink his teeth in that delicious-looking flesh of hers and claim her. I hate that I like the thought of it. And I hate that my brother has to interrupt my thought at this time to order me to look after his plaything. I want to remind him that I am an Alpha
Loraine’s POV I’m surprised by how fast Killian runs out of the room, leaving me burning with lust and hunger. It has happened twice in one day. I have lost myself twice to two different men—brothers—in one day, and I don’t know what to make of it. I want more. My body wants more. I want nothing to do with whatever may be happening, but I feel like the more I try to resist them, the more the fire in me burns. It is as though our connection is beyond control. An irresistible primal force that takes us all by storm. I had seen it in his eyes. He had fought—quite hard—but then his body had given in to the urges just as mine had. Thinking of it now, a shiver runs down my spine. I had felt his hardness rubbing against me, his lust tangled with mine. The hunger I felt then had been uncontrollable. Mind-numbing. I could not stop, even if I wanted to. That is the excuse I give myself. Sighing, I retire to the bathroom, wash up quicky, and return to bed. Today has been quite a long