“Let me mark you,” he says hoarsely, and my eyes brightened with excitement. I have thought of bearing his mark for a long time, and there is no better time to do it than now. I am ready, and he knows it.
I tilted my neck to give him access “Nothing would make me happier than wearing your mark,” I whispered.
“I want you to know that I would never do anything to hurt you. I tried to force my mark on you once, and I am fully aware of what could happen if I had done that to you in that state, but I wasn’t thinking straight, and most importantly, I didn’t want to lose you again. If you had been bearing my mark before then, it would have been easier to find you,” he says,
I nod my head. That was totally understandable.
“I hope you know what it means to have my mark on you?” he asked.
Yes, I know what it means. I would be his forever, and I was aware of the responsibilities that would come with
I rubbed my neck gently one more time before turning away from the mirror and exiting the room. It’s afternoon already, and I’m not sure when Ryder left but it must have been a long time because his scent on the bed wasn’t as strong as I would have liked it to be.I blushed when all the memories of the previous night came flooding back in my head. I’d hoped to still find him beside me when I woke up, but after sleeping till mid-day, I didn’t see how that would have been possible. I feel different, but in a good way.To my relief, the new bodyguard wasn’t anywhere around when I stepped out, and when I passed the other guards stationed at different locations, they bowed to acknowledge my presence.I got to the front porch to find Elsie and Layla waiting for me, looks like Ryder forgave his sister after all. The excitement in their eyes said it all - they knew.“Let me see,” Layla squeals, turning my neck gentl
The man standing across the hall and glaring out the window looked nothing like I remember. My heart is thundering in my chest, but it’s a good thing my mate is right beside me, holding my hands and squeezing them reassuringly.He turns to look at us as soon as Ryder shut the door behind him, a small, uncertain smile playing on his lips. I look nothing like him, except for a similar small, pointy nose.“Tiana!” he exclaimed, water gathering in his eyes as he tried hard to blink them away “My goodness you have grown so much,”I couldn’t form any words for a few seconds. Ryder mentioned he was forced to leave, but couldn’t he have at least taken me with him or even come back for me after all these years? If he had stayed with me, I probably wouldn’t have gotten that manner of treatment at Eclipse pack. I never met my mom and I could care less about her because she decided I wasn’t worth it the moment I was born
I didn’t know my mum was dead until a few minutes ago. I never considered meeting her because I knew she left me at a tender age, but finding out the circumstances that made her leave left me a little tongue-tied. I didn’t think she was a terrible person for leaving. In fact, I didn’t think about her a lot, because my mind could never form a picture of her.I always thought I was the problem, but turns out I was wrong. I was not the only one hurting in all these years. My father was too, and the lines on his face were not as a result of old age but from too much worry and sadness. I blamed him for the longest time, but it is hard being in his shoes. I didn’t know so much about special werewolves and discovering I am one is still a surprise. I read about how the hunters took pride in hunting down special werewolves, but I somehow never believed it while I was growing up because I didn’t meet any special wolf.My dad ran his fingers through
RYDER’S POV“Ryder, we just found Simeon’s body,” Adrian reaches me through mind link. “It’s suicide,” “Son of a bitch chose the easy way out,” I cursed.I tried my best to conceal my emotions from my mate knowing fully well that she could feel all of it through our mate bond. Not like I didn’t want her to know the coward of an alpha killed himself, I just wanted her to have this time with her father and not disturb her with any of that for now.I could feel all her emotions while she was with him. She was uncertain at first and I like that she is gradually warming up to him. I excused myself to allow them some time together. I also needed to get the details about Simeon. I’m not exactly happy that he died so easily.I hate to leave my mate even for a second, but I know we cannot always be together e
TIANA’S POVFor obvious reasons, I felt relieved when I heard about the news of Simeon’s death. I know my mate would have wanted a more severe punishment for him, but I could care less. I was more than happy that the case would finally be closed and that my mate can have a little rest and move on to other things.My father had to go back to get himself ready to move here fully, and he said he would be here in a couple of days. I am glad that he would be around me from now on and that we would finally be able to be part of each other’s life. Meeting Ryder was the best thing that happened to me, and I don’t want to envision a life without him.I want to be more involved in the work going on around here, and most importantly I want to go back to training, although Ryder is not hearing any of it. It is late in the night already and we were laying on the field by the lake side, gazing at the star
