NADINE. Excitement was an understatement of how I felt tonight. Before Xander showed up today, I wasn’t looking forward to a full moon run. Nadia and Riley arrived a day ago to join me after I confided in Nadia about how I dreaded running alone. They showed up to show their support and so that I wouldn’t feel I was alone.But then Xander came, and they decided to let us run on our own with our pack. And I was grateful for that, but it didn’t mean I didn’t miss them tonight. So, midway through our run, when I heard the sound of paws thudding against the earth somewhere nearby, my heart began to pound. I was hoping it was them, but I kept my wishes to myself.And then I smelled Vindictus, my father’s wolf. Tears welled in my eyes as more scent reached my nose. I could smell Arrow and Hunter, Nadia and Riley’s wolves, as well as Tala and Helios, Mindy and Arlo’s wolves. Uncle David was also here together with his mate, Marie. And Kenzo’s mom was with them. I was overwhelmed, but my
MINDY. I panicked that he might get disappointed if I said I didn’t want to. But instead, Arlo pulled me into his arms and hugged me. He told me he could wait.I cried again.I cried again. He deserved so much better than the broken female that Maddox made out of me. He just let me cry, but he kept telling me how lucky he felt that I let him in my life. That he could hug me, and I was allowing him to kiss me. That I let him touch me tonight. He was telling me how each moment I spent with him made him feel so special. If Arlo only knew, he was the one making me feel special—something I didn’t deserve to feel. “Hey, why are you crying?” Arlo’s hand cupped my cheek as he wiped my tears. “Did I say something bad?”His voice snapped me back to the present. I shook my head and forced a small smile to curl on my lips. “I just feel lucky to wake up beside you.”“Don’t take words from my mouth, beautiful. I’m the lucky one here.” “Thank you for last night, Arlo.” I captured my bottom lip a
A YEAR AFTER MADDOX’S DEATH. LADY JILLIAN of the Midnight Pack. I couldn’t erase the smile off my face as I looked at my reflection in the mirror. My hair was tied up tightly in a bun, and I was dressed in a swan-like ballerina dress. The only jewelry I had was one pair of crescent moon earrings that I had never taken off. Finally eighteen. My family was throwing a grand ball for me, and I would start the night with a ballet dance that I’d been practicing for many months. The dance was about a female coming of age and spreading her wings. I was excited, not only because I would be turning eighteen and would finally be able to do many things, but because I could officially say YES to Kenzo as my boyfriend. We could make it official. Kenzo and I started dating after he was re-inducted as the Gamma of the Dark Forest Pack. He asked me if he could court me, and I said he could, or he could come back once I turned eighteen, as I was not allowed to have a boyfriend until then. Not that
LADY JILLIAN.“Mine!!” The growl was so loud it vibrated through my whole body. I shoved Wes’ hand off me and abruptly turned my body around to face the direction of the voice.And my heart stopped as I stared at the man at the far end of the corridor. My eyes locked with Alonso, Alpha Aeon’s son, the next Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack. My mouth parted as a shriek passed my lips, something I was not able to control. “No!”Until I realized something.I was older than Alonso. Even with him having a wolf, it was impossible that I scented him. He was not eighteen yet. —----------------------GAMMA KENZO.I ran my comb through my hair one more time, perfecting my hairstyle before pointing at myself through my reflection in the mirror. To say that I was excited was an understatement. I was beyond ecstatic.Tonight, whatever fate had in store for me and Jillian, we would finally take our relationship to the next level. I could officially claim her as my girlfriend, and we would take it fro
GAMMA KENZO.I had never driven so fast as I did tonight. Good thing that I only needed to drive along the forest road, so there were no cameras and traffic police lurking around. If I had my way, I would have run on my paws so I’d be faster, but I needed to look presentable, and I couldn’t just rip my clothes off. I was stopped at their border, and it seemed the one in there had no idea who I was. He denied me entry because I didn’t have the invitation with me. In my rush to get help for the Alpha, I might have dropped it somewhere in the packhouse. Only when I instructed him to reach out to Alpha Ledger and we conversed over the phone did I receive permission to enter.The drive to the hotel where her party was ongoing was plain torture. I was happy that I was here, but the thought of missing her dance and her not being my fated mate kept seeping into my mind. “Judgment time.” I reminded myself of this as I picked up the bouquet of red roses from the backseat of my car and made m
NADINE. I closed my eyes as I relaxed my shoulders. According to the taxi driver who was taking me there, I was just less than ten kilometers from the nearest border of the Dark Forest Pack. I waited all my life for this moment. I wanted to enter the Dark Forest Pack territory. The pack that rightfully belonged to my family. The pack that was taken by the Trevinos under the false pretense of friendship. They killed my grandfather, the then-Alpha, while he was sleeping, while they were in our territory posing as comrades. I was not born yet when that happened, but I lived my whole life knowing about their treachery, and I had made it my goal to make the Trevinos fall to their knees. I would take our pack back at whatever cost. Even if it meant losing my own mate. The Goddess surely knew how to play games. She gave me a Trevino for a mate. Beta Xander Trevino of the Dark Forest Pack.Two weeks ago, I met him at the Claiming Ball. But instead of claiming me, he went away with a pro
