“My name is Ethan, the Alpha of the Desert Moon pack,” he says like it isn’t a big deal. He’s the Alpha of this pack? Hearing him say Alpha, I automatically think of Shane.
Thinking of him watching us here together like this scares me to my core. Is he watching us? Is he angry? Pulling my hands together, I fold my hands to try and stop the shaking.
Think Adea, think! What do I do? He takes a step towards me and without thinking I take a step back.
“Don’t be afraid of him Adea! He’s ours. The Goddess made him for us,” the voice whines, and I can see her mentally pacing.
I shake my head, “No, we don’t know him. This comfort we feel from him and this pull to him is all the mate bond!” Why can’t she see this? We can’t trust whatever this is.
My wolf whines in my head, “That’s not true!” I can feel her desperation like it were my own but I know that her feelings ar
*** Author's Note: !!!! TRIGGER WARNING: This chapter includes sexual violence that may not be suitable for some readers!!!! *** I take a deep breath and let out a long and steady breath. I look up at the moon and feel Korra looking with me. It's a beautiful full moon tonight, it lights up the garden, showing the beauty of the garden. I can't let myself get emotional right now. We still need to go in and act like everything's fine. "We can explain everything to our friends tonight in the room," Korra reassures me. "I was dormant but I was by your side since you were young. I couldn't say anything or talk to you... but I've always been here." Dabbing at my tears, careful not to ruin Nikki's masterpiece. I laugh, "We can't let her see us looking a mess." I pull myself together and look at the water fountain. Lifting my chin, I square my shoulders and steel my resolve to head in. That's when I see it, with the moon shining so bright
Someone steps in front of me, blocking my view, his eyes are filled with concern. A warm jacket drops around my shoulders. A shiver runs down my back when he embraces me but I don't feel scared. I jump when a low growl snaps me out of it. Thoughts of what almost happened to me keep replaying in my head cause my throat to constrict. I'm gasping for breath when a soothing voice tells me I'm okay. His hand slowly pats my back and his other hand holds my hair until my breathing slows.He pulls down my dress and dabs at my tears. I can hear a loud thud followed by another. Soon the thud makes a crunching noise. "Give me my mate," my savior says in a low voice. "With all due respect, Alpha, I think my friend needs tending to. Her girlfriends and I will take her to her room, while you clean yourself up." The voice belongs to Gabe and I lean into his embrace. "She's like my little sister and I think your appearance right now would scare her,"
When I wake I'm in my room, there's a heaviness pressing me into the bed. Opening my eyes, the curtains are closed and the room is dim. I search for the object that woke me up when I see a muscular tan leg on my stomach. His waist is covered by a thin white sheet and his chest is right next to my face. His arm is wrapped around my chest and I'm breathless as my eyes take in the sight in front of me. There's a man in my bed! My eyes trail the length of his exposed ripped torso up to his chest and broad shoulders. My eyes zoom in on his tattoo and I have to suppress the urge to trace it with my fingers. His chest rises and falls with each breath he takes. Looking up, I see a chiseled chin and let my eyes take in his face. Ethan's hair is messy, his lips look soft and inviting. Before I can examine him a little more his eyes snap open and he locks eyes with me. Closing his eyes again, his lips turn up in a small smile.&
Adea His hand is on my waist as we walk down the hall. Little tingles shooting up my side where his hand rests. Gabe’s door opens before we get to the elevator. When he steps out, I notice he looks tired, like he hasn’t slept all night. He walks over to me and gives me one of his big bear hugs. “You okay?” “Y-” I’m cut off by a low menacing growl. Gabe and I both look behind me to see Ethan glaring at Gabe’s arms around me. Gabe’s eyes widen in understanding and he lifts his hands in the air. Inhaling, Ethan cracks his neck, before closing his eyes. “I’ve just found my mate and we have little restraint when it comes to … unmated males touching what is ours.” Opening his eyes, Ethan presses the button on the elevator. “I understand, Alpha,” Gabe says with a bow. Ethan gets into the eleva
The drive home passes by in a blur as I watched the treeless hills rush by. When we get back to the packhouse, Korra is itching to touch Ethan and I can feel it through our link. “I’ve got a few issues to deal with, little one. Otherwise, I would stay with you,” Ethan says looking a little down. “Okay… Ethan. I’m just going to go up to my room.” He lets out a little growl and grabs my hand and pulls me in for a hug. Breathing in his smell as the tingles shoot up my arms. Korra purrs enjoying his embrace. “Hug him back!” She whines and her big white head drops to the ground. “You do things to me,” he murmurs in my ear. His breath sending shivers down my spine. Yummy shivers. Ethan’s chest is pressed against my face and I’m so close to leaning into his embrace. “Give me your phone,” he says as he moves back and I let out a breath I didn’
Odis Friendship is what kept me here, Ethan has never told me to stay but I’ve always known that he needs me. I’ve always loved him like a brother, sometimes I wondered what made me feel this way. Deep down, I already knew. It was this friendship, this family that I found here at Desert Moon that kept me here. Ethan and I grew up the same way. Always alone, taking the grunt of life. When he rose up and took over, I knew I had nowhere else to be than by his side. When he first started bedding women, I knew his wolf wasn’t happy. I knew Alpha Ethan wasn’t happy about it but he would never say it. He says they were just nameless faces used to scratch an itch… Alpha has … particular tastes and I know he wasn’t sure that his mate would be someone who could take what he had to give. I know he says he doesn’t want a mate and that she would just be used to strengthen the pack but I know that he wants a mate.
