My mother decides to stay with Tasha’s family to help them plan a memorial while the rest of us head home. Each of us trying to wrap our brains around what just happened. As we reach the house, my father resigns to his office, slamming the door hard enough to knock a picture from the wall. Peyton to his room. Colin walks me to mine. “Stay, please.” I ask as Colin turns to leave. You do like him! Ash barks. I just don’t want to be alone. I lead him into my large bedroom. Mentally high-fiving myself for making my bed this morning. “Did you know her?” he asks. “We trained together. She’s a pack warrior, though we weren’t close outside of that.” He wipes my tears from my cheek, and his warm hand sends shocks to my skin. He feels so good. I’m not sure I have the restraint to avoid kissing him. I stand up from the bed, trying to put some distance between us. “I’m, uh, going to change. I just realized that you have nothing to wear to bed. So run to your room and grab something.” “W
Our first night wasn’t the magical one I had hoped for. But waking up next to her almost makes up for it. Dom hounded me all night to mate her, but I resisted. Paige wasn’t ready for that, and I want it to be special. I wrap my arms around Paige as she stirs next to me, wanting to feel her as much as I can before she pushes me away. She opens her giant green eyes and inhales a deep breath, breathing in my scent. I wonder what I smell of. “What are you thinking about?” she asks. “What my scent smells like to you. You smell of vanilla with a smidge of cinnamon.” “You smell like a rainy spring day.” She laughs. “More specifically, it’s mint and cypress.” Her laugh sounds like a perfect symphony. I lean down to kiss her lightly on her lips, pulling away to resist deepening the kiss and making Paige feel pressured. I find my way out of bed, not missing the glimpse of sadness in her eyes. Dom tries to push me back, but I fight him. “I’m sure you’re getting hungry. I’ll go change, and t
I wake up with a heavy mind because of last night’s events. I waited all night for Claire to show up, but she never did. She never responded to my texts or calls, either. I was drowning my sorrows when I first heard the howls. Following my father to Tasha’s body, I sobered up exceptionally quick. The sight of Tasha’s body made my stomach churn. I stood frozen, just staring at her.My father and Colin went into Alpha mode, my father ordering everyone to do something, including ordering me to find a sheet to cover her with. I also accompanied him to tell Tasha’s family. The entire night left me feeling even more unprepared to be Alpha. I’m just an eighteen-year-old kid. My wolf is worried about the position, too. Neither of us feel like an Alpha.A light knock on my door pulls me from my bed. The scent of the person behind the door has me throwing the door open with more force than I meant to.Mate. Mate. Mate!Claire stands before me, her eyes cast down as she tries to explain herself.
It’s lunchtime before I push myself off the bathroom floor. My face is still puffy from my pain. I was considering skipping lunch when I hear a knock at my door.My father pops his head in. “Meeting in the dining hall.”“I’m not feeling well. Save me the cliff notes.”“It’s mandatory,” my father orders.He never speaks to me that way. Something must really be going on. Announcing Tasha’s murder wouldn’t have him so angry. Curiosity pulls me out of my bed and out the door. Following my father to the dining hall, almost everyone has gathered, but I don’t see Colin. My father pulls me to the front of the dining hall to join my mother, brother, and Claire. I smile at them. I knew they were mates. I’m glad that is working out for one of us. I swallow the hurt that pierces my chest when I see Peyton and Claire looking so happy. My father waits for Colin’s family to enter the room and settle. His body tenses, but his eyes never meet mine. I guess the guilt is eating him alive. Good.My fathe
Paige blew me off this morning and then proceeded to ignore me at the meeting. My annoyance builds with each second that I’m away from her. This girl is destroying me little by little. I’ve been waiting outside her bedroom for ten minutes when I see her walking up the stairs. She stops when she sees me, and I feel her rage flood into me.“We need to talk,” I say.“Go talk to Amber.”I raise an eyebrow. What is she talking about?“What? Why would I want to talk to her?”“Why wouldn’t you talk to the half-naked girl you took to your room right after leaving mine?” She sheds one tear before she opens her door and slams it shut.My heart hurts, partially because whatever Paige thinks I did is hurting her and partially because she
I held Paige in the dining hall for as long as she would let me. I only let her go to help her to her room. Now, we lay here in her bed. She’s asleep with her head laying over my chest and my arm wrapped around her. After Val’s big show in the dining hall, I realized I was being just as stupid as Paige was. I was choosing not to communicate with her, and that was hurting her more. My heart stopped when I saw her cry. I couldn’t take it anymore. She believed me when I said I never touched Amber. That put me and Dom both at ease. We’re going to have to work on communication. We lay wrapped up together until the early afternoon. “Wake up, love,” I say. Paige stirs and opens her eyes. “That was the best nap I’ve had in a long time.” “I hate to cut this short, but I have to pack.” I’ve been dread
I wake up to a cold bed, so cold my body is shivering. My suspicions are confirmed with the flick of the light. Colin is gone. A toxic mixture of anger and sadness fills me. Stupid freaking mate bond! Stupid freaking Colin! We were supposed to spend today together so that I could make a choice about leaving. My stomach growls as the clock reads 6 pm. I skipped breakfast and lunch with all the excitement. I sigh as I push the plush comforter from my body, catching a whiff of myself. Eww. Shower first, then food. I stand from my bed, taking my clothes off as I walk to my shower. As fate would have it, my door opens the second I yank my top off. I freeze, my breasts dangling for all to see.“I like the way you think, though you should buy me dinner first.” Colin smirks.“Huh, who would’ve thought that a big strong Alpha like you needed to be bought?”
