The entire room was silent, as they all stared at Dylan. Daniel was relieved to see him, but he couldn’t say the same for his dad, who was wearing a poker face.
Dylan had a fallout with his dad after he turned twenty and still wasn’t able to find his mate. For a male werewolf in the Greenwood pack, having a mate was something of great pride as it boosted their ego. Not being able to find his mate even at twenty one has made his dad extremely disappointed in his one time favorite son.
“Go on, I’m listening.” Desmond said in a dry voice as he made himself comfortable on his study chair so he could stare directly at Dylan, who was leaning on the door.
“I mean, there is no need to be overly sensitive about this whole issue… We all know that for generations, the Pride pack doesn’t make any careless move unless you’re considered an enemy. And to be counted as an enemy, you have to make one wrong move against them, which if I’m correct we haven’t done.”
“In essence, you are in agreement with Daniel’s suggestion.” Ben concluded.
“Not really-“
“You do realize that for the past three years there has been continuous attacks on several packs all carried out by the Pride pack.” Desmond rudely cut his son off, already getting irritated with the fact that he interrupted their conversation.
“Get to the point, boy. I ain’t got all day.”
“What I’m trying to say is.. if you guys are really concerned about the pack, rather than going into a war or being extra cautious for no reason in particular, why don’t we sign a peace treaty with them? That way we can have friendly relations with them and feel safe at the same time.”
“Are you even listening to yourself?” His dad asked through gritted teeth.
“What happens to the other packs then?”
“They can do the same… It’s not like Lakewood pack has no flaw of its own.” Dylan replied, mumbling the last part to himself.
Before he could realize what was happening, his dad’s telephone had already come in contact with his forehead, causing him to bleed.
“All these years, I raised a coward for a son!” Desmond exclaimed in anger, his eyes flickering from blue to yellow, indicating that his wolf was fighting to be in control.
“You might wanna go outside.” A concerned Daniel said to his younger brother.
“No. I’m sick and tired of being treated this way. Nothing I say or do is ever good enough for him because I haven’t found my mate… If you hate me that much, what are you waiting for? Kill me and end this once and for all!”
Dylan was already fed up. He couldn’t deal with the hate coming from his dad anymore. It was one thing for the pack members to scorn him, but it is an entirely different ball game when his own father also treats him with scorn.
“That’s enough Dylan!” His mom yelled, seeing as her mate was red with anger for being spoken to in such manner.
Just as Desmond was about to lunge towards his son, Daniel pulled his younger brother out of the study, shutting the door behind them. They could hear their dad’s growls, the sound of shattering glass and bodies colliding with the wall, which meant their mom and Benjamin were trying to hold their dad down until his wolf calmed down.
“Are you okay?” Daniel asked Dylan, pointing at the spot where their dad’s telephone had hit with his finger.
“Yeah. It’s already healing.” A still upset Dylan replied, wiping the blood from his forehead with the back of his hand.
“How did you guys get to this point?” Daniel was in disbelief. He never imagined his dad and Dylan having a strained relationship.
After the birth of Dylan, their dad never paid much attention to him. He had to go the extra mile to make his dad notice him. At some point, he even thought their dad was going to make Dylan the alpha, but with whatever that’s going on between them now, he doubts their dad will make that happen.
“Why don’t you ask him that yourself!” Dylan retorted angrily before walking out of his brother’s presence.
