Marcella’s POV
“Hands up,” I tell my brother. “Don’t let me get paint on you. Ready?”“I’m ready,” Wesley’s little fists are balled up tight and his little five-year-old face is squashed up in determination.I’m Marcella Nightingale, I’m seven years old and I’m a werewolf. My father, Martin Nightingale, is the most prized warriors in the world. Our Alpha, loans him out to packs for training. Most Alphas offer my dad a rank to move to their pack, but Dad is loyal to the West family and will likely die a Warrior here at the Westmoreland Pack.“Okay, remember, don’t let me get paint on you,” I dip my hands in blue paint.I go easy on him at first, but he is good, so I up my attack. He meets me and gets my wrists in his little hands he covers my painted hands in sand, basically taking me out.“How was that?” He asks, very proud of himself.“Amazing!” I answer, excitedly still on all fours with my hands in the dirt.“Sissy, what is happening? Your hair is growing!” He asks wide eyed, before screaming. “Mom! Mom! Sissy is shifting!”My mom comes running out the back door.“Marcella?” Mom kneels beside me.“It doesn’t hurt mom,” I say as hair continues to grow all over me. Then my spine snaps, sending a blinding pain straight to my head. Now, I am screaming! This hurts! My hips pop out of place and my legs get longer as my shoulders pop and my arms get wider and longer. “Mommy!”“I know, don’t fight, it. Just breathe, my big brave girl. You are so beautiful!” Mom gasps when I look at her.I can’t talk anymore. How will I tell her I’m okay?Fran- I’m Fran and I’ll take it from here.Me- Who are you?Fran- Your wolf!I force Fran back down with all my might and shift back into my human form.Fran- I’ll come out again.Me- Just try it!I feel her trying to force another shift, but I hold her back. I thought we were suppose have great relationships with our wolves. They are supposed to be a quarter of our soul. I’m a quarter too, and my mate and his wolf will make us whole.“Marcella,” my mother’s gentle voice breaks through. “Marcella, stop fighting your wolf. You two have to get along.”Me- Okay listen, what is that thing where we don’t get our way, but we both kinda do.Fran- I’m the same age you are, how should I know.Me- Trade! Trade with me. You stop forcing your way out and I promise once a day to let you out.Fran- Everyday until forever!Me- Everyday until I can’t shift anymore.Fran- Deal!Fran settles down and I exhale before looking at mom and Wes.“I’m okay now, Fran is going to settle down,” I tell mom.“Okay, good,” Mom looks at me with suspicion. “Now Wesley, Marcella, it is important that no one knows Marcella can shift. We will tell your father, but Marcella you can only shift in our backyard. Do you understand?”“Yes mama,” I answer.“Family?” My father’s voice rings through. “Marcella, why are you naked?”“She shifted, Martin,” Mother tells him. “We need to keep her safe.”“We have to inform the Alpha,” Dad tells her.“No, he will insist she trains with the warriors and will try to use her for his own power,” Mom insists. “This is a family secret. We will let her shift in our backyard and you can train her.”“If we get caught Alpha Devon could banish us,” Dad tells her.Mom laughs. “Martin, we have offers from thirty different packs, I’m not worried.”Dad looks at me, “Think I could meet your wolf?”Me- If I let you out, do you promise to behave. We can’t get banished.Fran- I promise.Me- Okay, your show big girl.I let go and Fran takes over. It’s less painful this time.“What a beauty,” Dad kneels and pets my head. “I will keep you safe and I will train you.”~~~~~~~~~~~~Nine years later“Hey Marcella,” Atlas, the next Alpha, slides next to me in math class. I am in love with him. Deep blue eyes, light brown hair, that Alpha build. He is my dream.“Atlas,” I lower my eyes in respect. We are at school, so I can’t call him Alpha.“Party, packhouse, 8pm tonight,” Atlas tells me.“Can’t. Dad and I are traveling to Grace Pack tomorrow, I need my rest,” I tell him. I am genuinely sad, but at the same time, I know he only invites girls to these things to hook up and I don’t want to be his one-night stand.