CHAPTER ONE

The memory was seared into her brain. It flooded her with guilt and shame but it wasn’t enough to push away the butterflies in her stomach or the sweet throbbing in her neck where he had marked her with his teeth. It was short, intense and with a person whom she had never met before, a person that was like an abomination to werewolves. A human. Her heart leapt as she thought of her little act of rebellion. It left a bitter-sweet after taste in her mouth – if her kin were to find out –

“Where’s your head at?” a voice said from beside her, causing her thoughts jump into the dark. 

“Nowhere, Ivy.” She straightened her gown with her hand. “Have you seen Zack anywhere?”

Her eyes scanned the vast crowd of werewolf filled room and her nose took in their scents. 

“He’s probably busy with more important matters. It’s his family hosting the celebration, isn’t it?” Ivy said. 

Gwen nodded. Of course, It was. Of the eleven families that made up Zelda’s pack, Zack’s family was the one to host the celebration this year since their son was mature enough to choose his mate. Every year, a family whose children were old enough to pick a mate came together and hosted the celebration. This year, it was Zack’s family and with them being the leaders of the pack, they were hosting it big.

“I never knew the pack house was this big.” Ivy commented off handedly. 

“It’s a ‘Pack house’, Ivy. It’s everything that you should expect. What were you expecting? A cabin in the woods?”

Ivy snickered. “Not exactly a cabin. This is like a five star hotel in the middle of a god-damn forest. How come we never noticed this?”

“Speak for yourself. The pack house is supposed to be able to house every werewolf in the pack if the need arises. And from what I know, there’s more than six rooms or less getting added in a month. Depends on the number of new wolves.”

“Of course you should know. Wasn’t your father Zelda’s beta.” 

Gwen rolled her eyes. 

“And isn’t that Zack? The man of the day? In all his glory. He looks like a god sculpted from silver.”

Zack was beautiful, Gwen agreed. Even with how far he was from them, she could still make out his perfectly chiseled cheekbones and jaw lines. His finely curved mouth which seemed to sneer and smile all at once and his intense gaze as his eyes settled on her. 

“Uh-oh.” Ivy coughed. “His making his way over to us.”

Gwen relaxed her back and picked up a cup of whine. “Act chill, Ivy.”

His steps were slow -  as he tried to maneuver though the throng of busy bodies – but resolute. Gwen arched her back, tucked her chin in and waited. Her folded hand on her leg was beginning to sweat but she was determined not to break his gaze. That was until a dark haired beauty came in front of her view. 

“Damn. That was the moment and I was living in it.” Ivy whined. “Fiona has the worse timing. What does she want with him this time? Can she not get he's over her already? They’re not soulmates.”

Fiona whispered something to Zack and he turned his gaze away from her. It settled on a spot on Fiona’s neck, then on a door at the back of the room. Once she was done whispering to him, they waltzed away. Pushing through the crowd until they were well hidden out of sight behind the door.

“What was that?”

Gwen allowed her back to rest and released her hands. “He has been summoned.” She took a sip of the wine. “Might be nothing serious.”

Ivy shook her head. “That didn’t look like nothing serious, Gwen. Didn’t you just see Fiona? And Zack? Together? And they just left?”

“After seeing that, do you still think I have a chance?”

“Nonsense!” Ivy exclaimed. “Your wolf recognized his wolf. You’re soulmates girl.”

“I’m just saying. I have no problem with whoever he chooses but it seems like you do. Personally, I want to have a break.”

Ivy raised a brow. “From?”

“Everything.” Gwen gestured with her hand. “Its hard to explain.”

Ivy opened her mouth to speak when the Luna walked in. Her aura was regal. It sent a wave of power across the room and the entire crowd paused. Heads turned and then bowed in reverence. Gwen and Ivy stood from their seats. 

The Luna took a seat beside two empty chairs – one which belonged to her husband, the pack leader Zelda, and the other, to her son, Zack, the heir. Her eyes were a deep green which held no warmth whatsoever and they scanned the crowd till they settled on Gwen. She nodded her head slightly and Gwen nodded back.

“Today!” the Luna shouted, holding up her hand. “We choose our next Luna. The one who will stand beside our next alpha and lead this pack successfully as other alphas have. As my husband has.” Her eyes grazed the crowd. “In a few moment, Zack would come out here with his father and announce his Luna. I hope that whoever she is, we can all accept her and respect her as our future leader.”

The crowd cheered and clinked glasses. Gwen could feel her wolf turn with the  excitement that travelled through everyone and she was sure every other person felt it too. 

The door opened and Zack walked in, escorted by his father. Fiona followed closely behind them and a group of other people. Ivy leaned close to Gwen and whispered something but she could barely make out what it was with all the noise. 

Zack strolled to where his seat rested and stood in front of it, his father stood beside him and the rest of the escort scattered throughout the crowd. The hall stood still, Gwen could see the anticipation as it poured out of their pores, the anxiety clearly written on their faces. Everyone wanted to be the next Luna of one of the most powerful werewolf packs in lycan history and they all gazed up expectantly at Zack, wishing one of them could be the lucky girl and the lucky family. 

Zelda was a man of few words and most times said nothing at all. But everyone understood his steely gaze and comprehended his expressions perfectly. This time, it was telling Zack to ‘go ahead’ and Zack did. He took one step forward and a blanket of silence fell over everyone of them. The hall had been silent before but now it was more. They all tucked their ears and waited, hoping it was their names or the names of their daughters that left his lips. 

“Fiona of the house of Nicoli is my chosen mate and the next Luna.” 

A wave of electricity ran through the crowd as they tried to absorb what they had just heard and then the silence burst. It went up like bubbles in the air and scattered into a million pieces, everyone spoke at the same time, muttering, whispering, casting glances and shaking heads. Gwen saw Ivy beside her totally lost for words. If her jaw could meet her neck then it would have in that instant

 A soft smile grew on Gwen’s lips. “Close it, Ivy. Don’t act like it wasn’t to be expected.”

To say ivy was astounded was to say the least, she was at loss for everything as she stared at Zack and Fiona. “How could you be so chill about this? Zack is your man.”

“Apparently not. He’s claimed another and made her his mate. We all saw this coming, no? And better stop calling him my man right now, you could be executed for treason.”

Ivy wasn’t listening, her heart and eyes were shooting lasers at the newest couple in town. “That bitch!” she exclaimed.