Chapter 2

Cammy POV

"So... are you nervous?" Justine asked, her voice light with amusement. She was my second cousin on Gran’s side, the daughter of Gran’s sister.

"Yeah," I admitted honestly.

"Don’t be." She giggled, throwing her arm around my shoulders in a casual hug. "You can just lay there and take it. The guy can do all the hard work the first time. He won’t mind, as long as he gets some!"

"Justine—!" I gasped, staring at her in mortification as heat rushed to my cheeks, no doubt turning my face tomato red.

The truth was, I was terrified. Terrified that I’d be bad at it—bad at everything. Even though I had secretly wished I could just get the mating bond over with, I wasn’t sure I was ready. The entire pack seemed to think I held their future in my hands, that I was destined to mate with the next Alpha. It had always been assumed. But what if I didn’t find my mate at the party tonight? Everyone would be there. That meant he had to be there. If he wasn’t… I would fail them. Fail my pack. My people. The thought made my stomach churn. And if I did find him? What if I let him down?

The truth about me and sex was simple—there was no "me and sex."

"Oh, come on, Cams! It’s the truth! As long as he gets these big gazongas, he’ll be a happy hound!"

We laughed at her pathetic pun, as I swatted her playfully groping hand away from my chest. Justine wasn’t usually this crass, and we didn’t often talk about sex, but today was different. The excitement, the nerves—it made us act freer, more reckless than usual. I was usually too reserved, and Justine... well, she was a nineteen-year-old unmated she-wolf. Being unmated a year past maturity was painfully awkward for females. If I, at eighteen, was desperate to find my mate, I could only imagine how she felt. Most days, the shame cast a faint shadow over her usually bright, tanned face.

It was nice, this easy conversation, just messing around as we strolled past the shops, heading toward the salon to get our hair and nails done for the party.

She suddenly hooked her arm around my shoulderd and ushered me into a store. I stopped dead in my tracks, causing her arm to slip from my shoulders. She turned back with a wicked grin.

"Come on, Cams. We’ve got time to kill and need to do a little shopping before we get our hair done." With a flick of her dark hair, she sauntered further into the store.

I was about to object, embarrassment bubbling up, but the words stuck in my throat. I wasn’t really embarrassed. This was just something else. Something... new. I wanted to look at the lingerie. I wanted to let loose. And more than anything, I wanted to be sexy for my mate when he finally saw me for the first time. And the cotton underwear that I usually wore was super plain.

.............

Kai Rutherford stepped out of his silver Lykan HyperSport, stretching as he took in the large hotel in front of them. The ride to the Pacific Northwest in his sleek machine had been exactly what he needed to unwind after all the bullshit back home. The two spliffs helped. So did Nathan’s company.

Nathan had been his closest friend since childhood, their lives intertwined because Nathan’s father was Kai’s father’s Beta. He was even in somewhat of a relationship with Nate's little sister. If you could call their fuckery that. Nathan’s calm was a powerful gravity, balancing out the turbulence of Kai’s storm.

The ride here. Fantastic.

The reason for the trip? Bullshit.

He sucked on his teeth, irritation bubbling up. He was here to represent his pack at some little girl’s birthday party. As a high ranking, unmated male, it was expected of him and his father had graciously accepted the fucking invitation on his behalf.

"Fuck," he muttered, causing some guests leaving the hotel to jump and throw dirty looks his way.

"What’s your fucking problem? Don’t look at me like that, motherfuckers," he snapped. "The fuck, man?"

Nathan chuckled beside him as the patrons quickly ducked their heads and scurried off.

"Chill out, man"

"I’m cool. Don’t worry about me," Kai growled. Fuck, he needed a drink. And to get laid. He had time before he had to make an appearance at Alpha Gerald’s party tonight. His father, Alpha King Sigfried of the Blue Shadow Pack, ruled over all wolf packs in the American territories. That made Kai the lucky ambassador of the Kingdom tonight.

Fucking fantastic.

They approached the hotel reception to sign in. The curvaceous blonde receptionist visibly flustered as the two men stepped up to the desk. Her eyes lingered on Kai, drinking in his tall frame, dark disheveled hair, and the brooding danger that clung to him like a second skin.

His alpa instincts allowed him to take in her quickening heartbeat, heavier breaths, the slightest shade of pink creeping over her cheeks and chest.

She stood up straighter, licked her painted pink lips and smiled. She gazed at me from beneath her false lashes and purred, "Welcome Gentlemen. What can I do for you today?"

He smirked. She was trying to be seductive.

She would do.