“All you do is train, I can’t wait until you are head warrior like your dad, we will make a great team. Maybe worth a Beta position for you,” Atlas runs a finger down my arm. I like his touch, but I don’t want to be his head warrior. I want more.I look at him and smile, “Offer it to Wesley. I plan on finding a mate and settling down.”Fran- We are so strong, and you want to become a baby maker?Me- No, but I want him. Look at him. I want him to think I’m Luna material.Fran- Oh. You are Luna Material. But not his Luna.Me- Come on, let’s think about it.Fran-We can think on it.“I could order you to be there,” Atlas whispers close to my ear.“And your dad would counterman that order. He knows how important the Grace Pack trip is. We can’t piss them off, they are bigger than we are,” I remind Atlas. I turn slightly and our lips are very close together. I can feel our breaths hitting each other. Thankfully, class starts and we separate before anything happens.I keep to myself at school. Pack members are scared of me because of who my dad is. Several are sure that in a straight up fight Dad could take out the Alpha. I’m not sure if it’s true, but I’m not saying it’s outside the realm of possible.In one year and three months I will be 18, and I can find my mate. Maybe Atlas….“Don’t forget, today it’s you and me as the main event,” Atlas winks at me.Fran- Can we beat him?Me- He doesn’t have a wolf, so yeah, we can. But I’m not sure we should. I want him to like us.Fran- Let’s think on it.It’s time to train and all I can say is Atlas looks ready to eat me.“Go easy Fran, I don’t want him to notice you yet,” Dad whispers in my ear.Fran- I hate when Dad is right.Me- I know, but remember to ease up. Healing, fighting all of it.Fran- Yeah, yeah.“Young Alpha Atlas vs. Warrior in training Marcella,” Dad announces as our group gathers around.Wesley is in this group too, and he looks at me smiling.“Let’s go big sis!” Wesley cheers me.“Fight,” Dad says, backing away.“Come to the party tonight and I’ll go easy on you,” Atlas smiles at me.“Pin me to the mat and I’ll come to the party,” I flirt.His eyes widen in surprise, and he attacks. I dodge and counter, blocking him but leaving us both standing. He attacks again, this time I do a back handspring to get away.“Attack, Marcella,” Dad coaches.Me- I’m trying not to embarrass him.Dad- His ego needs to brought down a few pegs. Alpha Devon’s orders. Attack.Fran- if it’s Alpha’s orders...Me- Half power only...Fran- Party pooper.I attack with a simple jab, but Atlas fails to counter, so I make contact with his chest, knocking the wind out of him. When he drops to his knees to catch his breath, I knee his face, breaking his nose and knocking him out.Me- Well, there goes him liking us.Fran- Sorry, Dad said Attack.“Good Job young lady,” Alpha Devon tells me. “Martin, your daughter is as impressive as you are.”“Thank you, Alpha,” Dad motions me to come to him as Alpha stands over his son.“If you spent as much effort into training as you do in getting she-wolves into bed you would not be on your back right now. Training should be your main focus, do you understand?” Alpha Devon is speaking to the class but directing it at his son.“Yes Alpha,” everyone in the class says in unison.Did I mention I’m the only female in this class? Well, I am. Most females don’t qualify for the Advance non-wolf class. Mom would have as a teen, but she isn’t from this pack.“You will pay for this Marcella, not today, but soon when I have my wolf, you will pay for this disrespect,” Atlas snarls at me as I walk back to my house.Me- Great.Fran- He wasn’t ours. When we find ours, I promise we won’t lose him.~~~~~~“I am pleased that my son is now 18 and his wolf is an impressive beast,” Alpha Devon toasts Atlas at his party. “In one year, he will become the Alpha of the Westmoreland Pack. I thank Martin Nightingale for his time in making our future Alpha an impressive fighter. Over the next year I suspect Martin’s direction will make Atlas’s wolf, Thomas, even more fierce.”We all cheer and I see a group of girls crowd the stage near Atlas. They are hoping he is their mate.Me- Hey Fran, will you be able to detect our mate early?Fran- Yep, and it’s not Atlas and Tom.I leave the party and start walking home. I hear the footsteps and can’t believe he left the party just to teach me a lesson.