After what feels like hours of packing Paige’s things, we are finally loading them into the dark SUV.“Is that everything?”She brought so much stuff with her, it’s like she’s never coming back. That thought pulls my lips into a goofy grin. She’s coming with me, to live with me as my mate. She’ll never be away from me again.“What are you smiling about, loser?” Paige asks.Ah, what a loving mate I have. Her attitude has to be my favorite thing about her, though I’m sure not everyone feels that way. Closing the distance between us, I use my body to push hers against the warm metal of the car.“I’m smiling because you’re mine,” I say.I don’t give her a chance to respond as I allow my lips to engulf hers.“Eww gross.” Peyton gags, “Get a room.”Paige peels her lips from mine. “Go to hell.”They leave the sh
I follow him through the woods, letting him guide me to whatever he has planned now. Colin walks us to a small clearing between the trees. It’s decorated with a tent and roses. Twinkling lights highlight my smile.“What is all this?”“The date I owe you.”“It’s beautiful.”“Not more so than you. But I’m glad you like it. Alex and I worked on it all afternoon.”“I’ll have to remember to thank him.”“Nah, he only helped a little, but you know if you want to thank me. I wouldn’t be mad.”“In that case, let me show you thankful I am.”He yanks the tent open. It’s filled with blankets and pillows. I crawl in and plant myself on the soft pile. Colin falls n
“My name is Elder Kai Fury, and I’m here to oversee the Luna ceremony tonight, but first, Alpha John has an announcement to make.”My hands tremble. It’s time to break the news about the merger. I don’t know what I’m expecting, but I’m not sure it’s good.“Good evening. Thank you for all being here to celebrate my daughter and her mate. Before we continue with the ceremony, I wanted to take a few minutes to tell you how proud I’ve been to be your Alpha. Truly, it’s been an honor to lead you, just as it was for my father before me and his before him. That said, there comes a time when every Alpha must retire.” John pauses. “Traditionally, the title would be taken by my son Peyton. However, he’s chosen to go down a different path. He’s on his way to fatherhood. His mother and I couldn’t be prouder of him. I mean it, Peyton. You’re going to be a wonderful father, and I respect
“Nicole! You came!” I try to get up and hug my mother-in-law, but the hairstylist pushes me back down.“Of course! I wouldn’t miss this.” Nicole stands in front of my mirror and wraps her arms around my neck. “You look beautiful.”Mom says, “Wait until you see her dress!”She hugs Nicole and then drags her off to only Goddess knows where. I down my fifth glass of champagne, trying to keep my enormous bundle of nerves at bay. I wish Ash were here with me. She would be so happy to become Luna. Goddess knows she was always in support of it, even when I wasn’t. I call for another glass of champagne. I give a mental toast to Ash wherever she is. After hours of sitting in the awful plastic chair, the stylist is done. My fiery hair is twisted and braided into a bun that sits on the top of my head. A few stray hairs have been curled around my fa
“Welcome to our home,” Margot says.“Thank you for having me. My name is Kai Fury, but just call me Kai.”He shakes everyone’s hand but lingers on Paige’s a little more than I like. I have to turn my head as he lightly kisses the back of her hand to avoid a fight.He’s an unmated male touching our unmarked mate. Kill him. Dom growls.He’s an Elder; violence won’t get us far. Margot leads everyone into the sparkling packhouse. She introduces my family to Kai, and I catch a glint of jealousy in James’ eye. So, it’s not just me, good to know. Once the tour is finished, we head to dinner. We’re eating in the private Alpha’s dining room tonight. Paige and Margot thought it best because it’s much more formal and elegant. But if we were in the dining
