JAMES POVAddie came out of the bathroom looking beautiful. Her long blonde hair shimmered in the light like golden threads had been woven through it. Her clothes hung on her a little but we would fix that with some good food cooked by my favorite chef, Malenda. Her lasagna was to die for.I reached out my hand with a smile and she took it, causing my wolf to preen. “She likes us!” I hushed him. I led her to the car and talked non-stop all the way to the Packhouse. I asked the driver to take the long way around and prattled on like an excited child, showing her where different things were and pointing out some of my favorite wolves as we encountered them on my drive. She was quiet, taking it all in, I hoped. I was kind of afraid she was bored.When we pulled up to the Packhouse the sun was setting right behind it. Addie gasped. It was really picturesque and I knew it was beautiful.“Dark comes early in the mountains in the fall and winter,” I said by means of explanation.
ADDIE’S POVI could have sat on the couch forever watching the sunset, but as it’s wont to do, it got dark. I stood up and found the bathroom, admiring the tub which would accommodate even my long legs. When I came back into the bedroom, James had set out a cute tank top set to sleep in. He had also changed, shirtless with athletic shorts. I swallowed. He looked really good. My wolf was almost purring.“Sleep as late as you want tomorrow. Toby is going to take care of Pack stuff for another few days so I can help get you acclimated. Just open that door when you’re ready for me to come in.” James pointed to the doors that led to the living area.“Wait! Where are you going?” I was confused. He was my mate. This was our room. Did he not want to sleep with me?Now it was James’ turn to look confused. “I thought you would be more comfortable if you had the bed to yourself?”Okay. . . this is awkward. The man is going to make me say it. I’m just going to say it. Yikes.“Act
JAMES POV I woke up to Toby mindlinking me about some Pack business, specifically the function we were setting up to scope out Hellroaring River Pack. I looked over at Addie, soundly sleeping, and slipped out of bed. “Meet me in my office,” I linked Toby. I tossed on a shirt and walked into the other wing, catching up with Toby as he came up the stairs. “Good night?” he asked with a smirk. “Yes, but not like that. She’s not ready.” I shrugged at him. “I can wait.” “Maaan! You’re a lot more patient than me! Emily and I were fucking like bunnies ten minutes after we smelled each other!” He smacked me on the back, hard. “Don’t let those blue balls get too bad, bro. No one likes a cranky alpha.” I smacked him across the head, listening to him howl with laughter. We sat at my desk, going over the details and the other Alphas I wanted invited. We decided to invite the Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Warrior Captain of each of the prospective packs as well as their spouses. I made
ADDIES POVSeeing James’ pack was so overwhelming! I hooked up with Emily after breakfast and we shooed James into his office. There was so much he had to do that he hadn’t been doing while he was hanging out with me that I felt guilty and Emily was more than happy to show me around.She was massively pregnant, due in ten days, but had a ton of energy. I noticed that she dragged her left leg a little when she walked and she told me, quite cheerfully, that she had a training accident when she was a pup. The leg had been crushed. Her original pack was in a very rural area, the healthcare wasn’t great and since her wolf hadn’t come in, it didn’t heal well. It sure didn’t affect her personality. She was super fun to be around.We walked around the little village, stopping to get an ice cream cone. Emily introduced me to everyone as Luna Addie, which was little weird but most people seemed to be happy to meet me. We ran into Vanessa whom I had met at breakfast. Our second meeting
ADDIE POVOver the top of my head soared two wolves who landed lightly on their feet, putting themselves between me and my attackers. One of the wolves was jet black with a grey chest. The other wolf was a beautiful bronze metal color. He shimmered in the sun like his hair was molten under the surface. The bronze wolf killed his prey quickly while the other wolf managed to catch his wolf, holding him prisoner. Soon the entire beach was covered with warriors from the Firehole River Pack. The rogue wolf was given to several of those wolves and they left with the prisoner in tow.“Toby.” Emily’s voice was anguished. The black and gray wolf shifted back and for the first time I met Toby, naked and in all his glory. He rushed over to Emily.“The baby is coming. Right now.”Oh, oh, oh shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. This was NOT good.I shifted back and grabbed my flannel shirt, buttoning it up. It barely covered my ass cheeks. I saw that James had shifted back also and was glaring
ADDIE POVNot many wolves were as big as I was. Scout was taller. We took a minute and let Scout and Talia have their moment, jumping, nipping and nuzzling each other. I stayed out of it, watching my wolf act like a freaking moron around her mate. Good thing I was refined enough for the both of us, I said to Talia. She hushed me. I think James was urging Scout to head back because all of a sudden his wolf huffed and the turned into the woods, taking off. Talia acted like this was a game, dashing after him, keeping up just fine and trying to pass him. Scout was having none of that, weaving and cutting her off every chance he got. Fine, I thought. Go ahead and show him, Talia.Talia put a burst of energy in our back legs and soared up and over Scout, landing lightly on his back and using that as leverage to take off again, leaving him in the dust. I heard Scout’s howl and the pad of his feet picking up, trying to catch us. Wasn’t going to happen, buddy!We burst through the