Adea I’m standing holding the door open staring at the Beta. Did I hear him right? Korra squeals and bounces around my mind. “Why would I pack?” This can’t be right. He walks in and scans the room finding Gabe and Nikki on my bed. “I have orders to take you to your new room,” Odis says politely. He’s wearing a dark grey suit and it looks nice but out of place. It’s the weekend and he’s wearing a suit. Focus Adea, he’s making you move rooms, now is not the time to be wondering why he’s wearing a suit. “Where are you taking her?” Nikki asks Odis. Her eyes are red from crying. “Alpha Ethan wants her to move to her new room. Since she won’t be going back, she will be staying here. This room is for guests.” I look at Gabe and his expression is calm like he knew this was going to happen. “I’ll help Ady,” he says standing up.
A smile spreads across Olivia’s face and her glowing eyes look past me locked on Gabe. Her eyes trail down his body and slowly drag up to his face. Looking back at Gabe I see a look of utter shock in his eyes. His crooked smile is nowhere to be found and he’s surprisingly quiet and doesn’t move. Olivia stands up and glides over to Gabe hesitantly. Her head cocks to the right as she stares up at him curiously. Gabe blinks and I think realization finally dawns on him because in a flash he’s got Olivia pinned up against the opposite wall. He’s got her body pinned against his own and her hands up above her head. He leans his head down to her neck and inhales deeply. Olivia offers him her neck and Gabe’s tongue comes out and licks up her neck. At that moment a cough behind us has us turning around. Alpha Ethan is standing in the doorway looking at the scene in front of us. I look over to Odis and see a look on his
The first month back at Desert Moon had been hard. Not a day went by without us fighting. Ethan rejected Mavy as his mate before we came home. A part of me knew he was hurt about it, missed her like I missed Shane. I felt like he was only with me because I was his Luna, because of obligation and duty. I didn’t know why he wanted to be with me. He didn’t know why I was with him when I loved Shane. We were at our lowest. We were ugly, we were at our rawest. It wasn’t until month two that we finally talked about everything. We talked bout what happened and we talked about the past. The one that I remembered and by this time, the one that he remembered. It was hard, facing the man I loved in this life and the man I hated in the past. He wasn’t him anymore, he hadn’t been him for a long time. We dug into the past and were completely honest with each other. He fell to his knees and apologized for what he’d done even though I told him it wasn’t him, that wasn’t him anymore. He asked me if I
Mavy fell back as if she’d been physically struck. She collapsed on the couch, her eyes watering. She didn’t look back at me, she kept her gaze focused on Ethan. I watched as her world crashed around her again for the second time in five minutes.“Where does that leave me?” Mavy asked. “I’m… your…” she shook her head and turned to look back at Ethan. “That’s not possible. I’m… I can smell it. I can feel it. Can’t you?” Mavy whispered. I heard the desperation in her voice.“I don’t care what you think or how you feel. I am already mated and my mate, my partner, my love, MY QUEEN sits in this room. Don’t disrespect her again.” The emotion in his voice caused me to choke up. Mavy bit into her lower lip and tears streamed down her cheeks. She dropped her head.“Yes, Alpha,” she said submissively.“I killed your Alpha,” Ethan said. “I’ve killed your brother.”“Yes,” she murmured.“Will you fight me on this?” Ethan asked.“As the next in line, I submit to you,” Mavy whispered.Ethan dismiss
The voices were getting louder, my head was hurting. I wanted to roll up into a ball and disappear from the world. Instead, I closed my eyes and tried to drown it all out, trying to ignore everyone. I wasn’t ready to deal with it.“She’s in shock…”“She’s confused…”“Enough!”A door slammed and footsteps paddled quickly towards me. Soft frail arms wrapped around me. Tears soaked my cheeks and my neck as Mavy cried. Did she know? She had to know.“Are you okay?” Mavy sobbed.I wrapped my arms around her and nodded. The tears started up again and streamed down my cheeks. Her t-shirt bunched in my fingers as I held her close. We cried and held each other.She inhaled deeply and froze. Slowly, she lifted her nose into the air and took another deep breath. Turning from me, she tried to follow the scent. She stopped, her gaze locked on someone, I turned and followed her gaze.I should have known, expected it but I’d been so caught up in my feelings that I didn’t think. I don’t know how it w
I didn’t have an answer for him and I don’t think he would have liked what I would have said. Hell, I didn’t know if I liked what I thought or how I felt. Instead of hurting him and cutting myself open for him, I didn’t say anything. I remained quiet. My world was crashing around me and my ears were ringing. I lowered my head and the tears flowed of their own volition.Ethan leaned down and I flinched as his arms wrapped around me. They were strong and broad. His embrace was warm and promised I could lean on him. I attempted to get to my feet only to fall. My face twisted from the pain and I wanted to cry and wallow in my own self-pity. Standing, he pulled me up and held me as my body gave up. I collapsed against him.I wanted to get to Shane, needed to. As if on cue, the weak mate bond snapped, and just like in my dream, it was gone. Only, this time, the pain I was feeling was because of Shane and not because of Ethan. The world was cold, the warmth I’d been able to feel from Shane f
Did what I do to him last night not bother him? I betrayed him. Did he not care that I came here to hurt him? Did he not care that I chose Ethan? I wanted to cry and scream. I wanted to run into his arms. I wanted this to stop. I wanted them to stop fighting. I wanted it all to stop. I screamed, it was painful and gut-wrenching but I screamed. I cursed the Goddess, damn her, she was useless in all of this. She sat up there above the clouds and did nothing to help us. Did she enjoy watching us suffer? When I couldn’t scream anymore, I inhaled deep breaths of air. I looked up and froze as Shane stared back at me. The way he looked at me told me he knew he was going to die. The look in his eye told me he knew he lost but for me, there was a small spark as if he wouldn’t just lay down and take it. I watched Ethan punch him. It was as if he was moving in slow motion. He hit his jaw and Shane’s head snapped back hard against the ground. Shane’s body tensed and he punched Ethan in the gut.