“Marcella,” Atlas catches me and pulls my hair. “Let’s see what you can do now.”Me- Fran full power but don’t shift.Fran- Got it.I grab Atlas’s hand and tear it away from my hair. I twist his arm to the point it almost breaks, but I release him before it does.“It’s not gentlemanly to attack a wolfless female from behind. I doubt your father would be pleased,” I tell him.“Bitch,” Atlas attacks again, I catch his fist before it makes contact. He growls and shifts. His wolf is in fact huge.Well, shit!Fran- I’m bigger.Me- I can’t shift.Fran- I know, but if you let me come to the surface, he won’t notice; but you can take him down.Me- Do it, before he kills me.I feel Fran come forward, but I stay in human form. She grabs his ears and pulls his head down, then does and flip onto his back. Using our thighs, she squeezes until he submits.“What is going on?” Alpha Devon demands.Fran gives me back control.“Young Alpha Atlas attacked me, and I defended myself,” I tell the Alpha without hesitation. “He was angry over me defeating him in training. But my father has trained me to fight wolves.”Fran- Good, get the truth out fast.Me- I hope he believes me.Fran- He used his Alpha tone; you can’t lie to him as far as he knows.Me- That was Alpha tone?Fran- Yeah, we aren’t affected. You never noticed.Me- No, I didn’t.Grab- Love you human, but you are dumb.“Son,” Alpha Devon looks pissed.“She needs to learn respect,” a now naked Atlas snarls.Fran- I expected more from an Alpha. He
Evander’s POVDexter- She is not our mate.Me- But she is amazing.Dexter- I will concede that, but I bet our mate is amazing too.Me- She is the daughter of the Beta. She will make a perfect Luna.Dexter- I bet our mate makes a great Luna too.Me- Bridget is classy, smart, and she knows this pack.Dexter- But she is not the moon chosen Luna of our pack. She isn’t even born of fated mates. Her parents chose each other and look how it turned out for them.Me- It will be different for us; we both agree to reject our fated mates the moment we see them. Then the bond won’t hurt as much, and we can be together.Dexter- I don’t want to do that. I’ll leave. I’ll refuse to shift. I‘ll protest in any way I can!I grab my school bag and head to the dining hall. Bridget is waiting for me. She is so beautiful, long shiny blonde hair, sweet innocent blue eyes, perfect skin. She is amazing.“Good morning, my love,” She greets me with a smile and my favorite coffee.“Good morning, my love,” I say. “
Evander’s POV“I can’t believe you expect me to welcome them,” Lucy complains.“You are the Beta Female, you should welcome new members, especially the Gamma family,” Daniel reminds her.Lucy scoffs and tries to hold him, but he pulls away.“Please don’t touch me, Abby doesn’t like your scent on me,” Daniel tells her.I look at Bridget and see she is torn. She loves both her parents and has never understood how her father could mark her mother but keep Abby around. Because Daniel is with his fated mate it doesn’t hurt Lucy. But it hurts his daughter. Mark is totally on board with mates. He buys in completely. He won’t even take a she-wolf to bed.“We won’t be like them,” I promise Bridget again and kiss her lips. “I love you.”“I love you too,” Bridget holds my hand.When we see the blue SUV I recognize the woman jumping from the car. She has long black hair, deep brown skin and beautiful brown eyes. She hugs both my parents and Daniel. They look like old friends. Lucy and Jennifer no
Marcella’s POV“That was very mature of you,” my mom tells me as we watch Evander and his chosen walk away.“Yes, we are all so impressed,” I don’t know the woman speaking, but she hates me and looks like Evander’s chosen, so I'm calling her the mother.“Lucy,” Luna Kesly starts sternly. “I know you were the one pushing this chosen bull shit. But Evander has his mate. Thankfully, before he marked Bridget. I suggest you try to keep your daughter from the pain you feel and encourage her to move on.”Lucy’s mate looks at her with a nod.“Luna, this appears to be a discussion we are not needed for, so point us in the direction of our house and we will let you all discuss this among the ranked members,” Mom tells them.“You are staying right here, in the packhouse, on the Gamma floor, no fighting about it,” Alpha Gabe says sternly.Fran- That is Alpha Tone. Now that we are mated to an Alpha, do you get why it meant nothing to you?Me- So, you knew our mate was an Alpha?Fran- Yeah, because