ADDIE’S POV“Are you sure you’re ready, Little Pup?” James growled at me. I could see his eyes flashing between green and black and I could tell Scout was just below the surface. I nodded, not taking my eyes off from him.“I need to hear you say it.” He growled deeper at me. I gasped out “Yes!”"Yes, what?" He was insistent. He wanted it to be my choice."Yes, I'm ready!" I could barely get the words out, I was so arroused.He lifted me up and I wrapped my legs around his waist, feeling his arrousal against me. He ran his fingers through my hair and kissed me, gently at first, then more forcefully. His tongue played with my lips and I opened up my mouth and gave him access. He kissed me deeply, then pulled back, kissing the side of my face, my jaw and then my neck, going lower to the place he would one day mark me. My body tingled and I wanted him to mark me in that moment.The water was spraying his back, droplets coming over his shoulders and leaving rivers that ran down h
JAMES POV So that was the best shower I’ve ever had. I was looking forward to many more of them in my future. Addie and I got dressed, Addie in her Addie outfit of jeans, a tank top and a flannel shirt and me in jeans and a hoodie. We held hands down the stairs and decided to walk to the hospital, just to enjoy everyone’s company a little more. “I wonder why the rogues were in your territory.” Addie mused, wondering out loud and not really expecting an answer. I cleared my throat. “I actually know. Bruce mind linked me. He questioned the rogue we captured. He said that they were tracking a scent and they found it here.” Addie looked at me sideways. “What scent?” I could feel the fear starting to radiate off her. “He wasn’t told. Unfortunately, I killed the leader. We should have grabbed him but when I saw him on you I panicked.” “No complaints from me. I wasn’t sure I was going to get out of that one.” Addie was quiet for a minute. “Then he probably didn’t know who
ADDIETwo months later, on the day of the full moon and summer solstice, I was dressed in a sapphire blue gown that was fitted on the top and billowed to the ground in shimmery waves. A laughing Emily was trying to help me with my makeup. Her growing belly was in the way, and Gracie was crawling around getting underfoot. Undeterred, Emily tried to add another swipe of mascara to my already heavy lashes. “Come on, Addie! It will make your eyes pop!”I laughed back at her. “My eyes will look like spiders if you put another coat on my lashes!” Tonight was the night of my Luna ceremony. Wolves from many of our cooperating packs were in attendance as well as all of the pack members from our pack. We had invited the Council members and were surprised when most of them accepted. Matthew and Jessie were also going to be there bringing their newborn pup with them. I knew that James had already spent time snuggling their baby boy and getting his fill of the newborn smells. I had bee
ADDIEAfter the excitement of everything, the next few months felt almost boring by comparison. We were busy, that was for sure. My Luna Ceremony had been postponed and we were beginning the planning again. We were also actively involved in helping Matt and Jessie build a new Packhouse before their pup arrived. The old packhouse was being turned into a youth center and dormitory for the continuing education prospects that Jessie wanted to bring to her Pack. In the days of Alpha Cole, it was decreed by the Alpha what the profession of the wolves coming of age would be. Jessie wanted to give them choices and equal opportunities. I was excited to be a part of that.Three weeks after we returned from our latest mishap in the city, Emily asked if we could have lunch in the village. I agreed, knowing something was up.“Do you want me to bring James?” I asked. “No,” she said, a sly look on her face. I agreed, letting her keep her secret for now. I would know soon enough.I met Jam
ADDIE I got into the car and looked James over, satisfied that he only had a few bumps and bruises but nothing was seriously hurt. I could smell the wolfsbane on his breath and knew he had been dosed but I could tell that it was slowly leaving his body. How is he? I asked Talia. Scout is weak but recovering. He will be fine, she answered. I gave a sigh of relief. Toby got into the driver’s seat and turned the SUV over, backing out of the drive. “Where to, Luna?” he asked. “Aren’t we waiting for the other warriors?” I asked, turning back to look at the house. He shook his head. “No, they need to do some cleanup. They are going to need to call the council for help. Vanessa went rogue and there is a lot that will have to be done to minimize exposure to the human world.” He had a look of disgust on his face. "First and foremost, they will have to figure out what to do about two human bodies. Old man and woman. They didn't even have a chance against her." I nodded, suddenl
ADDIE POVI walked out of the conference room with Roman and the other guard chasing after me, pulling along a reluctant Brad. Toby came, too, lips pressed together. I recognized the look. He hated the idea and wanted to set up a counterattack at the park at midnight, but he also recognized that my plan might work. It was fueled by pure rage on my part, but I was positive I would get James back.Alice had called ahead and worked her magic so by the time I made it to the front doors, a valet was there with a set of keys and an SUV was sitting in the drive up. I caught the keys as they were tossed to me and the warriors dove into the back seat, shoving Brad between them. Toby jumped into the passenger seat, buckling up as I started driving away.“What’s the plan, Luna?” Roman asked tentatively from the back seat. Toby glanced back at him but said nothing. “I know the area. It’s estates. I’ll find a spot to pull over and drop you and Brad off. We’ll meet up at the house, but I
ADDIE POV I was pissed. I’ve absolutely had it with Vanessa and Zoe and everyone else who felt like they had a right to mess with James and my happiness. I was going to end this and I was going to end this today. I commandeered an empty conference room and started organizing and planning. The first person to arrive was Alice who came through the door at a dead run. “How can I help?” she panted. I slid a computer over to her. “Figure out where Vanessa is. And, if you can, figure out how I can contact her.” Alice took the laptop from me and started tapping away, accessing the company files to find a current address. "She's moved around a few times. I don't think she's still at the address we have on file, but I'll have one of our security drive by and check." She picked up her cell phone and dialed. I started pacing, wanting things to move faster. Matthew came in to give me an update on Bryon. I listened and said all the appropriate things, but I honestly didn’t care.