For a moment in time, they stood glaring at each other. The sun was blaring down on us. My gaze darted back and forth between the two. Shane’s eyes wandered away from Ethan and landed on me. “Look at me, mutt. You don’t get to look at her after what you’ve done,” Ethan spat. “I’m not so weak that you can look away from me in the middle of a fight.” “What have I done?” Shane taunted. “You’ve touched what’s mine,” Ethan growled. “I haven’t done anything other than touch what is mine. I haven’t done anything but make love to what is mine. I’ve claimed her. She may not wear my mark, thief but she is mine. Don’t claim her as yours. She was mine, she was always mine. She doesn’t belong to you, she never did.” A look came over Ethan’s face as if he knew as if this was confirmation as if he was reminded of something he’d forgotten. “You’re the one who touched someone who wasn’t yours. You are the one who took what was mine. Don’t try to play the victim. Don’t pretend to be something you’re
No.Not Odis.“Devin,” I gasped.Devin heard me but didn’t stop. He didn’t look up at me, didn’t even hesitate as he continued to stomp Odis into the ground. Blood spurt from Odis’ mouth and I think I heard his ribs crack. I took a step closer to stop it, to stop him. In a flash, someone was on top of Devin. Strong arms held Devin’s prisoner in a headlock and his legs wrapped around Devin’s abdomen.I wanted to scream but it quickly died in my throat as Odis and I realized the man in front of me was Gabe. Gabe. It was Gabe and he was on top of Devin. Well, he was wrapped around him like a python ready to suffocate his prey. Gabe grunted as he continued to squeeze Devin’s head, blocking his airflow.I wanted to cry out happily but I couldn’t. Gabe was here. Why was he here? He wasn’t supposed to be here. Things were going differently since he was alive. He was standing, breathing, his head was still attached to his body. Maybe things were turning out differently.Maybe Gabe was safe, ma
“Do you understand what I’m saying?” Odis asked. I couldn’t find the words to speak, so I nodded. “Good,” Odis said as his grip on me loosened. “Why don’t you let her go?” A voice called out to us. Looking up, I searched for the source of the voice. My eyes widened as I found Devin watching up. His gaze locked around Odis’ arms that were still wrapped around me to his hands that gripped my arms. “I promise I’m more fun,” Devin teased. I know what it looked like. It looked like I was being held back from moving. It looked like Odis was stopping me from helping Shane. It looked like I was stuck between two packs, two men. The situation I found myself in was precarious. I was now stuck between two Betas who were supposed to protect me, despite their conflicting thoughts regarding me. I hadn’t had much time with Devin since I’d been back. He hadn’t been the nicest, shit, I don’t think he even liked me. That didn’t change the fact that Devin was Beta of Half Moon pack. Shane was his
I didn’t have an answer and I prayed I didn’t have to make the choice. Not only had everyone stopped moving but it had gone deathly silent. For a moment, everyone and everything froze. There wasn’t a whisper of wind in the air, the trees stood still, and it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. It was the calm before the storm. It felt like someone had pushed the pause button and all at once the play button was pressed and all hell broke loose. As if planned, the two of them ran toward each other. I looked past Ethan and my gaze landed on Shane’s chest. The sword had been taken out, a gaping hole was left in its place right next to his heart. Now that it was gone, I could see I had barely missed his heart. If I’d been one inch to the right, he would have died. How had I missed that? I didn’t kill him. Was I not paying attention? Why hadn’t I looked at his heart? I had aimed, hadn’t I? Had I meant to miss it? No, I had meant it, or else I wouldn’t have stabbed him at all. I tried to