It's nice to see the balance between Alpha and Dad. I think they have a good relationship balance.
Nikki POV This week has flown by. Gideon and I train in the evenings and Maisey and I have fallen into a daily routine. Right now Maisey and I are waiting for Ernesto to come to take us to Desert Moon Pack for the weekend. I have to speak with Alpha Isha about helping us to help my pack take Alpha Hollis down. I know Frankie doesn’t want me to fight, but it is in my blood to defend my pack. “Maisey are you ready? Ernesto should be out front any minute.” I called to her from the living room. “Yeah, I am about done here. This skirt is not laying right and it’s driving me crazy.” She said she's working on my dress again. There is one spot that isn’t laying well and if we can’t fix it soon I will have to purchase something. She came into the living room and we grabbed our bags and headed out front. We walked outside just as Ernesto’s escalade pulled up. As we climbed in I greeted Ernesto and we were on our way. “Maisey how would you feel about shifting and giving me the opportunity to s
Nikki POV To say that I am anxious and excited for this week to be over is an understatement. I have counseling this evening and instead of training with Gideon tonight, we are packing up my apartment. I am not giving up on school, but I don’t know what these next few weeks are going to hold, so after discussing it with Gideon and Maisey, I am putting my belongings in storage on Thursday and just staying the night at Maisey’s that night. Friday after classes Gideon and Maisey are flying home with me. I can barely contain the excitement. The very first stop I am making once I am on pack land is K&T Coffee. I miss their macchiatos and while I like Velloms, they are not K&T. There are only two things I am not looking forward to: going home and seeing mom’s house and having to try to convince Frankie that I belong in the upcoming battle even if he doesn’t like it. Right now Maisey and I are trying to stay awake in measurements math class. This guy gives me serious Charlie Brown moments
Nikki POV It’s Friday finally! The anticipation has been crazy. Tomorrow I will be 18 and I finally get to meet my wolf! Luna Hope told me that it can actually happen after midnight tonight, depending on the strength of the moon’s pull. That would be awesome truthfully, a midnight run with Kolt. He is a beautiful wolf; black with a partially white muzzle and his eyes… oh my goddess I thought Frankie’s eyes were gorgeous, Kolt’s are next level, a shade of royal blue that is almost electric. Now all I have to do is finish classes for the day. Ugh, this teacher, I can’t even. Maisey and I have taken to calling him CBT (Charlie Brown’s Teacher). I know, it isn’t nice to make fun of people but I would never disrespect him to his face and that’s why we use the letters while speaking of him in public, so the insult doesn’t get back to him. At any rate we have to finish CBT’s class and then fashion design 101 and then we are Cold Moon bound. “So do you know where we are staying when we go t
Nikki POV As we approached the gate for the territory Callum slowed the car and one of the guards came to the door. As Callum pushed the button for the window, the guard went into a defensive stance, “Does the Alpha know you’re bringing a vampire onto the territory!?!” “Chill out Richard. He’s with Nikki, the Alpha is well aware. He and the other wolf are part of Nikki’s protection detail,” Callum said and rolled his eyes at the guard. “Sorry, I must have missed the memo,” the guard replied. Then he nodded to the guard manning the gate mechanism and the gate opened. As we drove through the gates I was struck by the beauty of home. There was a pain in my heart as I stared at the artistry of nature and the welcoming village nestled at its center. Maisey placed a hand on my shoulder from where she sat and asked, “Are you okay, Nikki?” I nodded and a single tear slid down my face. I wasn’t sad really, it was as if a missing piece of me snapped into place. “I’m home,” I whispered, my hea
Frankie POV I couldn’t be happier than I am at this moment in time. Okay, well when Nikki accepts me as her mate that will definitely top this, but for now this is the happiest moment in my life. Sitting around the bonfire in my parents backyard with leadership old and new, friends old and new, and the most beautiful girl I have ever laid eyes on in my lap. I can’t imagine anything better. Nikki started fidgeting in my lap, “Are you okay, Little Bee?” I asked. “Yeah, I am just restless all of a sudden. Probably just jet lag from the trip.” She replied with a soft smile. The way the moon is shining down on her makes her more beautiful, and I bent to kiss the tip of her nose. We sat for a few more minutes before she jumped up and everyone’s eyes were on her. I grabbed her hand and asked again, “Are you sure you’re okay Nikki?” A smile crept across her face making her even more radiant and she said, “Couldn’t be better. Let’s walk around to the wooded side of the house, there’s someone
Frankie POV I needed to talk to Nikki but I didn’t want it to be somewhere she would be put on display. I decided to mind link Cookie and ask her to put together a very light lunch in a picnic basket, I knew exactly where I wanted to take her. We were on the couch in the living room, her head resting on my lap while I played with her hair. ‘Would you like to go for a walk?’ I linked Nikki and she sat up looking mildly confused before returning her head to my lap. I looked down into her eyes trying to contain a grin and linked again. ‘We could go for a walk this afternoon. It is still plenty early, I promise to have you back in time to get ready for dinner.’ She sat up quickly knocking her head into my nose and said, “You mind linked me didn’t you? Sorry, I didn’t mean to hit you in the nose.” I laughed rubbing my nose as if it actually hurt and said, “Always my Little Bee, going straight for the sting. Yes, I mind-linked you.” She blushed slightly while biting her lip, “How do I d