NADINE.We arrived at the packhouse, and the first thing my eyes looked for was Mindy. But I didn’t see her. I saw other females around. They were probably the Omegas of the packhouse. They looked at us when we came in, but no one greeted me, even when I smiled at them. And Xander didn’t even bother to introduce me. They all made me feel like I was not welcome. They just continued with their routine without giving me a second look. I also thought Xander was the one who would show me my room, but he let someone else take me. I was directly ushered to the second floor. And no matter how I tried to converse with the female who walked beside me, she never replied and only told me where my room was.And then I was left on my own. I didn’t even know what I was supposed to do. I had been walking back and forth, contemplating whether I should go down and introduce myself to anyone I would meet and, at the same time, try to find out who Mindy was. But then I was not sure if I was welcome to
NADINE.“Damn, Nadine… I can smell your arousal…” He groaned as he pressed his bulging erection against my front and I couldn’t help but grind mine onto him. “Fuck!” He growled as his hand gripped my hair, and our eyes met. “My wolf wants you!”“Yes.. please…” I moaned. “Take me…”His hand moved, and goosebumps raised on my skin as he trailed his calloused palm along my thigh while our mouths fought for dominance. His fingers brushed on the tiny fabric covering my core before he slipped it to the side and began touching my folds. His touch was rough, but I reveled in it, and in no time, I could feel my pussy leaking. He pulled away from my throat and pushed his body up so his face paralleled with mine. I whimper in disappointment because I wanted his lips on my skin. “Aren’t you too wet for me, mate?” He asked as he licked his lips. His eyes dilated again while his two fingers slid in between my folds and penetrated my pussy - stroking in and out of me.Whimpers and moans escaped m
GAMMA KENZO.I had never driven so fast as I did tonight. Good thing that I only needed to drive along the forest road, so there were no cameras and traffic police lurking around. If I had my way, I would have run on my paws so I’d be faster, but I needed to look presentable, and I couldn’t just rip my clothes off. I was stopped at their border, and it seemed the one in there had no idea who I was. He denied me entry because I didn’t have the invitation with me. In my rush to get help for the Alpha, I might have dropped it somewhere in the packhouse. Only when I instructed him to reach out to Alpha Ledger and we conversed over the phone did I receive permission to enter.The drive to the hotel where her party was ongoing was plain torture. I was happy that I was here, but the thought of missing her dance and her not being my fated mate kept seeping into my mind. “Judgment time.” I reminded myself of this as I picked up the bouquet of red roses from the backseat of my car and made m
LADY JILLIAN.“Mine!!” The growl was so loud it vibrated through my whole body. I shoved Wes’ hand off me and abruptly turned my body around to face the direction of the voice.And my heart stopped as I stared at the man at the far end of the corridor. My eyes locked with Alonso, Alpha Aeon’s son, the next Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack. My mouth parted as a shriek passed my lips, something I was not able to control. “No!”Until I realized something.I was older than Alonso. Even with him having a wolf, it was impossible that I scented him. He was not eighteen yet. —----------------------GAMMA KENZO.I ran my comb through my hair one more time, perfecting my hairstyle before pointing at myself through my reflection in the mirror. To say that I was excited was an understatement. I was beyond ecstatic.Tonight, whatever fate had in store for me and Jillian, we would finally take our relationship to the next level. I could officially claim her as my girlfriend, and we would take it fro
A YEAR AFTER MADDOX’S DEATH. LADY JILLIAN of the Midnight Pack. I couldn’t erase the smile off my face as I looked at my reflection in the mirror. My hair was tied up tightly in a bun, and I was dressed in a swan-like ballerina dress. The only jewelry I had was one pair of crescent moon earrings that I had never taken off. Finally eighteen. My family was throwing a grand ball for me, and I would start the night with a ballet dance that I’d been practicing for many months. The dance was about a female coming of age and spreading her wings. I was excited, not only because I would be turning eighteen and would finally be able to do many things, but because I could officially say YES to Kenzo as my boyfriend. We could make it official. Kenzo and I started dating after he was re-inducted as the Gamma of the Dark Forest Pack. He asked me if he could court me, and I said he could, or he could come back once I turned eighteen, as I was not allowed to have a boyfriend until then. Not that