Dylan was taking a shower when his thoughts suddenly traveled back to his eighteenth birthday. That day was the most anticipated day of his entire life because he would finally get to know who his mate was. FLASHBACKFrom childhood, everyone had thought that Dylan’s best friend, Charlotte, Benjamin’s daughter would be his mate since they did practically everything together, but the moon goddess had some other plans.Charlotte, whose birthday was a month earlier, found her mate two days after her birthday party when the entire pack had concluded that it was going to be him. To everyone’s surprise, it wasn’t Dylan but their pack’s youngest doctor that was mated to Charlotte. Benjamin wasn’t too happy about it but there was nothing anyone could do about it.On Dylan’s eighteenth birthday, his mom organized a grand party and invited every eligible female werewolf in the pack, just so he would find his mate that day. Hours passed and nothi
After Dylan’s conversation with his mom, he came to the conclusion that he would move into the pack house. He can’t continue living with his family because at this rate, he’ll probably not make it out alive if he gets into another fight with his dad. While heading to the pack house to clean up a room for himself, Dylan’s phone started to ring. He decided to ignore it since he wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone, but the caller didn’t seem like he was going to give up anytime soon, so he reached for his phone inside his pocket. Just as he was he was about to answer the call, a black armored Chevrolet Suburban SUV pulled up beside him and two buff guys on shades climbed out of the car. One stood in front of him, blocking his path while the other stood behind him.“What is this about?” Dylan irritatedly asked, thinking this was his dad’s doing.Neither of the men responded to his question, but rather the one in front nodded in signal to the other, who immediately covered Dylan’s nose w
‘Martinez, Martinez, Martinez.’ The name wouldn’t stop ringing in Dylan’s ears. That was a name every werewolf dreaded. The mere thought of the name ‘Martinez’ terrified both young and old werewolves to their bones.What in the world did he do to offend the moon goddess, to make her give him such a mate? Why of all the packs in the world did the moon goddess decide that his mate should come from Greenwood’s rival pack, the most feared pack in the world, the Pride pack.Dylan slumped on the couch, too perplexed to even think. His life was far worse than hell.Isabel leaned against the door with a heavy sigh. She finally has her mate, her companion, the missing piece that completes her, the love of her life in her pack, in her life. This was undoubtedly the most fulfilling day in her entire life. For three years she felt empty and incomplete, always looking forward to the right moment when she was prepared enough to meet her mate. She worked so hard all these years to be a better alpha
A loud knock on the door woke Dylan up the next morning. Surprisingly he slept like a baby all through the night. He grumbled at whoever was interrupting his sound sleep and dragged himself out of bed. He wasn’t completely awake until he opened the door and a well built six foot guy with brown hair and eyes walked into the bedroom with a pile of clothes in his hands. He carefully placed them on the bed and turned around to face a fully awake Dylan.“Good morning alpha. Alpha Martinez asked me to bring these to you –““Hold on. I think you’re making a mistake… I’m not your alpha.” Dylan interrupted, thinking the stranger in front of him was referring to Isabel and her dad.“Where is Isabel?” He didn’t wait for a reply and was already making his way outside the bedroom.“She’s on her usual morning run.” The stranger who was behind Dylan replied.‘At least we have something in common.’ He thought to himself.“And you are?..”“Fernando. I’m a delta in the pack but currently, I’m at your s
Dylan kept receiving stares from the pack members. Fernando was currently taking him on a tour around the pack as instructed by Isabel. In comparison with Greenwood pack, Pride pack was also a very large pack with vast green area and mountains. The pack consisted of separate pack houses probably due to their large population. Unlike other packs, the Pride pack was quite populated. Surprisingly, its population didn’t just comprise of werewolves, but also humans.‘How could a pack considered to be selfish and brutal to outsiders have so many humans in it?’ Dylan couldn’t help but wonder.“We’re here.” Fernando’s voice interrupted Dylan’s thoughts. He was referring to the pack’s training camp which Dylan insisted on seeing.He couldn’t conceal the surprise on his face as he stared at the vast training ground. Any werewolf would be eager to train in such an environment.No wonder they had the largest number of warriors.“Let me show you around.” Fernando said, guiding Dylan around the cam
The alarm went off at 5:30am. Isabel threw her arms on the nightstand, lazily reaching for the alarm and turning it off. She stretched herself out on the bed and stared at the ceiling, to keep herself fully awake. Her thoughts couldn’t help but wander back to her mate. He was everything she desired in a mate. From his gorgeous dirty blonde hair that she felt tempted to run her fingers through, to his perfectly defined facial features. She could already imagine his sexy stubbles tickling her cheeks while they share a steamy kiss, with his strong arms around her waist. Isabel started feeling hot from these careless and filthy thoughts. She threw the duvet on the floor and jumped out of bed to distract herself from the thought of her mate. The heat wasn’t going away, much to her displeasure. “What’s going on?” She mumbled, rushing into the bathroom to have a quick shower. This isn’t right. She wasn’t supposed to go into heat until next week, that was why she gave her mate only a wee