Nikki POV After lunch and our talk by the river we walked back to the Alpha Mansion. My mind is still reeling from the craziness of it all. I won’t lie, for a moment there I thought I had not only lost Frankie but the foothold I had over everything I had worked so hard to overcome. When he clarified that it wasn’t his parents' future home that was being built, but his and his future Luna’s home, I wanted to shrivel up and die. Not because a man defines me, because he doesn’t. I felt like everything I worked for had gone up in flames. Then he so fervently poured out his heart and soul to me, and I could have melted on the spot. If I wasn’t already completely gone over on this man, that would have pushed me over the edge. We aren’t telling anyone before the ball. Alpha Kieran and Luna Fran already know but that’s as far as it goes. I did ask Frankie if we could come up with a legitimate reason for Jonas and the twins to be at the ball and he suggested that we ask Luna Fran to have them
Frankie POV Driving home I am lost in my own thoughts while Nikki, Gideon, and Maisey carry on a conversation. Dinner was fantastic aside from the interruption from Lady Keegan. When she approached our table I subconsciously grabbed Nikki’s thigh. Nikki grounds me, reminds me of what I am fighting for and why. I am so pissed that I hurt her during the whole miserable fucking ordeal. I need to sit down with my dad and figure out how and when we are going to eliminate this problem. And when I say eliminate, it is going to be both Alpha Hollis and his daughter Lady Keegan. Both are worthless pieces of flesh and fur. After the bonfire tonight I will beg Nikki’s forgiveness for hurting her. I never ever want to harm her in any way, to harm her would be harming myself. Nikki has become the air I breathe and my purpose in life beyond my pack. I can see the gates to the territory up ahead and I mind-linked the guards that I knew were on duty to open the gates for my car and the one behind me
Mia POV I am not one hundred percent sure what Kendall means by public awaits, but I know I wouldn’t be dressed like this for any small event. So I eagerly placed my hand in his and followed Kendall to the back of the packhouse. When we stepped out of the back door we weren’t outside though. There was a dome that had been erected and decorated like a grand ballroom. The linens were deep burgundy and the table decor was greenery heavily trimmed in gold. The scene was absolutely breathtaking and my heart was so full, my chest could have burst right open. This had been done for me? But why? When a familiar voice came over the P.A. system, my head whipped in the direction of a small stage. “So, when I used to tease my sister about sending her far away to some evil Alpha, I never really thought about the fact that she might actually end up on the other side of the country mated to an Alpha that absolutely adores her. Phoenix Storm, may I present to you the guest of honor Luna Mia Rose De
Mia POV As Gabby drove me home I thought about Nikki and Frankie’s romantic evening ahead. I won’t lie, I am just a little jealous. Frankie is still attentive to Nikki, and I wish I could say the same was true for Kendall and I. Maybe I should try getting all dressed up and taunt Kendall with naughty suggestions. But sex doesn’t really seem to be our problem though, he’s been a little cold and closed off, he even has the mind-link blocked most of the time. Maybe I should go home for a visit. It has been a few weeks since I have seen mommy and daddy and I really haven’t gotten to know Eli’s mate Cadence. They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, so maybe if we spent a little time apart things will get better. There has to be something wrong with our bond, every couple I know can barely stand to be apart from one another. I was so deep into my own thoughts that I hadn't realized the Hummer had stopped. I was going to ask why we had stopped outside of the gates when I noticed a ba
Kendall POV Do you have any idea how hard it has been keeping a secret from Mia? It means I have had to keep my block up on the mate bond and keep mind-links to a minimum so that she doesn’t find out what I have been planning. The whole no Luna ceremony thing has really bothered me and I asked her again to consider it after I picked up the ring that I commissioned Simone to make. No go, she doesn’t need a celebration to know that the pack loves and accepts her. The thing is that pack members have asked when we will be celebrating their luna. They are so excited to finally have one and they want to shower her with affection. So while it is really a little late to have a luna ceremony because she is really their luna in every way possible, it’s never too late to just celebrate her. So the pack has been secretly planning a celebration for her. When she comes back from Cold Moon this afternoon she will hopefully be surprised. Once she cleared the gates this morning we started putting