MINDY. I panicked that he might get disappointed if I said I didn’t want to. But instead, Arlo pulled me into his arms and hugged me. He told me he could wait.I cried again.I cried again. He deserved so much better than the broken female that Maddox made out of me. He just let me cry, but he kept telling me how lucky he felt that I let him in my life. That he could hug me, and I was allowing him to kiss me. That I let him touch me tonight. He was telling me how each moment I spent with him made him feel so special. If Arlo only knew, he was the one making me feel special—something I didn’t deserve to feel. “Hey, why are you crying?” Arlo’s hand cupped my cheek as he wiped my tears. “Did I say something bad?”His voice snapped me back to the present. I shook my head and forced a small smile to curl on my lips. “I just feel lucky to wake up beside you.”“Don’t take words from my mouth, beautiful. I’m the lucky one here.” “Thank you for last night, Arlo.” I captured my bottom lip a
NADINE. Excitement was an understatement of how I felt tonight. Before Xander showed up today, I wasn’t looking forward to a full moon run. Nadia and Riley arrived a day ago to join me after I confided in Nadia about how I dreaded running alone. They showed up to show their support and so that I wouldn’t feel I was alone.But then Xander came, and they decided to let us run on our own with our pack. And I was grateful for that, but it didn’t mean I didn’t miss them tonight. So, midway through our run, when I heard the sound of paws thudding against the earth somewhere nearby, my heart began to pound. I was hoping it was them, but I kept my wishes to myself.And then I smelled Vindictus, my father’s wolf. Tears welled in my eyes as more scent reached my nose. I could smell Arrow and Hunter, Nadia and Riley’s wolves, as well as Tala and Helios, Mindy and Arlo’s wolves. Uncle David was also here together with his mate, Marie. And Kenzo’s mom was with them. I was overwhelmed, but my
XANDER.We waited for almost an hour before the last two were able to shift. We then excused ourselves so we could shift. We could have done it in front of them, but this was our first time shifting together, and Nadine wanted this moment alone for us. I wanted the same thing.We walked a bit further from where they were and found the right spot.Nadine immediately threw her arms around my neck and crushed her mouth against mine. I held her tightly and kissed her back until she pulled away, a loving smile playing on her lips as a red tint crept to her cheeks.“I can’t get enough of you…” She admitted, her eyes twinkling and her wet lips glistening under the moonlight. “Me, too,” I replied, my knuckles gently grazing her soft skin. “I like that you’re not stopping yourself from showing me what you feel.”“I don’t have any more reason to. Me and my wolf adore you and Orion.”“We feel the same way about you and Star. And now, we should get going, or Orion might throw a tantrum. He promis
NADINE. During dinner, Mindy and Arlo told us that they would be heading to Mindy’s apartment. Most of her things are there, and she wanted to make sure she would leave the apartment in good condition before heading to the Silver Moon Pack tomorrow. I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed as I looked at her. She was still the timid Mindy I met, but there was something new in her eyes. They were sparkling, and I knew soon, with Arlo’s help, the confidence would also surface in them.“So, you’ll be renovating your apartment, too?” Riley chuckled. I saw that everyone around us was confused by his statement except for me and the people I was with in Hanna’s home.“We need to leave early tomorrow, as Drake had been calling. He wanted to be saved from Zach,” Riley added, chuckling. It seemed he was already used to his son’s behavior and was not bothered anymore.“Dad, can I stay here?” Nikka asked. “At least for a few more days.”“No.” He didn’t even let her finish.“But Dad…”“How old are y
XANDER.The crowd finally let us go. We bid them a peaceful night and watched as they dispersed with a promise that there would be more moments like this when they could talk with us. Nadine was safely secured in my arms as I kept kissing the crown of her head from time to time. There was nothing holding me back from showing her how much she meant to me, especially when I saw how she stood up for us in front of our people. Our people. This felt surreal. All my life, I had thrown the idea of a pack life away and had never wanted to be here. But I did it for Mindy, and as absurd as it may sound, it was one of the best decisions of my life. Because it led me here, beside my mate.I could only imagine her life if I didn’t accept the Beta post that Maddox offered me.I never doubted she would succeed, but I knew Maddox would definitely break her. And I was glad I was here to stop that from happening. “Do you mind if I talk to Xander?” Dad asked the moment he approached us. Nadine was al
NADINE.“The respect and honor you are showing me should be the same respect and honor that we should bestow on my mate,” Nadine stated to the crowd.The faces before us warped into a welcoming smile as the applause began and got louder by the second.“It is an honor to stand before you, Dark Forest Pack. And even a greater honor to be your Beta.” I turned my head to meet Nadine’s eyes before I continued. “And your mate, Alpha Nadine.”Nadine was struggling to hold her tears, and so was I.“I promise you, Dark Forest Pack, that I will be worthy of this Beta position because no other Beta could protect your Alpha the way that I would.” I continued in a loud voice, keeping my eyes fixed on her.The applause and the chants got louder. All were positive reactions, and I didn’t know if I would end up smiling or tearing up first.“And we trust that you are capable of protecting us, Beta Xander. Alpha Nadine, Gamma Kenzo, and you—you are all that this pack needs.” An elderly man shouted from