Dungeons are really scary. We had a small dungeon in Eclipse pack where I spent a couple of nights in the past. I remember Alpha Simeon had me locked there for two weeks straight one time he said I had disrespected his Luna. It was the longest time I stayed in a dungeon at a stretch and it was a horrific experience. I think I was about thirteen then.I swallowed as one of the guards led us to the cell where Jordan was. Ryder’s hands were positioned at the small of my back, and apparently, he didn’t like the idea. I could feel his emotions and I know he can feel how uncomfortable I am here.I have never seen a dungeon so large before. It rested many feet underground with several cells lined up opposite each other. I couldn’t walk the lengths of the cell, because it was separated into several sections. Some cells were smaller than some and the crime committed would determine the cell one gets. I know this all too well from my own experience.I co
It’s a long ride from the royal palace to Eclipse pack and I would have dreaded the journey if not for the presence of my mate besides me. The last time I had to travel this long was when I left the royal palace to hide from Ryder, a very foolish decision as I have now noticed. I could never do without him, and I don’t even want to try.We pulled into the pack gates and looking round, a lot has changed from when I was here. The warriors on guard saluted and stood in position as we entered. From behind the tinted side glasses of the vehicle, I can see mothers carrying their young pups and hurriedly running to shelter, for fear of the Alpha Prince.The pack has been under the governance of the royals for the last few days, and a lot of things have changed since I remember. The atmosphere around the pack was unusually gloomy, and even the warriors wore sad faces. The walls of the packhouse look duller than I can remember and the trees and plants that decorated
We returned back to the royal palace that same day and by the following day, things were being put in place to shut down Eclipse pack. I didn’t stay back to see it though, my job there was done, and I was back to the royal palace. Many members of Eclipse pack will not like me, because they wouldn’t understand this was in their best interest, but I was used to them not liking me, I lived with that all my life, only difference now is that I have upper hand. I hurried to meet Elsie who had been waiting for me downstairs for a while. As usual, I had woken up to find Ryder’s side of the bed empty, and the disappointment that followed was totally beyond my control. I had to remind myself that the fact that he had marked me now didn’t mean that he would have lesser responsibilities, and he only just informed me about his father’s decision to retire in less than two weeks, so there is a lot that needed to be done before the handover ceremony. To my surprise, Louis was beside
We had just given the closing remarks when I finally caught a glimpse of Layla. She waved at me from behind the crowd, a wide smile on her face. I’d have been mad if I wasn’t surprised at how broadly she smiled and waved at me. It was hard pulling away from Ryder to go to her when my hands were trapped between his.When he finally let go, Layla was walking up to me same time as I was walking to her. A closer view revealed her flushed cheeks and bright eyes.“Someone looks overly excited. Where have you been?” I smiled as she pulled me into a tight embrace.“First, I’m sorry I haven’t been beside you,” She says with a little giggle, I doubted if she was really sorry.“And you are supposed to be my best friend,” I pouted childishly which made her laugh more.“I know, but I couldn’t help it,” she giggled “You look absolutely amazing by the way. I’ve never seen a
We recited our oaths before going into the ritual proper, and then the mating process had to come before the crowning ceremony. It was a rigorous exercise with Ryder taking his oath first, and then I followed suit.The king slits his left palm with a royal dagger, and Ryder does the same. Then they shook hands and the crowd bared their necks while the exchange of power was ongoing, with the kinsmen reading out the vows for Ryder to repeat.Once that was done, he had to go on his knees to receive the crown from his father. I knelt with him as his father proceeded to crown me with his mother’s crown once he was done with Ryder. I repeated my vows too and swore my loyalty to my people and to Ryder, to rule alongside him and put the welfare of my subjects first.Then it was time for the mating proper. My wolf was giddy with excitement, she had waited for this a long time. To be joined with her mate forever as one. It was midnight already and the moon was at hi
I smiled at the girl in the mirror and she smiled back. Tears glistened my eyes, but I had to hold it in, or else Elsie would go ballistic on me. ‘Don’t you dare ruin your make up’ she’d warned countless times. I laughed childishly as her eyes pried into mine through the mirror, the warning very evident in them. I can’t believe this is happening. I am just a few minutes away from being crowned the werewolf queen. Clad in the royal attire, and adorned with the most expensive jewelries, I looked nothing short of a Queen. Nora, Sadie, Rose and Layla had just exited the room to join the crowd outside. “You look absolutely stunning,” Elsie wiped her own tear before it dropped. “You know how much this means to Ryder,” she sniffed. “It means everything to him,” I nodded my head. I didn’t doubt Ryder wanted this as much as I did, or even more. “My mother’s crown has been laying around for years since her demise. It was her dying wish