JAMES POVWhen Bryon and I stepped into the elevator he remained stoic until the doors shut, then he punched me on the arm. “Your mate is one of a kind, you know,” he said, wistfully, with a smile.I grinned at him. “I know. You’ll get your mate, hopefully soon. And she’ll be pretty amazing, too.”He punched me again. “But not as amazing as Addie?” I laughed out loud. “As you said, she’s one of a kind.”He turned to face the door of the elevator again and he had his serious Gamma face on by the time the doors opened. One of the amazing things about Bryon is that he knew when to cut up and he knew when to be serious.I waved to the security guard at the gate. “Until next time, Alpha,” he shouted at me. “Hopefully never again,” I shouted back. “No offense, Jeff.”“None taken, Alpha,” he said, laughing. The double doors to the outside opened, and I heard a loud pop. Byron fell over beside me.It took me a second for my brain to register what was happening. When Bryon fell,
ADDIEThe trial was over for the witnesses. We were dismissed by the Council and the prisoners were taken back to their cells. The Council still had to work out some details, but they were taking a quick break.“I want to talk to Matthew for a second,” I whispered to James. He smiled at me. “Bryon and I will go get the car,” he said. “It takes a little bit of time to get it back from the valet so you have a few minutes.”I gave him a quick kiss on the lips and watched him step into the elevator with Bryon. I had to wait a few minutes; many were congratulating Matthew on the acquisition of the Hellroaring River Pack. He finally was able to break away and he came to me.“Addie!” He gave me a quick peck on the cheek. “I don’t know what to say. What a gift!”I grinned back at him. “Are you sure? I wanted to make sure you aren’t mad at me.”He shrugged. “I will probably step down from the council, much to the delight of some of our Junior members,” he smiled over my shoulder w
ADDIE POVI don’t much remember my hearing when I was being tried for killing Alpha Cole. I think I was pretty much in shock and willing to play the victim. It was one of the few times in my life that I left the fight to others and didn’t much care about my future.I felt no empathy for Zoe or Jackson as they sat in their chairs, glaring balefully at the others. The other Councilmembers were really good with their poker faces; however, most would have a flicker of disgust when their gaze would fall upon Jackson. Exploiting another Pack for their wealth was not unheard of, but it wasn’t something that a prim, proper, upstanding Councilmember would do under any circumstances. Jackson broke that law, and they would be forced to deal with him harshly.I wasn’t surprised, nor was I dismayed when I found that Jackson’s punishment was death. For the werewolf population to trust their leadership, it had to be above reproach. They had to show a unified front and discipline harshly.Matt
ADDIEI looked over at James. I didn’t know Dr. Joanna as well as he did, and I wasn’t as trusting as he was. It scared me that she knew about my gift, and it scared me that she had a gift of her own.“How does that work for you and for us?” I asked. Both of them looked at me with confusion.“James is unaffected by my gift unless he wants to be,” I explained. “He has to literally want to be controlled by my gift. Same in reverse. I have to want him to read my mind. You figured out my gift because you somehow recognized what I was trying to do during the battle. Can you use your gift against me?”Dr. Joanna grinned. “Don’t know. I haven’t ever tried. As you know, there’s not many of us out there.” I nodded, acknowledging that point. “I’ll try. Be prepared to duck.”She pointed to a paperweight on her bookcase and it came flying at me. I ducked but I didn’t have to. The paperweight struck an invisible barrier and dropped to the ground. I sucked in my breath. “That is s