Evander’s POVDexter- She is amazing. I say we keep the Ceremony and just mark our mate rather than the plotting bitch. Me- Don’t call Bridget a Bitch. Dexter- it’s telling you knew who I meant “You okay?” Marcella asks touching my arm sending sparks and tingles all over again. I can’t help but love the feeling. Bridget can never give me this. I should saver this feeling. For when I don’t have Marcella anymore. I look at her . Damn she is beautiful. She isn’t much shorter than me and the way her eyes catch the sun I can see gold. “My wolf Dexter is indecent,” I tell her still staring into her eyes. “I know he told Fran,” Marcella makes a face. It’s cute and I can’t help but smile. Now I need to start the plan. “Dad Marcella and I are going to walk back. We need to talk,” I tell my dad who nods. We walked toward the Packhouse. “Good job.” “Thanks,” she walks beside me. “Bridget want me gone?” “Yeah, I offered to go rogue,” I tell Marcella and she nods. “I thought you might o
Marcella’s POV.I use scent to find our room.This house is more like a castle. Not what I was expecting for a West Coast Pack. Our bedroom is in a tower, so it’s shaped like a wedge. We are at the end on hall so three fourths of the room is round. The bed is in the middle. Evander has gaming chairs behind it and a pretty nice gaming set up. I’m not great at gaming, but I could learn.My suitcases and duffels are in the closet, so I start unpacking.I change into a cute dress for dinner. It’s my first time meeting the pack, so I want to look presentable. A crop top and jeans are perfect for a Warrior's daughter, but a Luna must look her best.“I’m here with 30 seconds to spare,” Evander rolls his eyes.“I took over half the closet,” I tell him.“Bridget had things in there,” He looks pissed.“I know, I had them packed neatly and removed.” I smile at him, doing a spin in my dress.“Don’t fish for compliments from me, you won’t get any. But I would give you a compliment, a hug, whatever
Evander’s POVOnce we are in the conference room, I close the door.“You fucked her!” Bridget is angry.“Yes,” I answer. “We are mates. Mates have sex.”Bridget looks surprised.“I thought you and I were going to start having sex tomorrow night,” Bridget steps to me but stops. “You smell like her.”“Again, we are mates,” I tell her. “We are trying to be respectful of you. She even agreed to let me spend the afternoon tomorrow with you. Since I know it will be difficult.”“Evander,” Bridget lets a tear fall. “You are accepting her.”“I offered to go rogue with you. If you really love me, then you would come with me. So, I offer again. Leave with me.”Bridget trembles. “Dexter will leave you. We will be wolfless, packless and alone.”“No, we will have each other,” I remind her.“It’s not enough for me,” Bridget says.“Yesterday I was enough,” I tell her.Bridget backs away and shakes her head. “Go screw her.”Bridget slams the door hard when she leaves.I go back to the dining hall and
Marcella’s POV“We have to go,” I say throwing a dress over me. As soon as we get outside, I’m letting Fran out. So, this dress is going to rip to shreds.I follow Evander down the stairs. We are followed by Beta Daniel, Abby, and Mark. Bridget follows but at a safe distance.Me- Ready girl?Fran- You know I am.As soon as we hit the air, Fran busts forward. She keeps pace with Evander and as we get closer, I scent some of the warriors. I know these people. I know all of them. I see him standing in front, unshifted. Atlas.“Come, come, Marcella shift back, your face is what I came to see,” Atlas calls as we approach.Dexter growls and stands in front of me.I see Wesley holding a shirt next to me. He had run here unshifted.Fran gives me control and I shift back.“What do you want Atlas?” I ask, stepping from behind Dexter. Wesley is beside me.“I want my mate,” Atlas smirks.“Marrianna is your mate,” I tell him.“My wolf and I agree we want you,” He answers.“If Tom agrees, shift,” I