The following days passed in a blur. There seemed to be too much to do under very little time, and I would not have been able to hold it off, if not for Elsie’s help. I didn’t know the first thing about organizing anything, and I wanted this to be perfect. I can’t afford any lapses.Ryder was enveloped in a pile of work himself, and we had little time with each other. Many nights, he didn’t return to bed and had to work through the night. He wouldn’t allow me to assist knowing I was pretty exhausted myself, but I fell asleep very frequently in his office and woke up in his room.The royal suite had been cleared out in the main castle for us while his father moved to the building behind that had been created for the purpose of his retirement. Our things had been cleared out and arranged in the royal suite and it would be our last night here. Louis will be moving in here once we moved out, and I knew I would miss this place so much.T
Right now, I’m super exhausted and I just want to crawl into bed and sleep, even though the evening is still young. I and Elsie have been on a shopping spree all day, trying to put a few things in place in preparation for the mating ceremony. There is a whole lot to be done before that day and I only just realized we have little time. Elsie had too much energy for one person, and if I hadn’t insisted that we continue tomorrow, we would have still been out by now.The regained my strength the minute I stepped into Ryder’s house and noticed he was home. He’d called earlier, but we hadn’t talked much. I climbed up the stair to the room with speed. Our bodies and minds were connected. I knew he could feel my presence the minute I walked into the building, just like I felt his.He was just stepping out of the shower when I walked in, a towel wrapped loosely around his waist, and I drooled over his body. Tearing my eyes from his chest and biceps
We returned back to the royal palace that same day and by the following day, things were being put in place to shut down Eclipse pack. I didn’t stay back to see it though, my job there was done, and I was back to the royal palace. Many members of Eclipse pack will not like me, because they wouldn’t understand this was in their best interest, but I was used to them not liking me, I lived with that all my life, only difference now is that I have upper hand. I hurried to meet Elsie who had been waiting for me downstairs for a while. As usual, I had woken up to find Ryder’s side of the bed empty, and the disappointment that followed was totally beyond my control. I had to remind myself that the fact that he had marked me now didn’t mean that he would have lesser responsibilities, and he only just informed me about his father’s decision to retire in less than two weeks, so there is a lot that needed to be done before the handover ceremony. To my surprise, Louis was beside
It’s a long ride from the royal palace to Eclipse pack and I would have dreaded the journey if not for the presence of my mate besides me. The last time I had to travel this long was when I left the royal palace to hide from Ryder, a very foolish decision as I have now noticed. I could never do without him, and I don’t even want to try.We pulled into the pack gates and looking round, a lot has changed from when I was here. The warriors on guard saluted and stood in position as we entered. From behind the tinted side glasses of the vehicle, I can see mothers carrying their young pups and hurriedly running to shelter, for fear of the Alpha Prince.The pack has been under the governance of the royals for the last few days, and a lot of things have changed since I remember. The atmosphere around the pack was unusually gloomy, and even the warriors wore sad faces. The walls of the packhouse look duller than I can remember and the trees and plants that decorated
Dungeons are really scary. We had a small dungeon in Eclipse pack where I spent a couple of nights in the past. I remember Alpha Simeon had me locked there for two weeks straight one time he said I had disrespected his Luna. It was the longest time I stayed in a dungeon at a stretch and it was a horrific experience. I think I was about thirteen then.I swallowed as one of the guards led us to the cell where Jordan was. Ryder’s hands were positioned at the small of my back, and apparently, he didn’t like the idea. I could feel his emotions and I know he can feel how uncomfortable I am here.I have never seen a dungeon so large before. It rested many feet underground with several cells lined up opposite each other. I couldn’t walk the lengths of the cell, because it was separated into several sections. Some cells were smaller than some and the crime committed would determine the cell one gets. I know this all too well from my own experience.I co
TIANA’S POVFor obvious reasons, I felt relieved when I heard about the news of Simeon’s death. I know my mate would have wanted a more severe punishment for him, but I could care less. I was more than happy that the case would finally be closed and that my mate can have a little rest and move on to other things.My father had to go back to get himself ready to move here fully, and he said he would be here in a couple of days. I am glad that he would be around me from now on and that we would finally be able to be part of each other’s life. Meeting Ryder was the best thing that happened to me, and I don’t want to envision a life without him.I want to be more involved in the work going on around here, and most importantly I want to go back to training, although Ryder is not hearing any of it. It is late in the night already and we were laying on the field by the lake side, gazing at the star