Katelyn Grey, an 18-year-old girl with a feisty spirit and an iron will, finds herself caught up in a destiny she never desired. After being thrown out of her Colorado home, where she lived under her sister’s shadow and was a constant source of disappointment and irritation for her parents, she ends up in Oregon at the River Gorge Pack. This was supposed to be a new start for her, a chance to spread her wings and be herself without constantly feeling like a failure to her family, but life has other plans in store for her. She arrives just in time for the Annual Mating Celebration, but Katelyn refuses to attend, viewing the practice as outdated and a violation of one's freewill. Fate has other plans in store for her though. While nursing a broken heart, she unintentionally meets her mate, Tyler, causing Katelyn to question her preconceived notions and wonder whether she was the one who had been naive. Tyler Valentine is the future Alpha of the River Gorge Pack, which would make Katelyn the future Luna, a title she isn't eager to accept. But as if that wasn't enough, fate has a cruel twist in store for Katelyn, and she discovers that she is also mated to Tyler's twin brother, Ryder. Ryder is the chaos that cuts through the calm. While Tyler is thoughtful and composed, Ryder is reckless and impulsive, leaving Katelyn to navigate the complexities of these two very different men. While trying to come to terms with this new reality, Katelyn discovers her own hidden strengths, but this only adds another layer of complication to an already complicated situation. Then, just as she feels like she's starting to get some kind of control of her life once more, her past comes calling.
View More(Katelyn's POV)The doors swung open with a soft thud, revealing an amphitheater-style room with rows and rows of older men and women watching us from elevated seats.They were all Elders, each face lined with years of experience... decades, maybe even fucking centuries for all I knew. Here they sat, their faces stern and composed.It was almost surreal. There were about fifty of them, I might guess. Fifty people who were basically going to determine my future on my behalf.Can't say I liked the sound of that at all.Tyler, Ryder, and I stood at the center of the space, where a single wooden chair awaited me. Just one. Obviously they hadn't anticipated that I'd be bringing an entourage.My heart clenched in my chest and I swallowed hard, hoping I wouldn’t choke on my own nerves.In the front row, I spotted Helen, Roderick, and, much to my disappointment, Simon. Helen nodded and gave me a small smile in greeting, while Roderick kept his expression neutral, though I could see his eyes s
(Katelyn's POV)The cab pulled up outside a weathered, ivy-clad building on a quiet street in New Haven, Connecticut. From the outside, it looked like an old academic institute. Just the type of place someone might come to pore over dusty manuscripts or discuss obscure theories with professors who wore tweed jackets. But I knew better.This was The Council’s headquarters, masquerading as the “Institute for Cultural Anthropology” to the human world. I'd heard about it, but I never thought I would actually get to see it in the flesh.My stomach churned as I stepped out onto the sidewalk. The air was crisp, carrying a hint of autumn even though it wasn’t quite the season yet.Behind me, Tyler and Ryder followed closely, their postures tense and alert, flanking me like a pair of protective bodyguards. It was an odd comfort, knowing I wasn’t walking into this alone. But the weight of what lay ahead pressed down on me like a lead blanket.“Looks normal enough,” Ryder muttered, eyeing the st
(Katelyn's POV)"You're okay," Tyler whispered over and over again, but I wasn't sure whether he was talking to me or to himself.“What the fuck was that, Kate?!” Ryder's voice demanded.I shook my head, against Tyler's chest, still trying to come to terms with where I was and what was going on here."I... I just..." I tried to reply, but my voice was weak and hoarse.Tyler kissed the top of my head, his own breathing uneven as he gently stroked my hair, still holding me against him in a death grip. "Sshhh... Sshhh..." he hushed me, shaking his head as he rocked me back and forth."Never again. Never a-fucking-gain. Okay? You're never doing that again, Katelyn," Ryder's voice was sharp and firm, leaving no room for argument or debate. "Never again..." he repeated, sounding more exhausted now.It took a few minutes for me to regain my bearings as Tyler continued to whisper soft reassurances in my ear, rocking me back and forth against his chest like a child.I heard the sound of footst
(Katelyn's POV)The airplane’s engines droned softly as I stared out the window, the world below reduced to quilted patches of green and brown earth divided by winding roads.New Haven, Connecticut... The Council Headquarters. We were still a few hours away, but the gravity of what awaited me felt like a noose around my neck.I adjusted my seatbelt for what felt like the hundredth time and closed my eyes, leaning back into my seat and letting my thoughts drift back over the last two days at home. The two days I’d spent trying, and failing, to harness my telekinesis. The two days that had left me feeling more exhausted, more frustrated, and more anxious than before.I’d wanted so badly to figure it all out before I faced The Council. I’d tried everything I could think of. At first, I tried to recreate the conditions of those emotional surges, thinking maybe I could trick my mind into somehow flipping that internal switch. I thought about arguments. About fear. About sadness. But nothin