Mia POV Everyone around here has been acting a little weird lately. No one seems to have time to talk and they are always in a hurry. Even Kendall seems distracted at times, I know we have a lot going on, but he has been so attentive from day one that it has me worried. Could our bond be broken or maybe just not as strong as everyone else’s seems to be? I really just don’t understand. I have decided that I am going to meet with Nikki and the rest of the girls at K&T this morning. I am in serious need of some girl time and a decent macchiato. I went to knock on Kendall’s office door and let him know I will be leaving for the day. “Come in,” he called out when I knocked. Gordon and Bertie were in the office with Kendall and it looks as though they are going over some sort of paperwork. I walked over and gave Kendall a kiss and said, “I am heading over to Cold Moon to have macchiatos with the girls, I will be back this afternoon. Kendall reached into his pocket and pulled out his keys
Kendall POV Things went so well meeting with the elders today and I couldn’t be happier. I realize that a name change isn’t much in reality, but I feel like it is one more step away from my father and all of his misdeeds and something that will have a positive effect on pack morale. I am curious as to what Frankie wants to speak with me about, perhaps it is just the formality of signing the alliance that we verbally agreed to back in Atlantic City. Now that we have decided on the name change, we can move forward with the fealty ceremony and that should be another step in the right direction in the healing process of the pack. If it were a financially viable option, I would have this pack house demolished and build a new one to destroy more of the bad memories. I have a little more than two hours before Frankie should arrive and I asked Anita and Letty to keep Mia distracted while I pay Simone a visit. Hopefully they have interpreted what I had in my head into another of their stun
Mia POV I am so proud of the progress that Kendall has made at sifting through the mess left behind by Hollis and the rogues. I can’t even call that vile man Kendall’s father and would never call him an Alpha. He was a disgrace to that title and his picture is next to the definition of evil in the dictionary. I don’t understand how any person can do half of the things he has done and still sleep at night. We discovered that Hollis had a lab set up in one of the warehouses, where he was testing the effects of some of the weapons he had been trafficking on different pack members who had angered him. Dr.Lynn from Cold Moon Pack came with an experimental cure that actually worked wonders in helping those who had been experimented on. She tried to explain that she used vampire blood to make some sort of protein fusion with the endoplasmic reticulum… I am definitely not science minded and it was all gibberish to me. It worked and that’s all that really matters, right? Apparently Holli
Kendall POV I honestly didn’t know what I expected to find sifting through the mess left behind by the rogues and my father’s Beta and Gamma. But the level of depravity was astounding. They took everything they could from my people and when I say everything, I do mean everything. They collected what they called ‘taxes’ but in all reality was just their greed. The more a pack member had the more they took and worse was the treatment of unmated females no matter their status. They had the packhouse running as a brothel and if a female wouldn’t submit to their whims… I just can’t even talk about it. Poor Cookie won’t tell me what she has been through and I won’t force it, but I know it had to have been bad. I accidentally knocked the broom onto the floor when I entered the kitchen and she went into complete hysterics. I had to call Dr. Lynn who came from the Cold Moon Pack hospital to sedate her. I spoke to the human authorities this morning and found that they would not allow me to
Mia POV After the battle was over, our injured and dead were transported off of the field. Kendall, my dad and I made our way to the Rip Claw packhouse. Kendall asked one of the omegas to get some fresh clothing and show my dad to the guest suite so he can shower and change. We stopped by Keegan’s room to find something for me to change into, then we made our way to Kendall’s room to shower and change. I wasn’t completely thrilled with wearing his psycho, dead sister’s clothes, but now is not the time to be picky. “How do you feel, Alpha?” I asked as we undressed quickly to get into the shower. “Relieved it’s over, if I am totally honest,” he sighed. “We freed our people and that is the important part,” I replied. “You said our people,” Kendall grinned. I looked down not knowing if I had misspoken and said, “Well, I hope they are our people anyway. You haven’t changed your mind have you?” He used a finger to lift my chin and his eyes sparkled with excitement. “Yes Luna, they are our
Kendall POV We spent the day in training yesterday and I have to say watching Mia was truly fascinating. She is remarkable both in hand to hand and in wolf form. Her movements were fierce yet graceful; she was no delicate little flower. I have said it before and I will likely say it many times more; She is my treasure, my perfect blessing from Selene. Today is the day and I wish I could say that I am ready for it but the truth is I have slept for crap these last two nights. Don’t get me wrong there is no love lost over killing my father. Quite the opposite actually. It has been two nights of the same thing on loop in my dreams, my father telling me I am worthless, I can’t do this, and he will always win. Today is the day I prove him wrong though once and for all. He may be dead, but he is still in my head and the sooner we free Rip Claw from the rogues and begin rebuilding, the better. There is so much riding on this that if I let my father’s words sway me, I would fail. Failure is