Dylan pondered over the words he just heard. Did he hear correctly or was his ear playing tricks on him? His mate was in a relationship with another werewolf, not just any werewolf but her beta. Why does his life have to be this way? Why does everyone he’s connected to always make him feel like the second best in everything? Even his own mate who was well aware of his existence, who was supposed to desire only him found comfort in the arms of another werewolf. Why was he here, then? What is the point of being with someone whose desire won’t be for him alone? Dylan slowly pulled his fingers away from hers. For a moment, he saw the look of hurt on her face, but it vanished almost immediately and was replaced by a straight face. “Get my car ready.” She said to Fernando, who was the only person still present. “Why didn’t you put him in his place?” She asked Dylan as soon as her cousin left their presence. She was referring to Carlos. “I don’t wanna talk about it.” A disappointed Dyl
Isabel pushed him hard against the wall and slammed her lips on his for a hungry kiss. She desperately wanted to forget about the previous day’s incident, so she pressed herself harder against him, biting his lower lip for entrance. She explored every inch of his mouth, leaving no room for thought. He kissed her back with the same intensity as he has desired this moment for some time now. Her tight grip on his hair as she devoured his mouth was getting him aroused. Without breaking away from the kiss, she undid his jeans, sliding her free hand inside his briefs, making it impossible for him to think straight. Carlos didn’t mind Isabel having her way with him as long as he could satisfy her. That was how the pair started an affair that should never have been. END OF FLASHBACK Isabel closed her eyes with a deep sigh. When she opened them back, they were no longer gold in color, meaning she was in control of her wolf. “Carlos..,” she calmly cal
Isabel’s family refused to bury her body in the Pride pack because they feared that some unknown enemies could use the fragile humans and obtain information about the pack, making the pack vulnerable. So they contacted Daniel, the alpha of the Greenwood pack and asked if Isabel’s body could be taken to the Greenwood pack. Daniel was eager to help, and Dylan was allowed to look at Isabel’s body for the last time before she was flown to the Greenwood pack, because he wasn’t going to be part of the burial ceremony. It was just going to be Paulina and Rodrigo present, in order to avoid raising suspicion. Even the members of the Pride pack were unaware of their alpha’s demise. They were only informed about her injuries, and that she was slowly recuperating, so her mate was going to be in charge of the pack for as long as she desired. This was to enable Dylan gain a strong foothold in the pack and keep the other packs at bay. Dylan, on his part, did an awesome job by showing the entire pa
There was a sudden sinking feeling in the pit of Rodrigo’s stomach as they waited for Isabel and Dylan’s return. He couldn’t shake off the feeling that something was wrong no matter how hard he tried. This wasn’t a good sign. Rodrigo stood up from the couch, where he was previously seated and headed for the front door. “Where are you going?” His mate’s soft yet worried voice made him halt in his tracks. How does he tell her that something bad could be happening to their daughter? Her heart won’t be able to take the news and he doesn’t want to raise any false alarm yet. “I need to check on the warriors.” He lied. “Don’t lie to me, Rodrigo. I know you can feel it too.” Paulina replied. Her wolf has been feeling uneasy for the past two hours, but she was scared to mention anything to her mate because she didn’t want him interfering in their daughter’s fight and suffer a terrible fate. He acted on impulse most times, and since it involves his daughter, this time wouldn’t be an excep
Isabel kept breaking any and everything she laid her hands on, screaming in rage. She blamed herself for her mate’s misfortune. If only she had pressed harder, he wouldn’t have fallen into the hands of her enemy. Why didn’t she stop him? Why did she let him have his way? Why did she disobey her instinct? Why? Thirty minutes earlier, Xavi had reported to Isabel that Dylan was nowhere in the pack, but his car was found parked by the side of the road on the way to the border and Ignacio’s scent was in the car. She was infuriated by the news and vented her anger on the house furniture. Her cousin did nothing but watch his alpha express her emotions, making him feel incompetent and unreliable, because if he had paid utmost attention to the task he was given, Isabel’s mate wouldn’t be missing. Fernando had taken the kids upstairs when Xavi arrived to give the older werewolves privacy, so it was just Isabel, her parents and Xavi in the living room. Rodrigo was holding his sobbing mate t