“What are you doing?” Colin asks.“He helped us, Colin. We have to help him.”Nolan barely looks up at us when he opens the door. I don’t like what I see when he does finally returns my gaze. Nolan’s eyes are cold and empty, something I’ve never seen from him. Even when Nicole was in the hospital, his eyes held so much emotion.“Nolan, how are you?” I ask.“I’m wonderful.”“I can tell. The broken desk looks like it’s had a ball with you.”He flops on the bed with nothing but a sigh. He seems to be sober, despite the room smelling like a hurricane of bourbon hit. Guess it wasn’t strong enough for his werewolf genes.“Nolan, do you remember what you said to me? You told me that Colin couldn
The last four days have been insane. Every day there has been something happening to pull off this last-minute Luna ceremony. Right now, I’m feeling overwhelmed by the number of dresses the designer brought. Three racks pumped full of dresses stand before me, and I’m supposed to choose one. Ugh. Most of the dresses are black, some are green, some are white, and there are some gold ones stuffed in. I grab the first green dress I see; it looks like a sequin monster threw up on it. I shake my head in disgust. I’m not even trying that on. I keep combing through the racks until a dress catches my eye. I pull it from the hanger and try it on. It’s beautiful. The emerald green matches my eyes. I slip it over my body, and I know that it’s the one. The dress is tight in the right places and flows at the bottom for effortless movements. I walk out into the room where my mother, Cassie, and Claire are sitting. Their gasps tip my lips up into a bright smile.
Hugh bristles as soon as Nicole leaves our room. He’s not a fan of letting her out of our sight, ever. For a woman who isn’t our fated mate, he’s really protective of her. Then again, the love we share is strong. It’s growing every day. Maybe we’ll be mates after all. I count the seconds until my southern region calms down. I’m already missing Nicole. I just want to get downstairs and hold her again. Scratch that. I need to get downstairs. Nicole needs me; I can feel it.A sweet honey scent hits me when I get to the stairs. Hugh immediately perks up, and I feel my heart fall. That scent isn’t Nicole, but it is my mate’s. My feet hit the bottom stair. I peek into the dining hall. Nicole’s back is to me. My gaze moves to the woman in front of her. The doe-eyed, stunning woman who Hugh says is our mate. Her brunette hair is pulled into a bun, making her look taller than she is. My body gravitates towards her, despe
The room is covered in ideas and fabric by the time we finally nail all the plans down. It’s a good thing too; I thought Paige was going to explode on her mother a few times. I wave goodbye to the girls and run to my room to make phone calls. It takes me two hours and several thousands of dollars later before I have everything ordered. Pushing away from the desk, I rip the ponytail from my vanilla hair. It cascades down my aching shoulders, nibbling at the tops of my scars. The fleshy stripes that I should hate, the blemishes that should remind me of the man who tried to kill me. But all I see is raw proof that I’m strong, that I survived twenty years of torment. “You are gorgeous, Nic.” Nolan leans against the doorframe. I smile at him, so grateful that the Goddess gave me him. He wraps his arms around me, and his crystal blue eyes darken just a shade. If I didn’t know any better, I could swear a mate bond was forming between us. He smells sweeter to me with every day that passes. H
“How long has Ash been gone?” Rita asks, gliding around her room to grab a crystal.“Just since the battle. She was there, but when I shifted back, she was gone.”“So, she was there for part of it?”“Yes.”“When you were hurt, did you change by choice or by force?”“Force.”“Okay, I’m going to put my hands on either side of your head. This will help me get inside your head. I’ll try to find her or figure out what’s going on. It may be painful, but I need you to keep still.”I glance at Colin. His smile is uneasy, but he nods to me. His hand reassures mine with a squeeze, but they still tremble. My stomach flips when I feel her plump fingers land on my temple. I close my eyes and wai