The Alpha's Companion

Lacey knew it was over, but she wasn't going down without a fight. The rogue wolves stared her down, starting to advance… and there was no escape.All of a sudden, a huge, white wolf barged into the clearing, biting flanks and then he pinned a wolf to the ground. The red wolf ran, along with a silver wolf. Once Lacey had regained her bearings, she grabbed another wolf and sent him flying into a tree, and then tackled another. Through it all, the huge, white wolf never left her side.Within minutes, the rogue Wildclaws scattered. But Lacey knew they'd be back.Once they were alone, the huge, white wolf morphed and phased, pulling himself back together until a very muscular man with long black hair and other... impressive... assets... stood before her. Her wolf wanted him, there was no doubt. The gorgeous American Indian man caught Lacey checking him out and gave her a cocky grin. Then he ran his hand through his perfect hair, biting his lower lip as he looked her up and down. Only a tr

Lacey tried to calm her nerves as she slipped into her beige dress, even though it was a hand-m-down, not having enough time to shop for anything new. Then she started on her hair.Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. When Lacey opened it, her sister, Marissa, was standing there, one of her six siblings. "Marissa."Marissa looked Lacey up and down and then plastered a smile on her face. "Well! I'm glad to see that you're putting my old dress to good use."Lacey lifted her chin, refusing to let her stepsister get under her skin, as usual. Like it or not, this was her Pledging Ceremony and she wasn't going to let anyone ruin it. "It's expected... since today is my Pledging Ceremony, you know. But don't worry...." Lacey patted her arm. "It'll happen for you one day, too."Marissa, along with her other half-siblings, had treated her horribly over the years, since their father hadn't kept Lacey's paternity a secret. In fact, Thorn had all but encouraged the poor behavior toward her, not

Lacey downed half of her drink and then smiled sweetly, stepping close to him. His breath quickened. She smirked, knowing she was having an effect on him."Please tell me something." Lacy trailed a finger along his cheek, looking into his eyes, giving him her sexiest look.One corner of his lips curled into a breathtaking smile. "And what's that?""Why do you want me as your mate?" Lacy asked sweetly.He returned her sweet smile. "I don't... yet." He let out a long, slow breath and looked deeply into her eyes. "I want to try out the merchandise first." Then in one swift movement, he threw her over his shoulder and headed toward the stairs."Oh, no you don't!" Lacey yelled, beating against his back with her fists, which didn't have any effect on him at all. "Put me down!"Everyone laughed and parted the way for Julien. He held her over his shoulder with one arm going up the stairs with Lacey screaming the whole way. "Let go of me, you brute! Let me go!"He stopped halfway up the stairs.

As the night wore on, Lacey tried to sleep, but her wolf was too restless. Unable to take any more, she rose from the bed, dressed in her silk nightgown with spaghetti straps, and walked to the window. The sounds of merriment had faded and the moonlight shone brightly overhead, casting a blue hue over the earth. Suddenly, there was a slight knock on the door. "Come in," she croaked, her voice raspy from lack of use.When the door opened, she was surprised to see Julien standing in the doorway, shirtless, but a troubled look colored his eyes. "How are you?"She shrugged, turning toward the window. "Not well, since I missed my own party."He sighed, crossing the room to her. Then he placed his hands on her shoulders. "I'm sorry about that." Then he slid his arms around her and leaned his head on her shoulder, saying nothing as he held her. Lacey's wolf nearly purred with pleasure at being so close to the man and she had chosen as her mate. Now that she had met Julien, she understood w

Lacey and Julien rode the rest of the way in silence. On the way, Lacey wondered what had happened to him to make him so hard and devoid of love. Although she had caught glimpses of his capacity for tenderness, she was sure that a woman had broken his heart, or maybe something else had happened to harden his heart.But she quickly pushed the thought aside when they turned left onto a narrow road lined with trees and his mansion came into view. Lacey was surprised to see that it wasn't a mansion at all… but a castle. And it was huge! Much bigger than her stepfather's mansion. She wondered how Julien could afford such extravagance. But when you are nearly immortal and invest wisely, you can accumulate a lot of wealth."Wow," Lacey said as the limo pulled to a stop in front of the castle. The stone walls were light gray, glistening in the sunlight, and a lush forest surrounded it. "This is gorgeous!" Her wolf itched to explore the surrounding forest, pleased with the amount of land to run