Isabel woke up the next morning to the feeling of feather like kisses on her back. She smiled to herself, enjoying her mate’s gentle ministration on her skin. “Happy birthday, gorgeous.” Dylan’s husky voice said through mind link, causing memories of the previous night’s love making session in the woods to fill her thoughts. Dylan was quite wild last night, probably because his wolf was at its peak, as a result of the full moon, and she loved every bit of his roughness. Her legs could still feel the impact, but she wanted more. “Happy birthday to you too, hunk.” She turned around to face her mate, kissing him deeply. Dylan moaned into the kiss. He was tempted to take the kiss further since that was what his mate was asking for, but he refrained himself because he wanted Isabel to have a good rest after several weeks of barely sleeping, so he reluctantly ended the kiss. “Why are you dressed?” Isabel asked with a frown when she noticed her mate was casually dressed in jeans and a g
Two weeks has gone by with no sign of Rodrigo’s illegitimate son or his minions around the Pride pack border. This bothered Isabel a lot because she has never met her adversary face to face, so she couldn’t predict what his next actions would be. The fact that the future looked bleak no matter how hard she tried to deny it, didn’t sit well with her, but she couldn’t tell anyone, not even her father. Showing even the tiniest sign of uncertainty would throw the pack into disarray and she couldn’t risk that happening because of her anxiety. To divert her thoughts from thinking about the worst case scenario, Isabel took up training David. Since he was under her roof for the time being, it would be improper of her to still expect her dad to be the one training him. Strangely enough, David hardly ever complained or made a fuss during training, as he took it as a fun activity, unlike her nephew, Fernando. This made her work easier, and was in fact a good distraction. In the course of trainin
“How could you?!” Paulina screamed at her mate, taking backward steps as she didn’t want to be anywhere near him. They were currently at the backyard of their house, arguing. “How could you do this to me?!” “Honey, I’m sorry… I was trying to protect you.” “Protect me? Protect me, you say… You made a complete fool out of me, Rodrigo!” Hearing his mate say those words hurt Rodrigo and his wolf deeply. He never intended to hurt Paulina. He just didn’t want her finding out about the result of his mistake because that would’ve hurt her even more than the fact that he had a relationship with another female werewolf before her, and he sure would’ve lost her forever. “You were hurting at the time, and I didn’t want to cause you more pain.” He tried to explain. “It doesn’t matter!” No excuse can make up for the secret he kept from her. All these years, her mate had been deceiving her and she was gullible enough to believe him. How stupid he must’ve thought she was. “Aarghhh!” She scr
After dinner that night, Rodrigo and his mate watched cartoon with the kids until it was time for bed. Paulina went into the kitchen to tidy up, after kissing Teresa and David goodnight, while Rodrigo put the kids to bed. While wiping her wet hands with a clean towel, Paulina felt a swift movement outside. She looked out the window to see who it was, but there was no one there. To make certain, she went out of the house through the back door and still there wasn’t a soul in sight. Concluding within herself that she was probably having a paranoia, Paulina went back inside the house, only to be met with a set of sharp claws around her neck. She gasped at the cold feeling of the tip of her attacker’s claws on her skin and tried to crane her neck backwards to get a glance of the werewolf holding her captive in her own house, but that was a big mistake on her part, as her attacker’s claws sank into her neck, causing blood to ooze out of the wound. “Tsk tsk… Make one wrong move and you’r
“Are you gonna visit me everyday?” A sobbing David asked Isabel, as he clung on to her tightly, preventing her from leaving him with Rodrigo and Paulina. “I can’t promise you that.” She honestly replied, but regretted it the minute David’s sobs got louder. “Okay. I promise I’ll come check up on you every other day, to see how much you’ve improved.” This time her reply worked like magic, as David’s sobs turned to light sniffles. “Really?” “Yes, really.” “What if you break your promise?” He asked, pulling away from the hug to look into Isabel’s eyes. The teary eyes and tear stained face of the pup standing in front of her and staring right into her soul, waiting expectantly for her reply made her think of ways to keep her word. It wasn’t going to be easy to check up on David since she now has a new task on her hands, but she also didn’t want to go back on her word and betray the young werewolf, who had so much faith in her. “If I can’t make it, I’ll have Dylan come check up on y
“Xavi told me you handled the situation all by yourself.” Rodrigo began, as soon as he sat on his study chair. “I had to… There was no other way to prevent a disaster from happening.” “And are you aware of the consequences of your actions if something had gone wrong?” Isabel was expecting such a reaction from her dad, but he would’ve done the same had he been in her shoes. “I’m the alpha now, let me be the one to worry about my pack.” She gritted her teeth as she spoke because she didn’t want to get into a fight with the former alpha. “That doesn’t answer my question, Isabel. You made a reckless move out there. What if you didn’t make it back?” Rodrigo was equally trying to control his fury. He was consumed with fear when Xavi informed him that his daughter fought against the rogues all by herself. Why would she make such a rash decision without putting her pack first? And although he was told that her beast was in control, and they are unbeatable in that state, he couldn’t he