(Katelyn's POV)The next day started off like any other, but with the new weight and responsibility of pregnancy pressing down on me. I'd made a call to Dr Connors's offices to try and get a better idea of how far along I was and we managed to gauge that I was about three weeks in. She said they would be able to confirm by checking measurements and all that stuff at my first scan, but for now, I was three weeks in. Three out of forty. It somehow felt like too much and not enough at the same time.Shortly after the call, Alpha David's voice called from upstairs. My blood went cold and the twins and I exchanged worried glances."Jesus, do you think he overheard that?" I asked, feeling like a deer caught in the headlights.Tyler shook his head. "I doubt it..." but still, he looked as concerned as I felt.The fact that David had bothered to call us upstairs personally, rather than sending Tyler a message like he usually did, didn’t escape me. This time, he’d taken the effort to personally
(Katelyn's POV)Ryder's hand lingered on my stomach for a moment, but then he sighed and dropped it."So... What do we do now? I mean, I guess this thing is happening. Do we have to start picking names and shit?" he asked, his eyes filled with fear and uncertainty.I shook my head. "I don't really know. Can't say this has ever happened to me before. I don't even know how far along I am... I kinda freaked out and left the doctor's office before she got to tell me..." I admitted."Well, you should probably find out," Tyler suggested, slipping his hand into mine and giving it a squeeze. "A timeline might be helpful here."I shrugged. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll try get hold of the doctor's office tomorrow to see if she can give me more details. She said something about an OBGYN. I think she gave me a referral or something. Maybe Jen knows more of the details. My brain was all over the place," I explained, feeling a little stupid for not paying more attention to something so fucking
(Katelyn's POV)Ryder fell into silence, not finishing his thought as his jaw tightened and his hands balled into fists.Tyler’s hand rested reassuringly on mine, his presence a steadying force, but Ryder’s tense silence was killing me. He looked like a caged animal, his eyes filled with fear and uncertainty.“I…” Ryder started, but his voice faltered. He took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling as frustration flashed across his face. “How am I supposed to do this?!” he suddenly blurted, his voice sharp and rising with each word. “For fuck’s sake! I’ve just agreed to take on the role of Alpha! Now I need to play dad too?! When is it going to stop?! When is it going to be enough?!”He stood up again and began pacing, his movements erratic and tense. “I can’t! I can’t do all of this at the same time! It’s too much! How the fuck am I supposed to deal with this?!”His words hit me like a slap, leaving me momentarily stunned. The fear and uncertainty I had been feeling all day were
(Katelyn's POV)The drive home had felt too short. Jenna and I had spent lunch talking in circles, and I knew she was just trying to distract me, to lighten the load, but there was no amount of banter or brainstorming that could make this easier.When she’d suggested checking out some stores for the twins’ birthday gifts, I’d briefly considered it, but ultimately, I'd ended up saying no. I was way too distracted to focus and it felt like it would be a total waste of time. So, instead, she called the Uber, and we headed home.The drive was quiet, my thoughts too loud to leave room for conversation. All I could think about the entire way was what I was going to say, rehearsing it in my mind and trying to come up with the right words, but I guess there are only so many ways you can say, 'I'm pregnant', right?When the Uber pulled up outside the house, Jenna gave me a tight hug. “You’ll be fine,” she murmured, her hands gripping my shoulders as she looked me in the eye. “You’re going to t
(Katelyn's POV)"You can tell them the truth, babe," Jenna said with a reassuring smile. "I mean, that's what I'd recommend.""What if... What if I can't do this? What if... What if I don't want this life?" I whispered softly, ashamed to be saying the words out loud.Jenna squeezed my hand. "Well, that's something you need to think about. It's not a decision to make on a whim. But if that's what you decide, I'll be there for you every step of the way. I'll hold your hand in the appointment and tell you that everything is going to be okay. I would never let you do this on your own, okay? Never," she assured me, looking into my eyes with a fierceness that told me she wasn't kidding."Do you want to think it over for a while before you talk to the twins about it?" she suggested, her hand still clutching mine across the table.I shook my head. "No. I can't keep this from them. Even if I wanted to, I know I wouldn't be able to.""Babe, I'm sure they're going to be super supportive," she ins
I stomped along the deserted pavement, my mood as dark and brooding as the fast approaching storm clouds overhead. The library had been my escape from the overhyped Mating Celebration, but even the quiet rustle of pages and the familiar smell of old books hadn’t been enough to calm my irritation. The pack's obsession with this archaic tradition grated on me more than I cared to explain. That, and the fact that my family had booted me out of my home in Colorado and shipped me off to stay with my aunt here in Oregon almost a week ago now.The distant sounds of laughter and music from the celebration drifted through the air. It annoyed me. I couldn’t understand why everyone put so much stock in finding their 'destined mate.' The whole concept felt oppressive, like we were all just pawns in some preordained plan. The idea of 'mates' meant that there was no room for freewill, and that was something that just never sat well with me.My phone buzzed in my pocket, pulling me out of my thought...
Welcome to GoodNovel world of fiction. If you like this novel, or you are an idealist hoping to explore a perfect world, and also want to become an original novel author online to increase income, you can join our family to read or create various types of books, such as romance novel, epic reading, werewolf novel, fantasy novel, history novel and so on. If you are a reader, high quality novels can be selected here. If you are an author, you can obtain more inspiration from others to create more brilliant works, what's more, your works on our platform will catch more attention and win more admiration from readers.
Comments